Master Lu's Teachings A Lesson in the Park with Master Lu A young man of about 15-16 years old runs eagerly in the park in the
morning: he is a jogging probationer. The atmosphere is almost purified from the shadows of the night - the mist slowly rises under the increasing intensity of the sunrays. Although is wintertime, in February, the weather continues to get warmer… At one time a pack of vagrant dogs rushes upon the young runner. Willy-nilly he has to stop from time to time to get sure that the dogs are not to close and to drives them away shouting and swearing. The dogs follow
him for a while barking and snarling. The young man seems to be astounded and I notice at a certain moment that he stops near me, as if he asks for help. He believes he's done nothing wrong to be attacked by dogs like that. Moreover, how could you explain the fact that I passed by without catching their eyes? The mystery is easy to clear up. I didn't catch their eyes because I passed by them at a walking pace, without running. When somebody runs, the
dogs, by virtue of their hunting instinct, are ready to track the prey. In this way, they are still in harmony with their internal rule. If somebody passes by them at a walking pace, they are not incited and they don't care about the passer-by. In this case they also abide their internal Tao. But the young man infringed the rule of that place. Therefore he became a victim of the dogs and was chased by them. The rule of the place stipulated
that you should pass by at a walking pace in order not to draw the attention to you, and so the dogs would leave you in peace. A step further, an old man takes his dog out for a walk. The furious pack rushed at the intruder - a purebred dog. But the dog reacted properly for such circumstance: it bent his head and tail showing by this that he gives up, that he is not aggressive - and the vagrant dogs left it in peace... |