A student approached the master of the Shin Dao and asked, “Master, how can I become a true warrior while keeping my heart open?”
The master handed the student a feather and said, “Carry this feather to the peak of the highest mountain without crushing it.”
The student embarked on the journey, braving storms, scaling cliffs, and enduring hardship. When he finally reached the peak, he looked down at the feather in his hand, now tattered and broken.
Returning to the master, the student bowed deeply, ashamed of his failure. “Master, I could not protect the feather,” he confessed.
The master smiled and replied, “The feather is your heart, and the mountain is your life. To be a true warrior, you must learn to climb without crushing what you hold most dear. Strength and gentleness are not opposites; they are the same breath.”
The student, in that moment, understood the way of the Shin Dao.
