Carrying Nothing
Anytime, anyplace you must not forget your true direction. Why do you eat every day? When you are born, where do you come from? When you die, where do you go? "Coming empty-handed, going empty-handed — that is human." Everybody comes into this world carrying nothing. Everybody leaves for some place, also carrying nothing. We cannot take anything with us. And yet in between, everyone wants things, everybody chases things, and everybody is attached to things very much. But when you are born, everything is already set. Your karma in this life has already been determined by the karma you made in your previous life. You cannot do anything. But there is one way to change this. If you can control your mind from moment to moment, then it is possible to change your life and prevent your life from being the automatic product of your karma. So you should focus your energy on how you keep your mind, right now: When moving, standing, sitting, lying down, talking being silent, moving, or dwelling in complete stillness — anyplace, anytime — how do you keep your mind? Outside conditions and outside situations constantly take your mind and pull it around and around and around. It is possible to find your true nature in the middle of all of this coming and going, in the middle of your everyday activities. The name for this is keeping a not-moving mind.