The Tree & The Flower

One day there was a tree and a flower that sat close to each other on a large prairie. The sun was shining bright and the air was crisp with the warm summer breeze. The grass flowed freely and bent with the wind. The flower sitting there with its green leaves and brightly coloured flower blazing its scent and colour across the prairie for anyone to see and smell.

The tree stood wide and tall with its branches flowing out; its branches floating free on the gentle breezes of the wind. The branches were full of bright green leaves that glistened in the sun. The tree was majestic but very much humble to what its become.

One day the flower had many visitors to its pedals which made it glad. The flower was proud that it was noticed and liked among the insects that visited it. The flower boldly spoke and said with such fact, "I am well noticed for I can spew my scent out to those that want to smell and follow it. I am feeling good about myself for I have brought these things to me and they have pollinated my flower."

The tree looking down in a rather disappointed sort of way spoke his words quietly and softly, "Your flower is bright this I must truly say, but your words are too strong for you notice little of why they have come to this land. They come not for the brightness of your flower or scent but for the food that is all around you in this wide open land. Your words are arrogant considering how small you really are. They come to me as well to feed on these flowers that I bear. They feast in the powder that collects within all flowers. No matter who they are or where they stand."

The flower shot back, "but you just don't get it do you? I am very bright and I am for a reason. I am better than you and this I can prove. I am well known throughout these parts that spread so far and so wide. The truth that I speak will stand long before my eyes."

The tree just sat there in nothing but amazement, for the flower refused to see what was truly being said. The flower sat there so smug in its glory and gleam. It was proud that it had proven that a flower is much greater than a tree. It refused to see that tree was covering its head from the storms that came by. Covering its head from the rains that devoured all else in its way. The tree just stood there doing just what it does best. Sheltering all, that needs its protection. Giving life to those that know where to look and using its branches to support all life there.

Later that day a four-legged came along. It smelled the rich scent of that wonderful flower. Its rather strong scent was sweet to its nose. It wanted to find where this scent flowed from. And see where it grows. It came on the flower and there it sat in its glory. Sitting there so it did before. It brightly and smelling its own glory.

The four-legged smelled that flower like no other seemed there was nothing like it that met its grand smell. The four- legged was so impressed it just couldn't wait. It opened its mouth and ate that flower head. The tree sat there in horror at what it just saw. That poor flower had lost its lovely smell and its bright grandeur.

The moral of this story is nothing to seek. When you open your mouth, you better be prepared. For what you seek may not be what you want. The power of words flow strong and flow true. The power of words may one day come back to eat you.

The Master

When one Guru was dying, one of his deciple asked him "Guruji, who was your master?"He said, "I had thousands of masters. If I just relate their names it will take months, years and it is too late. But three masters I will certainly tell you about. "

"One was a thief. Once I got lost in the desert, and when I reached a village it was very late, everything was closed. But at last I found one man who was trying to make a hole in the wall of a house. I asked him where I could stay and he said 'At this time of night it will be difficult, but you can stay with me - if you can stay with a thief".

"And the man was so beautiful. I stayed for one month! And each night he would say to me, 'Now I am going to my work. You rest, you pray.' When he came back I would ask 'Could you get anything?' He would say, 'Not tonight. But tomorrow I will try again, God willing.' He was never in a state of hopelessness, he was always happy. When I was meditating and meditating for years on end and nothing was happening, many times the moment came when I was so desperate, so hopeless,that I thought to stop all this nonsense. And suddenly I would remember the thief who would say every night, God willing, tomorrow it is going to happen. "

"And my second master was a dog. I was going to the river, thirsty and a dog came. He was also thirsty. He looked into the river, he saw another dog there -- his own image -- and became afraid. He would bard and run away, but his thirst was so much that he would come back. Finally, despite his fear, he just jumped into the water, and the image disappeared. And I knew that a message had come to me from God: one has to jump in spite of all fears."

"And the third master was a small child. I entered a town and a child was carrying a lit candle. He was going to the temple to put the candle there.'Just joking,'
I asked the boy, 'Have you lit the candle yourself?'
He said, 'Yes sir.'
And I asked, 'There was a moment when the candle was unlit, then there was a moment when the candle was lit. Can you show me the source from which the light came?'
And the boy laughed, blew out the candle, and said, 'Now you have seen the light going. Where has it gone? You will tell me!' My ego was shattered, my whole knowledge was shattered. And that moment I felt my own stupidity. Since then I dropped all my knowledgeability. "

"It is true that I had no master. That does not mean that I was not a disciple -- I accepted the whole existence as my master. My Disciplehood was a greater involvement than yours is. I trusted the clouds, the trees. I trusted existence as such. I had no master because I had millions of masters I learned from every possible source. To be a disciple is a must on the path. What does it mean to be a disciple? It means to be able to learn. to be available to learn to be vulnerable to existence. With a master you start learning to learn. "

"The master is a swimming pool where you can learn how to swim. Once you have learned, all the oceans are yours."

The Way Out

One day Buddha came into his assembly of the monks. It must have been just a morning like this. His sannyasins were sitting and waiting for him. They were puzzled because this was for the first time that Buddha had come with something in his hand – a handkerchief. They all looked at the handkerchief. What was the matter? There must be something special in it. And Buddha sat on the platform and rather than starting speaking to the assembly he looked at the handkerchief, started tying a few knots in it, five knots in all.

The whole assembly watched – what is going on? And then he asked the assembly, ”Can anybody tell me: is this handkerchief the same as it was before the knots were tied?”

Sariputta said, ”This is a tricky question. In a way the handkerchief is the same because nothing has changed, in a way it is not the same because these five knots have appeared which were not there before. But as far as the inner nature of the handkerchief is concerned – its nature is concerned – it is the same; but as far as its form is concerned it is no more the same. The form has changed: the substance is the same.”

Apple seed

One day I stopped to think about growing apples. I was munching a delicious, juicy apple and took a big bite. As a result I got an apple seed into my mouth. I spat it out into my hand, with the intention of throwing it away. But instead I looked at the apple seed. Really looked. It was very dark brown, almost black. Its shape reminded me of a candle flame. A little dark brown candle flame…

I realized I was holding an apple tree in the palm of my hand. A little seed with the potential to become a beautiful big tree - a tree that could grow thousands of apples in its lifetime. Thousands of apples, each containing several seeds, each capable of growing a new tree which again could produce thousands of apples. Why then the world wasn't filled with apple trees?

It is a rule of nature that only a few of these seeds grow. Most never do or are destroyed early on in their growth. And it came to my mind it's quite often so with people's dreams also. Wonderful ideas come to our minds but they die too soon - we don't tend to the little saplings, we don't protect them as we should. And then one day we wonder what happened to our dreams - why did they never come true?

I put the apple seed on the table, and bent down to see how the light was reflected from it, this nature's tiny wonder. I wondered when someone was seriously growing apples, how many times they had to try to get a seed to germinate? How much work did it require?

Maybe it was like with our dreams: the seeds of your dreams did not automatically grow. Like planting an apple tree It might take many trys: like a hundred job applications to get that good job. You might send your manuscript out two hundred times before it was accepted. You might meet dozens of people until you met the true friend.

But if you kept on sowing the seeds of your dream, one day you would succeed. And after that others would comment you were lucky to be successful - when in fact you probably failed more often than you would like to count. But you were good at failing - you learned, you adapted, and then with your new knowlegde you tried again. And again. And again. And one day success was yours.

I picked up the apple seed again - but instead of throwing it away I took an empty flower pot, poured some earth into it and planted the seed. Maybe one day it would grown into a proud tree. I'd never knew if I didn't try.

Who is the highest

Once there was a very pious devotee who was utterly devoted to his family deity. He worshipped this deity every day, sitting cross legged in front of the shrine in his home.One day during his meditation, he observed that the prasad or food offered to the deity, which is customarily eaten by the devotee after worship, was snatched away by a mouse and eaten in front of his very eyes. The devotee was astonished to see this and concluded that the mouse was more powerful than the deity. Otherwise, how could it dare to eat the offering? So he grabbed hold of the mouse, and tying it with a string to the place of worship, decided to worship this creature instead of the deity.

He removed the picture of the deity from the shrine, and started worshipping the mouse. One day his cat, jealous of the attention the mouse was receiving, pounced upon the tiny creature. The two had a terrible fight, but of course the poor mouse was killed in the battle.

Now it was quite clear to the devotee that the cat was more powerful than the mouse, so he started worshipping the cat whom he had previously neglected. This continued for some time until one day the devotee's dog entered the room of worship. Seeing the attention that the cat was getting from his master, the dog became furiously jealous and violently attacked the cat. The unhappy cat was bitten and scratched all over and bled in many places. When the devotee considered the situation, it became quite clear to him that the dog was more powerful than the cat.

So he removed the cat from the place of worship and placed the dog there instead. He now began to worship the dog, who was tied with a rope to the shrine. The animal's continual barking, however, was a source of great irritation to the devotee's wife. One day in utter exasperation, she threw a brick at the barking dog. It landed on his head with a thump. The poor dog was in great pain and cried piteously over his wound.

The devotee, hearing the whimpering of the poor dog, came into the room, and seeing what had happened, concluded that it must be due to the superior power of his wife. So he decided to let the dog go and to worship his wife. He said to her, "At long last I realise that you are the most powerful. Only you can be the object of my adoration!"

The wife was thunderstruck at these remarks, to say nothing of being puzzled and embarrassed. How could she be the object of his adoration, she thought, since all her life she had been made to feel like his servant, constantly at his beck and call? She finally consented, however, since she had no alternative.

Now the devotee's wife had become his object of adoration and worship. He addressed her with words of devotion and praised her divine qualities. So devoted was he that he had the impulse to worship her even when she was asleep. He would awaken her and make her take her place at the shrine where he could adore her. Or if she were in the shower, he would call her to come out. No matter what she was doing she would have to stop and come to the shrine to be worshipped.

Finally the devotee's wife became so fed up with this farce that she told him the whole thing was nonsense. At this he became furious. "Nonsense?" he echoed. "How dare you criticise my wisdom?" And he yelled at her loudly. The poor frightened woman began weeping bitter tears.

Now, seeing his own power, it became very clear to the devotee that he was the strongest of all. So he started worshipping himself, saying, "I am God, I am the greatest, I am everything." But it did not take him much time to realise that he was merely a prey to his desires. It was his desires that were compelling him to action, either good or bad. So since his habit was to worship the most powerful force, he started worshipping his desires. But he quickly gave this up, for he saw immediately that his desires had no strength of their own. It was his senses that compelled the desires to possess and be possessed.

Then the devotee started worshipping the five senses: sight, hearing, smell, taste and touch. He was now pondering deeply on these subtle things which he was worshipping. After much thought, he concluded that it was the mind which was responsible for the functioning of the senses.

So he began worshipping his mind, and felt proud that he had progressed so far from the ignorant animals he had worshipped only a few months before. But he found that his mind was far from satisfaction, and even farther from perfection. So he catered into his heart. The heart, in spite of having peace and joy and harmony, was still lacking in absolute fulfilment. He was yearning for the supreme power. He concluded that the heart was not enough, so he entered into his soul.

There, in union with his own soul, he got the first glimpse of his divine fulfilment. He plunged deep into the spiritual life. But the individual soul, he found, is not all pervading or all fulfilling. He aspired for the highest. He went even deeper. Deep within he discovered the Supreme Self. Here, at the end of his journey, the Brahmin saw that the Supreme Self is the most powerful. The Supreme Self, which has neither beginning nor end, is all pervading and all fulfilling. The Supreme Self, which is both Creator and Creation, is the Highest.

The Goatherd

There was once a goatherd . He raised many goats by the side of his house. One morning, as usual, before he started herding the goats, he counted them one by one.

After counting and recounting for several times, he found out that one was missing. "Why do my goats decrease one?" scratching the back of his head, wondering. After investigating, he noticed that there was hole somewhere in the barn wall, that must be the cause, he thought.

Seeing it, his neighbor advised the goatherd immediately fix the barn so that he wouldn't lost more goats. But he pass the advice. He only replied, "I have lost one goat. Now it is too late even to fix the barn. Just let it be."

The next morning, when counted, out of his surprise, his goat decreased by one again. This time he regretted. This time he immediately fixed his barn. After the barn was fixed, there was no more missing goat.

Even the smallest mistake should be handled immediately, should not wait until the problem get bigger. The bigger the problem, the more complex it is to fix it, the more time is needed and the more costly it is. Every mistake should also be analyzed, understand the roots, and make it as guidepost for future actions. Thus, not repeating the same mistake.

The Drunkard

A drunkard decided to carry a lamp to the pub anticipating his intoxicated state and stumbling steps post drinking.After drinking to his heart's content, as he was about to fall headlong on the floor, he managed to steady himself and reached out to his lamp.

As the man strode his way home,he dashed into a buffalo, bumped into a donkey and stumbled with a tree. He tried to peer at his lamp in the darkness of the night.

“What has happened to my lamp?”

Finally the man fell by the roadside and the next morning he was carried home by some of his friends.

The pub owner during the midday visited the man, “You carried my cage away with my parrot instead of taking your lamp!”

Similarly one does not go too far on the spiritual path with just reading the holy scriptures. One should be meditative enough to capture the import of it says.The soul of the scriptures has to be grasped than just reading them.

Wild Boars

There was a village that was attacked by wild boars.Everyday the wild boars would enter the village to rampage the whole village of their food. The villagers tried various means to fight and chase away the wild boars, but without much success.

One day a wise man approached the village headman to offer his advice. He told the villagers that they will have to follow all his advice and directions. Out of desperation, the villagers agreed. The wise man told the villagers to gather all the food from every household and put it in the middle of a big empty field. They followed his advice, and immediately they saw hundreds of wild boars approaching the vicinity where the food was placed. The wild boars were apprehensive initially, but after a while they went for the food.

Once the wild boars had a taste of the food they came back for the free food everyday. And everyday the villagers would put more food in the field and the wild boars would come to have their free meals. After a while, the wise man asked the villagers to erect four poles at the four-corners of the field.The wild boars were too busy having their food that they did not take notice of what was happening.

After a few weeks, the wild boars developed the habit of having free food. The wise man then asked the villagers to put fencing around the field, with a large gate through which the wild boars can enter to have their food. Finally once the fencing and the gate were completed the villagers closed the gate and all the wild boars were trapped inside the field. The wild boars were finally defeated!

Habits are easily developed but difficult to get rid of. The wild boars were trapped because out of their greed, they developed the habit of having free food, and without having to work for their food. They became so comfortable, that they did not realize they were being trapped. Most of us are like the wild boars because we become too comfortable with our jobs and businesses that we do not realize we are in one way or another being "trapped". We seek security rather than freedom!

The Petal

I am a pretty and soft Petal. I am part of the beautiful Flower but I am still a flower in my own right. I have same quality and attributes as the Whole Flower. I am beautiful. I am Unique. I am Wholesome and Complete. The flower cannot be flower without me. There are other Petals in the flower too. These petals also look like me though they are little different in color, shape and texture but their properties are also same as me. All together we form a beautiful flower. Flower is not flower without each of us. Each of us cannot survive without each other. We all need each other for our survival. We are incomplete without each other. We all are interdependent on each other. It is my false EGO which makes me say that 'I am not depending on any one else'.

Similarly, I am a peaceful, loving and divine Soul in the Universe. I have my own light, knowledge and depth. There are other souls also though little different from me. All souls together form a huge incomprehensible Divine Spirit. The Soul is part of the Spirit and reflects its spark. The Soul has same properties as that of the Spirit. The Spirit shines and sparkles when Soul merges with it. None can survive without each other. The Soul takes a human body to feel and experience the bright knowledge of the cosmic Spirit. Spirit thrives in taking the Soul back into its fold for it increases its own brilliance.

I cannot help but imagine how electric it would feel when after completing my 70-80 years of earth life I will go back and realise my place in the whole flower. How foolish of me to think that I am just a petal just because I cannot see the complete flower and my own important place in it. Thus, I have to learn to love each and every creation of the Spirit around me unconditionally to become the part of the Bloom.

Only the feeling of Love is Real which unites Soul with the Spirit. Till I realize and actualize this internally, I will be caught in cycle of birth and death. Once I start loving each and all as I, I would be earning the Master’s Degree from the University of the God – the Divine Spirit of Universe. Thereafter, I need not come back again to Earth School again.

I have to realize that I am that big ONE and that big One is 'I'. I have to understand and experience the Oneness of the Universe that 'I am the Spirit and the Spirit is I'. Ultimately, everything is illusion except the only truth I AM THAT

The Sailor

A story is told of a man taking a trip on an old wooden sailing ship.He was out of the deck one day and saw one of the crew-members climbing the ropes, going up to the crows nest. When he was about half way up, the ship pitched to one side and he was thrown overboard.

When he hit the water, he began to scream for help, and flail his arms wildly, as he struggled to survive. The traveler watched as a sailor walked over to the rail of the ship, and calmly observed the man in the water. After a short while the man in the water tired, and began to sink.

Immediately the sailor standing by the rail jumped overboard, and rescued the drowning victim. After both men were safely on board, the traveler went over to the rescuer and asked, why did you wait so long to jump in the water and rescue this man?

He calmly replied, I have found that as long as a man is struggling in the water, there is a greater chance that he will get us both killed if I jump in too quickly, and try to save him. I have learned that it is better to let them struggle awhile, and when they come to the end of their own strength, I can then jump in and rescue them.

Are you like the drowning man in the story? Have you fallen from your place of comfort and safety, and you are now struggling just to survive? Have you cried out to God to come and rescue you immediately? It is possible the God is waiting until you have come to the end of yourself, and stop struggling in a vain attempt to save yourself, through any means. When you finally admit you cant save yourself, God will jump into the water and save you!

Holy Man

Word spread across the countryside about the wise Holy Man who lived in a small house atop the mountain. A man from the village decided to make the long and difficult journey to visit him.

When he arrived at the house, he saw an old servant inside who greeted him at the door. "I would like to see the wise Holy Man," he said to the servant. The servant smiled and led him inside.

As they walked through the house, the man from the village looked eagerly around the house, anticipating his encounter with the Holy Man.Before he knew it, he had been led to the back door and escorted outside.

He stopped and turned to the servant, "But I want to see the Holy Man!"
"You already have," said the old man.

"Everyone you may meet in life, even if they appear plain and insignificant... see each of them as a wise Holy Man. If you do this, then whatever problem you brought here today will be solved."

If you feel love and respect for all people that you meet, you will receive inward peace.Every step you take in life is significant. There are meanings to all and every event that takes place.

The Real Talent

After winning several archery contests, the young and rather boastful champion challenged a master who was renowned for his skill as an archer. The young man demonstrated remarkable technical proficiency when he hit a distant bull's eye on his first try, and then split that arrow with his second shot.

"There," he said to the old man, "see if you can match that!"

Undisturbed, the master did not draw his bow, but rather motioned for the young archer to follow him up the mountain. Curious about the old fellow's intentions, the champion followed him high into the mountain until they reached a deep chasm spanned by a rather flimsy and shaky log.

Calmly stepping out onto the middle of the unsteady and certainly perilous bridge, the old master picked a far away tree as a target, drew his bow, and fired a clean, direct hit.

"Now it is your turn," he said as he gracefully stepped back onto the safe ground.

Staring with terror into the seemingly bottomless and beckoning abyss, the young man could not force himself to step out onto the log, no less shoot at a target.

"You have much skill with your bow," the master said, sensing his challenger's predicament, "but you have little skill with the mind that lets loose the shot."

"The real talent is being able to apply your skills even in the most adverse situation- without fear, hesitation, or doubt."

The Bad & Good People

One day, a young monk went to see his master. "Teacher, you said that we should save both bad and good people. But then bad people had lost their True Nature, so how can we call them human anymore? If they are not human, then they need not to be saved!" the young monk inquired.

The master was silent without answering his disciple's question. Then the master wrote the chinese letter "wo" (me), but written upside down.

"What is this?", the teacher asked.

"This is a letter but written upside down," answered the young monk.

"What is the letter?"

"The letter of 'wo'!"

"This 'wo' written upside down, can it be called a letter?" asked the teacher.

"Of course not!"

"If not, then why did you said that this is letter 'wo'?

"Yes, it is!", he corrected his words.

"If it is a letter, then why did you said that it is upside down?"

The young monk could not say anything, had no idea of what to reply. "The 'wo' letter is a letter. A letter written upside down is also a letter. You said that this is a letter 'wo' and you knew that this letter was written upside down. It was because inside yourself you had understood well about the letter 'wo'. But then if you do not know letters, even if I write it upside down, you would not be able to distinguish it. After somebody tell you about it and after you see the real 'wo', then you will of course say that this is an upsidedown letter! The same applies to human. The bad and the good are both human. It is important that you understand what is the True Nature of human. When you encounter the bad, guide them to their True Nature. Then it would not be hard to save them...", so did the wise teacher explained.

A Priest & A Lad

There was once a lad who had been scholastic study abroad for a very long time before returning to his hometown. Upon his return, he asked his parents to find any teacher, or priest or anybody that would be capable of answering 3 of his questions.

At last, his parents found the man.

Lad: Who are you? And would you be able to answer my questions.

Priest: I am a servant of God and through His Will, i shall answer your questions

Lad: Are you sure? Even proffesors can't answer my questions.

Priest: I shall do my best on answering them.

Lad: I have 3 questions
1. If God exist, show him to me
2. What is it that is called Fate?
3. If Devil is created out of fire, then why is it that they are banished in hellish fire? It would not hurt them I suppose, since they are of the same element. Has God ever think that far?

All of a sudden, the priest slapped the lad very hard.

Lad: Why are you angry at me?

Priest: I am not angry at all...that is my answer to three of your questions

Lad: I don't get it.

Priest: How does the slap feel?

Lad: Of course it is painful.

Priest: So you do believe that pain exist?

Lad: Yes.

Priest: Show the pain to me.

Lad: I can't.

Priest: That is my answer to your first question. All of us can feel God presence without seeing him.

Priest: Did you dream of being slapped by me last night? Have you ever thought that you would get a slap from me today? That's what i call fate

Priest: What is the hand that i used to slap you made of?

Lad: Skin

Priest: What is your cheek made of?

Lad: Skin

Priest: But you feel pain don't you? Even if devils are made of fire and hell is of fire, if it is of God's desire, then Hell would be hell for devils.

Love Never Dies

When Nazi did the holocaust in Germany by burying alive the Jews, there also spread a story of undying love.

A mother and her daughter happened to be captured as well, soon to be buried alive together along with the other thousands of Jews. The little girl did not understand and had no idea at all what was going to happen to her and her mother. She just kept playing and singing out her innocent heart.


After being tired of playing around, the little girl returned back to the camp. She was not able to find her mother any longer. In her innocent world, she still have not understand yet what was death, even more of what dying a horrible tragic death was. She waited and waited, when is her dear mother going to come back. In her wait, she had persistent faith that mom would surely returned, so that she would be able to hear again her lullaby.

The next day was supposed to be her turn. She faced all that fully with her innocent heart till she reach the hole of where she was going to be buried. When she was about to be dragged to the hole, her soft voice said to the muscular soldier in charge, "Mister, please don't put me in too deep ok, just put me in near the surface, so that when mommy comes, she will still see me waiting for her here.

Love is undying. Violence, brutality can only bury and destroy the body, but it cannot towards love. Love never dies.

In search of Truth

A man was on his mission in search of the truth. He met an old man who was sitting under a tree outside his village. He seemed to be the first religious person whom he encountered. On approaching him, he told him of his mission and asked him as to where he can find his true master and what his characteristics would be.

The old man's answer was simple. He explained that the seeker would find him sitting under a particular tree, in such and such posture with such and such gestures and said that was suffice to know the true master.

The seeker began his search and wandered far and wide for the master. Thirty years passed and he returned to his own village meeting failure in finding the true master. As he was returning, he found the same old man who directed him thirty years back with the descriptions of a master. To his amazement he found the same old man who directed him, with himself bearing all his descriptions of a true master. The seeker sensed his folly and fell at the feet of the old master.

The seeker enquired, " Why did you not reveal yourself to me when I first met you? Why did you misdirect me thus to wander fruitlessly for thirty long years?"

The master replied, " I was very much here fitting myself exactly to all the descriptions that I gave you, sitting under this very tree. But just that you would not see me!”

The master pointed out, "You were more interested in searching than the very truth itself!" He continued, " You were not ready to listen. You were not ready to come home without all your wanderings, that you knocked on different doors before you ultimately came here. Your mind lay in searching elsewhere than seeking me right here! You were not alert enough. Imagine my condition, waiting for you for thirty long years, trying to maintain my posture for your arrival, as I knew you would be coming! But what if I had passed away?!

Quite often we miss out 'the truth' which is ever present within us in seeking to know 'about the truth'. When one's attention is turned inwards, the truth shines there eternally, where the seeker merges with it in realisation.The seeker in this short story misses the truth in his search by focusing his attention outwards in his wandering. At the end of the fruitless search he comes upon it when he turns 'homeward,' in his very 'own village'.

How to Love God

Once a person approached a guru and said, “I want to love God. Please let me now how I can love God the way you do”

Guru said, “Have you loved anybody before?”

The man replied, “I have been very busy looking for God. So I kept away from love”

Guru urged, “Think properly, do you remember loving a friend, a woman, a pet animal or something?”

The man replied, “I deliberately kept away from loving anybody...I just want to love God. Please show me the way to do it”

Guru for the third time tried to prompt him, “Search your past. Try to recall if you ever have tasted love a little”

The man grew impatient, “ I have approached you to know the way to love God. Please show me a way. Why do you ask me such questions that are unrelated?”

Guru replied, “Then it is very difficult. Had you loved someone it would have been easy to grasp my words. Loving someone is to lose oneself in that love. It is to dissolve your ego, your individuality in the very love. Had you experienced love, I would have shown you the way to God. Since you have not loved, you will not understand what I say !”

God is the underlying, common essence in the whole creation. To love God is to have unconditional love for all beings. It is to love all.

The 'Duplicate' Artist

There was a king who was a great admirer of art. He encouraged artists from all over his country and gave them valuable gifts.

One day an artist came and said to the king, "Oh King! Give me a blank wall in your palace and let me paint a picture on it. It will be more beautiful than anything you have ever seen before. I promise you shall not be disappointed. "

Now, the king happened to be constructing a big hall at the rear end of the palace. So he said, "All right you may work on one of the walls in the new hall." So the artist was given the job and he was very pleased indeed.

Just then, another young man said, "Oh King! Please allow me to work on the opposite wall. I too am an artist." The king said, "What would you like to make?"

The man said, "My Lord, I shall make exactly what that man will make on the opposite wall. Moreover, I shall do so, without looking at his work. I would even request you to have a thick curtain put up between the two walls so that either of us cannot see the other."

Now, that was a tall statement. Everyone in the king's court, including the king and the first artist were intrigued. But the King loved surprises and he decided to give the young fellow a chance.

The following day a thick curtain was put into place and both the artists got to work.

The first artist brought in a regular supply of paint, oil, water etc. The second one would come with a cloth and a bucket of water every day.

After a month the first artist told the king that his work was complete and he would like to show it to the king. The king sent for the second artist and asked him, "Young man, when would your work be ready? I am coming to see the first wall this evening." The man said, "My Lord, my wall is ready too!"

The king went to see the first artist's wall. He was very, very impressed with the painting and gave a hefty sum as a reward to the artist. He then asked for the curtain to be opened up. The same painting was to be seen on the opposite wall too! Amazing! But true! Each line, each minor detail was exactly as it was on the first wall. But this man had not been seeing what was going on, on the other side of the curtain. So how had he done it?

The king wanted to know the secret. He gave a double reward to the fellow. Then he said, "Young man, I am indeed very happy with your work. But you must tell me; how did you do it?"

The man said simply, "It's very easy! I just polished the wall every day! It was a wall made of white marble! The fellow polished it till it shone like a mirror. The reflection of the painting across the room, showed up in it! "

That is what it means to polish yourself. For when we polish our hearts and souls, we see God's reflection within.It is said that the world is a reflection of you. Whatever you are, the world will seem to be that too. If you are sad, jealous, dejected, angry, restless ... That is what the world will seem to be! If you are happy, the world will seem to be paradise.

You decide how you want your world to look…

The best contribution you can make

An elderly couple retired to the countryside - to a small isolated cottage overlooking some rugged and rocky heath land.

One early morning the woman saw from her window a young man dressed in working clothes walking on the heath, about a hundred yards away. He was carrying a spade and a small case, and he disappeared from view behind a copse of trees.

The woman thought no more about it but around the same time the next day she saw the man again, carrying his spade and a small case, and again he disappeared behind the copse.

The woman mentioned this to her husband, who said he was probably a farmer or gamekeeper setting traps, or performing some other country practice that would be perfectly normal, and so not to worry.

However after several more sightings of the young man with the spade over the next two weeks the woman persuaded her husband to take a stroll - early, before the man tended to arrive - to the copse of trees to investigate what he was doing.

There they found a surprisingly long and deep trench, rough and uneven at one end, becoming much neater and tidier towards the other end.

"How strange," the old lady said, "Why dig a trench here - and in such difficult rocky ground?" and her husband agreed.

Just then the young man appeared - earlier than his usual time.

"You're early," said the old woman, making light of their obvious curiosity, "We wondered what you were doing - and we also wondered what was in the case."

"I'm digging a trench," said the man, who continued, realizing a bigger explanation was appropriate, "I'm actually learning how to dig a good trench, because the job I'm being interviewed for later today says that experience is essential - so I'm getting the experience. And the case - it's got my lunch in it."

He got the job.

Donʼt wait for anything. Start today if you want to be successful in your life. The best contribution one can make to humanity is to improve oneself. Only the player with the initiative has the right to attack. Times will change for the better when you change. So start taking initiatives whether it is at your work place or at your home. Initiatives are first step towards Self Development.

The Day the earth turned gold

Once upon a time there was a king who was famous for his charity. People said, "To the hungry he gives food; to scholars he gives rewards; to noblemen he gives titles and honours. In fact, he is never tired of giving."

But he had in fact, already tired of giving. He thought, "All my life I have been giving alms and awards. Where is the end? Are the people really needy or they continue to flock simply because I give? Don't I see the same faces coming to me again and again wearing a standard mask of gratitude?"

He thought a lot and decided to stop the practice. "If give I must, it should be only to those who are really needy. It is high time I know who are really needy and, to begin with, I must find out the poorest man in my kingdom," he decided.

Accordingly he sent his minister to find out the poorest man.

A week later the minister returned and announced in the tone of a successful explorer, "My Lord, not far from here, inside the forest, there is a small mountain. On top of that sits the poorest man of our land – a mendicant. He had no roof on his head, nothing on his body except a yard of bark; he lives on whatever fruits some wood-cutters leave beside him on their way home from the forest.”

"Is there really such a man in my kingdom? I must see him," said the king and rode into the forest and then climbed the mountain and found out the mendicant sitting still, his eyes closed.

The king had to wait for a long time. When the mendicant opened his eyes, he said, “I am the king of this land. I am sad to see the miserable condition in which you are living. I want you to dress well! Tell me, which dress will you like? Dhoti or gown?" The mendicant smiled, but kept quiet.

The king said again, "I would like to build a house for you; tell me, what kind of house would you like to own?" The mendicant smiled again; yet he did not speak.

A little later the king again said, “I will arrange to send some food for you everyday. Tell me your preference in matters of food." The mendicant smiled but still kept mum.

The king began losing patience and cried out, “I appeal to you, do speak!"

Slowly but sweetly the mendicant said, “My dear king, you are mistaken. I am not the poorest man. There is another man in the kingdom who is poorer than myself. So far as I am concerned, although I look poor; I am very rich, for I can change the earth into gold.”

The king gaped with amazement for some time and asked, "Will you kindly tell me who is poorer than you? And will you kindly reveal to me the secret of transforming the earth into gold?"

The mendicant said, “To know these things you have to follow a certain discipline.”

"I will follow,' said the king enthusiastically.

"For one year, everyday, you must come here once before the sunrise and once again before the sunset and spend some time with me,” said the mendicant.

“I will do so,” said the joyous king, bowing to the mendicant.

And he came there twice every day without fail. The mendicant seldom uttered any word, but his charming smile always spoke of his affection for the king. He made the king sit down and meditate for some time. For the king, the discipline was a bit awkward experience for the first few weeks. But soon he realised that it was a most welcome change from the dry or anxious hours in the court where he was always surrounded by diplomats and flatterers and discontented people. After a few months he grew so fond of his visits to the mendicant that he eagerly looked forward to the twilights.

The silence of the mountain, the sunrise and sunset which coloured the landscape, the breeze which embraced him with the message of freedom, the songs of the birds in the wood and above all the quiet yet overwhelming presence of the mendicant slowly made the king a different man. The little time he spent there everyday had its sure effect on the rest of his time and routine.

The king did not remember when a year passed. He even did not know when several years passed. At the end of the third year, one day the mendicant suddenly asked the king, "Well, it seems we have forgotten about the two things you wanted to know – about the man poorer than myself and about the secret of transforming the earth into gold! Would you not like to know about them?"

The king smiled and replied, "But haven't I known them already? I was the poorer man because I was anxious to possess more gold as I was begging to know the secret of changing the earth into gold. And secondly, I believe, by now I know the secret of changing the earth into gold. When I sit here and marvel at the splendour of nature all around, at the sunsets and the sunrise when the colours of heaven are sprinkled on earth, at the diamond-fringed clouds, at all God's creation—all appear to me a thousand times more wonderful than gold."

The mendicant smiled and said, “You have got it – and that is because you have turned gold within.