Find your teacher.
Give everything to this search.
Your teacher could be anywhere, they could be found in anything — a woman, a man, a dog, a tree, a rock, a river, a mountain, the possibilities are truly infinite.
Finding them, stop — lay your head there at their feet, and stop.
Stop.
Stay here.
Be still.
Keep quiet.
If your world appears to be crumbling, stay here.
If you believe you have stopped the search, stay here.
If you believe you are awake, stay here.
If you believe you are not yet awake, stay here.
If you don't know what to believe, stay here.
If you believe nothing, stay here.
Simply stay here.
Be still.
Keep quiet.
Stay here.
Give everything to this.
Everything is taken care of.
Stay here.
—
Words and image by Andō.
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When I was a child my mother used to whisper the words "I don't know" as if they were articulating a deep, heart felt sigh. And so I grew up believing that not knowing always meant more than pretending to know what can never be known, which for me was everything. As I lived through the many decades of my life it seemed as if my not-knowing rendered me something of a conundrum to those whose lives, briefly or otherwise, intersected with mine. Generally the conclusion reached was that I lacked self confidence, while I wondered at their sense of certainty. Now I am so much older but no more wiser and truthfully I still whisper "I don't know" into the ether.