My Corner of the Simulacrum

“A monk living deep in the forest tends to consider the wild animals living around him - both those inherently dangerous and those that are harmless - with compassion, rather than with fear or apathy. He realizes that all animals, dangerous and harmless, are his equals in birth, ageing, sickness, and death.”

“One man watches a river flow by. If he does not wish it to flow, to change ceaselessly in accord with its nature, he will suffer great pain. Another man understands that nature of the river is to change constantly, regardless of his likes and dislikes, and therefore he does not suffer. To know existence as this flow, empty of lasting pleasure, void of self, is to find that which is stable and free of suffering, to find true peace in the world.”

me: *opens up instagram explore and sees somebody with 146k followers doing some weird yoga pose on top of a mountain with a caption like “i love wednesdays 😋💯” before i get ready for my 12 hour work day so i can buy the sale hot dogs at the grocery store*