A Mind Like Earth (2016, extract)

"Remember that when you’re reacting strongly to something outside, or even just reacting to little things that come in throughout the course of the day, it’s not that they’re moving in on you. You’re going out and feeding on them.

The earth doesn’t feed. The earth just notices and stays solid. When the breath energy in the body is solid, it helps give you that quality of mind that’s like earth. Again, this doesn’t mean you sit there and just take whatever comes. But you’re in a much better position to see what really needs to be dealt with and what doesn’t, which issues are important and which are not.

In particular, you get to see your own mind in action. Because there will be parts of the mind that are still not like earth, and they’ll want to react. But if you can side with the earth side of the mind, you can see those reactions for what they are. See how they’re a waste of energy; see how they muddy up your thinking, muddy up your powers of observation.

So when the Buddha talks about patience and equanimity, understand what he means. You’re not a clod of earth, but you’re solid like earth. Once you make that distinction, it clears up a lot of issues. And once you follow it through, it clears up even more."

~ Thanissaro Bhikkhu "A Mind Like Earth (2016)"

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