The grandmother said politely, “Don’t say so much so fast all at once. You seem to be hungry for sweetness and angry for not getting love. I will give you cake to eat.”
“Yes, I need it. I would love to eat one.” The boy was jubilant. The grand mother gave him flour to eat. He ate it and his mouth was sour. He was harsher and bitter now with his complaint.
“Oh! It is tasteless. I can’t eat it. Give me a cake.”
The grandmother handed him a spoonful sugar and said, “It is sweet. You may enjoy it.”
He put the mouthful sugar but could not relish it. “It’s sweet but it’s not tasty. Give me a cake.” He was angrier.
The grandmother smiled at him and gave him butter with baking powder to eat. He filled up his hungry mouth again but he felt smoothing yet salty. He complained, “Oh grandma! What are you doing? I have lost my appetite. I can’t eat these things.”
“My son, these are the ingredients that make a delicious cake. Separately they are tasteless but when mixed together and baked well, they turn into a delicious cake. Why are you separate from friends and colleagues? Get mixed with them. Be a part of the group. You need love, so first give love. You want respect then show respect to them. We are not so wise, happy and honoured individually.”
The boy kept on looking intently at the smiling face and brightened eyes of his grandmother. He was metamorphosed and no complaint came from him afterwards.
Soul Searching
Life is lovely and lovable when we mix together. It is bitter when separated.
Individually, we are not powerful because we don’t share our strength, ability, love and sweetness. But in community, it is different. We are one with them and share unconditionally our strength, skill, ability, love, affection and respect.
We must join others with commitment which will transform us. We will not remain sugar or baking powder but change into delicious cake – tasty and full of vitamins.
It is the Yoga of wisdom. Love, respect and power is shared. Power of love is bliss but love for power is ego.
It is the Yoga of action. Love creates opportunities and initiates. It does not wait for introduction or order.
9. Giving Life Back
Ryokan was a Zen Master of repute. One day, a fisherman saw him walking towards the beach soon after a storm. The storm had washed up thousands of starfish on the shore and they were beginning to dry up. He knew, soon all of them would be dead and could not be received. Ryokan started picking up the starfishes and throwing them back into
the sea.
The fisherman went up to the Master and said, “It is nice to try to give life back to a dying being. But I’m sure you cannot throw all these starfishes back into the sea? They will die in thousands here. I’ve seen it happen before. Your effort will make no difference.”
“It will to this one,” Ryokan said with confidence, throwing back another starfishes into the sea. He bent down to pick up yet another without looking at the fish that he had thrown into the sea.
The fisherman looked intently at him for some time and then, he started throwing the starfishes into the sea, faster than the Master. After some time, other fishermen also came and joined the work of giving life back to the dying starfishes. In that moment of crisis, they realised the true value of life and importance of right moment in life.
Soul Searching
Work diligently and righteously, as much for the self as for others today to make yesterday’s dreams of happiness come true and to nurture tomorrow’s visions of hope.
10. Pride for What!
A king went to a saint for some spiritual lessons.
The saint asked, “O king! What will you do if you are dying of thirst and a person offers a bit dirty water for half your kingdom? Will you accept or deny?”
“Life is more important than the kingdom. I will give half of my kingdom and take the water.” The king was honest and straightforward.
The saint asked again, “O king! What will you do if that dirty water gave rise to diseases; you are dying and a Vaidya offers cure for the other half of your kingdom? Will you accept or deny it?”
“Life is more important than the kingdom. I will give the other half of my kingdom and accept the medicine.” The king affirmed again.
“O king! Then why are you proud of your kingdom which can be given away for dirty water and curative medicines?” the saint said.
Soul Searching
He who is engrossed in worldly pleasures cannot acquire supreme wisdom; and with pride one can’t reach there. The absolute control over senses and ego is the process to gain knowledge and that will lead the knower to ultimate peace.
11. Theft of Wisdom
Anastasius was abbot of a monastery in Egypt. The monastery had a large collection of books, one among them being a rare volume worth a fortune. One day a visiting monk chanced upon the book and succumbing to temptation walked away with it. The theft was discovered the same day and it was not hard to guess who the culprit was but Anastasius refused to send anyone after the monk for fear that he might say he had not taken it and add the sin of perjury to that of theft.
The monk meanwhile was trying to sell the book and eventually found a buyer, a rich man who asked him to leave the book with him for a day so that he could get it evaluated.
When the monk had gone, the man hastened to the monastery and showed the book to Anastasius. The abbot recognised it instantly but did not say anything.
“A monk wants to sell it to me,” said his visitor. “He’s asking for a gold sovereign. You are knowledgeable about books. Is this book worth that much?”
“It’s worth many times more than a sovereign,” said the abbot. “It’s a valuable book.”
The man thanked the abbot and left. The next day when the monk came, he informed him that he would like to buy the book and was prepared to pay the price he had mentioned. The monk was overjoyed.
“Whom did you show it to?” he asked.
“I showed it to Anastasius, the abbot.”
His visitor turned pale. “And what did he say?”
“He said the book was worth a sovereign.”
“And what else?”
“He said nothing more.”
The monk was both amazed and touched. He realised that the abbot had refused to reclaim his lost treasure so that he, the thief would not get into trouble. Nobody had ever shown him such love; nobody had ever behaved so nobly towards him.
“I’ve changed my mind, I don’t want to sell it,” he said and took the book from the man.
“I’ll give you two sovereigns,” said the customer.
The monk walked away without answering. He went directly to the monastery and handed the book to the abbot, tears brimming in his eyes.
“Keep it,” said Anastasius. “When I learnt you had borrowed it, I decided to give it to you.”
“Please take it back,” pleaded the monk, “but let me stay here and attain wisdom from you.”
His wish was granted. He spent the rest of his years in the monastery modeling his life after that of the saintly Anastasius.
Soul Searching
A wise person constantly lives in awareness of the basic unity of existence, free from the delusion of separateness. There is the unity of the spirit underlying the outer differences.
Grief and delusion come as a result of identification with the body, mind and intellect which are the little self. When one looks at the things from personal angle, there is sorrow. The moment one views the things from a larger perspective then wisdom and peace prevail.
12. Honour
Once, Alexander demoted one of his Generals. The General, now only a Commander of a small troop, did his work as usual.
It so happened that the Commander was to appear before Alexander. He looked at him with wonder and asked, “How is it that you are still very happy t
hough demoted from the higher rank.”
He answered, “Sir, I’m greatly pleased with my present position. Earlier, even the army officers were afraid of coming before me but now they meet me whenever they like. I solve their problems. They take my advice in all the matters. After demotion, I got the opportunity to serve them. They are pleased with me. It is my pleasure and its effect is my happiness.”
“Don’t you feel insult in demotion?” Alexander was apparently defeated.
“Where is honour – in post or in humanity?” he asked humbly. He continued, “There is pleasure, satisfaction and respect in serving others, not in unnecessarily punishing others.”
Alexander showed his greatness by saying. “Don’t take my mistake seriously. You are again promoted to the post of General.”
Soul Searching
In current times, there might not be the equivalent of the great ones, who could unravel through example, the mystery of right or wrong; respect and disrespect; righteous or unrighteous; human or inhuman. So, before taking law in hand and punishing others, one must be prepared to face the karmic consequences of one’s action.
13. Worldly Dharma
A young ascetic sitting in meditation under a tree was splattered by the droppings of a bird.
He looked up angrily at the culprit and such was the intensity of his wrath that the bird was reduced to ash.
His concentration disturbed, the ascetic got up and went in search of food. He knocked at the door of a house but there was no answer. He knocked again and the lady of the house shouted that she was coming. Later on, she came out with food and seeing that he was annoyed at having had to wait so long, smiled and said, “Please don’t try to burn me with your angry glance like you did to that bird. My dharma as a housewife is first to take care of the needs of my family before attending to the needs of others.”
The ascetic realised that she was no ordinary woman and was ashamed of himself. He asked her to teach him what dharma was. She said he should see Dharma Vyādha.
The ascetic went in search of Dharma Vyādha expecting to find a venerable sage but the man turned out to be a meat-seller.
Dharma Vyādha made him wait while he served his customers. When the ascetic showed signs of impatience, the meat-seller smiled and said, “Just as the woman’s first duty was to her family, my first duty is to my customers.”
So the ascetic waited. When the last of his customers had gone, the meat-seller turned to the ascetic and invited him home.
When they reached Dharma Vyādha’s house, the ascetic was again made to wait while his host lovingly attended to his parents. It was quite some time before the meat-seller could return to his guest but the young man showed no trace of anger. A transformation had come over him.
“Now I know what dharma is,” he said, rising and bowing to the meat-seller.
Giving up the path of asceticism, he returned home and begged forgiveness of his parents for having deserted them in their old age.
“I seek your blessings,” he said, “to give me strength to do my dharma.”
Soul Searching
We are all warriors in the battle of life. Each one of us has an obligation to perform. By performing all the worldly duties well, one can transcend delusion and move to higher state.
14. Ungovernable Temper
A Zen Master was delivering a lecture on self control. When the lecture was over and most of the students had returned, a new student came to him and said, “Master, I have an ungovernable temper. Help me get rid of it. It bothers me and others are affected too.”
“You have something very strange,” said the teacher. It is not healthy to possess an ungovernable temper or be possessed by one. Are you sure you have an ungovernable temper?”
“Yes Master,” the student accepted candidly.
“Then, show it to me,” the Master asked him again.
“Right now I cannot show it to you,” the student said meekly.
“Why can’t you?” the Master asked.
“It arises suddenly.” The student volunteered the nature of his temper.
“When it arises suddenly at some instigation, incident or
unknown entity, then it cannot be your own true nature,” said the master, “if it were, you would be able to show it to me at any time. Why are you allowing something to trouble your life that is not yours?”
Thereafter, whenever the student felt his temper rising, he remembered the master’s words and checked his anger. In time, he developed a calm and placid temperament.
Soul Searching
Tranquility can be maintained inside as insight is developed and attained with right approach and positive treatment.
15. Crooked Howler
A thief hired a room at an inn and stayed there at night. The next morning, when he looked out of the window he saw the owner of the inn sitting in the courtyard. The man was wearing an expensive new coat which the thief decided would look good on his own body and give a reliable appearance.
He hatched a plan and accordingly went out. He sat by the side of the innkeeper, started up a conversation with him in a very casual manner. At first he yawned and then to the innkeeper’s astonishment, howled like a wolf.
“Why did you do that?” asked the innkeeper.
“I have no control over it,” said the thief. “If I yawn three times
I actually turn into a wolf. Please don’t leave me. I’m frightened!”
And with that he yawned again and let out another howl. The innkeeper turned pale and got up to go but the thief caught hold of his coat and begged him to stay. Even as he pleaded, he yawned again. The terrified innkeeper wriggled out of the coat to which the thief was tightly holding on and ran into the inn and locked himself inside his room.
The thief calmly put on the coat and walked away.
Soul Searching
There are numerous deception and innumerable deceptive persons. Hence, one should not believe every tale one hears.
16. The Little Elephant
King Sheela Bhadra, of Bhāvapuri went into a dense forest named Chāmpakāranya, on a hunting expedition. Besides many other animals, he captured a gorgeous baby elephant. It was of noble breed. It appeared so cute and innocent that the king decided to keep it for personal use. His best mahāut was asked to train and take care of the little elephant.
After a fortnight, the baby elephant started showing haughty temper and naughty behaviour. The mahāut reported that in place of showing discipline, the elephant was becoming ill-mannered. The worried king ordered a minister to find out the cause and suggest ways to mend it.
The minister did not go directly to the baby elephant. He kept himself out of sight and climbed up a tree to watch the ill-mannered noble breed.
Early in the evening two ruffians came and sat under another tree quite close to the elephant. Two others joined them. Then half an hour later, three more joined them. They drank local wine, used unethical words, behaved badly, hurled abuses against each other and even against the persons that were not present there. It was their usual meeting place. The baby elephant was intently looking towards them.
The minister watched the proceedings for three nights. Then he submitted the report to the king. The king immediately stopped those ruffians. They were replaced by good men who were instructed to talk and behave well in a gentleman’s way. There was a marked improvement in the behaviour of the baby elephant. Within a month, he started obeying the mahāut.
Soul Searching
We imitate others and if the other persons are ill-behaved then it precipitates emotions like anger, violence and attack. We are controlled by them.
Our moods and emotions swing. Slowly it becomes our second nature. Our temperament shows a perceptible change.
Life is unstable and unpredictable. None can guarantee to be always surrounded by good people and be in good mood.<
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The solution is then to be observant, watchful and alert, and avoid falling victim to the vagaries of the world.
When we are awake and watchful then we can boast of nurturing goodness, virtue, joy, love and be a human being in all aspects of life.
17. May be
Once upon a time, there was an old farmer who had worked hard in his fields and grown crops for many years. One day his horse ran away. Upon hearing the news, his neighbours came to give him solace.
“Such bad luck,” they said sympathetically.
“May be,” the farmer replied. He was non-committed and unaffected.
The next morning the horse returned, bringing with it two other wild horses. The neighbours came to congratulate, “How wonderful,” the neighbours exclaimed.
“May be,” replied the old farmer.
The following day, his only son tried to ride one of the untamed horses. He was thrown down and broke his leg. The neighbours again came to offer their sympathy on his misfortune.
“May be,” answered the farmer.
The day after, military officials came to the village to draft young men into the army. Seeing that the son’s leg was broken, they passed him by. The neighbours congratulated the farmer on how well things had turned out for him.
“May be,” said the farmer. The events had no effect on him.
Soul Searching
Total identification with the events results in deep resentment or enthusiastic exultation but a balanced approach frees from remorse and ecstasy.
The insight shows that the meaning of incidents are not only what we perceive, it can be different, almost opposite.
18. Carrying Load in Mind
Two monks were returning to the monastery. It had rained and there were puddles of water on the road. At one place, a beautiful young woman was standing. Apparently she was waiting for someone who could help her. She was unable to walk across because of the muddy water. She requested them for help. The younger monk did not like the idea and stepped back in refusal. The elder monk went up to her, lifted her
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