THE FOUR HORSES, from the Samyutta Agama

In the Samyutta Agama sutra, the Buddha told a parable of four horses. There is an excellent one, a couple of lesser horses and a bad one. He said the best horse runs before it sees the shadow of the whip. The second best will run just before the whip reaches his skin. The third horse will run when it feels pain on his body. The fourth “bad” horse will run after the pain penetrates into the marrow of his bones.

If you are the bad horse, what will it take to make you run at your best?

How much pain must you experience before you make the choice to act?