Foolish Monkeys

One night, the weather was freezing cold outside. A group of monkeys were on a tree, clinging to its branches. One of the monkeys said, “I wish we could find some fire. It will help us keep warm.”

Suddenly they noticed a flock of fireflies. One of the young monkeys thought it was a fire. He caught one of the fireflies and put it under a dry leaf and started blowing at it. Some other monkeys also joined in his efforts.

In the meanwhile, a mother sparrow returned to its nest, which was on the same tree the monkeys were sitting on. She noticed what they were doing. The sparrow laughed and said, “Hey silly monkeys that’s a firefly, not real fire. I think all of you should take shelter in a cave to stay warm.”

The monkeys did not listen to the sparrow. They continued to blow at the poor firefly.

After some time, the monkeys became very tired and cold. Now they realized that what the sparrow had said was correct, so they set the firefly free and moved to a nearby cave.

Moral: While persistence is one of the most defining qualities of a good student, there’s always something new to be learned every day! The monkeys in the story sure are persistent but their hard work didn’t pay off because they refused to listen, at least initially. Always listen to what your elders have to say.  They have more experience than you!

Appreciation of Hard Work

A young academically smart boy went to apply for a managerial position in a big company. He passed the 1st interview.  The director of the company did the last interview.  The director saw that the youth’s academic achievements were excellent throughout his school years. The director asked, “Did you get any scholarships for school?” The youth answered “none”.  The director asked, “Was it your father who paid for your tuition?” The youth answered, “My father passed away when I was one year old, it was my mother who paid for my school fees”.

The director asked, “Where did your mother work?” The youth answered, “My mother worked as a clothes cleaner. The director requested the youth to show his hands. The youth showed a pair of hands that were smooth and perfect”. The director asked, “Have you ever helped your mother wash the clothes before?” The youth answered, “Never, my mother always wanted me to study and read more books. Furthermore, my mother can wash clothes faster than me”.  The director said, “I have a request. When you go back today, go and clean your mother’s hands, and then see me tomorrow morning”.

The youth felt that his chance of landing the job was high. When he went back, he happily requested his mother to let him clean her hands. His mother felt strange, happy but with mixed feelings, she showed her hands to the kid. The youth cleaned his mother’s hands slowly. His tear fell as he did that. It was the first time he noticed that his mother’s hands were so wrinkled, and there were so many bruises. Some bruises were so painful that his mother shivered when they were cleaned with water.

This was the first time the youth realized that it was this pair of hands that washed his clothes every day to enable him to pay the school fee. The next morning, the youth went to the director’s office. The Director noticed the tears in the youth’s eyes and asked, “Can you tell me what you did and learned yesterday in your house?” The youth answered, “I cleaned my mother’s hands and also finished cleaning all the remaining clothes.”

The Director asked, “Please tell me your feelings”. The youth said, “Number 1, I know now what is appreciation. Without my mother, I would not be successful.   Number 2, By working with her, I now know how hard she has worked. Number 3, I have come to appreciate the importance and value of family relationships.  The director said, “This is what I am looking for in my next manager. I want to recruit a person who can appreciate the help of others, a person who knows the sufferings of others to get things done, and a person who would not put money as his only goal in life. You are hired”. 

Moral: If one doesn’t understand and experience the difficulty it takes to earn the comfort provided by their loved ones, then they will never value it. The most important thing is to experience the difficulty and learn to value hard work behind all the given comfort.

The Couple on the Donkey

A man and his wife were traveling with their donkey.

On the first day, both rode on his back. In town, they heard people whispering: “What a mean couple, putting all that weight on the donkey.”

On the second day, the man rode and the wife walked beside him. People whispered: “What a cruel man, forcing his wife to walk while he rides on the donkey.”

On the third day, the man walked, and the wife rode the donkey. People said: “What a careless man, letting his wife ride alone on the donkey.”

On the fourth day, both walked beside the donkey. Again, people whispered: “What a stupid couple! Why walk if they could ride on the donkey?”

Moral:  No matter what you do, people will judge you. We just can’t help but offer our opinions. Even if we don’t voice them, we’ll always think these things.  If you find yourself thinking the lady on the bus is rude, she’s probably just scared, stressed, or confused. Maybe all three. We love to generalize behavior and see people that way, when, really, most of what we do is a result of how we are feeling at that moment.

A Man With A Lamp

A Man With A Lamp

Once upon a time, there lived a blind man. He lived by himself in a small town. Whenever he would go out at night, he would always carry a lighted lamp with him.

One night, after dinner at a restaurant, he began walking home in the dark. He came across a group of young travelers. They saw that he was blind, yet he was carrying a lighted lamp. They started making jokes about him. They made fun of him and called him names. One of them asked him, “Hey Blind Man! You are blind and can’t see anything! Why do you carry the lamp with you?!”

The blind man replied, “Yes, unfortunately, I am blind, and I can’t see anything but this lighted lamp which I am carrying is for the people like you, so you can see ME in the dark. You may not see me coming and end up pushing me down. That is why I carry a lighted lamp”.

The group of travelers felt ashamed and then apologized for their behavior.

Moral: We should think before judging others. Always be polite and learn to see things from others’ points of view.

True Wealth

There was a boy whose family was very wealthy. One day, his father took him on a trip to the country, where he aimed to show his son how poor people live. They arrived at the farm of a very poor family and spent several days there, living with them. On their return, the father asked his son if he liked the trip.

“Oh, it was great, Dad,” – the boy replied. “Did you see how poor people live?”asked the father. “Yeah, I did “- said the boy. The father asked his son to tell him more about his impressions from their trip “.

“Well, we have only one dog, and they have four of them. In our garden there is a pool, while they have a river that has no end. We’ve got expensive lanterns, but they have stars above their heads at night. We have the patio, and they have the whole horizon. We have only a small piece of land, while they have endless fields. We buy food, but they grow it. We have a high fence to protect our property, and they don’t need it, as their friends protect them.”

The father was stunned. He could not say a word.

Then the boy added: “Thank you, Dad, for letting me see how poor we are.”

Moral: This story shows that true wealth, as well as happiness, is not measured by material things. Love, friendship, and freedom are far more valuable.

Wealth Without Value

A Miser had buried his gold in a secret place in his garden. Every day he went to the spot, dug up the treasure, and counted it piece by piece to make sure it was all there. He made so many trips there, that a thief, who had been observing him, guessed what it was the Miser had hidden, and one night quietly dug up the treasure, took it, and ran away.

When the Miser discovered his loss, he was overcome with grief and despair. He groaned and cried and pounded his chest. A passerby heard his cries and asked what had happened.

“My gold! O my gold!” cried the Miser, wildly, “someone has robbed me!”

“Your gold! There in that hole? Why did you put it there? Why did you not keep it in the house where you could easily get it when you had to buy things?”

“Buy things!” screamed the Miser angrily. “Why, I never touch the gold. I couldn’t think of spending any of it.”

The stranger picked up a large stone and threw it into the hole. “If that is the case,” he said, “cover-up that stone. It is worth just as much to you as the treasure you lost!”

Moral: Saving and spending wisely and appropriately is a good thing if you do it for a good purpose. Otherwise, a possession is worth no more than the stone buried in the earth.

Use All Your Strength

A young boy and his father were walking along a forest road. At some point, they came across a large tree branch on the ground in front of them. The boy asked his father, “If I try, do you think I could move that branch?” His father replied, “I am sure you can if you use all your strength.” The boy tried his best to lift or push the branch, but he was not strong enough, and he couldn't move it. He said, with disappointment, “You were wrong, Dad. I can't move it.” “Try again,” replied his father. Again, the boy tried hard to push the branch. He struggled, but it did not move. “Dad, I cannot do it,” said the boy. Finally, his father said, “Son, I advised you to use all your strength. You didn’t. I am here with you, but still, you didn’t ask for my help. Then, with the help of his father, the boy was able to move that branch aside.

Moral: We haven’t used all our strength until we have recognized and appreciated the strength and support of those who love and surround us and care about our purpose. To ask for Help and support when we need is not a Sign of Weakness, it is a Sign of Wisdom. It is a Call for Greater Strength that Lives in our Togetherness.

What is Compassion?

Once a young student came to his master and asked him, “Master, what is Compassion?”Master took him to the window and asked him to look at the beggar sitting on the corner across the street. While looking at him for some time, they saw that an old lady passed by and gave him a gold coin, a merchant passed by and gave him five gold coins, and a boy who passed by gave him a flower.

Now, master asked his student, “Which one of all these actions do you think felt the most compassion for the beggar?”

The young student replied, “The merchant did. He gave him the most money.”

The Master smiled and explained, “Remember that old lady that passed by? She was infuriated by his poverty, so she gave him a gold coin. The old lady acted out of pity toward that beggar.

After that, we saw a merchant who noticed a small group of people talking about him, so he gave 5 gold coins to the beggar and left quickly. The merchant acted out of ego. He wanted to show oL his wealth to those people and show that he had a big heart and liked to help others.

Later we saw a boy who had collected some flowers in his hands for his mother and when he passed by that beggar, he smiled at him and gave him a flower. That little boy is the one who acted out of compassion”

Master continued and explained, “Compassion is far greater and nobler than pity. Pity has its roots in fear. When fear touches someone’s pain it becomes pity But when love touches someone’s pain it becomes compassion. So to understand compassion we should understand that all beings are the same and suLer in a similar way. We should honor all who suLer and know that we are neither separate nor superior to anyone. “

How Many Crows In The Kingdom?

“Emperor Akbar had a habit of offering riddles and puzzles to his courtiers. He often asked questions that were strange and witty. It took much wisdom to answer these questions. Once he asked a very strange question. The courtiers looked dumbfounded.

As King Akbar looked around the room, one by one the courier's heads began to hang low in search of an answer. It was at this moment that Birbal entered the courtyard. Birbal who knew the nature of the emperor quickly grasped the situation and asked, “May I know the question so that I can try for an answer”.

King Akbar said, “How many crows are there in this city?”

Without even a moment’s thought, Birbal replied “There are fifty-thousand-five hundred and eighty-nine crows, my lord”.

“How can you be so sure?” asked the king.

Birbal replied, “Make you men count, My lord. If you find more crows it means some have come to visit their relatives here. If you find less number of crows it means some have gone to visit their relatives elsewhere”.

King Akbar began to laugh and was very pleased by Birbal’s wit.

Moral : Even if the question is silly, you can manage the situation by thinking on your feet and giving a witty answer.

Changing Our Vision

Once, there was a very wealthy man who was suffering from severe eye pain. He consulted many physicians and was being treated by several.  He consumed lots of drugs and underwent hundreds of injections. But the ache persisted and, in fact, was getting worse.

At last, a monk who was supposed to be an expert in treating such patients was called for by the suffering man. The monk understood his problem and said that he should concentrate only on the color green for a month.  He should not let his eyes fall on any other colors. It was a strange prescription, but he was desperate and decided to try it.

The millionaire gathered a group of painters and purchased barrels of green paint. He directed that every object his eye was likely to see should be painted green, just as the monk had directed. When the monk came to visit him after a few days, following their orders, the man’s servants ran with buckets of green paint and poured it on the monk, who was dressed in his red robes., 

The monk just laughed and said, "If only you had purchased a pair of green-tinted eyeglasses worth just a few dollars, you could have saved these walls and trees and pots and everything around you, as well as a large share of your fortune. 

Moral of the story:  You cannot paint the world green.  Change YOUR vision, and the world will appear accordingly. 

What Love Means

A 9-year-old girl walks into a jewelry store. She looks around and points at a $3000 bracelet, and says I want that one. She says she's going to buy it for her older sister. The store owner says that's very nice of you.  Why do you want to give it to her? She says that because I don't have a mother or father, and she takes care of us.  The girl opens up her backpack and dumps out hundreds of coins onto the counter, mostly nickels, dimes, and pennies, and says this is my life savings. The man looks at the coins, looks at the bracelet, and starts tearing up.  He looks at her and says that is exactly what it costs. He wraps up the bracelet, hands it to her, and says, take this to your sister.  A few hours later, the sister comes in, and she says I am so embarrassed.

I can't believe my sister took this without paying, and the store owner says she did pay for it.  She paid in full.  He then explains that I'm alone in life. My wife passed on, and my kids moved away. Your sister walked in here with her bag of coins, and for the first time in years, I felt what love means. You take this bracelet because you deserve it. There is no force on earth more powerful than love. Let it guide what you do every day, and good things will come. 

Bullying

Bullying

One day a bus driver was driving his regular route. Usually, the bus driver never had any problem with his passengers, but this day will be different and change his life forever. At the first couple of stops everything was, as usual, a few people got on, and a few got off. At one of the last stops, however, a big hulk of a guy got on. Six feet eight, built like a wrestler, arms hanging down to the ground. He glared at the driver and said, “Big John doesn’t need to pay!” and sat down at the back. The driver was so shocked that he just sat there speechless and intimidated

The bus driver was only five feet three, thin, and without any self-defense skills. He knew it wasn’t smart to argue with Big John, but he also wasn’t happy about the whole situation. The next day the same thing happened. Big John got on again, made a show of refusing to pay, and sat down. And the next day, and the one after that. This really bothered the bus driver, who started losing sleep over the way Big John was taking advantage of him. Finally, he couldn’t stand it any longer. He decided to stand up to this bully, so he signed up for body building courses, karate, judo, and all that good stuff. While training the bus driver told everyone what has happened to him, how unfair everything was, and how he was going to keep practicing so one day, he could stand up to that bully.

After almost a year of hard training in the gym and at different martial art studios, the bus driver had become quite strong and he felt really good about himself. So he decided that the next day Big John tries to pull his trick he will confront him. The day finally came when Big John once again got on the bus and said, “Big John doesn’t pay!” But this time the driver stood up, glared back at the passenger, and screamed, “And why not?  With a surprised look on his face, Big John replied, “Big John has a bus pass, so like Big John said many times… Big John doesn’t pay.” The bus driver apologized to Big John for screaming at him sat down and took a couple of minutes to think over what he had put himself through over the past year and how all of it could have been avoided if he would have just asked Big John the very first day why he doesn’t have to pay. At the end of the day when the bus driver got back to the martial art studio, his mentor asked him, “So did you stand up to the bully this time?” The bus driver told his mentor what had happened and how wrong he was from the start. His mentor calmly said, “Sometimes there is no bad guy only miscommunication.”

Moral:  If you find yourself in a confrontation make sure that you know all the facts before you start making some big revenge plans.

The Cycle of Evil

There once was a king who was so cruel and unjust that his subjects yearned for his death or dethronement. However, one day, he surprised them all by announcing that he had decided to turn over a new leaf.

“No more cruelty, no more injustice,” he promised, and he was as good as his word. He became known as the ‘Gentle Monarch’. Months after his transformation, one of his ministers got the courage to ask him what had brought about his change of heart.

And the king answered, “As I was galloping through my forests, I caught sight of a fox being chased by a hound. The fox escaped into his hole, but not before the hound had bitten into its leg and lamed it for life. Later, I rode into a village and saw the same hound there. It was barking at a man. Even as I watched, the man picked up a huge stone and flung it at the dog, breaking its leg. The man had not gone far when he was kicked by a horse. His knee was shattered, and he fell to the ground, disabled for life. The horse began to run, but it fell into a hole and broke its leg. Reflecting on all that had happened, I thought: ‘Evil begets evil. If I continue in my evil ways, I will surely be overtaken by evil’. So I decided to change”.

The minister went away, convinced that the time was ripe to overthrow the king and seize the throne. Immersed in thought, he did not see the steps in front of him and fell, breaking his neck.

Moral: The cycle of deeds always gives us back what we give to others. If we do good to others, our good will happen; if we do bad to others, our turn will also come.

The Two Horses

Just up the road from my home is a field with two horses in it. From a distance, each horse looks like any other horse.

But if you look closer, you will notice something quite interesting...

One of the horses is blind.

His owner has chosen not to have him put down but has made him a safe and comfortable barn to live in.  This alone is amazing.  But if you stand nearby and listen, you will hear the sound of a bell. It is coming from a smaller horse in the field.

Attached to the horse's halter is a small, copper-colored bell. It lets the blind friend know where the other horse is so he can follow. As you stand and watch these two friends, you'll see that the horse with the bell is always checking on the blind horse. The blind horse will listen for the bell and then slowly walk to where the other horse is, trusting he will not be led astray.

When the horse with the bell returns to the shelter of the barn each evening, he will stop occasionally to look back, making sure that the blind friend isn't too far behind to hear the bell.

Moral:  Like the owners of these two horses, divine source does not discard us just because we are imperfect or have problems or challenges.  God watches over us and even brings others into our lives to help us when we are in need. Sometimes, we are the blind horse, being guided by the little ringing bell of those who divine source places in our lives. And at other times we are the guide horse, helping others to find their way.

The Power of Words

Two girls got on a bus and they started talking to each other.

“Did you hear that Sarah got engaged yesterday?” 

“No, I never knew that!  That’s amazing!!”

“But she is so sloppy and unorganized! How is she going to run a household?”

“I know, said the other girl, she’s never on time. And remember the one time she cooked for us? Her food was terrible! Her new husband is going to starve!!”

“I heard she spends money faster than she receives it. How will she get through the month?”

So it went, on and on and on. Behind the two girls was another lady who suddenly spoke up.

“I am sorry to interrupt you girls but I wanted to introduce myself. My son just got engaged to Sarah. Now that I know this information, I will tell my son everything that you said about Sarah and he must break off the engagement immediately. I will also tell all my friends how grateful I am to you girls for letting me know what Sarah is really like”.

The girls were shocked. They started to stutter and struggled to find the right words.

 “No, No” they pleaded. Please do not let your son break the engagement.”

 “Sarah is wonderful! She will make a great mother! She really will!”

“She is so warm, friendly and caring”.

“We were just talking. We never meant her any harm”. “Please don’t break the engagement”.

 However, the woman was adamant.

“Thank you, but based on what you said, I will make every effort to break it up as soon as possible. The girl you described sounds like a terrible person. I will inform my son immediately.”

The girls were horrified and crushed. After a short silence, the lady turned around to the girls and said “I am not the boy’s mother, but imagine if I was?”

“Do you know the damage you could have caused to this couple? You almost destroyed a potential family just because you had nothing else to talk about?”

“Words either build or destroy, use them wisely” the woman said sternly and with that she got off the bus.

Moral:  This story should be a wake up call for all of us.  It’s  so easy to talk all the time without any awareness of the power of our words. 

The King’s Successor

There was once a great king who was renowned for his wisdom and intelligence. He decided it was time to retire, so he spread the word across his kingdom that he would soon appoint a new successor to his throne. The king was considered to be the wisest to have come to power. His clever policies helped to build a just and content nation during his rule. 

The king called the nation's youth together and gathered them in the royal hall. The king gave each of them a seed and said, “This is a very special seed. I want all of you to plant it, take care of it and return after a year with what you have. Based on what you bring back, I will decide who will be the country's next king.  Everyone left and excitedly planted their seed and waited for it to grow. As the months passed by, the youth of the country were talking about how their plant had grown tremendously beautiful. Among all the youth was a young man whose seed hadn’t sprouted. Although he used to water the seed every day and do everything to make it grow, the seed would grow. 

A year had passed from the day the seed was distributed. All the youth were summoned to the palace, where they were to display the outcome of their seeds. The young man, whose seed did not grow, was very reluctant even to attend the gathering, but he went to the palace anyway with his pot of soil.  In the gathering, he was amazed to see the variety of beautiful plants others had grown. The young man put his empty pot on the floor while a number of the others were laughing at him as he did so. The young man was embarrassed to be there.

The king arrived in the hall and inspected each and every pot. The young man was hiding in the back, trying to go unseen, but the king found him and paused when he did. Walking over, he eyed the young man and his plant closely but said nothing. He ordered his guards to bring the young man to the front of the room.  The young man was very sad as the king had noticed his utter failure to grow a seed. Arriving at the front, the guards let go of him, leaving him standing alone before all the others, many of whom were snickering and pointing. The king called the young man closer. He raised his hand and roared, “Behold, everyone, your new king!”

The king said, “One year ago, I gave everyone a seed. I instructed you to take the seed, plant it, water it, and bring it back. You were unaware that every seed I handed out had been boiled beforehand so that none of them were fit to grow! After a year, all of you have brought me trees, plants, and flowers, born of your dishonesty. The seeds which grew these plants were not the ones I provided you. Therefore, look upon the only honest one among you, this young man, and know now why he deserves to be your ruler.”

Moral: This sounds like a test we should impose here and now on politicians and all public servants.