Casting Pearls Before Swine

Although the melody of the qin is elegant, refined, and pleasing to the ear, the cow, being extremely dull-witted, initially fails to comprehend it, let alone appreciate it. This is because the cow of the manas-indriya is heavily obscured by ignorance; since beginningless kalpas, throughout the cycle of birth and death, it has spent the vast majority of its time suffering retribution, lacking the opportunity for exposure and cultivation of the truths of both the mundane and supramundane worlds. Consequently, it has never understood the principle of liberation. Although the Dharma is so wondrous, the manas remains unaware and fails to grasp its meaning; it does not even seek the methods of liberation. The conscious mind's influence upon the manas is like playing the lute to a cow.

At this point, the conscious mind must train itself in the skill of playing and patiently persist in playing over the long term. Eventually, one day, the cow of the manas will come to understand the charm within the music. The conscious mind must intensify its training efforts to ensure that, regardless of what melody is played, the cow of the manas can understand it. This is extremely difficult and requires arduous effort. Once the cow understands the melody, things become easier, and spiritual practice will proceed smoothly.