One day a student came to a teacher, upset. “Someone was rude to me,” she said, “and now I feel angry all day.” The teacher pointed to a still pond. “Throw a stone in,” he said. The student did, and the water churned and rippled.
“Now make the ripples stop with your hands,” the teacher said. The student splashed and pushed, but the water only grew wilder. So she stopped and waited. Slowly, on its own, the pond became calm and clear again.
“Your feelings are the ripples,” the teacher said. “You cannot control whether the stone is thrown — but you do not have to splash. Observe, accept, and let go, and your heart returns to stillness.” This balanced, unshaken heart is Upekkhā — equanimity. We cannot control every stone, but we can always control our attitude, our words, and our actions: our Circle of Control.
Check your understanding
- What do the ripples in the pond stand for? 池塘的漣漪代表什麼？
- Why did splashing make the water worse? 為什麼用力撥水反而更亂？
- Name one thing inside your Circle of Control today. 說出今天你「控制圈」裡的一件事。