The Name of the Fruit

The fruit that you offered to the monks: I don’t know its name, but I know that its flavor is sweet and delicious. That much I know, but I don’t know what it’s called—and it’s not really necessary. All that’s necessary is knowing that its flavor is sweet and delicious. Right? That’s really necessary. “What’s the name of this fruit?” That’s not really necessary. If someone tells you, you can remember it. But if you don’t know the name, you can let the matter go. After all, knowing the name doesn’t increase the sweetness or make the fruit more sour.

The knowledge that comes from the practice: We practice so that we’ll know. It’s knowledge that knows all the way in. Once you know all the way in, you let go. The knowledge that comes from the practice, once it knows all the way in, lets go. The knowledge that comes from studying doesn’t let go, you know. It fills us up until we’re stuffed tight. It ties us down even more.

(The Teachings of Ajahn Chah)