I once received a letter from a colleague living overseas, stating that Luang Por Thoon said people who walk with their arms behind their backs are conceited. I laughed upon reading that statement, because it reminded me of a similar incident involving Luang Por Thoon that happened to me in China years ago. (That’s for another blog!)
Wouldn’t it be strange, if it was universal that people who walked with their arms behind their backs were conceited? In that case, the position of your arms would always be the direct indicator of your personality. Applying a truth table or matrix, it is plain to see that arms and personality are not always causally linked. Some people are conceited but do not always walk with their arms behind their backs. Some people walk with their arms in that position but are not conceited; in fact they are pacing deep in thought.
Most importantly, I believe that my enlightened teacher intended that message for whoever he said it to at that particular time, place, and context. In fact, the Buddha was known to teach the same content in two different places. The meaning of the lesson changed with the time, place, and audience. At times, the lesson seemed to even take an opposite meaning.
Sometimes we want to share our lessons with others so much that we lose sight of the context, thereby losing sight of the lesson. If you were present at the time of the lesson, wouldn’t it be more beneficial to assume you were the intended recipient of that message? Turn inward and ask yourself, “regardless of whether or not I walk with my arms behind my back, am I a conceited and stubborn person? If so, how can I improve myself?”
Upon reading this blog, ask yourself, “when was the last time I missed the point because I neglected to consider the context?” There are many times each of us does this. If only we can take note of it, we will learn and improve ourselves.
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