Prince Shravan lived in a luxurious palace. He adored luxury. He constantly rebuilt his capital and gradually turned it into one of the most beautiful cities. But one day he realized that he was bored with everything. Having heard that Buddha had come to the city, he went to him and was so enchanted that he asked permission to stay. The entire kingdom was puzzled by the turn of events. People could not believe this because Shravan was an extremely worldly person who indulged his every desire, even the most extreme. His usual occupations were wine and women.
The Buddha's disciples were also perplexed, and they asked:
- What happened? This is a miracle! Shravan is not that type of person at all, and besides, he lived so luxuriously. How strange that he wanted to become a sannyasin! How did this happen? Have you done anything?
“I didn’t do anything,” Buddha answered them. - The mind can easily move from one extreme to another. This is the ordinary way of the mind. So Shravan is not doing anything new. This was to be expected. You are so amazed because you do not know the laws governing the actions of the mind. The man who went crazy, drowning in wealth, now goes crazy, giving up wealth, but the madness remains - and this is the whole mind.
So Shravan became a monk, and soon the disciples began to observe that he was moving from one extreme to the other. Buddha never asked his disciples to go naked, and Shravan stopped dressing. In addition, he began to engage in self-torture: they all ate food once a day, but Shravan began to eat every other day. Soon he became completely exhausted. While others were meditating under the trees in the shade, he sat under the scorching sun. He used to be a handsome man, he had a wonderful body, but six months passed and he could not be recognized...
One evening Buddha came up to him and said:
“Shravan, I heard that even before your initiation you were a prince and loved to play the sitar. You were a good musician. That's why I came to ask you a question. What happens if the strings are loosened?
“If the strings are weakened, then no music will come out.”
— What if the strings are pulled very tightly?
“Then it’s also impossible to extract music.” The string tension should be average - not loose, but not too tight, but exactly in the middle. The sitar is easy to play, but only a master can tune the strings correctly. A golden mean is needed here.
And Buddha said:
“That’s exactly what I wanted to tell you, watching you over these six months.” The music you want to bring out of yourself will only sound when the strings are neither loose nor overtightened, but right in the middle. Shravan, be a Master and know that excessive tension of strength turns into excess, and excessive relaxation turns into weakness. Bring yourself into balance - this is the only way you can achieve your goal.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru