Empty Your Cup

When I was sitting out at the yard sale this weekend, I thought of something one of my College Professors told our class on the first day of a philosophy class.  He said, “Don’t show up to class as the person you think you are, instead show up as the person you want to be.”

At one point, I also thought of an old Buddhist story that seemed to reiterate this sentiment of letting go of who you think you are and what you think you know, and open your mind to actually learn from the world around you.

As successful as the Yard Sale was, there were several hours of just waiting with little to do other than think and jot down thoughts in my notebook.

The Buddhist story I thought of  at the Yard Sale is called “Empty Your Cup.” I’m retelling the story as I remember it, so if it isn’t exactly as you remember, please accept that I may have remembered incorrectly or taken a bit of artistic license!

I do remember the name Nan-In for sure (because the way my teacher pronounced the name, it sounded like NONE IN).

Empty Your Cup

One day, a brilliant, well-respected, and world-renowned university professor went to visit a famous master named Nan-In to discuss the philosophies and importance of Buddhism.

As Nan-In quietly began serving tea, the professor eagerly and energetically began talking about how much his vast knowledge of Buddhism.  On and on, the professor spoke about Buddhism.

As the professor spoke, the master Nan-In simply kept pouring tea.  The tea reached the brim of the professors cup, but Nan-In kept pouring the tea.  The tea gushed over the rim of the tea cup and splashed to the floor.  Nan-In simply continued to pour the tea.

The professor anxiously watched the tea overflow and tried to be polite and continue speaking about Buddhism.  

However, as the tea continued to slosh to the ground, the professor could no longer restrain himself and blurted out, “Why are you doing that? Stop pouring the tea. It's full. What is wrong with you?”

Nan-In quietly responded, “You are like this cup. How can I show you Buddhism, unless you first empty your cup? A cup that is already full has no room to receive.”

I like this story, because it helps to remind me to keep an open mind and continue listening and being willing to receive information and inspiration from the people and world around me.

As I continue dealing with Fibromyalgia, I also appreciate that there is so much more to learn. New ideas and theories and studies and therapies keep coming out about and for Fibromyalgia and I think we all need to do our best to keep an open mind as we continue to learn together. 

Finding out what is going to work best for your body to cope with Fibromyalgia is a true journey that will have its ups and downs. If we manage to find away to keep trying and hang on to hope, I truly believe at some point, we will find a cure or at least a realistic, universal way for all of us to cope in a positive way.

Hopefully in time, we will learn what causes Fibromyalgia, how to cure it, how to prevent it, and how to learn from it so we can help others.  

Meanwhile, by increasing Fibromyalgia Awareness, I hope that we can create a more understanding and kind society in general that focuses less on judging others based on perceptions and personal beliefs and focuses more on being open to the world and compassionate towards others.

What do you think the story is trying to teach? Does it have anything that you can learn from to help you in your life right now?