The Mind

As the fletcher whittles

And makes straight his arrows,

So the master directs

His straying thoughts.

Like a fish out of water,

Stranded on the shore,

Thoughts thrash and quiver.

For how can they shake off desire?

They tremble, they are unsteady,

They wander at their will.

It is good to control them,

And to master them brings happiness.

But how subtle they are,

How elusive!

The task is to quit them,

And by ruling them to find happiness.

With single-mindedness

The master quells his thoughts,

He ends their wandering,

Seated in the cave of the heart,

He finds freedom.

How can a troubled mind

Understand the way?

If a man is disturbed

He will never be filled with knowledge.

An untroubled mind,

No longer seeking to consider

What is right and what is wrong,

A mind beyond judgements,

Watches and understands.

Know that the body is a fragile jar,

And make a castle of your mind.

In every trial

Let understanding fight for you

To defend what you have won.

For soon the body is discarded.

Then what does it feel?

A useless log of wood, it lies on the ground.

Then what does it know?

Your worst enemy cannot harm you

As much as your own thoughts, unguarded.

But once mastered,

No one can help you as much,

Not even your father or your mother.

-The Buddha

from

धम्मपद (Dhammapada)

~4th or 5th century BC