You can roll a barrel only when you are outside of the barrel. When you are caught by fixed ideas, it is as if you are trapped inside of a barrel, so you cannot freely use your mind. If you escape from fixed ideas, you will see that all of the thoughts and perspectives that you considered so precious are utterly ridiculous. Mind is formless and can go anywhere in the universe, so if you give rise to thoughts in a wise and all-embracing manner, you can escape from the barrel, from bondage, and from the prison that has no bars. How can you freely use your mind unless you first step outside of your own fixed ideas?–Daehaeng Sunim, No River to Cross: Trusting the Enlightenment That’s Always Right Here (Wisdom, 2007), 42
2 Replies to “Trapped in a barrel?”
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Why, yes I am, thanks for pointing it out.
And seriously – that was beautiful, thanks for sharing those images.
Zen has great insight and wisdom. This quote which was sent to me by a Zen friend just begged to be shared. Too often I am in the barrel. Zen invites me and us to stop long enough to climb out of the barrel. 🙂 Don