December 10, 2018
Venerable Wuling in Attachments

Do we really need all this baggage? 

“Goodness, these bags are heavy!

And there’s so many of them, how will we ever keep track of them all? Plus, just look at them, they’re all mismatched. Some look ancient and tattered, really old and dusty.” Looking inside one, we see old images of unknown people, faded documents with unpronounceable names, strange-looking clothes, books in languages we can’t read, and more.

Then we look in another. Then another. What a jumble of stuff.

After a few more bags, we realize that the contents are totally unimportant things. We don’t need them. They are useless and can be discarded. And with that, we close our bags and walk away, leaving them behind to vanish. Unencumbered, we feel lighter than we can ever recall feeling. As we were told, when our mind opens up, we will realize there is no longer a need for all the baggage we have accumulated over uncountable lifetimes. We can discard it all.

And having done so, we will naturally let go and feel joy physically and mentally.

Article originally appeared on a buddhist perspective (http://www.abuddhistperspective.org/).
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