A. A great book is one thing and reading it well is another. No matter how great a book may be, it cannot be a good book for you if you don’t appreciate its meaning. When ancient masters said that we shouldn’t read books, they didn’t mean that we should not read books but meant that we should not be deluded by words.
Misreading a great book, being deluded by words is like worsening your illness by misusing the best medicine from the best doctor. For example, putting oral medication for eye disease in your eyes will be more harmful than helpful for your eyes. Just as the best medicine, if misused, can be rather harmful for you, so the best book, when misread, can be obstructive to your practice. More often than not, the phrases, or paragraphs known to be helpful for attaining enlightenment lead you to go in the opposite direction from your goal. It is not the phrases or paragraphs but you that are to blame for it.
©Boo Ahm
All writing ©Boo Ahm. All images ©Simon Hathaway
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