Ably self-restrained
are the wise,
in action, in thought
and in speech.
Dhammapada v. 234
Restraint with awareness brings increased energy. Restraint motivated by fear depletes energy. Deluded ego's way of meeting life is to try and control everything.
It believes that without control things will fall apart; a totally enervating way of living. However, so long as ego still believes it is the main player in this drama we will struggle painfully. Even though we feel we have faith in the Triple Gem, we regularly default to our old ways of manipulating body, speech and mind. We fail to trust that true principles can guide us. This is because the momentum of 'my way' is untamed. But if our insight in practice has produced enough wholesome doubt to start to undermine this false conviction, it is a good thing. Now the work is to carefully question the apparent validity of 'my way'. We can trust in this kind of doubt. It can help free us from the hallucination of self-importance.With Metta,
Bhikkhu Munindo
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