The Web of the Mind

By Dinny

Frustrated by his fear of spiders, a man with severe arachnophobia invented a powerful chemical — a pesticide so potent it could wipe out every spider on Earth. When people began using it, it worked like magic. The spider population plummeted, and extinction seemed inevitable.

But the pesticide didn’t just kill the spiders — it changed their behavior in a strange and tragic way. When a spider came into contact with the chemical, it reacted with the silk of its web, releasing a substance that gave the spider a brief, euphoric high every time it spun a thread.

Enchanted by this sensation, the spiders became addicted. They spun webs endlessly, forgetting to eat, explore, or rest. They were trapped — not by predators, but by their own desire for that fleeting pleasure. One by one, they exhausted themselves to death, tangled in the very webs they couldn’t stop weaving.

Nature, however, is resilient. Just as the species was about to collapse, a few spiders began to awaken from this madness. These awakened spiders realized what was happening — that their endless spinning was destroying them. They learned to master their minds, to resist the chemical’s call, and to live consciously once more.

They tried to awaken the others, but the rest were too deeply trapped in illusion. The unawakened spiders mocked them, even attacked them, calling them fools. Eventually, the awakened spiders went into hiding, forming small groups devoted to freeing minds rather than spinning webs. And so, the cycle continued — the sleepers, lost in their spinning, and the awakened, quietly working to bring awareness.

Moral of the Story

We are like those poor spiders — trapped in the webs of our own minds. Our thoughts and desires weave endless patterns around us, making us feel small, restless, and incomplete.

The world is a grand marketplace, and our desires are its currency. We chase them, believing that once they’re fulfilled — the car, the house, the possessions — we will finally be happy. But the moment we attain them, their charm fades. The unknown always feels like heaven, but once it becomes known, its value disappears.

The awakened are those who turn inward — who seek not the fleeting pleasure of outer things, but the eternal peace of the inner self. They become masters of the mind instead of slaves to it. They no longer react in anger or fear, for they have transcended both.

By killing their ego and facing their fears, they reach the state of no-mind — a stillness where the highs and lows of the world no longer disturb them. In that silence, they discover their true self — calm, complete, and unshakably free.

By Dinny