The reservoir of trust is a bank of richness from which the warrior can always draw conclusions. We begin to feel that we are dealing with a rich world, one that never runs out of messages. The only problem arises if we try to manipulate the situation in our favor. You are not supposed to fish in the reservoir or swim in it!

The reservoir has to remain unconditional, unpolluted. So you don’t put your one-sided bias, or conditionality, into it. Then the reservoir might dry up. Trusting unconditionally in the reservoir keeps us from being too arrogant or too timid. If you’re too arrogant, you’ll find yourself bumping into the ceiling. If you’re too timid, you’ll be pushed by the floor.

So it’s always a dynamic process. Fearlessness doesn’t mean that we cheer up by saying, “Look! I’m on the side of the right. I’m a success.” Nor do we feel that we’re being punished when we fail. In any case, success and failure are saying the same thing.

From Smile at Fear: Awakening the True Heart of Bravery, pp. 70-71.

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