Prof. Shrikant Prasoon
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© Pustak Mahal
ISBN 978-81-223-1273-7
Edition: 2012
The Copyright of this book, as well as all matter contained herein (including illustrations) rests with the Publishers. No person shall copy the name of the book, its title design, matter and illustrations in any form and in any language, totally or partially or in any distorted form. Anybody doing so shall face legal action and will be responsible for damages.
Printed at : Param Offsetters, Okhla, New Delhi-110020
Publishers
Pustak Mahal®
Dedicated
To All Human Beings:
Men and Women;
Old, Young and Children;
And to
My Dear Friend
Vijoy Kumar Sinha
Preface
A story, with many layers of meaning and possibilities of different interpretations; communicates its message in a roundabout, oblique manner, indirectly and yet in a familiar way; and clears dilemmas and bewildering situations.
It may convey spirituality or increase religiosity or provide moral support or enhance ethical values. In all, it gives immense pleasure and invaluable wisdom.
A true story is the food for reasoning and intellectual analysis with spirituality as its aim in the language of heart.
These marvelous and fabulous stories have been taken from Indian history, myths, culture, epics, dramas, folklore, fairy-tales, saints and from Buddha, Zen, Sufi, Sikh traditions; and also from European spirituality.
These are soul stirring tales. Each one will touch, smoothly and definitely the heart, mind and thus the soul. Powerful, positive, creative and effective moments have been depicted with bare minimum words and the details are left for the imagination and attitude of the individual reader to create and colour.
These short and delightful stories are designed to develop the mind, free it from distortions and connect with the inner spirit. They are truly inspiring and enlightening stories. They stir the soul and force the mind to think deeply in order to assimilate the ideas and meaning. The beauty, directness and simplicity of the messages get through to us one way or the other.
They deal mostly with – life in the present moment; its upheaval; continual distractions; different perspectives; overwhelming desires; deep attachment; strong resistance; unprejudiced judgments; instant delusions; mundane beliefs and transcendental thoughts as mental concepts and modifications.
They are well supported with meaningful illustrations in abstract art which are suggestive, ambiguous and non defined.
These stories are bound to enrich our minds and keep the path and vision lighted. So read them with an open mind, relate with them and assimilate the wisdom they impart.
Prof. Shrikant Prasoon
Opp. Town Police Station,
Motihari 845401
Chaparan East: Bihar, India
Mobile – 09868082133
Website: www.shrikantprasoon.com
E-mail: [email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
Prayers
Shānt-ākāram bhujag-shayanam padma-nābham suresham;
Vishwa-ādhāram gagan-sadrisham megha-varnam subhāngam.
Lakshmi-kāntam kamal-nayanam yogibhih-gyānag-gamyam;
Vande Vishnu bhava-bhaya-haram sarva-lokaika-nātham.
(He, whose whole form is the embodiment of peace; who sleeps on a python; a lotus has bloomed from whose navel; is the God of Gods; is the very basis of the Universe; is like the sky, handsome in appearance and of the cloud’s colour; the spouse of Lakshmi; who takes away the worldly fears; that God is the master of all the Lokas.)
Shriyā shlishto vishnuh sthir-char-vapuh-veda-vishayo;
Dhiyām sākshi shuddho harih-asur-hantābja-nayan.
Gadi shankhi chakri vimal-vanmāli sthir-ruchih;
Sharanyo lokesho mam bhavatu krisno-akshi-vishayah.
(He, who is always seen with Lakshmi; is very attractive; the whole Universe is whose body; who is the subject of the Vedas; who is a witness to all knowledge and wisdom; is pure; has lotus eyes; who hold a conch, mace, wheel and wears a garland made of lotus flowers; has stable brightness and glow; and the saviour of all who seek shelter; that God of the Universe be before my eyes.)
Spiritual Quadruplets
One
We have a body with systems,
organs and a living spirit within;
The body is alive, moves and acts for the Prāna, life element, is in,
We need a body healthy and active and a spirited spirit spiritual;
For fruition, prosperity, to bloom with boughs, flowers, leaves green.
Two
One must foster well and take care of the two in manner proper;
Their needs are different, opposite, one to cover, the other discover;
Provide food fresh, healthier, and ideas moral and benevolent;
Exquisite balance is to be maintained for ascending steadily higher.
Three
Body is the infrastructure while spirit
is the prudent Proctor;
One is the ship essential, the other is
the sailor, the navigator;
One can’t be sacrificed for the other, as the twins make the whole;
Body needs a soul to be alive, the spirit needs a body to prosper.
Four
Out of the four common pursuits,
for progress and elevation;
Two, Artha and Kāma are for the body,
physical attainments;
The other two, Dharma and Moksha, are for the soul, the spirit,
To perform pious deeds and strengthen the claim for salvation.
Five
They get infinite prosperity that live in harmony with Prakriti, the Nature;
Strive hard, incessantly to become sublime, with steady steps, feature;
They listen to conscience and sincerely follow its pious, intuitive dictates;
And maintain a balance in ethical earning and wise, frugal expenditure.
Six
Real prosperity is both the
spiritual and material richness;
To be larger, higher, and to possess
greater scope, wideness;
To feel the importance and need of
all living and non-living;
To exhibit for all: love, sympathy,
compassion and kindness.
– From Spiritual Quadruplets
A wealthy man requested an old scholar to cure his son of his bad habits.
The scholar took the youth for a stroll in a garden. Stopping suddenly, he asked the boy to pull out a tiny plant growing there. The youth held the plant between his thumb and forefinger and pulled it out.
The old man then asked him to pull out a slightly bigger plant. The youth pulled hard and the plant came out, roots and all.
“Now pull out that one,” said the old man pointing towards a bush. The boy had to use all his strength to pull it out.
“Now take this one out,” said the old man, indicating towards a guava tree. The youth grasped the trunk and tried to pull it out. But it refused to budge.
“I can’t pull it out. It’s impossible,” said the boy, panting.
“So it is with bad habits,” said the scholar “When they are saplings, they are tender and young, it is easy to pull them out but when they take hold they cannot be uprooted.”
The boy soon realised what the old scholar was indicating at. He realised that he needed to get rid of his bad habits.
One session with the old scholar and one proper lesson changed the boy’s life.
Soul Searching
There is perfection and imperfection everywhere and in everything. Focus on the action. Perform it wholeheartedly with sincerity and dedication and of course, wisdom. Success will follow. Work well done is joyous in itself. Action consecrated to a higher ideal is worship and spirituality evolves
from it.
2. Teaching Right and Wrong
When the Zen Master Bankei held his seclusion – weeks of meditation, pupils from many parts of Japan came to attend. During one of these gatherings, a pupil was caught stealing. The matter was reported to Bankei with the request that the culprit be expelled. Bankei however, ignored the case.
Later, the same pupil was caught in a similar act. It was reported but again Bankei disregarded the matter. This angered the other pupils, who drew up a petition asking for the expulsion of the thief. If otherwise, they would leave the gathering.
Bankei read the petition and smiled. He called everyone before him.
“You are wise brothers,’’ he told them. “You know what is right and what is not right. You may go somewhere else to study if you wish, as you are wise. But this poor brother does not even know right from wrong. Who will teach him if I don’t? I am going to keep him here even if all the rest of you leave.”
There was complete silence. A torrent of tears cleansed the face of the pupil who was the thief. The desire to steal had vanished. He was a changed man.
Soul Searching
Punishment is not the only way to teach right and wrong or wholesome and unwholesome. Touch the weakness with soft and warm hands or sweet and suggestive words. It leaves more impact than punishment.
3. Cycle of Evil
There was once a king who was so cruel and unjust that his subjects yearned for his death or dethronement.
However, one day he surprised them all by announcing that he had decided to turn over a new leaf.
“No more cruelty, no more injustice,” he promised, and he was as good as his word. He came to be known as the ‘Gentle Monarch’.
Months after his transformation, one of his ministers gathered enough courage to ask him what had brought about his change of heart. The king answered, “As I was galloping through my forests, I caught sight of a fox being chased by a dog. The fox escaped into its hole but not before the dog had bitten into its leg and lamed it for life. Later I rode into a village and saw the same dog there. It was barking at a man. Even as
I watched, the man picked up a huge stone and flung it at the dog, breaking its leg. The man had not gone far when he was kicked by a horse. His knee was shattered and he fell to the ground, disabled for life. The horse began to run but it fell into a hole and broke its leg.
Reflecting on all that had happened, I thought: ‘Evil begets evil. If I continue in my evil ways, I will surely be overtaken by evil.’ So I decided to change.”
The minister went away convinced that the time was ripe to overthrow the gentle king and seize his throne. Immersed in thought, he did not see the steps in front of him and fell, breaking his neck.
Soul Searching
Whether the cause is hidden or known, it will have its effect sooner or later. Righteous deeds are praised by all while unwholesome deeds are not liked, not even by the doer.
4. No Escape: Taste Nectar Honey
One day, a man was going through a lonely place when an elephant started chasing him. He ran for safety. He found a dead well. He jumped into it to get rid of the elephant. But soon he saw snakes at the bottom. Oh! He clutched to a branch of banyan tree that had grown there. The elephant came there and lowered his trunk to catch the man. The man was beyond its reach.
The man was in a predicament: the snakes below and the elephant above. At that point of time, he saw that a black and a white rat were cutting the very branch that he was holding. A drop of honey fell on a leaf close to the man. He looked up and saw a big beehive. With his tongue, he tasted the honey. It was nectar, the nectar of life.
(In real life, the elephant a is day-to-day problem; man tries to take shelter in his cozy home but the danger of death in the form of snakes lurks there too. Moreover, the time is passing by swiftly as days and nights symbolised by white and black rats. When there is no escape, then one must face life to get Bliss and Parmānad, the absolute, eternal and immense pleasure symbolised by honey.)
Soul Searching
It is an undeniable fact that there is no escape from death. Then why should one worry about it. It will come at its appointed hour. In the meantime, instead of running away from life and its problems, one must live full, a complete life, doing only good and tasting the nectar, the honey which is the reward of righteous thought and deeds.
5. Headstrong Companion
Once upon a time there lived a Bharunda, a bird with two heads. One day, it found a strange fruit on the seashore. It picked it up and started eating it. The head that was eating the fruit, exclaimed, “Many a sweet fruits tossed by the sea have I eaten, but this beats them all! Is it the fruit of a sandalwood tree or that of the divine pārijāta?”
Hearing this, the other head asked to taste the fruit, but the first head refused, saying, “We have a common stomach, so there’s no need for you to eat it too. I’ll give it to our sweetheart, the Bharundi,” and with that, it tossed the half-eaten fruit to the female.
From that day on, the second head carried a grudge against the first one and waited for an opportunity to take revenge. One day it found a poison fruit. Picking up the fruit, it said to the first head, “You selfish wretch! See, here’s a poison fruit and I’m going to eat it!”
“Don’t do that, you fool!” shrieked the first head, “You’ll kill us both!” But the second head would not listen. It consumed the poison fruit, and soon the two-headed bird was dead.
Soul Searching
A man is known by the companion he keeps, as one is made or marred by the companion. Jealousy is one of the six great enemy of a men. The other five are sensuousness, anger, pride, attachment and lust. The saints advise to be away from these enemies and also from the persons that are dominated by these characteristics.
6. Adjustment
The first Sikh Guru, Guru Nānak once went to Lahore. Although it was his first visit but he was well-known there. People knew him and adored him.
The established saints there did not like his arrival. They were afraid that he will steal the show from them. They sent a disciple with a bowl of milk filled up to the brim. The disciple said nothing and placed the bowl before Guru Nānak.
Guru Nānak read the message correctly. Symbolically, it showed that the place was already full of saints and there was no space for him.
Guru Nānak picked up a ros
e, plucked out a petal and silently and steadily placed it on the milk. The milk was not disturbed. He signalled the disciple to take the bowl back. He said nothing.
By doing so he sent an appropriate reply that he could adjust there without disturbing the established saints.
Soul Searching
Peaceful co-existence is the key to life on the earth. All the living beings have a right to be on the earth and pass their given days without disturbing others.
7. Born, Ruled and Died
There was a king who wanted to know how other kings ruled and what great things they did that they were loved and respected by their subjects and made them immortal. In a few years, his learned historians and literateurs collected and brought a cart load of books before the king.
“Oh no! I can’t read all these books. I don’t have decades before me. Write it in short so that I may finish it.” He lovingly looked at the books and said.
In a few years, the learned men brought fifteen volumes for him to read.
“Oh no! I can’t read all these books. I don’t have many years before me. Write it in short so that I may finish it.” He longingly looked at the lovely leather-bound books.
In a few years, the learned men brought three volumes for him to read.
“Oh no! I have grown quite old. I can’t read all these books. Write it in short so that I may finish it.”
In a few years, the learned men brought the summary in one volume for the king to read. But he was on his death bed. His minister came to him with the book. He touched the book remorsefully and said, “Oh no! I can’t read the book. It is my time for departure. Yet I want to know what they did. Please tell me in short.”
“All the kings were born; they ruled and died,” the minister said. But the king was not alive to listen to it.
Soul Searching
Perform as much righteous deeds as possible without waiting for auspicious time for time has its fixed, regular and incessant movement forward.
8. Be a Part of Delicious Cake
Just after returning from the school, a grandchild complained to his grandmother: “I won’t go to school. My teachers reprimand me. My friends don’t like me. They are better at study, in sports and in drawing artistic pictures. No one likes me. It is very bitter.”
50 Soul Stirring Stories Page 1