Written by Eugen Herrigel, Zen in the Art of Archery
The Archery Master asked the student one day, after a particularly good shot, what I mean by “It shoots,” “It hits?”
“I’m afraid I don’t understand anything anymore” the student replied, “even the simplest things have got in a muddle. Is it ‘I’ who draws the bow, or is it the bow that draws me into the state of highest tension? Do ‘I’ hit the goal, or does the goal hit me? Is ‘It’ spiritual when seen by the eyes of the body, and corporeal when seen by the eyes of the spirit – or both or neither? Bow, arrow, goal and ego, all melt into one another, so that I can no longer separate them. And even the need to separate has gone. For as soon as I take the bow and shoot, everything becomes so clear and straightforward and so ridiculously simple…’
‘Now at last,’ the Master broke in, ‘the bow has cut right through you.’
Peace, respect & love, Sifu Lak Loi
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