 The Parable of the Fearless There is a Burmese teaching story about a tyrant whose armies have laid waste to the country. As he's crossing the land, he comes to a stop at a small village and is informed by his generals that the local population have all run away into the hills, everyone, that is, except one monk who refuses to leave his monastery. Enraged at such impudence, the tyrant marches directly to the monastery to confront the monk. He kicks in the door and stomps up to the monk who is meditating peacefully in the center of the hall. Don't you know who I am? The tyrant growls. I could take out my sword and cut you in two without even blinking an eye. The monk, without moving, replies serenely. Don't you know who I am? You could sit here while you take out your sword and cut me in two without even blinking an eye. When we have acceptance, we are no longer attached to the transitory things of this world, even our own bodily survival. As Jesus advises in the Gnostic Gospel of Thomas, we become like a passerby. While this may seem counterproductive to our survival, adopting an attitude of acceptance does bring with it a certain amount of freedom. Let's be honest, no one knows when their time will come. You could be walking down the street tomorrow and have a tree randomly fall on you, or a car swerve into you off the road, but we don't let that stop us from leaving our houses. The monk in the parable accepts his position and realizes that if the tyrant really wanted to kill him, there isn't much that he could do about it in that moment, so it's kind of pointless to fight it or resist. That's not to say you shouldn't fight to stay alive in any situation, as self-preservation is important. Only that we should try to accept that death is merely a small part of life, an event that is transitory at best and comes whether we like it or not. The question then becomes, who is stronger in the story? The tyrant, who is evidently angered and upset by someone usurping his temporary power? Or the monk, who has accepted the reality of his life and is able to act gracefully and serenely, even in the face of death? Ultimately, this parable teaches us that once we awaken to the transitory nature of this world, all of our fears, doubts and anxieties can go away, and we can finally be free to accept the world for what it really is.