Withdraw the arrow
He who seeks happiness should withdraw the arrow; his own lamentations, longings and grief. With the arrow withdrawn, unattached, he would attain to peace of mind; and when all sorrow has been transcended he is sorrow-free and has realized Nibbana.
- Sutta Nipata
“… withdraw the arrow; … lamentations, longings and grief…” We all are wounded with this arrow. For some, perhaps even most of us, this arrow is tipped with a serrated, barbed, poisoned arrowhead, extremely difficult to remove without extensive damage and pain, leaving a deep, festering and painful wound. For a few, a very few, the arrow is tipped with a simple bodkin point, easily removed with little damage and pain, leaving a wound that heals quickly and cleanly with little scarring.
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