16th april 2012

 Good Life

A boat docked in a tiny Goan village. A tourist from Mumbai complimented the Goan fisherman on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took him to catch them.
 ’Not very long,’ answered the fisherman.
 ’But then, why didn’t you stay out longer and catch more?’ asked the Mumbaite.
 The Goan fisherman explained that his small catch was sufficient to meet his needs and those of his family.
 The Mumbaite asked, ’But what do you do with the rest of your time?’
 ’I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, and take a siesta with my wife. In the evenings, I go into the village to see my friends, play guitar, sing a few songs... I have a full life.’
 The Mumbaite interrupted, ’I have an MBA from IIM-A, and I can help you! You should start by fishing longer every day. You can then sell the extra fish you catch. With the extra revenue, you can buy a bigger boat.’
 ’And after that?’ asked the Goan.
 ’With the extra money the larger boat will bring, you can buy a second one and a third one and so on until you have an entire fleet of trawlers. Instead of selling your fish to a middle man, you can then negotiate directly with the processing plants and maybe even open your own plant. You can then leave this little village and move to Panjim, or even Mumbai. From there you can direct your huge new enterprise.’
 ’How long would that take?’ asked the Goan.
 ’Twenty, perhaps twenty-five years,’ replied the Mumbaite.
 ’And after that?’
 ’Afterwards? Well my Friend, That’s when it gets really interesting,’ chuckled the Mumbaite, ’When your business gets really big, you can start selling stocks and make millions!’
 ’Millions? Really? And after that?’ asked the Goan.
 ’After that you’ll be able to retire, live in a tiny village near the coast, sleep late, play with your children, catch a few fish, take a siesta with your wife and spend your evenings doing what you like with your buddies.’
 ’With all due respect sir, but that’s exactly what I am doing now. So what’s the point wasting 25 years?’ asked the Goan.
 

And the moral of the story is? Know where you’re going in life. You may already be there.

Life in the present world is indeed a rat race. Many who have good qualifications too do not know where they are going in life.

Give it a serious thought, and please don’t forget to take charge of your health.

. Building Your House

An elderly carpenter was ready to retire. He told his employer-contractor of his plans to leave the house-building business to live a more leisurely life with his wife and enjoy his extended family. He would miss the paycheck each week, but he wanted to retire. They could get by.

The contractor was sorry to see his good worker go & asked if he could build just one more house as a personal favor. The carpenter said ”Yes.”

But over the time it was easy to see that his heart was not in his work. He resorted to shoddy workmanship and used inferior materials. It was an unfortunate way to end a dedicated career.

When the carpenter finished his work, his employer came to inspect the house. Then he handed the front-door key to the carpenter and said, ”This is your house... my gift to you.”

The carpenter was shocked!  What a shame! If he had only known he was building his own house, he would have done it all so differently.

So it is with us. We build our lives, a day at a time, often putting less than our best into the building. Then, with a shock, we realize we have to live in the house we have built. If we could do it over, we would do it much differently.

But, you cannot go back. You are the carpenter, and every day you hammer a nail, place a board, or erect a wall. Someone once said, ”Life is a do-it-yourself project.” Your attitude, and the choices you make today, help build the ”house” you will live in tomorrow. Therefore, Build wisely!

Parable Of The Pencil - Pencil story

The Pencil Maker took the pencil aside, just before putting him into the box.

”There are 5 things you need to know,” he told the pencil, ”Before I send you out into the world. Always remember them and never forget, and you will become the best pencil you can be.”

”One: You will be able to do many great things, but only if you allow yourself to be held in Someone’s hand.”

”Two: You will experience a painful sharpening from time to time, but you’ll need it to become a better pencil.”

”Three: You will be able to correct any mistakes you might make.”

”Four: The most important part of you will always be what’s inside.”

”And Five: On every surface you are used on, you must leave your mark. No matter what the condition, you must continue to write.”

The pencil understood and promised to remember, and went into the box with purpose in its heart.

Now replacing the place of the pencil with you.  Always remember them and never forget, and you will become the best person you can be.

One: You will be able to do many great things, but only if you allow yourself to be held in God’s hand. And allow other human beings to access you for the many gifts you possess.

Two: You will experience a painful sharpening from time to time, by going through various problems in life, but you’ll need it to become a stronger person.

Three: You will be able to correct any mistakes you might make.

Four: The most important part of you will always be what’s on the inside.

And Five: On every surface you walk through, you must leave your mark. No matter what the situation, you must continue to do your duties.

Allow this parable on the pencil to encourage you to know that you are a special person and only you can fulfill the purpose to which you were born to accomplish.

Never allow yourself to get discouraged and think that your life is insignificant and cannot make a change.

Things May Not be What They Seem.

Imagine you are at an Airport. While you’re waiting  for your flight, you  notice a kiosk selling cookies. You buy a box, put  them in your  traveling bag and then you patiently search for an  available seat so you  can sit down and enjoy your cookies. Finally, you  find a seat next to a  gentleman. You reach down into your traveling bag  and pull out your box  of cookies. 

 As you do so, you notice that the gentleman starts  watching you  intensely.   He stares as you open the box and his eyes follow  your hand as you pick  up the cookie and bring it to your mouth. Just then  he reaches over and  takes one of your cookies from the box, and eats it!

You’re more than a little surprised at this.  Actually, you’re at a loss  for words. Not only does he take one cookie, but  also he alternates with  you. For every one cookie you take, he takes one.

 Now, what’s your immediate impression of this guy?  Crazy? Greedy? He’s  got some nerve? Can you imagine the words you might  use to describe this  man to your associates back at the office? 

 Meanwhile, you both continue eating the cookies  until there’s just one  left. To your surprise, the man reaches over and  takes it. But then he  does something unexpected. He breaks it in half, and  gives half to you. 

 After he’s finished with his half he gets up, and  without a word, he  leaves.

 You think to yourself, ”Did this really happen?”   You’re left sitting there dumbfounded and still  hungry. So you go back  to the kiosk and buy another box of cookies. You  then return to your  seat and begin opening your new box of cookies when  you glance down into  your traveling bag. Sitting there in your bag is  your original box of  cookies still unopened. 

 Only then you realize that when you reached down  earlier, you had  reached into the other man’s bag, and grabbed his  box of cookies by  mistake. 

 Now what do you think of the man? Generous?  Tolerant? You’ve just  experienced a profound paradigm shift. You’re seeing  things from a new  point of view. Is it time to change your point of  view? 

 Now, think of this story as it relates to your life.

 Seeing things from  a new point of view can be very enlightening. Think  outside the box.

 Don’t settle for the status quo. Be open to  suggestions. Things may not  be what they seem. 

15 april 2012

. The Echo of Life

 A son and his father were walking on the mountains. Suddenly, the son falls, hurts himself and screams, ”AAAhhhhhhhhhhh!!!”

To his surprise, he hears the voice repeating, somewhere in the mountain: ”AAAhhhhhhhhhhh!!!”

Curious, he yells, ”Who are you?”

He receives the answer, ”Who are you?”

Angered at the response, he screams, ”Coward!”

He receives the answer, ”Coward!”

He looks to his father and asks, ”What’s going on?”

The father smiles and says, ”My son, pay attention.”

And then he screams to the mountain, ”I admire you!”

The voice answers, ”I admire you!”

Again the father screams, ”You are a champion!”

The voice answers, ”You are a champion!”

 The boy is surprised, but does not understand. Then the father explains: ”People call this ECHO, but really this is LIFE. It gives you back everything you say or do. Our life is simply a reflection of our actions. If you want more love in the world, create more love in your heart. If you want more competence in your team, improve your competence. This relationship applies to everything, in all aspects of life; life will give you back everything you have given to it. Your life is not a coincidence. It’s a reflection of you!”

Challenges Keep Us Alive And Fresh!

The Japanese have always loved fresh fish. But the water close to Japan has not held many fish for decades. So to feed the Japanese population, fishing boats got bigger and went farther than ever. The farther the fishermen went, the longer it took to bring the fish. If the return trip took more time, the fish were not fresh. To solve this problem, fish companies installed freezers on their boats. They would catch the fish and freeze them at sea. Freezers allowed the boats to go farther and stay longer. However, the Japanese could taste the difference between fresh and frozen fish. And they did not like the taste of frozen fish. The frozen fish brought a lower price. So, fishing companies installed fish tanks. They would catch the fish and stuff them in the tanks, fin to fin. After a little thrashing around, they were tired, dull, and lost their fresh-fish taste. The fishing industry faced an impending crisis! But today, they get fresh-tasting fish to Japan. How did they manage? To keep the fish tasting fresh, the Japanese fishing companies still put the fish in the tanks but with a small shark.

The fish are challenged and hence are constantly on the move. The challenge they face keeps them alive and fresh!

Have you realized that some of us are also living in a pond but most of the time tired and dull? Basically in our lives, sharks are new challenges to keep us active. If you are steadily conquering challenges, you are happy. Your challenges keep you energized. Don’t create success and revel in it in a state of inertia. You have the resources, skills and abilities to make a difference. Put a shark in your tank and see how far you can really go!

”Weakness of attitude becomes weakness of character”

- Albert Einstein

Destiny Has Something In Store For All Of Us.

Once there were three trees on a hill in the woods. They were discussing their hopes and dreams when the first tree said, ”Someday I hope to be a treasure chest. I could be filled with gold, silver and precious gems. I could be decorated with intricate carving and everyone would see the beauty.”

Then the second tree said, ”Someday I will be a mighty ship. I will take kings and queens across the waters and sail to the corners of the world. Everyone will feel safe in me because of the strength of my hull.”

Finally the third tree said, ”I want to grow to be the tallest and straightest tree in the forest. People will see me on top of the hill and look up to my branches, and think of the heavens and God and how close to them I am reaching. I will be the greatest tree of all time and people will always remember me.”

After a few years of praying that their dreams would come true, a group of woodsmen came upon the trees. When one came to the first tree he said, ”This looks like a strong tree, I think I should be able to sell the wood to a carpenter” ... and he began cutting it down. The tree was happy, because he knew that the carpenter would make him into a treasure chest.

At the second tree a woodsman said, ”This looks like a strong tree, I should be able to sell it to the shipyard.” The second tree was happy because he knew he was on his way to becoming a mighty ship.

When the woodsmen came upon the third tree, the tree was frightened because he knew that if they cut him down his dreams would not come true. One of the woodsmen said, ”I don’t need anything special from my tree so I’ll take this one”, and he cut it down.

Then one day, a man and woman came to the barn. She gave birth and they placed the baby in the hay in the feed box that was made from the first tree. The man wished that he could have made a crib for the baby, but this manger would have to do. The tree could feel the importance of this event and knew that it had held the greatest treasure of all time. Years later, a group of men got in the fishing boat made from the second tree. One of them was tired and went to sleep. While they were out on the water, a great storm arose and the tree didn’t think it was strong enough to keep the men safe. The men woke the sleeping man, and he stood and said ”Peace” and the storm stopped. At this time, the tree knew that it had carried the King of Kings in its boat.

Finally, someone came and got the third tree. It was carried through the streets as the people mocked the man who was carrying it. When they came to a stop, the man was nailed to the tree and raised in the air to die at the top of a hill. When Sunday came, the tree came to realize that it was strong enough to stand at the top of the hill and be as close to God as was possible, because Jesus had been crucified on it.

The moral of this story is that when things don’t seem to be going your way, always know that God has a plan for you. If you place your trust in Him, He will give you great gifts. Each of the trees got what they wanted, just not in the way they had imagined. We don’t always know what God’s plans are for us. We just know that His ways are not our ways, but His ways are always best. 

14th March 2012

ATTITUDES TO WORK

Three people were laying bricks and a passerby asked them what they were doing. The first one replied, "Don't you see I am making a living?" The second one said, "Don't you see I am laying bricks?" The third one said, "I am building a beautiful monument." Three people doing the same thing gave totally different replies. The question is : did they have different attitudes? And would their attitude affect their performance? The answer is a clear yes.

HOW THEY CATCH  MONKEYS IN INDIA

Monkey-hunters use a box with an opening at the top, big enough for the monkey to slide its hand in. Inside the box are nuts. The monkey grabs the nuts and now its hand becomes a fist. The monkey tries to get its hand out but the opening is big enough for the hand to slide in, but too small for the fist to come out. Now the monkey has a choice, either to let go off the nuts and be free forever or hang on to the nuts and get caught. Guess what it picks every time? You guessed it. He hangs on to the nuts and gets caught.

We are no different from monkeys. We all hang on to some nuts that keep us from going forward in life. We keep rationalizing by saying, "I cannot do this because . . ." and whatever comes after "because" are the nuts that we are hanging on to which are holding us back.

  

3 march 2012

ACRES OF DIAMONDS

There was a farmer in Africa who was happy and content. He was happy because he was content. He was content because he was happy. One day a wise man came to him and told him about the glory of diamonds and the power that goes along with them. The wise man said, "If you had a diamond the size of your thumb, you could have your own city. If you had a diamond the size of your fist, you could probably own your own country." And then he went away. That night the farmer couldn't sleep. He was unhappy and he was discontent. He was unhappy because he was discontent and discontent because he was unhappy.

The next morning he made arrangements to sell off his farm, took care of his family and went in search of diamonds. He looked all over Africa and couldn't find any. He looked all through Europe and couldn't find any. When he got to Spain, he was emotionally, physically and financially broke. He got so disheartened that he threw himself into the Barcelona River and committed suicide.

Back home, the person who had bought his farm was watering the camels at a stream that ran through the farm. Across the stream, the rays of the morning sun hit a stone and made it sparkle like a rainbow. He thought it would look good on the mantle piece. He picked up the stone and put it in the living room. That afternoon the wise man came and saw the stone sparkling. He asked, "Is Hafiz back?" The new owner said, "No, why do you ask?" The wise man said, "Because that is a diamond. I recognize one when I see one." The man said, no, that's just a stone I picked up from the stream. Come, I'll show you. There are many more." They went and picked some samples and sent them for analysis. Sure enough, the stones were diamonds. They found that the farm was indeed covered with acres and acres of diamonds.*

What is the moral of this story?

There are five morals:

1. When our attitude is right, we realize that we are all walking on acres and acres of diamonds.

•              Opportunity is always under our feet. We don't have to go anywhere. All we need to do is recognize it.

2. The grass on the other side always looks greener.

3. While we are dyeing the grass on the other side, there are others who are dyeing the grass on our side. They would be happy to trade places with us.

4. When people don't know how to recognize oppor¬tunity, they complain of noise when it knocks.

5. The same opportunity never knocks twice. The next one may be better or worse, but it is never the same one.

The Art of Giving

"Rivers do not drink their own water, nor do tree eat their own fruit, nor do rain clouds eat the grains reared by them. The wealth of the noble is used solely for the benefit of others? 
  
Even after accepting that giving is good and that one must learn to give, several questions need to be answered. 
 

The first question is when should one give?

We all know the famous incident from Mahabharat.

Yudhisthir, asks a beggar seeking alms to come the next day. On this, Bhim rejoices, that Yudhisthir his brother, has conquered death! For he is sure that he will  be around tomorrow to give. Yudhisthir gets the message.   
One does not know really whether one will be there tomorrow to give! 
 

The time to give therefore is now. 

The next question is 'how much to give?

  
One recalls the famous incident from history. Rana Pratap was reeling after defeat from the Moghals. He had lost his army, he had lost his wealth, and most important he had lost hope, his will to fight. At that time in his darkest hour, his erstwhile minister Bhamasha came seeking him and placed his entire fortune at the disposal of Rana Pratap. With this, Rana Pratap raised an army and lived to fight another day. 
 

The answer to this question how much to give is 
"Give as much as you can! 

The next question is what to give?

  
It is not only money that can be given. It could be a flower or even a smile. 
  
It is not how much one gives but how one gives that really matters. When you give a smile to a stranger that may be the only good thing received by him in days and weeks! 
 

"You can give anything but you must give with your heart! 

One also needs answer to this question whom to give?

  
Many times we avoid giving by finding fault with the person who is seeking. However, being judgmental and rejecting a person on the presumption that he may not be the most deserving is not justified. 
 

“Give without being judgmental! 

Next we have to answer 'How to give?

  
Coming to the manner of giving, one has to ensure that the receiver does not feel humiliated, nor the giver feels proud by giving. 
  
In giving follow the advice, ’Let not your left hand know what your right hand gives? Charity without publicity and fanfare is the highest form of charity. 
 

'Give quietly!

 

While giving let not the recipient feel small or humiliated. After all what we give never really belonged to us. We come to this world with nothing and will go with nothing. The thing gifted was only with us for a temporary period. Why then take pride in giving away something which really did not belong to us? Give with grace and with a feeling of gratitude. 

What should one feel after giving?

  
We all know the story of Eklavya. When Dronacharya asked him for his right thumb as "Guru Dakshina?he unhesitatingly cut off the thumb and gave it to Dronacharya. 
  
There is a little known sequel to this story. Eklavya was asked whether he ever regretted the act of giving away his thumb. He replied, and the reply has to be believed to be true, as it was asked to him when he was dying. 
  
His reply was "Yes! I regretted this only once in my life. It was when Pandavas were coming in to kill Dronacharya who was broken hearted on the false news of death of his son Ashwathama and had stopped fighting. It was then that I regretted the loss of my thumb. If the thumb was there, no one could have dared hurt my Guru? 

The message to us is clear. 
 

Give and never regret giving!

  
And the last question is 
 

‘How much should we provide for our heirs?

  
Ask yourself 'are we taking away from them the gift of work'? - A source of happiness! The answer is given by Warren Buffett:   
 

"Leave your kids enough to do anything, but not enough to do nothing! 

I would conclude by saying: let us learn the Art of Giving, and quoting Sant Kabir:

  
"When the wealth in the house increases, when water fills a boat, Throw them out with both hands! 

This is the wise thing to do.

A Wise Doctor 



A worried woman went to her gynecologist and said:
'Doctor, I have a serious problem and desperately need your help!
My baby is not even 1 yr. old and I'm pregnant again.
I don't want kids so close together.'

So the doctor said: 'Ok, and what do you want me to do?'

She said: 'I want you to end my pregnancy, and I'm counting on your help with this.'

The doctor thought for a little, and after some silence he said to the lady:
'I think I have a better solution for your problem. It's less dangerous for you, too.'

She smiled, thinking that the doctor was going to accept her request.
Then he continued:
'You see, in order for you not to have to take care of 2 babies at the same time, let's kill the one in your arms. This way, you could rest some before the other one is born. If we're going to kill one of them, it doesn't matter which one it is. There would be no risk for your body if you chose the one in your arms.

The lady was horrified and said: 'No doctor! How terrible! It's a crime to kill a child! 'I agree', the doctor replied. 'But you seemed to be ok with it, so I thought maybe that was the best solution. The doctor smiled, realizing that he had made his point. He convinced the mom that there is no difference in killing a child that's already been born and one that's still in the womb.

The crime is the same!

Two Fishermen.

One man was an experienced fisherman, and
the other was not. Everytime the experienced fisherman caught a big fish, he
put it in his ice chest to keep it fresh. Whenever the inexperienced
fisherman caught a big fish, he threw it back. The experienced fisherman
watched this go on all day and finally got tired of seeing this man waste
good fish.
"Why do you keep throwing back all the big fish you catch?" he asked.
The inexperienced fisherman replied "I only have a small frying pan." 

Sometimes like the fisherman, we throw back the big plans, big dreams, big
jobs, big opportunities that God gives us. Our faith is too small. We laugh
at that fisherman who did not figure out that all he needed was a BIGGER
FRYING PAN yet how ready are we to increase the SIZE OF OUR FAITH. Whether
it's a problem or a possibility, God will never give you anything bigger
than you can handle. That means we can confidently walk into anything God
brings our way. 
GIVE ME OH GOD
DEEP THOUGHTS
HIGH DREAMS
FEW WORDS
MUCH SILENCE
THE NARROW PATH
THE WIDE OUTLOOK
THE END IN PEACE.
AMEN.

- - -

21st august

Unfolding A Rosebud

 A young, new preacher was walking with an older, more  seasoned  preacher in the garden one day and feeling a bit insecure  about  what God had for him to do,

 he was inquiring of the older preacher. The older preacher  walked  up to a rosebush and handed the young preacher a rosebud  and told  him to open it without  tearing off any petals.

 The young preacher looked in disbelief at the older  preacher and  was trying to figure out what a rosebud could possibly have  to do  with his wanting to know  the WILL OF GOD for his life and for his ministry. Because  of his  high respect for the older preacher, he proceeded to TRY to  unfold  the rose, while keeping  every petal intact...It wasn’t long before he realized  how  impossible it was to do so.

 Noticing the younger preacher’s inability to unfold the  rosebud  while keeping it intact, the older preacher began to recite  the  following poem...

 UNFOLDING

 It is only a tiny rosebud,

 A flower of God’s design;

 But I cannot unfold the petals

 With these clumsy hands of mine.

 The secret of unfolding flowers

 Is not known to such as I.

 GOD opens this flower so sweetly,

 When in my hands they fade and die.

 If I cannot unfold a rosebud,

 This flower of God’s design,

 Then how can I think I have wisdom

 To unfold this life of mine?

 So I’ll trust in Him for His leading

 Each moment of every day.

 I will look to him for His guidance

 Each step of the pilgrim way.

 The pathway that lies before me,

 Only my Creator knows.

 I’ll trust Him to unfold the moments,

 Just as He unfolds the rose.

A sufi story

There is a famous Sufi story: A man just got married and was
returning home with his wife. THEY WERE CROSSING A LAKE IN A BOAT when
suddenly a great storm arose.

The man was a warrior, but the woman
became very much afraid because it seemed almost hopeless: THE BOAT WAS
SMALL AND THE STORM WAS REALLY HUGE, and any moment they were going to
be drowned. But the man sat silently, calm and quiet, as if nothing was
happening.

The woman was trembling and she said, "ARE YOU NOT
AFRAID? This may be our last moment of life! It doesn't seem that we
will be able to reach the other shore. Only some miracle can save us;
otherwise death is certain.

Are you not afraid? Are you mad or
something? Are you a stone or something?

" THE MAN LAUGHED AND TOOK THE SWORD OUT OF ITS SHEATH. The woman was even
more puzzled:

What he was doing? Then he brought the naked sword close to the woman's neck
-- so close that just a small gap was there, it was almost touching her
neck. He said,

"ARE YOU AFRAID?" She started to laugh and said,

"WHY I SHOULD BE AFRAID?

If the sword is in your hands, why I should be
afraid?

I know you love me.

" He put the sword back and said,
"This is my answer.

I KNOW GOD LOVES ME, and the sword is in his hands,
and the storm is in his hands --

SO WHATSOEVER IS GOING TO HAPPEN IS
GOING TO BE GOOD. If we survive, good; if we don't survive, good --
because everything is in his hands and he cannot do anything wrong."

THIS IS THE TRUST ONE NEEDS TO IMBIBE. Such tremendous trust is capable
of transforming your whole life. And ONLY such tremendous trust is
capable of transforming your life -- less than that won't do.

THE CLIFF HANGER

A man named Jack was walking along a steep cliff one day when he accidentally got too close to the edge and fell. On the way down he grabbed a branch, which temporarily stopped his fall. He looked down and, to his horror, saw that the canyon fell straight down for more than a thousand feet. He couldn’t hang onto the branch forever, and there was no way for him to climb up the steep wall of the cliff.

So Jack began yelling for help, hoping that someone passing by would hear him and lower a rope or something. HELP! HELP! Is anyone up there? ”HELP!” He yelled for a long time, but no one heard him. He was about to give up when he heard a voice.

”Jack, Jack. Can you hear me?”

”Yes, yes! I can hear you. I’m down here!”

”I can see you, Jack. Are you all right?”

”Yes, but who are you, and where are you?

”I am the Lord, Jack. I’m everywhere.”

”The Lord? You mean, GOD?”

”That’s Me.”

”God, please help me! I promise if, you’ll get me down from here, I’ll stop sinning. I’ll be a really good person. I’ll serve You for the rest of my life.”

Easy on the promises, Jack. Let’s get you off from there; then we can talk.” ”Now, here’s what I want you to do. Listen carefully.”

”I’ll do anything, Lord. Just tell me what to do.”

”Okay. Let go of the branch.”

”What?”

”I said, let go of the branch.” Just trust Me. Let go.”

There was a long silence. Finally Jack yelled, ”HELP! HELP! IS ANYONE ELSE UP THERE?”

Have you ever felt like Jack? We say that we want to know the will of God, but when we find out what it is, we can’t handle it. Sounds too scary--too difficult. We decide to look elsewhere. When He says, ”Let go of the things that stand between you and Me, and trust Me with your life,” it sounds pretty scary. But when we let go, we find freedom and safety in His hands.”

Be Selfish.

Gautam Buddha is passing near a village which consists of high caste brahmins only. They are very much against Gautam Buddha, they have all gathered outside the village to condemn him, to abuse him. He stands there listening to their abuse, their allegations, their lies. Even Ananda -- who has been with him all these years -- feels angry. Because they were born into a royal family: they were warriors, their whole training was to fight. But because Gautam Buddha is present, he controls himself; otherwise he would have killed one or two people then and there.

Gautam Buddha said to them, ”You see that the sun is going to set soon, and we have to reach the other village before the sun sets. If you have not finished all that you wanted to say to me, I will make a point that when I return I set aside enough time to listen to you again. And in two days, I will be returning along the same route -- so it will be very kind of you if you can wait just two days.”

One man from the crowd said, ”You don’t seem to be disturbed at all. And we are not just saying things to you -- we are abusing you, insulting you.”

Gautam Buddha said, ”You have come a little late. If you had come ten years before, you would not have gone back alive. I am also a warrior. There would have been bloodshed here; not a single man in this crowd would have gone back alive. But you have come a little late.

”In the village just before this village, people came with sweets and fruits. And we said, `We eat only once a day, and we have taken our food, so it would be very kind if you would take these things back with you. We are grateful.’ What do you think they did with those sweets and those fruits?”

Somebody said, ”They must have distributed them amongst themselves; they must have eaten them.”

Buddha said, ”You are intelligent. Do the same: whatever you have brought, I don’t accept; take it back. Because unless I accept your insult, you cannot insult me; it is a two-way affair. It is your mouth, you can say anything -- but unless I accept it, you are just talking into the air. Just go home and say all these things to each other; enjoy. And I will be coming again after two days, so be ready.”

They were shocked, and they could not believe -- what kind of man is this?

When they moved on, Ananda said to Buddha, ”This is too much. There were moments when I was going to jump and hit the man! Just because of you, I tried to control my temptation.”

Buddha said -- and remember it -- he said: ”What those people were saying has not hurt me. What you are saying hurts me. You have been with me for so many years, and yet you are not aware enough to know what to take and what not to take? Can’t you discriminate?”

I want you not to become missionaries; I want you to become messages. And that is possible only if you are utterly selfish, so that before you start helping others, you have helped yourself; before you start enlightening other people, you are enlightened yourself.

That’s what I mean by being selfish.

Whatever you want to spread must be your living experience.

 Hope in adversity

One day a farmer’s donkey fell down into a well. The animal cried piteously for hours as the farmer tried to figure out what to do. Finally, he decided the  animal was old, and the well needed to be covered up anyway; it just wasn’t worth it to retrieve the donkey.

He invited all his neighbors to come over and help him.  They all grabbed a shovel and began to shovel dirt into the well.

At first, the donkey realized what was happening and cried horribly. Then, to everyone’s amazement he quieted down. 

A few shovel loads later, the farmer finally looked down the well. He was  astonished at what he saw. With each shovel of dirt that hit his back, the  donkey was doing something amazing. He would shake it off and take a step up.

As the farmer’s neighbors continued to shovel dirt on top of the animal, he would shake it off and take a step up. Pretty soon, everyone was amazed as the donkey stepped up over the edge of the well and happily trotted off!

Life is going to shovel dirt on you, all kinds of dirt.

The trick to getting out of the well is to shake it off and take a step up.

Each of our troubles is a  steppingstone.

We can get out of the deepest wells just by not stopping, never giving up!

Shake it off and take a step up.

Remember the five simple rules to be happy:

1. Free your heart from hatred - Forgive.

2. Free your mind from worries - Most never happen.

3. Live simply and appreciate what you have.

4. Give more.

5. Expect less

”Great minds discuss ideas. Average minds discuss events. Small minds discuss people.”