The Secret To Equanimity
There was once a hurricane that decimated a seaside town. Buildings lay collapsed. Cars lay toppled on their side. And trees lay fallen with their roots fully exposed.There was a woman who had lived in this town for thirty years.
The cruelty of the hurricane was something that greatly troubled her and she felt that she truly needed to know why this had happened. Was it fate? Was it chance?
In a fit of rage, she got into her car and chased after the hurricane. As she got closer to it, the sound frightened her. But something inside of her made her push forward.
As she reached close to the hurricane, she stood outside of her car and with her clothes rippling and her hair thrown back by the wind, she screamed at the hurricane. With all her might she asked the hurricane why it was doing this.The hurricane noticed this brave woman. It heard the woman’s questions. And out of a sense of pity, it agreed to answer her questions.
The woman said, “Please tell me why you are doing this. These nice people haven’t done anything to you. Why do you destroy their lives?” .The hurricane said, “Madame, it is not my wish to destroy anyone’s life.”The woman said, “But look at what you’ve done. There is havoc everywhere. And it is all caused by you.”The hurricane turned and saw the destruction it had caused in its wake. It then turned and said, “Madame, it seems you are right. But this is not my plan.”
The woman said, “What do you mean?”
The hurricane said, “Madame, I have been created by nature to twirl and blow. Once the conditions are a certain way, I come into being and I blow and I twirl with all my might. It is not something I can stop or control. I do see the destruction I have caused and I am very saddened by it. Perhaps you can help me.”
The woman said, “How can I possibly help you?”
The hurricane said, “Madame, I tend to blow in certain regions of the planet, where the land is just so. I tend to occur in certain seasons, when the atmosphere is just so. As nature has not invested me with the ability to control myself, perhaps you could build your houses and your towns where the land is not so ripe for my development. Perhaps you could please stay out of my way.”
Whether it is the mind, or life, or nature, it has its own particular momentum that nature invested it with. It rolls at a certain speed. And it was not programmed to pause, stop, or slow down. Our problems do not arise because of the mind, or life, or nature. Our problems arise when we stand in its way.
Because we are taught to control things, we become controlled by them.And in attempting to control such intrinsically natural things, we stand in their way. And when we stand in their way, we suffer their blows. And when we suffer their blows, we feel that we have been assaulted. We feel that these things have Sought Us Ought.But is it really they who have sought us out? Or is it we that have sought them out?The nature of the mind, of life, and of nature is simply To Blow.
And our greatest wisdom lies in standing to the side and letting them blow.If we understand that all things in nature, including the mind, are uncontrollably natural, then we will not suffer their torment.For if we allow them to be as nature intended for them, perhaps we ourselves can become as nature intended for us.
