Swimming is an activity that can only be done under certain conditions. First you need water, and then you need to be in a position where you are able to swim. For instance, if you are carrying your groceries, you can’t swim unless you drop them. If you are carrying bars of gold, you can’t swim because they will weigh you down and make you drown. They’ll keep you from being able to progress in the water. You can’t go forward. So, there are conditions for entering into swimming. And one of them is essentially that you need to learn how to swim, and then you need to let go of all the things you hold onto on land in order to be able to swim. You can’t hold onto what you hold onto when you’re on land if you want to be able to swim. You have to drop those things.
The spiritual path is similar. We cannot go to certain exalted places as long as we hold onto certain things in the world. You can’t move into spiritual realms if you hold onto anger. It’s the same as putting your feet in cement and trying to swim. You can’t move in that way. What happens is that it’s through self-purification that the exalted states come.
