Our minds and hearts do not stay bright, beautiful, and effulgent, like a perfect spring day.

The mind inflicts trouble upon itself, and becomes dull, without light.

It is capable of mistaking the unreal for the real; and the real for the unreal.

So, when you are feeling confused, the fact is that you are just harassing yourself.

The long, slender body of a snake, which may look elegant and graceful, is in fact hindering its own movement.

In the same way, thoughts in the mind bog down the physical body.

If we do not straighten them out somehow, they will eventually tangle up into a dead knot.

One day, however, this jumble of entanglement may come into contact with the Buddha Dharma, and like a sharp sword, the Dharma will cut this mess asunder.

Thus, the dead knot will be no more.