Tiny thorn

What do those people do who walk on foot on the road and if thorns were to prick them? They take them out with the help of either another thorn or a needle. Though the pain still lingers but gets subsided after sometime and after some days even the hole gets healed. Skin is covered with new skin.

This is the experience of an external event; but there is another type of minuscule thorn of attachment and aversion, which pricks the heart. To remove that is not easy. Every living being experiences its effect and life long remain restless. Rarely any man tries to remove that and even amongst them, only a few get success.

As the thorn is taken out with the help of a needle, similarly, the thorn of attachment and aversion can also be removed through the study of scriptures. Removal of that tiny thorn is possible only through self-study, reflection, thinking etc.

- Sutrakritanga Sutra 1/2/2/12