The Gates of the Inner Stream
Before freedom are three gates:
The Gate of Emptiness:
the sense that nothing matters.
The Gate of Excess:
the sense that everything must be controlled.
The Gate of Noise:
the sense that meaning lies in distraction.
Pass through them by doing nothing but noticing.
Attention itself is the key.
Beyond them you will find three chambers:
Fullness: the quiet abundance of simply being alive.
Void: the space in which all things arise and vanish.
Balance: the place where self and world meet without conflict.
Remain here as long as it lasts.
It will not last long.
That is its nature.