
The best way to navigate feelings you don’t like is through perspective. By using this tool we gain peace and wisdom.
The Parable of the Elephant
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A group of blind men heard that a strange animal, called an elephant, had been brought to the town, but none of them were aware of its shape and form. Out of curiosity, they said: "We must inspect and know it by touch, of which we are capable". So, they sought it out, and when they found it they groped about it. The first person, whose hand landed on the trunk, said, "This being is like a thick snake". For another one whose hand reached its ear, it seemed like a kind of fan. As for another person, whose hand was upon its leg, said, the elephant is a pillar like a tree-trunk. The blind man who placed his hand upon its side said the elephant, "is a wall". Another who felt its tail, described it as a rope. The last felt its tusk, stating the elephant is that which is hard, smooth and like a spear. Each man argued that he was right and believed the others to be wrong. In truth, each was right, and each was wrong. We do not observe absolute truth. We only observe the world around us based on our own beliefs and experiences.