A Blade of Grass...

by Jerome Dechant
May 14, 2012

Beginner's Mind:

The beginner's mind is open to learning, realizing that we don't know everything yet, and we can always learn more, regardless of how much we think we already know. The beginner's mind is excited and energetic about the learning opportunities that present themselves to us to know and understand what we don't know and understand yet.

The beginner's mind is sort of like a blade of tall grass being blown in the wind; it is pliable, flexible and readily bends to the forces which are applied to it without being damaged. It also springs back to it's natural state once the force of the wind has passed.

The steadfast mind is like a stick which is not pliable and therefore when forces are applied to it, it does not bend, but rather breaks. It does not spring back to it's natural unbroken state once the force of the wind has passed which means It can not recover it's natural state of unbrokenness.

This is a lesson for those who are steadfast of mind, who are not willing to bend, to be flexible, who think they know everything and are 100% certain of that which they think they know is the absolute truth. With such rigidity, when pressure is applied to them, to get them to bend to the possibility they really don't know it all, pressure to realize they are not well founded in understanding the absolute truth, they will certainly break or at the very least sustain damage because of their resistance and their rigidity.

In other words, if we think we are 100% certain of anything, we are embodying the stick attitude. We are closed to the possibility that there is anything else to know and understand. This means when a greater understanding and truth is pressed upon us, we stand firm in our already established certainty, and adhere to what we have 100% certainty about, which causes us to break due to the natural forces higher truth exerts upon us.

When we aren't sure whether what we know is all there is to know, and/or is 100% true, we are embodying the blade of grass attitude. When a greater understanding presents itself to us, we bend to its force and easily consider its value to us and thereby grow in our understanding and knowledge. We live another day to bend to greater understandings and learn more. We thrive in the winds of time and change because of our flexibility, openess and acceptance.

The beginner's mind holds a sense of wonder and adventure to discover what's out there, to "Boldly go where no one has gone before..."