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68 Parable of the Arrow “An arrow of false ideas, smeared with love-poison, has pierced your heart, yet you do not wish to pull it out. So you cast yourself into darkness.” —Nagarjuna’s Treatise on the Great Perfection of Wisdom Here’s what happens: one day an arrow sails from the sky, plants itself right in your chest. You cry out, grab it with one hand. But if you pull it out, you die. The Buddha says to let go further, let go faster—death just seems disastrous. Buddha says to give up lust, pull out that shaft—it’s worse to burn than fade away. He says to live in time is fruitless. Buddha is so full of it. You are alive because you feel death worm into your chest, so though you’re bleeding wine, you have your jackets tailored till they fit around the arrow. Turning in your bed or making love, the arrow pricks the worst. it burrows deeper, but you live with it. You lay your hand against your punctured chest and pledge allegiance to the hurt. it’s worth the pain to know (just maybe) you exist. ...

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