Each and every day, one is occupied with observing one’s own body and one’s own mind — the emotions that rise and fall in response to heat and cold, to hunger and thirst, and to the pressure of physical discomfort, whether heavy or slight. That alone is enough to fill one’s time. Yet it is precisely there that the capacity for keen observation is to be found and cultivated.
Observing outward things will never yield clarity. Observe inwardly instead — and you will not go astray. When you have learned to observe yourself well, you will be well able to govern your own emotions.
Look deeply at yourself, and you will come to understand every person in the world. Do not attempt to understand all the people in the world directly — it is a waste of time, for it cannot be done. Instead, strive to understand yourself in thorough detail, from every angle — and understanding of all people in the world will follow naturally and of itself. For they are, in essence, no different from you.
June 23rd, 2015
