Once the great Anthony of the Desert was relaxing with his disciples outside his hut when a hunter came by. The hunter was surprised to see Anthony relaxing, and rebuffed him for taking it easy. It was not his idea of what a holy monk should be doing.
Anthony replied, “Bend your bow and shoot an arrow.” And the hunter did so. “Bend it again and shoot another arrow,” said Anthony. The hunter did so, again and again.
The hunter finally said, “Abba Anthony, if I keep my bow always stretched, it will break.”
So it is with the monk,” replid Anthony. “if we push ourselves beyond measure, we will break. It is right from time to time to relax our efforts.”
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moral: Balance, as with the ying and the yang; up, down, light, dark, hot and cold, there is exertion and relaxation, a necessity for muscles to operate properly. Life is the same, stress caused by enduring to much can only be resolved by a resolution and/or relaxation. Relax, take your shoes off! For the farther a man’s/woman’s feet are from the earth, the farther one is from them-self.
have a relaxing day
19 comments
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December 13, 2011 at 5:30 am
Cat Forsley
Good morning Art –
First thing i read on this chilly Toronto morning …..:)
Great post / story ….
reminds me to keep my feet on the earth !
The balance of keeping GROUNDED 🙂
best xx
C
December 18, 2011 at 8:57 am
zendictive
being grounded, that is great, reminds me of my son, he was in martial arts since he was 4 and by the time he was 17 he could fly, literally, jump in the air and turn and kick like a movie, but one day he and I were sparring and he ds and since I saty grounded I was able to down him, a valuble lesson he learned that day. Don’t know why I thought about that but thanks for the memory (~_~)
December 18, 2011 at 12:25 pm
Cat Forsley
Grounded and Flying ! that’s beautiful Art ! 🙂
December 13, 2011 at 7:16 am
Jackie L. Robinson
Loving this today. Your stories have a way of bringing such powerful truths into perspective. Balance is the key to nearly every part of our lives. Thank you my friend. Much love. xoxo
December 18, 2011 at 8:58 am
zendictive
you are most welcome, zen stories have a way of helping us in our lives, I reflect on them daily with so many situations I am faced with in my career and home life. I can only hope that they will do the same for others. (~_~)
December 13, 2011 at 7:25 am
Warrior Poet Wisdom
The difficulty most have with this though is that they don’t realize how much they can truly take before they need that break. The truth is most people never even get close to pulling or straining a muscle before quitting a work out, to use one example.
Peace & grace,
~Miro
December 18, 2011 at 9:00 am
zendictive
so true, most do not exert themselves at all, then they wonder why they don’t feel up to par (~_~)
December 13, 2011 at 10:09 am
willowdot21
you are so right but it is CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!
December 18, 2011 at 9:00 am
zendictive
yes it is and I will do something about that (grin)
(~_~)
December 13, 2011 at 11:02 am
Fergiemoto
Balance…it is not a luxury, it is a necessity. I have learned the hard way about the consequences of continually pushing yourself beyond your limits. Your body will usually tell you when it’s time to take a break, and it is important to listen to that. I can sooooo relate to this posting.
December 18, 2011 at 9:02 am
zendictive
Balance…it is not a luxury, it is a necessity.
this is wise, thank you Fergiemotto
December 13, 2011 at 2:53 pm
rumpydog
I am feeling over-extended today. I want to rest and I need to rest so why am I not resting????
December 18, 2011 at 9:03 am
zendictive
to run then stop, it takes a few moments to settle the heart and mind, that is why they walk horses after a run (grin)
December 13, 2011 at 4:39 pm
granbee
We DO need a break from “our-selves” at regular intervals, do we not! Thank you for this helpful and “spot-on” story today.
December 18, 2011 at 9:05 am
zendictive
I often draw from the ying and yang theory, exertion then requires rest, hot needs cool and dark needs light, it is a wonderful solution to many problems, the key to fixing something is often the opposite. (~_~)
December 14, 2011 at 1:02 pm
zumpoems
yes, balance is so important — moments of inspiration often come when taking a break.
December 18, 2011 at 9:07 am
zendictive
I have found this to be true… a settled mind gets flooded with thoughts, like a shore line with waves of inspiration (~_~)
December 14, 2011 at 6:02 pm
Pocket Perspectives
Oh my goodness…..I need a positive break….too much enduring today…so off I go to sit…thanks for the encouragement….. ( but the kids really enjoyed adding to their own hall of mirrors pages today…they loved it! Drawing and colored pens gave them their own favorite kind of relaxation …. : ) )
December 18, 2011 at 9:09 am
zendictive
I am so glad, it makes my heart sing to know that some good is coming from this blog and stories have a way of sticking with a child, something they can reflect on to help them through their lives (~_~)