The butterfly dream
The soft edges of reality
One night the master Zhuangzi dreamed he was a butterfly – fluttering happily among the flowers, entirely unaware that he was a human being. Suddenly he woke and realized he was Zhuangzi.
But then a dizzying thought struck him: 'Was I a human dreaming I was a butterfly – or am I right now a butterfly dreaming I am a human?'
The lesson: Life, reality and our rigid identities are far more fluid than we think. By not taking our perspectives dead seriously, we open ourselves to the boundlessness of existence – and become considerably easier to live with, both for ourselves and for others.
Which part of your 'fixed identity' would benefit from being held a little more loosely?
Smile at yourself once today. Take one of your opinions or roles a little less seriously.