Climb up the tree and throttle it.

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Most guys are awesome in the inside and they know it; they have just suppressed it with what they think people want to see (or) they feel they aren't allowed to express it.

Godmode

I meditated on this for like 15-30 mins, and I came up with this interpretation;

The monkey is your conscious inner-voice, it's always saying shit that isn't true, like: "You're not good enough", "She probably has a boyfriend". or in this example "If you kill a monkey your mother will die". The truth is you never know whether it's true or not, the only conclusion the inner-voice draws are from past experiences and future expectations, it's your view of the world, it doesn't have to be true. All actions have consequences, and you can't forsee them all, best is to not be afraid of what the future holds and just do what feels right.

_________________
An approach a day keeps the guru away.

This is my first post as I just recently discovered this forum, but I think I understand the story.

There is no one path in life that leads to success. Everyone must make their own choices and so I could find that my path to success (whatever that may be) is very different from anybody elses.

If I were to relate this to pickup I guess I would say that you shouldn't come onto these forums trying to find that one secret that will make every girl want to fuck you. Everyone is different and so everyone's game will and should be different.

When I first read the riddle instinctually I thought that the boys parents were both destined to die anyway (like everyone) so what the monkey said was true, but the results were linked with false causes. But after reading everyones responses I think that it must be deeper than that. There is no right answer. The boy can only follow the path that he thinks is right for HIM.

Howd I do?

Does this relate to OCD? If I don't do this/that someone will get hurt/die/my favourite sports team won't win a match etc...?

Why don't you ask the monkey?

This isn't really a riddle as there isn't a question actually being asked. The monkey is simply making a statement about the future. Maybe we shouldn't even be looking for an answer???

Hi,

I've been reading this thread several times through - it's an intriguing riddle.

Any additional hints or clues? Since only a few people are described as fully understanding the concept, it'd be nice to see a conclusion to the thread.

A young boy went into the bush to hunt with his bow and arrow. He saw a monkey on the branch of a tree and aimed his arrow. The monkey spoke to him, "Stop. You must think before you shoot me. If you kill me, your mother will die and if you do not kill me, your father will die."

You are in the middle of a 6 lane road and you hear somebody scream. You look up and it's a policeman. He goes, "If you move, the ice cream truck will hit you! But if you don't move, the cargo truck will whack you!"

I'm going to have to say that there really isn't an answer to this riddle.

Our mind is trying to figure out a logical reason to come to a conclusion. So our mind is jumping back and forth from one decision to the next (like monkey from tree to tree). We need to not think of a logical answer and do nothing instead. Action by inaction.

How did I do?... I've been contemplating this for nearly a day now!

_________________
“Talent, is hitting a target no one else can hit. But genius is hitting a target no one else can see.” ~ Goethe

Interesting to see that some people are still following this thread. I left it alone for a while because the thread was going around in circles with posters basically repeating what's been written already. It's still going around in circles . . .

Here's another little background on koans:

These Buddhist monks usually hang around big temples and offer Sunday services, wedding services, and funeral services pretty much like priests would do in typical churches. Every once in a while, they climb the mountains to "study temples" and meditate amongst themselves. There, they eat, drink, meditate, and converse. These conversations aren't your ordinary conversations. They scream, hit each other, bow to one another, and pass gibberish back and forth.

They converse because even the most basic koans like, "what is the sound of one hand clapping" is still unanswered. There is no right or wrong answer; however, there is a wrong method. Killing the monkey is the wrong method. Standing there in bewilderment is the wrong method. There is a question. WHAT DO YOU DO?

Some here have come so close!! Yet, none had the courage to move forward with ACTION. What DO YOU DO?!?! Here's the biggest hint of all: The answer is already in this thread. However, if I point it out to you and you repeat it, it's already the wrong answer. All you'd be doing is agreeing with a precedent. At this point, either your mother or father will die. At this point, you will get smacked in the middle of the road.

If you're still contemplating this puzzle, here are some tips:

1. Meditate. Yes . . . empty your mind and sit for a while and ponder EXACTLY the situation as posed in the initial post without other thoughts.

2. Let go of your ego. EVERYBODY who posted initially began with, "I KNOW . . ." . NO! You don't know! If you begin with "I KNOW", you're not contemplating the initial post. Rather, you are contemplating issues you've already faced or heard of. In PU terms, you are screaming at a new girl because the previous girl you knew was a crazy lunatic. This is a completely different situation. Keep it that way.

3. Let go of your ego. Yes, I wrote this in #2 already but due to your screaming ego, you think that this and everything else in your life is ALL ABOUT YOU! Me! Me! Me! You think that if you do this and you do that the way you see fit, all things will be solved. I will kill the monkey, I will not kill the monkey. I will do this and that the way I see fit!! How foolish would it be for you to jump int a deep lake if you don't know how to swim. Yet, there is a fire behind you and you need to do something. Will your ego be so strong that you jump and drown? Will your ego be so strong that you stand there and burn? Who can help? The rock? The ant crawling peacefully along the water? Most here have merely killed one of your parents and rationalized, "It had to be one or the other or both."

If you're fishing in a new body of water, what do you do? Just take something out of your tackle box and cast? Just stand there like an idiot because you know nothing of "local fishing knowledge"? Who do you ask for help then? The local plumber? What is in front of you here and now?

4. ACT NOW! So many of you have already killed your mother or father but some of you already knew what to do but didn't act.

Going by the story alone, what I gather from it is this:
"Stop. You must think before you shoot me." - To me, this part says - Think about your actions before you act, be completely aware of the possibilities before making a choice.
"If you kill me, your mother will die and if you do not kill me, your father will die." - I interpreted this as saying - Every action has a consequence, and an 'effect' will always be an inevitable part of a 'cause'.
We need to become completely aware of the ripple effect our choices have. We all will be put in a situation where we are forced to act, and our minds will try to show us all of the possible outcomes to help guide our decision, but outcomes are never guaranteed. We must be aware of what we stand to gain and lose if we want to make an accurate decision and we must not be afraid to act from the fear of 'possibilities'.

Another take on it that I drew from reading it was that we must be free from limitations, free from the things holding us back, and free form the things that keep us from acting. The monkey said what it had to say in order to survive, but if the boy is dependent on either the mom or the dad, than either of those choices could affect his own survival. If we become free of the things that prevent us from moving forward, we will have the freedom to make a choice without fear of the outcome. The kill is guaranteed, and the monkey escaping is guaranteed, depending on the choice - but the consequences of those actions, despite what the monkey said, are not guaranteed. By accepting something that has not happened or may not happen, as truth, we limit ourselves. We will all be called upon to make a difficult choice, but we must free ourselves and know that we have the strength to accept any outcome, and/or the courage to change it.

Either way, our lives are in our own hands. Hope I got close, but if I'm going about it this in the wrong direction, feel free to turn me around ;}

_________________
...We all make choices...But in the end...Our choices make us...

He might as well smile. That's my answer. Make the best of a bad situation.

React

If you went by the "story alone", shouldn't "Stop. You must think before you shoot me," be interpreted as "Stop. You must think before you shoot me."?

AND

"If you kill me, your mother will die and if you do not kill me, your father will die," interpreted as "If you kill me, your mother will die and if you do not kill me, your father will die."?

There is also the possibility that said monkey "Doesn't exist", and is but an illusion in the mind of a cynic.

Yes
yes

How do you know?
Yes, when I face a near death experiences, I tend to think up silly little quizzes.
Death = bad. Life = good. I must have missed the part where the monkey lectured us on this but yes, if men are to be attached, it's nice for them to be attached to life . . .because you know . . . life is better.