On the altar of the dilapidated temple sat a clay-sculpted god statue. Over a long period of time, the temple had become so shabby that it was on the verge of collapse, and the statue itself was also covered with spots, having lost its former glory.
"No, I'd better stay on the stage," said the statue.
"This is not a deep truth," the statue said. "The time from getting on the stage to falling off is longer than any other time before falling off. Do you know, even a fool would choose to stay on the stage for the longest time."
A swallow that often nested in the broken temple came to the statue and said, "I see your place is becoming less prosperous year by year, and it's not as safe here anymore. Why don't you get down from the altar and find another place?"
The statue said, "As long as I sit on the altar, there will always be people offering incense. Once I get down, it's a different story. To be honest, once I'm off the altar, I'm just an ordinary lump of soil, who would bother to care about me?"
"Why?" asked the swallow.
The statue replied, "Even if so, it can't be helped. My goal is not to get off the stage until I fall."
"Why?" The swallow was greatly surprised.
"But if the altar collapses, you will still have to get down, wouldn't that be worse?"