AND THE BUDDHA SAID:

The Mind - The flickering, fickle mind, difficult to guard, difficult to control, the wise man straightens, as a fletcher, an arrow. Like a fish drawn from its watery abode and thrown upon land, even so does the mind flutter. Hence should the realm of Mâra be shunned. Good is it to control the mind which is hard to check and swift, and flits wherever it desires. A subdued mind is conducive to happiness. Hard to perceive and extremely subtle is the mind, it roams wherever it desires. Let the wise man guard it; a guarded mind is conducive to happiness. Faring afar, solitary, bodiless, lying in a cave, is the mind. Those who subdue it are freed from the bond of Mara. He whose mind is inconstant, he who knows not the true doctrine, he whose confidence wavers - the wisdom of such a one is never fulfilled. He who is vigilant, he whose mind is not overcome by lust and hatred, he who has discarded both good and evil for such a one there is no fear. Realizing that this body is fragile as a pot and establishing his mind as firm as a fortified city, he should attack Mara with the weapon of wisdom. He should guard his conquest and afford no rest to Mara. Soon, alas will this body lie upon the ground, unheeded, de- void of consciousness, even as a useless log. Whatever harm a foe may do to a foe, or a hater to a hater, an ill-directed mind can harm one even more. What neither mother, nor father, nor any other relative can do, a well-directed mind does and thereby elevates one.

Preference - He who applies himself to what is not really an appropriate subject for application, and fails to apply himself to what is, missing the real purpose to grasp after what appeals to him, may well envy the man who does apply himself. Never have anything to do with likes and dislikes. The absence of what one likes is painful, as is the presence of what one dislikes. Therefore, don't take a liking to anything. To lose what one likes is hard, but there are no bonds for those who have no likes and dislikes. From preference arises sorrow, from preference arises fear, but he who is freed from preference has no sorrow and certainly no fear. From affection arises sorrow, from affection arises fear, but he who is freed from affection has no sorrow and certainly no fear. From plea- sure arises sorrow, from pleasure arises fear, but he who is freed from pleasure has no sorrow and certainly no fear. From sensuality arises sorrow, from sensuality arises fear, but he who is freed from sensuality has no sorrow and certainly no fear. From craving arises sorrow, from craving arises fear, but he who is freed from craving has no sorrow and certainly no fear. Well may people hold dear the man who is endowed with morality and in- sight, who is well established in righteousness, a seer of the truth, and applying himself to his own business. He whose longing has been aroused for the indescribable, whose mind has been quickened by it, and whose thought is not attached to sensuality is truly called one who is bound upstream. When a man who has been away a long time at last comes home safely from far away, his family, friends and acquaintances rejoice to see him back. In the same way, when a man who has done good goes from this world to the next, his good deeds receive him like relations welcoming a loved one back again.