The SPACE..

It is the space between the bars that holds the cage.
-Zen Master

A friend of mine asked me what are my views on this. At first, when I read it, it did sounded like, hmm.. a cage, bars, space, so what's new this saying tells us? Even after a day, this was still on the back of my mind, "what this means", trying to get depth of this zen saying. Anoher motivation was to reply to my friend who asked my views on this, with whom I'm in touch only with email forwards now a days :) . On friday, I was done with work, tired, riding back home in the train, half in transe, it occured to me that cage defines inside the cage and outside the cage! And I got a direction to follow for the saying!

It's the space between the bars which makes the existence of the cage. If there would not have been any space between the bars, it would have been a room. The space makes one realize that there is an outside and there is an inside, that he/she is inside, and there is something better, called "freedom" outside. He/she has something to compare with ,called outside. If it were just solid wall, person would have been just satisfied with what is available. But when there is a comparison, and realization of one's limitation or boundary, person wants to become free from just realized "cage" or trapped condition. It's curiosity of experiencing outside world, and dissatisfaction from the present situation makes a cage so important for a person. "Important" may not necessarily mean favorable. Something like we feel many times, we want to go to a place which is not home, we get bored at home, we want something new or not home to entertain our mind. It's also our tricky mind, which never gets satisfied. Our mind wishes something, we achieve it, and in no time, we get bored of it, now we want some other thing, which is not the thing we just achieved. Mind gets fed up very easily. Our mind tries to thrive on so called "newness". We lose interest in a new thing very fast. As soon as we experience it, we are done with it mentally. But we are smart to hide that we are done with it if we can not get rid of it for whatever reasons :), may be it social reasons, moral grounds or obligations or our own weakness.

I could identify so many cage situations with me too now after I started thinking into this direction. I am thinking, even if I will be or I am aware of these "cage" situations, would I be able to see it from another prospective now? The way our mind works is, it would first think of self first! Map the benefits of the cage, and disadvantages of the cage. What weighs more? benefits? boom, no way I'm going out of the cage !! It's my safety net or comfort zone. We are afraid to step out of our comfort zone. We are afraid of unknown. We do not have a sample experience of the unknown to find comfort/discomfort, and we do not want to put our comfort at stake for something we are not sure if it would be comforting or disturbing. We are selfish deep inside! Whenever there is a judging involved, it's a selfish act. I will judge my self with the arguments which makes myself a winner!! The cage exist if we think there is a cage or bars and space. If I am not afraid of extending my comfortzone into the unknown, there is no cage. The fear is the key to identify and not surrender to it. I have observed how I react to fear, I get into the unknown with no thought in my mind, no comparison or judgment, before or after thoughts, with a faith that I will be still in comfort with stepping into an unknown, TRUSTING The SELF and no regrets later. The part of my mind which blocks such thoughts takes the charge and I become fearless under it's leadership. This is the best I can describe process that occurs in my mind to overcome cage feeling.