Hold on to Nothing

Hold on to nothing.

Try to keep your mind in the present. Whatever there is that arises in the mind, just watch it. Let go of it.

Don't even wish to be rid of thoughts. Then the mind will reach its natural state. No discriminating between good and bad, hot and cold, fast and slow. No me and no you, no self at all. Just what there is.

No need to cling to isolation or seclusion. Wherever you are, know yourself by being natural and watching. If doubts arise, watch them come and go.

It's very simple. Hold on to nothing.

It is as though you are walking down a road. Periodically you will run into obstacles. When you meet defilements, just see them and just overcome them by letting go of them. Don't think about the obstacles you have passed already.

Don't worry about those you have not yet seen. Stick to the present. Don't be concerned about the length of the road or about the destination.

Everything is changing. Whatever you pass, do not cling to it.

Eventually the mind will reach its natural balance where practice is automatic. All things will come and go of themselves.

Don't try to get anywhere in the practice. The very desire to be free or to be enlightened will be the desire that prevents your freedom.

You can try as hard as you wish, practise ardently night and day, but if it is still with the desire to achieve in mind, you will never find peace.

The energy from this desire will be a cause for doubt and restlessness. No matter how long or how hard you practise, wisdom will not arise from desire.

So, simply let go. Watch the mind and body mindfully but don't try to achieve anything.

Don't cling even to the practice of enlightenment.

- Ajahn Chah

Text source: Questions & Answers with Ajahn Chah