Pay No Attention

Pay no attention to that curtain.

Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain.

Pay no attention to that network of conditioning behind the man.

Pay no attention to that consciousness behind the network of conditioning.

Pay no attention to that boundless emptiness behind the consciousness.

Pay no attention to that Supreme Godhead behind the emptiness.

Pay no attention to that mirror behind the Supreme Godhead.

Don’t pull that thread.

Don’t open that can of worms.

Don’t follow that Yellow Brick Road.

For if you do,

the whole game will be spoiled.

All your drama and conflict.

All your passions and projects.

All your beliefs and identities.

This whole Broadway play you have staged for yourself

will be tossed out the window and forgotten

with all the reverence and ceremoniousness

of a wad of chewing gum flicked onto the freeway

as you remember what you really are,

what you have always been.

You try to please your parents,

then you learn that’s an impossible endeavor.

You try to fill the parents-shaped hole in your heart,

then you learn it will never be filled.

You chase after wealth,

then you learn it will never be enough.

You chase achievements and impressive experiences,

then you learn they will never satisfy.

You chase after God,

then God starts chasing you.

You storm the gates of Heaven,

finally done with all this nonsense,

ready to become a Fully Realized Buddha™️,

then the one doing the storming

turns out to be a character in a video game

being played on a beautiful summer day

by a child with popsicle-stained lips

who simply sets down the controller,

gets up,

and walks outside.

https://medium.com/@caityjohnstone/pay-no-attention-f20169b9cf3e

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