Catching Bubbles

Imagine a child trying to catch a soap bubble. After playing with bubbles for a short time, the child learns their nature. He understands that they are insubstantial and gives up trying to catch them. He understands the nature of bubbles without thinking about it. He doesn't say to himself, "I understand. These bubbles have no permanent nature." Just watching and playing with them, the child understands and enjoys them as they are. But if the child cannot understand the nature of bubbles through his experience, he will continue to try to catch them and will become unhappy when he cannot.

It is fruitless for us to try to grasp wisdom and peace of mind. We should simply let practice be the basis of our lives. Then our inherent wisdom can reveal itself. Then we can realize our inherent completeness and we can see that there is no need to obtain or grasp anything. That is how we learn to appreciate and enjoy bubbles.

--Les Kaye