Attachment– a needy clinging to an object of desire–can’t help but become a battleground.

Appearing lovely and right at the beginning, attachment inevitably says, “You’ve made me happy, and so you must continue to make me happy forever. The moment you cease making me happy, I will make you pay, either by abandoning you, torturing you, or annihilating you.”

If the other is also attached, they feel compelled not just to defend themselves but also to express their own bitter resentment at the bursting of the bubble.

The notorious serial killer who takes pleasure in hurting other creatures is thus not so different from the soft-eyed lover. The “criminal” has only taken attachment to its logical conclusion.

The battle of attachment is not to be won at the level of attachment itself, but only by choosing detachment and compassion, detachment and compassion, in and out like waves on a placid shoreline.