Forget about danger

Yan Hoy addressed Confucius with a question:

“Once, I was crossing the deep stream of Ranshen, and the carrier was leading the boat so skillfully that it seemed to me that he was not a man, but an almighty God. I asked, is it possible to learn how to control the boat, and he replied: “You can. If you swim well or dive, you will immediately comprehend this art. ” Could you explain what his words mean?

Confucius replied:
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- Good swimmers quickly learn to control the boat, because they are not afraid of water. As for the divers, the sea is like land for them, and turning over in a boat is like falling from a cart. Water raises and lowers them, they are obedient to the waves, they are not afraid of them, and they know: no matter what happens, they always come up to the surface without effort.

Imagine that there is a contest of archers. Everyone wants to show the best of what he is capable of. But if the award is a silver cup, the archer can shoot at half strength, and if the golden statue is, he will lose his head and start shooting like a blind man. Why does the same person behave differently? When he thinks about an expensive reward, his hands do not obey him. Art in all cases will be the same, but attention will be transferred to external things. The one who is attentive to the outside is unskilled in the inside.