From the
Stone Tarot, the Ten of Swords; from the
Buddhist Quote Cards,
Dhammapada 24:348 :
Ten swords protrude from a mound against a dark background. I've been in this place before, trying to deal with a situation or problem that wouldn't budge. I've pulled out every bit of knowledge and applied every strategy to no avail. No matter how deeply I buried my swords, they failed to produce any positive effect. It left me feeling powerless and inept, yet it also softened my stance on handling things the way I believed they should be done. However, though I might be more open to hear suggestions from other people, I must be careful to pour them into a clean pot; a dirty one, crusted over with my opinions and beliefs, is really still a closed mind. The
Dhammapada quote reads:
Let go of the past, let go of the future, let go of the present.
I would expect the Buddha to advise "stay in the present," but his teaching here is more about what we cling to. Whatever is pleasant and beneficial to us, we want to hold on to forever. When it changes, we suffer. Buddha advises enjoying what we have while embracing the knowledge that everything is transient. Even the ideas and beliefs that have served me well in the past may become ineffective. I can keep poking that mound or choose to be open to other concepts.
