The Care of Attention

Reflection

The verse begins, “By rousing himself, by earnestness, by restraint and control, the wise man may make for himself….” In its chapter, this image points toward careful attention as the ground of a wakeful life. It also makes practice relational: the people you listen to can strengthen or weaken your best intentions. Because this is a historic English translation, test the teaching in experience rather than treating its wording as a demand for belief.