The Way is hard to study, and even harder to attain. A human life lasts no more than a few decades: youth gives way to vigor, vigor to old age, all in the blink of an eye. All the while, greed, anger, delusion, and desire entangle us for life. Some strive desperately for wealth and status; others grieve over poverty and low station. They sink in a sea of suffering, never awakening even on the brink of death. In time, human desires run rampant and bring calamity. How tragic! There are, now and then, wise people who yearn for the Great Way and study the classics, only to find their meanings abstruse and their metaphors confusing, like wandering in a dense fog with no way to understand them. Others travel thousands of miles to seek out sacred mountains, only to miss their chance or stray onto heretical paths, wasting their days without achieving anything great. What a pity!
