..续本文上一页ou have to become fed up with both your dislike and your likes, your suffering and your happiness.

　　You don”t see that this is the very essence of the Dhamma! The Dhamma of the Buddha is profound and refined. It isn”t easy to comprehend. If true wisdom has not yet arisen, then you can”t see it. You don”t look forward and you don”t look back. When you experience happiness, you think that there will only be happiness. Whenever there is suffering, you think that there will only be suffering. You don”t see that wherever there is big, there is small; wherever there is small, there is big. You don”t see it that way. You see only one side and thus it”s never-ending.

　　There are two sides to everything; you must see both sides. Then, when happiness arises, you don”t get lost; when suffering arises, you don”t get lost. When happiness arises, you don”t forget the suffering, because you see that they are interdependent.

　　In a similar way, food is beneficial to all beings for the maintenance of the body. But actually, food can also be harmful, for example when it causes various stomach upsets. When you see the advantages of something, you must perceive the disadvantages also, and vice versa. When you feel hatred and aversion, you should contemplate love and understanding. In this way, you become more balanced and your mind becomes more settled.

　　The Empty Flag

　　I once read a book about Zen. In Zen, you know, they don”t teach with a lot of explanation. For instance, if a monk is falling asleep during meditation, they come with a stick and "whack!" they give him a hit on the back. When the erring disciple is hit, he shows his gratitude by thanking the attendant. In Zen practice one is taught to be thankful for all the feelings which give one the opportunity to develop.

　　One day there was an assembly of monks gathered for a meeting. Outside the hall a flag was blowing in the wind. There arose a dispute between two monks as to how the flag was actually blowing in the wind. One of the monks claimed that it was because of the wind while the other argued that it was because of the flag. Thus they quarrelled because of their narrow views and couldn”t come to any kind of agreement. They would have argued like this until the day they died. However, their Teacher intervened and said, "Neither of you is right. The correct understanding is that there is no flag and there is no wind."

　　This is the practice, not to have anything, not to have the flag and not to have the wind. If there is a flag, then there is a wind; if there is a wind, then there is a flag. You should contemplate and reflect on this thoroughly until you see in accordance with Truth. If considered well, then there will remain nothing. It”s empty -- void; empty of the flag and empty of the wind. In the great Void there is no flag and there is no wind. There is no birth, no old age, no sickness or death. Our conventional understanding of flag and wind is only a concept. In reality there is nothing. That”s all! There is nothing more than empty labels.

　　If we practice in this way, we will come to see completeness and all of our problems will come to an end. In the great Void the King of Death will never find you. There is nothing for old age, sickness and death to follow. When we see and understand in accordance with Truth, that is, with Right Understanding, then there is only this great emptiness. It”s here that there is no more "we," no "they," no "self" at all.

　　The Forest of the Senses

　　The world with its never-ending ways goes on and on. If we try to understand it all, it leads us only to chaos and confusion. However, if we contemplate the world clearly, then true wisdom will arise. The Buddha Himself was one who was well-versed in the ways of the world. He had great ability t…

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