tuning the instrument within

sometimes when we talk, i don't believe we really listen. most arguments, i find increasingly, occur because people tend to think they're disagreeing when they're really talking about different things. a manifestation of the ego alone, probably; that which wishes us to rise above all others, pushing down their views even when they're the same as ours :).

sometimes when we disagree (and i think i repeat myself here), i don't think we fundamentally disagree. we're just not making enough of an effort to understand. and it is no great effort that is required, because all it takes is to listen with an open ear, an open heart.

if you have any experience with music, you'll know that musical instruments need to be tuned ever so frequently. if they're not periodically tuned, they lose touch with the instruments around them and, after a while, cease to create beautiful music. i feel that each of us has just such an instrument within, that (with periodic tuning) can be brought to create nothing but beautiful music, in harmony with the instruments around us. and although this practice is often hard for beginners, one develops an ear for it. soon it becomes effortless.

(am also reminded of the middle way example attributed to the buddha, of the veena strings - to tune them so they are not too loose yet not too tight.)