An Eighth Century Chinese Poem
The wild geese fly across the long sky above.
Their image is reflected upon the chilly water below.
The geese do not mean to cast their image on the water;
Nor does the water mean to hold the image of the geese.
(Creativity and Taoism: A Study of Chinese Philosophy, Art and Poetry by Chuan-Yuan Chang, p.83)
Mirror Mind
When your mind comes to a complete rest, your essence is effortlessly reflected in each moment. Your mind can’t consciously control this through intention. “The geese do not mean to cast their image on the water; Nor does the water mean to hold the image of the geese.” This unintentional reflection is akin to a law of nature. If your mind becomes like a mirror, undisturbed by thought, then not only are you in harmony with the Tao but your mirror mind is capable of reflecting the true nature of the people and things in which you come into contact.
Market Reflection
With your mirror mind you can capture the moment to moment true reflection of the market’s nature. Imagine being able to dance effortlessly with the moment to moment movement of the market. But like the wings of a butterfly the connection between the mirror mind and the market can be fragile and easily injured. When cement-like certainty emerges as a thought, the tenuous connection between the mirror mind and the market is broken.
Staying Connected
Turmoil in the mind caused by the bubbling up of assorted thoughts can’t be completely avoided. You can’t be perfect and live totally in a meditative state of mind. Relax. Return again to the mirror mind and let the market reconnect.
Photo Credit: Photo by geopappas.