A reflective essay on spiritual growth, moving beyond concepts toward lived understanding where mountains are seen as mountains once again.

Every time I think I’ve understood something when I say things like letting go, emptiness, or turning inward. I later realize how far I still am from real understanding.

Ten thousand miles, at least.

There was a period when I was eager to label myself with words. What should be released, what to detach from, what counts as attachment, what belongs to illusion. As if aligning the concepts would automatically clarify the world.

But eventually I realized: true non-attachment isn’t knowing what to let go of, it’s no longer needing to remind yourself that you are letting go at all.

Many words sound like answers at first. Only later do you discover they were merely entrance tickets. The actual path is one you must walk, step by step, on your own.

Seeing mountains as mountains, seeing water as water, not because nothing was understood, but because I no longer feel the urge to prove that I understand.

The detours, the places I got stuck, the thresholds I thought I had crossed only to circle back to again, none of them were mistakes. They were quietly helping me grind knowing into becoming.

One day I noticed I no longer needed to explain what stage I was in, nor rush to name my inner state.

The mountains remain mountains. The water remains water. And I simply stand there— not more, not less, just enough.

The simplest truths always require crossing countless mountains and rivers to grasp.

Without complexity, simplicity is never real.



—— XC Scribbles · 伍 V ⛰️