Releasing the Cows

One day a Saint was sitting in the wood with thirty or forty disciples. They had an excellent lunch and they were enjoying the company of each other. There was a farmer passing by and the farmer was very unhappy. He asked the Saint and the disciples whether they had seen his cows passing by. The Saint said they had not seen any cows passing by.

The farmer said, "disciples, I'm so unhappy. I have twelve cows and I don't know why they all ran away. I have also a few acres of a sesame seed plantation and the insects have eaten up everything. I suffer so much I think I am going to kill myself.

The Saint said, "My friend, we have not seen any cows passing by here. You might like to look for them in the other direction."

So the farmer thanked him and ran away, and the Saint turned to his disciples and said, "My dear friends, you are the happiest people in the world. You don't have any cows to lose. If you have too many cows to take care of, you will be very busy.

"That is why, in order to be happy, you have to learn the art of cow releasing (laughter). You release the cows one by one. In the beginning you thought that those cows were essential to your happiness, and you tried to get more and more cows. But now you realize that cows are not really conditions for your happiness; they constitute an obstacle for your happiness. That is why you are determined to release your cows."

Live the momemt

The Zen story goes of a man who, fleeing a tiger, jumped over a cliff to escape, grabbed a vine and hung suspended from the side saw another tiger gazing hungrily up.

In a moment of surre of the cliff. While the tiger pawed down at him, glancing below he saw another tiger gazing hungrily up.

In a moment of surrender, the man looked to a solitary flower growing from the cliff.

Love God and love their fellow human beings

Once there was a time, according to legend, when Ireland was ruled by a king who had no son. The king sent out his couriers to post notices in all the towns of his realm. The notices advised that every qualified young man should apply for an interview with the king as a possible successor to the throne. However, all such candidates must have these two qualifications: They must (1) love God and (2) love their fellow human beings.

The Young man about whom this legend centers saw a notice and reflected that he loved God and, also, his neighbors. One thing stopped him, he was so poor that he had no clothes that would be presentable in the sight of the king. Nor did he have the funds to buy provisions for the long journey to the castle. So the young man begged here, and borrowed there, finally managing to scrounge enough money for the appropriate clothes and the necessary supplies.

Properly attired and well-suited, the young man set out on his quest, and had almost completed the journey when he came upon a poor beggar by the side of the road. The beggar sat trembling, clad only in tattered rags. His extended arms pleaded for help. His weak voice croaked, "I'm hungry and cold. Please help me... please?"

The young man was so moved by this beggar's need that he immediately stripped off his new clothes and put on the tattered threads of the beggar. Without a second thought he gave the beggar all his provision as well. Then, somewhat hesitantly, he continued his journey to the castle dressed in the rags of the beggar, lacking provisions for his return trek home. Upon his arrival at the castle, a king's attendant showed him in to the great hall. After a brief respite to clean off the journey's grime, he was finally admitted to the throne room of the king.

The young man bowed low before his majesty. When he raised his eyes, he gaped in astonishment. "You... it's you! You're the beggar by the side of the road."

"Yes," the king replied with a twinkle, "I was that beggar."

"But...bu...bu... you are not really a beggar. You are the king for real. Well, then, why did you do this to me?" the young man stammered after gaining more of his composure.

"Because I had to find out if you genuinely love God and your fellow human beings," said the king. "I knew that if I came to you as king, you would have been impressed by my gem-encrusted golden crown and my royal robes. You would have done anything I asked of you because of my regal character. But that way I would never have known what is truly in your heart. So I used a ruse. I came to you as a beggar with no claims on you except for the love in your hear. And I discovered that you sincerely do love God and your fellow human beings. You will be my successor," promised the king. "You will inherit my kingdom."

It impossible that God does anything bad

There is a story about a holly saint who lived about hundreds years ago. 

In a town near to the saint, there was a rabbinical college. The students were studying the Talmud and came to the passage that said: "we must thank God for the good as well as the bad." The students were puzzled. Thanking God for the good, that's understandable and reasonable; but thanking God for the bad? That didn't make any sense.

They brought this question to the attention of the dean of the college. He stroked his long beard and pondered the question. "Yes, this is a question that only the saint can answer. Go to his house and ask him!"

The students decided to go immediately. The saint lived outside of the town. They walked beyond the town's limits and entered into the wooded forest. Following a narrow path, they soon arrived at a run-down shack that was the saint's abode. The windows were broken, the roof looked in need of repair and the walls were badly cracked. As the saint greeted them and led them in, they saw the abject poverty in which the saint lived. The chairs were wobbly and few. The other furnishings were shoddy and in poor repair.

The Saint apologized for not having any thing to offer them to eat but perhaps a glass of hot water would be sufficient.

The students explained that they had come to ask him this question. "Why does it say in the Talmud that we must thank God for the good as well as the bad?"

The saint asked them, "Why come to me to ask me that question. I also can not understand it. Nothing bad has ever happened to me. Is it possible that God does anything bad?"

Don't give up loving

There was this Hindu who saw a scorpion floundering around in the water. He decided to save it by stretching out his finger, but the scorpion stung him. The man still tried to get the scorpion out of the water, but the scorpion stung him again.

A man nearby told him to stop saving the scorpion that kept stinging him.

But the Hindu said: "It is the nature of the scorpion to sting. It is my nature to love. Why should I give up my nature to love just because it is the nature of the scorpion to sting?"

Don't give up loving.
Don't give up your goodness.
Even if people around you sting.

The Absolute Truth

In truth everything and everyone

Is a shadow of the Beloved,

And our seeking is His seeking

And our words are His words...

We search for Him here and there,

while looking right at Him.

Sitting by His side, we ask:

'O Beloved, where is the Beloved?'

What i learned from my masters....

When the great Sufi mystic, Hasan, was dying, somebody asked "Hasan, 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 mosque 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."

TODAY WILL NEVER DISAPPEAR FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE...

There was once a young girl who was very fond of dancing. Her skill in dancing was extraordinary and surpassed her dancing friends that she often appeared as the champion in many competition held. She thought, with what she possess at that time, one day later when she grew up, she would want to be a world class dancer. She imagined herself dancing in Russia, China, America, Japan, being watched by thousands of people giving applause to her on salutation.

One day, the city she resided in was visited by a dancing expert proffessional who came from abroad. This dancing expert was very fascinating, from his hands have been born out world class dancers. The young girl desired very much to dance and exhibit her prowess in front of the teacher, or even if possible, to be one of his pupil. Finally the opportunity came at last. The young girl managed to meet with the teacher behind the screen after his performance was over. The young girl asked "Sir, i really want to be a wold-class dancer. Can you give me a moment of your time, to judge my dancing skill? I want to know what you think of my dance." "Fine, dance then for 10 minutes", the expert responded.

Not even 10 minutes have passed, the teacher stood up from his chair, and left the place without saying any word to the young girl. How broken heart the young girl was upon that. The girl immediately ran out, reaching her home, she cried and cried. She began hating herself. Afterall, the dance that she had been proud of all those years were nothing at all for the teacher. She then get hold of her dancing shoes and threw it in the garbage. Since then, she swore not ever to dance anymore.

Several decades have passed, now the young girl have became a mother with three children. Her husband had passed away. And to feed her family, she had to work as waitress in a restaurant at the corner of a street. One day, there was a dance exhibition being held in the city. The same expert could be seen behind the young dancers behind the platform. The expert looked much older, with his hair whitening. The mother with her children went to see the dance show. After the show, the mother brought her three children into the back, looking for the teacher, and introduced him to her three children. The old teacher still recognize her, and so they converse with each other enjoyfully.

The mother asked, "Sir, i still have one thing that still bothers me. It was about me performing in front of you many many years ago. Was my perfomance that bad that you leave straight away?" "Oh yes, i remembered it. Frankly speaking, i never have ever seen in my life such beautiful dance that you showed me at that time. I was even sure that you would surely become a world-class dancer, but i was dumbfounded how you suddenly stopped from the world of dancing", answered the teacher.

The young mother was extremely shocked hearing it. "This is not fair!", she exclaimed. "Your attitude had stolen all my dreams! If it was true that my dance was good, why did you just leave me that way when i had just only danced for several minutes? You should have praised me, not ignoring me like that. I am supposed to be a world-class dancer right now, not just a waitress!"

The teacher answered calmly with his wisdom, "No...No, i think i have done what i thought was right. YOU DONT NEED TO DRINK A BARREL OF WINE TO KNOW THAT THE WINE IS GOOD. The same goes with me. I didnt need to watch you for 10 minutes to prove that your dance was good. That night i was also very exhausted after the show. So i was thinking to leave you for a moment, to get you my name card, and hoped that you would contact me again the next day. But then you were not there anymore when i returned. And another thing that i have to remind you, that YOU SHOULD FOCUS ON YOUR DREAM, NOT ON WHAT I SAY OR WHAT I DO OR WHAT THE WORLD SAY! Then applause? So you expected praise and applause? Ah, maybe at that time you were still growing, young lady. PRAISE IS LIKE A DOUBLE-EDGED SWORD. AT SOME TIMES IT WILL MOTIVATE YOU, AT OTHER TIMES IT WILL WEAKEN YOU. And the fact is that i had observed that most of the PRAISE GIVEN TO A GROWING CHILD, WILL JUST MAKE HIM/HER FEEL SATISFIED OF THE CURRENT PROGRESS AND HINDERS FURTHER GROWTH. I EVEN PREFER TO IGNORE YOU, AS IT SUPPOSEDLY CAN ROCKET YOUR PROGRESS. Besides, praise is something that should come from myself, NOT SOMETHING THAT YOU SHOULD ASK FOR."

"You see, this was actually only a small matter. If only at that time you didnt ignore what happened and kept on dancing, you would have became a very great world-class dancer. YOU MIGHT FELT HURT AT THAT TIME, BUT IT WILL DISSIPATE QUICKLY ONCE YOU KEEP ON PRACTISING AGAIN. BUT THE HURT EMERGED FROM THIS REGRET TODAY WILL NEVER DISAPPEAR FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE..."

Indradhanush

Once upon a time the colors of the world started to quarrel.
All claimed that they were the best.
The most important.
The most useful.
The favorite.

Green said:
"Clearly I am the most important. I am the sign of life and of hope. I was chosen for grass, trees and leaves. Without me, all animals would die. Look over the countryside and you will see that I am in the majority."

Blue interrupted:
"You only think about the earth, but consider the sky and the sea. It is the water that is the basis of life and drawn up by the clouds from the deep sea. The sky gives space and peace and serenity. Without my peace, you would all be nothing."

Yellow chuckled:
"You are all so serious. I bring laughter, gaiety, and warmth into the world. The sun is yellow, the moon is yellow, the stars are yellow. Every time you look at a sunflower, the whole world starts to smile. Without me there would be no fun."

Orange started next to blow her trumpet:
"I am the color of health and strength. I may be scarce, but I am precious for I serve the needs of human life. I carry the most important vitamins. Think of carrots, pumpkins, oranges, mangoes, and papayas. I don't hang around all the time, but when I fill the sky at sunrise or sunset, my beauty is so striking that no one gives another thought to any of you."

Red could stand it no longer he shouted out:
"I am the ruler of all of you. I am blood - life's blood! I am the color of danger and of bravery. I am willing to fight for a cause. I bring fire into the blood. Without me, the earth would be as empty as the moon. I am the color of passion and of love, the red rose, the poinsettia and the poppy."

Purple rose up to his full height:
He was very tall and spoke with great pomp: "I am the color of royalty and power. Kings, chiefs, and bishops have always chosen me for I am the sign of authority and wisdom. People do not question me! They listen and obey."

Finally Indigo spoke, much more quietly than all the others, but with just as much determination: "Think of me. I am the color of silence. You hardly notice me, but without me you all become superficial. I represent thought and reflection, twilight and deep water. You need me for balance and contrast, for prayer and inner peace."

And so the colors went on boasting, each convinced of his or her own superiority. Their quarreling became louder and louder. Suddenly there was a startling flash of bright lightening thunder rolled and boomed. Rain started to pour down relentlessly. The colors crouched down in fear, drawing close to one another for comfort.

In the midst of the clamor, rain began to speak:
"You foolish colors, fighting amongst yourselves, each trying to dominate the rest. Don't you know that you were each made for a special purpose, unique and different? Join hands with one another and come to me."

Doing as they were told, the colors united and joined hands.

The rain continued:
"From now on, when it rains, each of you will stretch across the sky in a great bow of color as a reminder that you can all live in peace. The Rainbow is a sign of hope for tomorrow." And so, whenever a good rain washes the world, and a Rainbow appears in the sky, let us remember to appreciate one another.

Life is a do-it-yourself project

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

The contractor was sorry to see his good worker go and asked if he could build just one more house as a personal favor. The carpenter said yes, but in 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 his career.

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

What a shock! What a shame! If he had only known he was building his own house, he would have done it all so differently. Now he had to live in the home he had built none too well.

So it is with us. We build our lives in a distracted way, reacting rather than acting, willing to put up less than the best. At important points we do not give the job our best effort. Then with a shock we look at the situation we have created and find that we are now living in the house we have built. If we had realized, we would have done it differently.

Think of yourself as the carpenter. Think about your house. Each day you hammer a nail, place a board, or erect a wall. Build wisely. It is the only life you will ever build. Even if you live it for only one day more, that day deserves to be lived graciously and with dignity. The plaque on the wall says, "Life is a do-it-yourself project."

Who could say it more clearly? Your life today is the result of your attitudes and choices in the past. Your life tomorrow will be the result of your attitudes and the choices you make today.

Life is to be sought through experience

Before the young man began his studies, he wanted assurance from the Master.

"Can you teach me the goal of human life?"

"I cannot," replied the Master.

"Or at least its meaning?"

"I cannot."

"Can you indicate to me the nature of death and of life beyond the grave?"

"I cannot."

The young man walked away in scorn. The disciples were dismayed that their Master had been shown up in a poor light.

Said the Master soothingly, "Of what is it to comprehend life's nature and life's meaning if you have never tasted it? I'd rather you ate your pudding than speculated on it."

~~~~~

Life is to be sought through experience, not mere thought.

Ordinary-mindedness is the way

A youth went up to a mountain to look for a famous swordsman to learn swordsmanship

"Master, if i practice diligently, how long would it take me to become adept at it?"

"Perhaps ten years"

"My father is getting old and i must take care of him. If i work far more intensively, how long would it take me?"

"In that case, it might have to take thirty years."

"You first mentioned ten years, and then you said it takes thirty years. I do not mind undergoing whatever hardship. I must learn it within the shortest possible time."

"Then you would need seventy years to master it"

~~~~~

More haste, less speed

Those who are too eager for results are apt to end up not having achieved anything. "Ordinary-mindedness is the way" means exactly this.

The Absolute Truth

~ The greatest truths are the simplest things in the world, simple as your own existence.

~ strength and manliness are virtues; weakness and cowardice are sins.

~ Any expansion is life, all contraction is death.

~ They alone live who live for others, the rest are more dead than alive.

~ Save yourself by youself! there is none to help you - never was, to think that there is, is a sweet delusion.

~ Service to humanity is the highest form of worship.

~ All the strength and succour you want is within yourselves. Therefore make your own future.

~ If there is sin, this is the only sin, to say that you are weak, or others are weak.

GOLDEN WORDS BY SWAMI VIVEKANANDA

~ Read man, he is the living poem.

~ He who struggles is better than he who never attempts.

~ Books are useless to us until our own book opens.

~ The world is a gymnasium in which we play; our life is an eternal holiday.

~ Put God behind everything - man, animal, food, work; make this a habit.

~ Religion begins where philosophy ends.

~ Only those who want nothing are the masters of nature.

SWAMI VIVEKANANDA

I don’t know

Socrates said, ”I don’t know,” at the very last moment of his life. His whole life he was teaching the truth, and at the last moment he said, ”I don’t know.” At the last moment he becomes really humble, and he sees the greatness of truth and its miraculousness, its inexpressibility – and that what he had been doing was just playing with words all his life. Now, no more; he is going to die within a few minutes. The poison is being prepared. At least the world should know that Socrates, before dying, uttered his honest answer, ”I don’t know. I don’t know anything about anything. I am just as innocent and ignorant as a child.”

But this is the highest peak of wisdom. When you don’t know, the mind is empty, you have arrived at the empty heart. When you know, the mind is full. Knowledge is the greatest barrier in reaching to the universal, to the immortal, to the eternal truth. Knowledge is the greatest barrier, which is preventing you from recognizing your nature.

Monkey Mind

First winter rain-
even the monkey
seems to want a raincoat.

In spirituality there is something called the 'Monkey Mind' to describe the way our thoughts flit from one idea to another without taking time to fully explore them. This is likened to the way a monkey swings from tree to tree, tearing off pieces of fruit and throwing them away after just a taste.

What to do?

"The only real failure in life is not to be true to the best one knows." 

If we are not authentic and truthful to ourselves, we build a wall around us that eventually we have to tear down again. It is then literally a resistance to the reality and our own nature where we can hide some time, but life has a way to show us our own faults in the end.

To be true to the best one knows means to come from our own best knowledge and not buy into something outside ourselves blindly, always asking: is this really true to what I know?

In resonance with this quote also is the final one by The GOD:

"There are only two mistakes one can make along the road to truth; not going all the way, and not starting."

The purpose of life

True bliss can come only to one who would take courage in his hands, and become free of all attachment to forms which are nothing but the illusions of duality. Only then can he get united with his true Beloved, who is God the eternal and the abiding truth within all forms, including his own body.

You are infinite. You are really everywhere: but you think you are the body, and therefore consider yourself limited. If you look within and experience your own soul in its true nature, you will realize that you are infinite and beyond all creation.

The purpose of life is to realize God within ourselves. This can be done even whilst attending to our worldly duties. In the everyday walks of life and amidst activities, feel detached and dedicate your doings to our beloved God.