In the following very popular passage Elias compares a belief to one of many many birds in a cage where the cage symbolizes a belief system.
**Session #284:**
ELIAS: Let me express to you, a belief system is as a bird cage. I have expressed this analogy previously, but I shall repeat it presently.
The bird cage is the belief system, but the bird cage holds many, many, many birds, and you may include many more birds into the cage, as many as you choose, for the cage expands and is accommodating of however many birds you choose to be placing in it, and it shall continue to expand, for it is quite accommodating.
This is the belief system, as the cage. The birds are all of the elements of the belief system, all of the aspects of the belief system, and I shall express to you that each belief system that you hold holds very many birds and may be quite tricky with you, for many of the birds are hiding behind other birds that you may not even allow yourselves to view. The point of acceptance is to open the door of the bird cage and allow the birds to fly away. Therefore, you continue to hold the cage, but it is empty.
**Session #9999:**
ELIAS: The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog …