The Fork in the Road
We see the fork in the road as a choice between one path and another and enter a conundrum of needing to choose. Making this type of choice is splitting the Dharma – as though one Way is better than another Way. Making a decision is not about one Way as compared to another Way – the fork in the road is a mirage – an artificial division. Comparative thinking is discouraged.
Making a decision is about the attitude of ourselves. Indecisiveness clouds the mind with uncertainty and is a tentative approach to our true nature. We get caught between one thing and another which leads to wandering in the mind’s mental formations.
We are stronger when we use our power to decide – as one would strike when the iron is hot. This proverb alludes to a blacksmith heating a piece of iron in order to shape it into a useful tool. The blacksmith, however, recognizes that when the iron is hot is the time to strike and shape the iron. He knows his trade and does not hesitate to strike.
We need to know our direction in such a way that we decide to strike without hesitation. We throw away what is not useful to awakening and concentrate on what is. Unselfishness, also known as nothing in it for me, is the shape we seek to shape.
The Sieve
If we discover our mind to be a sieve, we need to decide to change. When the mind is a sieve, it loses vitality and vigor which leads to despair, depression, and confusion. A restless scattered mind is a mind of a sieve. Sloth and torpor take over. Wanting, hating and doubt follow.
Indecisive and Leaking
If you find your condition to be indecisive, you may want to study the Only Half In essay.
We stop and are stopped by our indecisiveness. This place often shows up in our mental formations as a block or a setback or an impossible choice. We get stalled by too many choices. Multiple choices are a form of the poison of greed.
What starts out as a choice becomes a pit. Grocery stores, especially large grocery stores, are an everyday challenge of making a choice. The selection is too much, overwhelming the mind.
We must use our power to decide. We must use our decision to concentrate on our choice. We must decide to head in the direction of nothing in it for ME!
www.asinglethread.net - www.zatma.org