This ovāda compares 'bhava' or 'becoming' to a cyst. It’s something that starts small but grows and spreads. This is one of the meanings of the word 'papancha'—expansion or proliferation. In our meditation practice, we sometimes need to act like surgeons, removing the cyst of becoming. We take out what is harmful and leave behind what is good. Ultimately, however, our skills as surgeons must lead us to remove all forms of becoming to discover something beyond.