I. An infinite gate revealed - Today anything is possible! And yesterday too - and tomorrow as well. But why does this realization seem new all of the sudden? What changed? - Merely recognition of a demonstration by another or a chance event that made an impression contrary to one's incorrect beliefs about life. Maybe an old routine created the illusion of necessary stagnation and then obedience toward that belief, but the world is open despite a desire to believe the opposite and live as a martyred prisoner held captive to dutiful boredom and toil.

II. A horse with blinders - Couples either break up soon after meeting or they rearrange their lives around one another and thus become inseparable. Once each becomes part of the other's self-definition there is no easy separation so they stay together and make the best of it. Since there is no room to get close to others in this self-definition, there are no alternatives and therefore no paths out. They become each other's "only way" and thus a destiny.

III. Those who are arsenals - The source of all great acts are great ideas, and these ideas come from inspiration and passion for new beginnings and meaningful destinations. Those who posses extraordinary abilities have the best dreams, but if they also have strong wills and a child's playfulness to explore then their world will consist of dreams made real - this is truly a paradise to experience. At the root, life reflects what one carries with them as they go into battle; some possess nothing and thus are defeated before they start while others carry infinite arsenals and thus possess the right to any future they envision.

IV. Inspiration contra reactivity - Having new ideas out of a desire for new possibilities is a world apart from the method of emulation or reacting to the ideas of others. The source of all inspiration is creative, i.e. it is a fresh start and carries a breath of personality that takes a new form, but reactivity only indicates a susceptibility to linger in the past while nothing new is posited.

V. Twisted knots and resignation - If a man has a dozen strings rendered useless by a complex connection of intertwined knots, he will show that he is not particularly wise if he merely attempts to salvage the less restrained sections between the knots. It may be tedious and it may take some effort, but the wise man unties them entirely to free them of restraints instead of trying to work around their imposed limitations. The man who declares impossibility instead of fixing the problem is only clever in fooling himself - he even becomes smug in his declaration of futility and thus seeks refuge in being small. Once crippled, all aspiration can be dismissed since the situation of hopelessness that was created has truly doomed what was once within reach. This, however, is a dishonest answer.

VI. Pain as a metaphor - Upon reflection, all pain is self-inflicted. It quickly passes and is always in the past, never the present. As soon as we recognize it, it is gone and should be forgotten. But instead we remember it with gleeful self-torture and fixate on how we imagine it hurt us (how we suffered so innocently!) or we anticipate how a theoretical pain might hurt in the future. But pain in the present is non-existent - we sense it only after the event of its cause has passed and thus it only enters our consciousness after the fact. Given this understanding, the source of any suffering we experience tells us about our relation to life.

VII. On cold baths and ships at sea

A:	Do you know how explorations of the void, done in solitude, are like taking a cold bath?
B:	I am not sure what you mean.
A:	Consider the nature of a cold bath. One resorts to it when necessary and it serves a certain purpose.
B:	Certainly.
A:	While one is taking a cold bath, it is accepted that it is unpleasant, so that which is necessary is accomplished without distraction or dawdling.
B:	Agreed, but what has this to do with philosophical or introspective explorations?
A:	The parable of the cold bath is that one should have no distractions whatsoever as these only prolong the uncomfortable aspects of the exploration and keep one from the goal. If one goes partly into the depths and remains too long, one catches a cold and becomes ill - or drowns! It is best to go quickly and thoroughly, accepting the discomfort as part of the journey and desiring not a single warm current to prolong the voyage - one must accept they have temporarily forsaken the comfort of their home. When they have obtained what they needed from the visit to the void, they can leave and once again warm to fellow man as they would warm upon arising from a cold bath.
B:	Well said.
A:	Explorations of introspection can also be seen as a ship at sea.
B:	Go on.
A:	A ship at sea also has a goal, and one which includes more than one person. A ship leaves port so it may reach another port - it is most at risk while at sea. While it is at sea, all people who have hope in it also have their hope at risk.
B:	Very true.
A:	Therefore, a ship does not wander on whims, nor circle needlessly, nor choose or allow anything that slows its arrival to a port. For those who have placed hope in the ship, each day it is at sea is another day of painful uncertainty - and if it takes too long one assumes it may have perished forever.