Turning the other cheek

[Gaze]

I think these verses do make you think about your responses to someone being mean. It makes you realize that you have options about how to respond, and you don't have to treat others the way they treat you, even if they treat you poorly. I however don't think it means being passive and letting yourself be abused which is often how it is interpreted.

 

[sprinkles]

I think these verses do make you think about your responses to someone being mean. It makes you realize that you have options about how to respond, and you don't have to treat others the way they treat you, even if they treat you poorly. I however don't think it means being passive and letting yourself be abused which is often how it is interpreted.

Yes. Though also I think that inner peace has a tendency to lead to passivity, which is why this concept has arisen in such a violent world to begin with. It's like the impetus to react in any way whatsoever is diminished, because in a sense one comes to a point where there's little that anyone can actually take from them.

The Moon Cannot Be Stolen

Ryokan, a Zen master, lived the simplest kind of life in a little hut at the foot of a mountain. One evening a thief visited the hut only to discover there was nothing to steal.

Ryokan returned and caught him. "You have come a long way to visit me," he told the prowler, "and you should not return empty-handed. Please take my clothes as a gift."

The thief was bewildered. He took the clothes and slunk away.

Ryoken sat naked, watching the moon. "Poor fellow," he mused, "I wish I could have given him this beautiful moon."