August 6th

Ownership


A small boy drives
A hundred ducks to the lake
With a tasseled stick :
A mass of excited white.

A small boy can command an entire flock of ducks with a slender stick. The ducks go contentedly down to the lake to play in the mud. In the end, of course, they end up as someone's dinner.They obey the stick because they respond to their conditioning. In truth, they don't need to obey it. They don't need to be someone's meal. As for the boy, he is doing his job, but he does not own the ducks in an ultimate sense. He exercises his power over them, and they respond, yet neither realizes that their bond is provisional.
Ownership of property is only an artificial construct as well. If we can remember that ownership is something that exists only by definition, then we can give up possessiveness, defensiveness, and greed. What does it matter how much money or land you say you have? You cannot actually own it.
You don't even own your body. Ultimate ownership would mean total control. You would never age. You could make it as beautiful as you wanted. You would never suffer from accidents. But the fact is that we are all imprisoned in flesh that ages, decays, becomes diseased, and can be destroyed by some rather minor accidents. You don't own your body. You live in a borrowed shell. Why not seek the truth that goes beyond the body?

Personal Interpretation

Ownership is an artificial construct. No one truly owns anything. We don't even own our bodies. They are merely borrowed shells for use in this life. It is for this reason that we should seek the truth that we can truly own. There is strength in relinquishing control. Why entertain the illusion of it anyway? Life may disappoint us from time to time, but when we learn that we are not truly in control, it is more difficult to explain our hardship away as the result of some failure on our part. We do not create all of our circumstances. Sometimes the only thing we can do is decide how to respond. We can relinquish ownership of our troubles too, choosing to focus on the positive things in our lives. We are responsible for our actions, and our actions often influence what happens to us, but this is not always the case. Let us make every effort to respond appropriately, gain what control we can over our own selves, and accept all that comes with this life while seeking the truth that lies beyond the veil of mortality.