A Great Vow, Inexhaustible as the Sea
Only when empty space itself is exhausted will my vow at last be exhausted.
Before small setbacks, have I withdrawn my resolve too easily?
📝Reflection
The figure Samantabhadra describes his vow this way: it will not end until empty space itself is worn away — that is, never. At first it sounds like grandiose boasting. But seen again, it is not a brag about scale; it is about the direction of the mind. A small resolve breaks against a small obstacle. But hold a direction as wide as an inexhaustible sea, and a single failure today cannot stop it. This is not a call to live grandly. It is to hold in your heart at least one large direction you can return to after being shaken.
🌱Apply It Today
If a small failure shook you today, recall: "Is the large direction I was heading still alive?" If the direction lives, today's stumble is not a stop.
This verse is read as universal humanistic wisdom, not religion — no faith is promoted, and the reflection is 100% original ONGO content.
