Lion and Poor Slave

A slave, ill-treated by his master, runs away to the forest. There he comes across a lion in pain because of a thorn in his paw. The slave bravely goes forward and removes the thorn gently.

The lion without hurting him goes away.

Some days later, the slave’s master comes hunting to the forest and catches many animals and cages them. The slave is spotted by the masters’ men who catch him and bring him to the cruel master. The master asks for the slave to be thrown into the lion’s cage.

The slave is awaiting his death in the cage when he realizes that it is the same lion that he had helped. The slave rescued the lion and all other caged animals.

Moral: One should help others in need, we get the rewards of our helpful acts in return.

The Poor Man’s Wealth

Ramchand and Premchand were neighbors. Ramchand was a poor farmer. Premchand was a landlord.
Ramchand used to be very relaxed and happy. He never bothered to close the doors and windows of his house at night. He had deep sound sleeps. Although he had no money he was peaceful.
Premchand used to be very tense always. He was very keen to close the doors and windows of his house at night. He could not sleep well. He was always bothered that someone might break open his safes and steal away his money. He envied the peaceful Ramchand.
One day, Premchand call Ramchand and gave him a boxful of cash saying, “Look my dear friend. I am blessed with plenty of wealth. I find you in poverty. So, take this cash and live in prosperity.”
Ramchand was overwhelmingly happy. He was joyful throughout the day. Night came. Ramchand went to bed as usual. But, to-day, he could not sleep. He went and closed the doors and windows. He still could not sleep. He began to keep on looking at the box of cash. The whole night he was disturbed.
As soon as day broke, Ramchand took the box of cash to Premchand. He gave away the box to Premchand saying, “Dear Friend, I am poor. But, your money took away peace from me. Please bear with me and take back your money.”

Moral: Money can not get everything. Learn to be satisfied with what you have and you will always be happy.

The Ant and The Dove

On a hot day of summer, an ant was searching for some water. After walking around for some time, she came near the river. To drink the water, she climbed up on a small rock. While trying to drink a water, she slipped and fell into the river.
There was a dove sitting on a branch of a tree who saw an ant falling into the river. The dove quickly plucked a leaf and dropped it into the river near the struggling ant. The ant moved towards the leaf and climbed up onto it. Soon, the leaf drifted to dry ground, and the ant jumped out. She looked up to the tree and thanked the dove.
Later, the same day, a bird catcher nearby was about to throw his net over the dove hoping to trap it. An ant saw him and guessed what he was about to do. The dove was resting and he had no idea about the bird catcher. An ant quickly bit him on the foot. Feeling the pain, the bird catcher dropped his net and let out a light scream. The dove noticed it and quickly flew away.

Moral:  If you do good, good will come to you.  One good turn deserves another.

Boy’s Job Appraisal

A little boy went into a drug store, reached for a soda carton and pulled it over to the telephone. He climbed onto the carton so that he could reach the buttons on the phone and proceeded to punch in seven digits (phone numbers).  The store-owner observed and listened to the conversation.
Boy: ‘Lady, Can you give me the job of cutting your lawn?
Woman: (at the other end of the phone line): ‘I already have someone to cut my lawn.’
Boy: ‘Lady, I will cut your lawn for half the price of the person who cuts your lawn now.’
Woman: I’m very satisfied with the person who is presently cutting my lawn.
Boy: (with more perseverance): ‘Lady, I’ll even sweep your curb and your sidewalk, so on Sunday you will have the prettiest lawn in all of Palm beach, Florida.’
Woman: No, thank you.
With a smile on his face, the little boy replaced the receiver.  The store-owner, who was listening to all this, walked over to the boy.
Store Owner: ‘Son… I like your attitude; I like that positive spirit and would like to offer you a job.’
Boy: ‘No thanks.’
Store Owner: But you were really pleading for one.
Boy: No Sir, I was just checking my performance at the Job I already have. I am the one who is working for that lady I was talking to!’

Moral: This is what we call ‘Self Appraisal’.  Every time if we don’t get ahead of others, we blame others for it.  We should look to our self and compare, find own weaknesses and work hard to throw away weaknesses.  Always Work Hard, Honest and with full Dedication.  It will always pay up.

Mother’s Love for a Boy

One day Thomas Edison came home and gave a paper to his mother. He told her, “My teacher gave this paper to me and told me to only give it to my mother.” His mother’s eyes were tearful as she read the letter out loud to her child, “Your son is a genius. This school is too small for him and doesn’t have enough good teachers for training him. Please teach him yourself.”
Many years after Edison’s mother had died, Edison had become one of the greatest inventors of the century. One day he was going through the old closet and he found a folded letter which was given to him by his teacher for his mother. He opened it. The message written on the letter was, “Your son is mentally ill. We can not let him attend our school anymore. He is expelled.”
Edison became emotional reading it and then he wrote in his diary, “Thomas Alva Edison was a mentally ill child whose mother turned him into the genius of the century.”

Moral: A Mother’s love and upbringing can help change the destiny of a child.

Five More Minutes

While at the park one day, a woman sat down next to a man on a bench near a playground.  “That’s my son over there,” she said, pointing to a little boy in a red sweater who was gliding down the slide.  “He’s a fine looking boy”, the man said. “That’s my daughter on the bike in the white dress.”

Then, looking at his watch, he called to his daughter. “What do you say we go, Melissa?”  Melissa pleaded, “Just five more minutes, Dad. Please? Just five more minutes.”  The man nodded and Melissa continued to ride her bike to her heart’s content. Minutes passed and the father stood and called again to his daughter. “Time to go now?”

Again Melissa pleaded, “Five more minutes, Dad. Just five more minutes.”  The man smiled and said, “OK.”  “My, you certainly are a patient father,” the woman responded.

The man smiled and then said, “Her older brother Tommy was killed by a drunk driver last year while he was riding his bike near here. I never spent much time with Tommy and now I’d give anything for just five more minutes with him. I’ve vowed not to make the same mistake with Melissa.  She thinks she has five more minutes to ride her bike. The truth is, I get Five more minutes to watch her play.”

Moral: Life is all about making priorities, and family is one and only priority on top of all other, so spend all time you can with loved ones.

Looking at Mirror

One day all the employees reached the office and they saw a big advice on the door on which it was written: “Yesterday the person who has been hindering your growth in this company passed away. We invite you to join the funeral in the room that has been prepared in the gym”.  In the beginning, they all got sad for the death of one of their colleagues, but after a while, they started getting curious to know who was that man who hindered the growth of his colleagues and the company itself.

The excitement in the gym was such that security agents were ordered to control the crowd within the room. The more people reached the coffin, the more the excitement heated up. Everyone thought: “Who is this guy who was hindering my progress? Well, at least he died!”  One by one the thrilled employees got closer to the coffin, and when they looked inside they suddenly became speechless.  They stood nearby the coffin, shocked and in silence, as if someone had touched the deepest part of their soul. There was a mirror inside the coffin: everyone who looked inside it could see himself.

There was also a sign next to the mirror that said: “There is only one person who is capable of setting limits to your growth: it is YOU.” You are the only person who can revolutionize your life. You are the only person who can influence your happiness, your realization, and your success. You are the only person who can help yourself.  Your life does not change when your boss changes, when your friends change, when your partner changes when your company changes. Your life changes when YOU change, when you go beyond your limiting beliefs when you realize that you are the only one responsible for your life. “The most important relationship you can have is the one you have with yourself”.

Moral: The world is like a mirror: it gives back to anyone the reflection of the thoughts in which one has strongly believed. The world and your reality are like mirrors lying in a coffin, which show to any individual the death of his divine capability to imagine and create his happiness and his success. It’s the way you face Life that makes the difference.

The Way God Helps

There was a small village by the river. Everyone lived happily and offered regular prayers at the village temple (Church). Once during the monsoon season, it rained heavily. The river started overflowing and flood entered the village. Everyone started to evacuate their homes and set out to go to the safe place.
One man ran to the temple (Church). He quickly went to the priest’s room and told him, “The flood water has entered into our homes and it is rising quickly. And water has also started to enter the temple. We must leave the village as in no time it will sink under the water! Everyone has set out to go to the safer place and you must come along”. The priest told the man, “I am not an atheist like you all and I have a full faith in God. I trust the God that he will come to save me. I will not leave the temple, You may go!” So, the man left.
Soon, the water level started to rise and reached the waist height. The priest climbed on the desk. After a few minutes, a man with the boat came to rescue the priest. He told the priest, “I was told by the villagers that you are still inside the temple, so I have come to rescue you, please climb on the boat”. But the priest again refused to leave giving him the same reason. So the boatman left.
The water kept rising and reached to the ceiling, so the priest climbed to the top of the temple. He kept praying to the God to save him. Soon the helicopter came, they dropped the rope ladder for the priest and asked him to climb on and get inside the helicopter so they can take him to the safer place. But the priest refused to leave by giving him the same reason again! So the helicopter left to search and help others.
At last, when the temple nearly submerged under the water, the priest kept his head up and started complaining, “Oh Lord, I worshiped you for all my life and kept my faith in you! Why didn’t you come to save me?!” The God appeared in front of him and with a smile, he said, “Oh mad man, I came to save you three times! I came running to you to ask you to leave for the safest place with other villages, I came with a Boat, I came with a Helicopter! What is my fault if you didn’t recognize me?!”
The priest realized his mistake and asked for forgiveness. He got his chance to go to the safe place one more time, which he accepted.

Moral: In life, opportunities come unknowingly without any recolonization. We fail to recognize it and keep complaining that life didn’t give us the opportunity to lead a successful life. Always take every chance you get to make a better life.

The Lion and a Clever Fox

Long ago, there lived a lion in a dense forest. One morning his wife told him that his breath was bad and unpleasant. The lion became embarrassed and angry upon hearing it. He wanted to check this fact with others. So he called three others outside his cave.
First came the sheep. The Lion opening his mouth wide said, “Sheep, tell me if my mouth smells bad?” The sheep thought that the lion wanted an honest answer, so the sheep said, “Yes, Friend. There seems to be something wrong with your breath”. This plain speak did not go well with the lion. He pounced on the sheep, killing it.
Then the lion called the wolf and said, “What do you think? Do I have a bad breath?” The wolf saw what happened to the sheep. He wanted to be very cautious in answering a question. So, the wolf said, “Who says that Your breath is unpleasant. It’s as sweet as the smell of roses”. When the lion heard the reply, he roared in an anger and immediately attacked the wolf and killed it. “The flatterer!” growled the lion.
Finally, came the turn of the fox. The lion asked him the same question. The fox was well aware of the fate of the sheep and the wolf. So he coughed and cleared his throat again and again and then said, “Oh Dear Friend, for the last few days, I have been having a very bad cold. Due to this, I can’t smell anything, pleasant or unpleasant”.
The lion spared the fox’s life.

Moral:  Do not involve yourself in a bad company or a bad situation else you may end up getting punished for no fault of yours.  Sometimes, It’s wise to stay away from certain situations.

The Lion and The Mouse

A Mouse running over his face awakened a Lion from sleep. Rising up angrily, he caught him and was about to kill him. Then the Mouse piteously entreated, saying:

“If you would only spare my life, I would be sure to repay your kindness.” The Lion laughed at him but allowed him to go. It happened shortly after this that some hunters, who bound him by strong ropes to the ground, caught the Lion. The Mouse, recognizing his roar, came and gnawed the rope with his teeth, and set him free, exclaiming:

“You ridiculed the idea of my ever being able to help you, never expecting to receive from me any repayment of your favor,  Now you know that it is possible for even a Mouse to confer benefits on a Lion.”

Moral: It is possible for even a Mouse to confer benefits on a Lion.

Learning from Mistakes

Thomas Edison tried two thousand different materials in search of a filament for the light bulb. When none worked satisfactorily, his assistant complained, “All our work is in vain. We have learned nothing, Not sure if we can use an electricity properly.”
Edison replied very confidently, “Oh, we have come a long way and we have learned a lot. We know that there are two thousand elements which we cannot use to make a good light bulb.”
Moral: We can also learn from our mistakes.

The Seven Wonders

Anna was a 9-year-old girl from the small village.  She finished attending elementary school till 4th grade at her village.  For the 5th grade onwards, she will have to get an admission in a school at a city nearby.  She got very happy knowing that she was accepted in a very reputed school in a city.  Today was the first day of her school and she was waiting for her school bus.  Once the bus came, she got in it quickly.  She was very excited.
Once the bus reached to her school, all students started going to their classes.  Anna also made it to her classroom after asking fellow students for direction.  Upon seeing her simple clothing and knowing she is from a small village, other students started making fun of her.  The teacher soon arrived and she asked everyone to keep quiet.  She introduced Anna to the class and told that she will be studying with them only from today.
Then the teacher told the students to be ready for the surprise test now!  She told everyone to write down the 7 wonders of the world.  Everyone started writing the answer quickly.   Anna started to write the answer slowly.
When everyone except Anna had submitted their answer paper, the teacher came and asked Anna, “What happened Dear?  Don’t worry, Just write what you know as other students have learned about it just a couple of days back”.
Anna replied, “I was thinking that there are so many things, which 7 I can pick to write!”   And, then she handed her answer paper to the teacher.  The teacher started reading everyone’s answers and the majority had answered them correctly such as The Great Wall of China, Colosseum, Stonehedge,  Great Pyramid of Giza, Leaning Tower of Pisa, Tajmahal, Hanging Gardens of Babylon etc.
The teacher was happy as students had remembered what she had taught them.  At last the teacher picked up Anna’s answer paper and started reading.

“The 7 Wonders are – To be able to See, To be able to Hear, To be able to Feel, To Laugh, To Think, To be Kind, To Love!”

The teacher stood stunned and the whole class was speechless.  Today, a girl from the small village reminded them about the precious gifts that god has given us, which are truly a wonder.

Moral:  Value what you have, use what you have, trust what you have.  You don’t always have to look away to find an inspiration.  God has given you all the strength to reach your goals.

The Four Friends

Four friends live in a village which has been struck by famine. Three of them are extremely clever and learned and consider their friend Shivanand a lazy but practical fool.

The four decide to go a place called Manasa, which is considered an asylum for scholars. On their way, they have to pass through a forest. There they come across bones of a lion. Satyanand decides to show his knowledge by recreating the lion’s skeleton. The other friend reconstructs the lion’s muscles and structure. Vidyanand then wants to show his superior powers by breathing life into the lion.

Shivanand tries to stop them and warns them of the consequences of their plans. But they do not stop. Shivanand climbs a tree before Vidyanand foolishly proceeds with his plans. The lion comes to life and devours the three learned fools.

Shivanand’s practical nature saves him.

Moral: It is better to be practical than learned.

The Bear and The Two Friends

Once two friends were walking through the forest. They knew that anything dangerous can happen to them at any time in the forest. So they promised each other that they would remain united in any case of danger.
Suddenly, they saw a large bear approaching them. One of the friends at once climbed a nearby tree. But the other one did not know how to climb. So being led by his common sense, he lay down on the ground breathless, pretending to be a dead man.
The bear came near the man lying on the ground. It smelt in his ears, and slowly left the place. Because the bears do not touch the dead creatures.Now the friend on the tree came down and asked his friend on the ground, “Friend, what did the bear tell you into your ears?” The other friend replied, “The bear advised me not to believe a false friend.”

Moral: True Friend is the one who always supports and stands by you in any situation.

Think Before You Judge

A doctor entered the hospital in hurry after being called in for an urgent surgery. He answered the call asap, changed his clothes and went directly to the surgery block.  He found the boy’s father pacing in the hall waiting for the doctor.
On seeing him, the father yelled, “Why did you take all this time to come? Don’t you know that my son’s life is in danger? Don’t you have any sense of responsibility?”
The doctor smiled and said, “I am sorry, I wasn’t in the hospital and I came as fast as I could after receiving the call and now, I wish you’d calm down so that I can do my work”.
“Calm down?! What if your son was in this room right now, would you calm down? If your own son dies while waiting for the doctor than what will you do??” said the father angrily.  The doctor smiled again and replied, “We will do our best by God’s grace and you should also pray for your son’s healthy life”.
“Giving advises when we’re not concerned is so easy” Murmured the father.
The surgery took some hours after which the doctor went out happy, “Thank goodness! your son is saved!” And without waiting for the father’s reply he carried on his way running by saying, “If you have any questions, ask the nurse”.
“Why is he so arrogant? He couldn’t wait some minutes so that I ask about my son’s state” Commented the father when seeing the nurse minutes after the doctor left.  The nurse answered, tears coming down her face, “His son died yesterday in a road accident, he was at the burial when we called him for your son’s surgery.  And now that he saved your son’s life, he left running to finish his son’s burial.”

Moral: Never judge anyone because you never know how their life is and what they’re going through.

Who is Happy? The Peacock and The Crow

A crow lived in the forest and was absolutely satisfied in life. But one day he saw a swan. “This swan is so white,” he thought, “and I am so black. This swan must be the happiest bird in the world.”
He expressed his thoughts to the swan. “Actually,” the swan replied, “I was feeling that I was the happiest bird around until I saw a parrot, which has two colors. I now think the parrot is the happiest bird in creation.” The crow then approached the parrot. The parrot explained, “I lived a very happy life until I saw a peacock. I have only two colors, but the peacock has multiple colors.”
The crow then visited a peacock in the zoo and saw that hundreds of people had gathered to see him. After the people had left, the crow approached the peacock. “Dear peacock,” the crow said, “you are so beautiful. Every day thousands of people come to see you. When people see me, they immediately shoo me away. I think you are the happiest bird on the planet.”
The peacock replied, “I always thought that I was the most beautiful and happy bird on the planet. But because of my beauty, I am entrapped in this zoo. I have examined the zoo very carefully, and I have realized that the crow is the only bird not kept in a cage. So for past few days, I have been thinking that if I were a crow, I could happily roam everywhere.”

That’s our problem too. We make unnecessary comparison with others and become sad. We don’t value what God has given us.  This all leads to the vicious cycle of unhappiness.  Learn to be happy in what you have instead of looking at what you don’t have.   There will always be someone who will have more or less than you have.  Person who is satisfied with what he/she has, is the happiest person in the world.

Bond of Love and the Truth

A very loving couple had been married for over 10 years without any child and it was becoming their 11th year.  Steve and Sarah stayed with each other and greatly hoped that they will have a child before their 11th year of marriage runs out because they were under persuasion from friends and family members to get a divorce.  But they couldn’t let go because of the strong bond of love between them.  Months passed and one day, while Dave was returning from work, he saw his wife walking down the road with a man.
Months passed and one day, while Dave was returning from work, he saw his wife walking down the road with a man.  The man had his arms around her neck and they looked very happy.  For over a week, he saw the same man with his wife at various places and one evening while Dave was returning from work he saw the man drop her off at the house after giving her a kiss on the cheek.  Dave was angry and sad but he didn’t spoke of it with his wife.
Two days later after a hectic day at work, Dave was taking water with a glass jug from the dispenser when the phone rang.  He picked it up and the person said, ”Hello dear, I’ll be coming to your house this evening to see you as promised.”  Dave hung up the phone.  It was a male voice and he was sure the person was the man he had always seen his wife with.  He suddenly became shaky with the thought that he has lost his wife to another man.  The glass jug fell from his hand and shattered into pieces.
His wife came running into the room asking, ”Is everything okay?”  In anger, he gave his wife a push and she fell.  She wasn’t moving or getting up.  Dave then realized that she fell where he broke the glass jug.  A large piece of glass had pierced her.  He felt her breath, pulse, and heartbeat but there she lay lifeless.  In a total confusion, he saw an envelope in her hand.  He took it, opened it and was shocked by its content – it was a letter.  It read:

“My loving husband, words can not express how I feel so I had to write it down. I have been going to see a doctor for over a week and I wanted to be sure before I give you the news.
The doctor confirmed it that I am pregnant with a twin and our baby is due 2 months from now.  The same doctor is my long lost brother whom I lost contact with after our marriage. He has promised to take care of me and our baby and give us the best without collecting a dime.
He also promised to have dinner with us today.  Thanks for staying by my side.
Your loving wife.

The letter fell from his hand.  There was a knock at the door and the same man he had seen with his wife came in and said, ”Hello Dave, I suppose I’m right. I am Max, the brother of your wife”  Suddenly, Max noticed his sister lying in a pool of her blood.  He rushed her to the hospital and she was in a coma.  She had lost her twins.

Moral: We should not be too quick to take unnecessary actions in our relationship or marriage when we haven’t questioned our partner or spouse on what we saw or heard about them.  We all have our faults.  We shouldn’t be too fast to judge others.  Not everything you see, hear or believe about someone is true.  Always learn to control yourself under any condition or situation, irrespective of what you’ve heard or seen.

Your Chance of a Greater Good

It was an early morning.  Mr. Khanna was getting ready for his office when His wife asked him to put just a few clothes out for a laundry today.  He asked his wife, “Why?”  She told him, “Because our maid is planning to visit her Grand Daughter today, she will have to leave early to catch the bus and she will not be coming for two days”.  Mr. Khanna asked her, “Where is she going for two days?”  She told him, “Tomorrow is the Birthday of her Grand Daughter, so she is going to spend time with her and celebrate.”   Mr. Khanna told her, “Ok, no problem”.
But then his wife asked him, “Oh one more thing!  Should I give her Rs. 500 as a bonus?”   Mr. Khanna said, “Why now?  We will give her during the Christmas”.  His Wife said, “Well, She is hardly able to manage her expenses and she is visiting her Grand Daughter, so not sure how she will be able to manage as these days inflation is high.  I feel she can use a little bonus”.
Mr. Khanna said, “Oh dear, I feel you are getting too sensitive and worrying too much”.  His wife said, “Don’t Worry, I will cancel our plan to go out and have a pizza, that way we can give her extra Rs. 500 as a bonus”.   Mr. Khanna said with a smile, “You are ready to take the pizza out of my mouth…   Well, do as you feel if you willing to let go of 6 sliced pizza, it’s fine”.
So, after a couple of days, when the maid had returned, she was cleaning the floor.  Mr. Khanna was sitting on his chair.  He asked her, “Did you enjoy a good time with your Grand Daughter?”  The Maid replied, “Yes Sir, I enjoyed a lot, I spent whole Rs. 500 in 2 days!”  Mr. Khanna said, “Oh really!  How did you spend Rs. 500 so quickly?”
The Maid replied with a happy smile, “For Rs. 150, I bought a Dress for my Grand Daughter, bought sweets for Rs. 50, Paid Rs. 100 for Bus Tickets, bought bangles for Rs. 50 for my daughter, for my son in law I bought a belt for Rs. 50 and last Rs. 100, I gave to my Grand Daughter to purchase pencil and papers for her school”.
Mr. Khanna was surprised.  He started thinking about the 6 slices of pizza.  Each slice started hitting in his mind.  He started comparing the cost of the pizza with his maid’s expense.  He was lost in thoughts that how she bought something for everyone in her family and spent a quality time with them for her Grand Daughter’s birthday.   And all these just for the cost of the pizza.  He realized something that day.

Moral:  We have a right to do what makes us happy and spend our hard earned money as we like for our happiness.  No one has right to envy at how you spend money earned by your hard work.   But, if you feel you had wasted your hard earned money for something to gain nothing even if it was occasionally, you have a chance to do something of a greater good for someone by following above story.  You may not be obligated to do so, but your little goodwill can light up someone’s life in many ways.

The King and Macaw Parrots

 

Once upon a time, there was a king who had gone to visit neighboring kingdoms. He was gifted a pair of baby Macaw Parrots by the king of the last kingdom where he was visiting. They were the most beautiful birds he had ever seen. So, upon returning to his kingdom, he called for a bird trainer and asked him to train macaw parrots.

The king also arranged a place in the palace garden for the parrots. He often looked at them from his palace window. As time passed, one day the trainer came to the palace and informed the king that though one of the parrots was flying majestically high in the sky, the other one was not moving from its branch since the day it had arrived.

Upon hearing this, the king summoned trainer and healers from the nearby kingdoms. They all tried their best, but couldn’t make the parrot fly! He even asked his courtiers to try to find a way to make the parrot fly but they all failed. The parrot was not moving from his branch at all. Finally, after trying everything, the king thought that maybe he needs someone who may be more familiar with natural habitat. He asked his courtier to get a farmer from the countryside and take him to the parrot to see if he can understand the problem with the parrot.

The next morning, the king was thrilled to see the parrot flying high above the palace gardens. He asked his servant to call that farmer to meet him. The servant quickly went and located the farmer, who came and stood before the king. The king asked him, “How did you make the parrot fly?”

With his hands folded with respect, the farmer said to the king, “It was very easy, your majesty. I simply cut the branch where the bird was sitting.”

Moral: We are all gifted with energy to find a success in our life, but fail to gather a courage which is required to reach heights of success and end up clinging to the things that are familiar to us. We need to free ourselves from our comfort zone to explore new opportunities and find a success beyond our capacity.

A Man with a Lamp

Once upon a time, there was a small town. There lived a man by himself who couldn’t see. He was blind. Yet, he carried a lighted lamp with him whenever he went out at night.
One night as he was coming home after having a dinner outside, he came across a group of young travelers. They saw that he was blind, yet carrying a lighted lamp. They started passing comments on him and made a fun of him. One of them asked him, “Hey Man! You are blind and can’t see anything! Why do you carry the lamp than?!”
The blind man replied, “Yes, unfortunately, I am blind and I can’t see anything but a lighted lamp which I am carrying is for the people like you who can see. You may not see the blind man coming and end up pushing me. That is why I carry a lighted lamp”.
The group of travelers felt ashamed and apologized for their behavior.

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

The Needy King and a Sage

A Sage was passing through the capital city of the famous king. While he was walking, he noticed a single currency coin on the road. He picked it up. He was satisfied with his simple living and he had no use of that coin. So, he planned to donate it to the one who is in need of it. He strolled around the streets throughout the day but didn’t find anyone such. Finally, he reached the rest area and spent a night there.
Next morning, he wakes up in the morning for his daily activities and sees that a king is going for his invasion of another state with his war ready army. When the king saw the sage standing, he ordered his army to be stopped. He came to the Sage and said, “Oh Great Sage, I am going to war to win another state so that my state can be expanded. So bless me to be victorious”.
After thinking, Sage gave a single currency coin to the king! The king was confused and annoyed with this because what use he has for a single coin while he is already one of the richest kings! He curiously asked a sage, “what’s the meaning of this one coin?”
A Sage explained, “Oh Great King! I found this coin yesterday while strolling around the streets of your capital city. But I had no use of it. So, I had decided that I will donate it to someone needy. I strolled around till the evening in your capital, but found no one such. Everyone was living a happy life. It seemed that they were satisfied with what they had. So I found no one to give this coin. But today, the king of this state, still have the desire to gain more and not satisfied with what he already has, I felt you were in need of this coin.”
The King realized his mistake and gave up the planned war.

Moral: We all should learn to be happy with what we have. Yes, we all desire more or better than we already have, but do not waste a chance of enjoying what you already have. There are those who may not have what you have, and there will be some who have lots more than you have. Do not always compare, be happy and lead a healthy life.

Boy’s Weakness

A 10-year-old boy decided to study judo despite the fact that he had lost his left arm in a devastating car accident.

The boy began lessons with an old Japanese judo master. The boy was doing well, so he couldn’t understand why, after three months of training the master had taught him only one move. “Sensei,”(Teacher in Japanese) the boy finally said, “Shouldn’t I be learning more moves?” “This is the only move you know, but this is the only move you’ll ever need to know,” the sensei replied.

Not quite understanding, but believing in his teacher, the boy kept training. Several months later, the sensei took the boy to his first tournament. Surprising himself, the boy easily won his first two matches. The third match proved to be more difficult, but after some time, his opponent became impatient and charged; the boy deftly used his one move to win the match. Still amazed by his success, the boy was now in the finals.

This time, his opponent was bigger, stronger, and more experienced. For a while, the boy appeared to be overmatched. Concerned that the boy might get hurt, the referee called a time-out. He was about to stop the match when the sensei intervened. “No,” the sensei insisted, “Let him continue.” Soon after the match resumed, his opponent made a critical mistake: he dropped his guard. Instantly, the boy used his move to pin him. The boy had won the match and the tournament.

He was the champion. On the way home, the boy and sensei reviewed every move in each and every match. Then the boy summoned the courage to ask what was really on his mind.

“Sensei, how did I win the tournament with only one move?”

“You won for two reasons,” the sensei answered. “First, you’ve almost mastered one of the most difficult throws in all of the judo. And second, the only known defense for that move is for your opponent to grab your left arm.”

The boy’s biggest weakness had become his biggest strength.

Moral: Sometimes we feel that we have certain weaknesses and we blame God, the circumstances or ourselves for it but we never know that our weaknesses can become our strengths one day. Each of us is special and important, so never think you have any weakness, never think of pride or pain, just live your life to its fullest and extract the best out of it!

Little Boy with a Slingshot

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Once upon a time Sammy and his sister Marie visited their grandparents at their farm. Sammy picked up a slingshot to play with out in the woods.  He practiced in the woods but he could never hit the target.  Getting a little discouraged, he headed back for the lunch.  As he was walking back he saw Grandma’s pet duck.
Just out of impulse, he let the slingshot fly which hit the duck square in the head and killed it. He was shocked and grieved. In a panic, he hid the dead duck in the pile of woods.  Marie had seen it all from the window but she said nothing. After the lunch, the next day Grandma said, “Marie, let’s wash the dishes.”  Marie said, “But Grandma, Sammy told me he wanted to help in the kitchen.”
Then she whispered to Sammy, “Remember the duck?” Sammy got nervous knowing his sister knew about the duck and if he doesn’t obey, she may tell his grandparents about it.  So without saying anything, he did the dishes.
Later that day, Grandpa asked if the children wanted to go fishing but Grandma said, “I’m sorry but I need Marie to help make a supper.”  Marie just smiled and said, “Well that’s all right because Sammy told me he wanted to help.”
She whispered again to Johnny, “Remember the duck?”  So Marie went fishing and Sammy stayed to help.  After several days of Marie taking advantage of Sammy, he finally couldn’t stand it any longer.  He came to Grandma and confessed that he had killed the duck.
Grandma knelt down, gave him a hug and said, “Sweetheart, I know. I was standing at the window and I saw the whole thing but because I love you, I forgave you.  I was just wondering how long you would let Marie take advantage of you.”

Moral: Always confess of your mistakes. It will take away a load of guilt from your heart which will boost your conscience and no one will take an advantage of your secret mistakes! Accept your mistake, apologize and seek forgiveness politely.

The Frog in Hot Water

Once the frog fell in a vessel of the hot water. The Water was still on a gas stove. The frog still did not try to jump out of the vessel, instead just stayed in it. As the temperature of the water started to rise, the frog managed to adjust its body temperature accordingly. As the water started to reach the boiling point, the frog was no longer able to keep up and manage its body temperature according to the water temperature.
The frog tried to jump out of the vessel but with water temperature reaching its boiling point, the frog was not able to bear it and couldn’t make it. What was the reason that a frog couldn’t make it? Will you blame the hot water for it?
Moral: The frog couldn’t make it due to its own inability to decide when it had to jump out. We all need to adjust according to the situations but there are times when we need to face the situation and take the appropriate action when we have the strength to do so before it’s too late. Walk out before you need to jump.

Student Learns of a Greed

A student asked his teacher, “What is Greed?” The teacher said, “In order to answer your question, go through the chocolate factory next to our school and pick the one chocolate you like the most. But there is a rule. As you pass through the factory, you can not turn back. You must pick the chocolate as you go forward only.”
The student went to the chocolate factory. As he walked through, He saw the one chocolate wrapped nicely, he instantly liked it but he wondered that he may find much bigger one further. So, He walked further, then he saw another chocolate. But again, he thought the same. When he started to reach near the end of the factory, he couldn’t see any chocolates as big as the one he didn’t pick earlier and started to regret his decision of letting it go.
Finally, he gave up. He went back to the teacher with an empty hand and gave an explanation of what he did.
The teacher told him, “You did like the one chocolate very much but still you kept looking for a bigger one. And later you realized that what you let go off was the best chocolate you could find there. That my dear is called Greed.”

Moral: We let go of many good things in our life because of our greed of having even better things. Our Human Nature is such that we always want better and better. But in the search of better, we let go of many good things which could have given us similar satisfaction and made us happy. Learn make your choice wisely.

The Last Delivery

There was a rich couple who was throwing a big new year party at their house.  So they went shopping at the market where everything was of high cost and fixed price.  They wanted to maintain their level of standard so didn’t mind paying for it.  After purchasing all they needed, they called a porter to carry everything and drop it at their home.  The porter who came was of an old age, not very healthy looking, his clothes were torn, looked as if he wasn’t even able to meet his daily needs.
They asked the porter about the charges for delivering their goods at their home.  The old porter quoted just a $20, a well below the market rate for delivering goods at couple’s home in his cart.  Yet, the couple argued and bargained with the porter and finally settled for $15.  The porter was struggling to make even one time’s meal so he needed anything he can earn.
The couple was very happy thinking how well they bargained with the poor porter and paid him $15 in advance and left after giving the porter their address for delivery.  They reached their home and hour passed, two hours passed, but the porter still hadn’t delivered their stuff.
The wife started to get angry at her husband, “I always tell you to not to trust such person still, you never listen to me.  Such person who is not even able to earn to feed himself for 1 time in a day, you handed him everything we purchased for our big party.  I am sure instead of delivering at our home, he must have disappeared with everything.  We must immediately go back to the market to inquire and then to the police station to file the complaint against him”.
They both left towards the market.  On their way near the market, they saw another porter.  They stopped him to inquire about the old porter and noticed that he was carrying their stuff in his cart!  The angry wife asked him, “Where is that old thief?  This is our stuff and he supposed to deliver it.  It seems you poor thieves are stealing our stuff and going to sell it”.
The porter replied, “Madam, Please calm down.  That poor old man was sick since last month.  He wasn’t able to earn enough to even have a single meal of the day.  He was on the way to deliver your stuff, but he who was hungry, sick, couldn’t gather the strength to go any further in this heat of the noon”.  He fell down and while handing me $15, his last words were, “I had taken an advance for this delivery, you take this and please deliver to this address”.
“Madam, He was hungry, he was poor, but he was an honest man. I was just on the way to complete old man’s last delivery at your home”, the porter said. Upon hearing this, the husband had tears in his eyes, but the wife felt so ashamed, she had no courage to see up in her husband’s eyes.

Moral: Honesty has no class. Respect everyone regardless of their financial and social status. It’s always a good deed to give the one who deserves.

The Reflection of Your Actions

A man and his son were going through the forest hills. Suddenly, the boy fell down on the trail and screamed with a pain, “Aah!” Surprisingly, he heard the same voice from the mountain, “Aah!” Curiously, the boy shouted, “Who is this?” But the voice replied the same, “Who is this?” He got angry, and shouted again, “You are stupid!” And again the voice replied the same, “You are stupid!”
Annoyed By this, the boy asked his father, “Father, What is going on? Who is this?” The Father replied, “Son, Pay attention”. The father shouted, “You are very nice”. And the voice responded the same, “You are very nice!” The father again shouted, “Thank you”. And the voice again responded the same, “Thank you!” The son was very surprised but he still could not understand what was happening.
The father explained, “Son, people call it resonance, but this is the truth of the life. The life is a reflection of your actions. What you will give to others, you will receive the same in return.”

Moral: What we give to others, life gives us the same in return. Your life is not an accident or a coincidence, but it is the shadow of your actions.

This was bound to happen

 

Once a highly successful businessman, running a health insurance company was getting ready to go to his office. When he reached into his car and opened a door, a stray dog sleeping under his car suddenly came out and bit on his leg! The businessman got very angry and quickly picked up a few rocks and threw at the dog but none hit the dog. The dog ran away.
Upon reaching his office, the businessman calls a meeting of his managers and during the meeting he puts the anger of dog on them. The managers also get upset by the anger of their boss and they put their anger to the employees working under them. The chain of this reaction keeps going till the lower level of employees and finally, the anger reaches to the office peon.
Now, there was no one working under the peon! So, after the office time is over, he reaches his home, and wife opens the door. She asked him, “Why are you so late today?” The peon upset due to anger threw at him by the staff, gives one slap to his wife! And says, “I didn’t go to the office to play football, I went to work so don’t irritate me with your stupid questions!”
So, now the wife got upset that she got a scolding plus a slap for no reason. She puts her anger on his son who was watching tv and give him a slap, “This is all you do, you have no interest in studying! Turn off the TV now!”
The son gets upset now! He walks out of his house and sees a dog passing by looking at him. He picks up a rock and hits the dog in his anger and frustration. The dog, getting hit by a rock, runs away barking in pain.
This was the same dog that bit the businessman early morning.

Moral: This was bound to happen. Reap as one has sown. This is how the life works. While we all worry about hell and heaven based on our deeds, we should concentrate more on how we are living and behaving. Do good, Good will come, Do Wrong, Wrong will come.

Wealth without a 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 that a Thief, who had been observing him, guessed what it was the Miser had hidden, and one night quietly dug up the treasure and made off with it.
When the Miser discovered his loss, he was overcome with grief and despair. He groaned and cried and tore his hair. 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!” screamed the Miser angrily. “Why, I never touched 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, Spending wisely and appropriately is a good sign if you do it for a good purpose. Otherwise, a possession is worth no more than the use we make of it.

Choose Your Words Wisely

Once upon a time, an old man spread rumors that his neighbor was a thief. As a result, the young man was arrested. Days later the young man was proven innocent. After being released, the man felt humiliated as he walked to his home. He sued the old man for wrongly Accusing him.
In court, the old man told the Judge, “They were just comments, didn’t Harm anyone..” The judge, before passing sentence on the case, told the old man, “Write All the things you said about him on a piece of paper. Cut them up and On the way home, throw the pieces of paper out. Tomorrow, come back to Hear the sentence”.
The next day, the judge told the old man, “Before receiving the Sentence, you will have to go out and gather all the pieces of paper That you threw out yesterday”. The old man said, “I can’t do that! The wind must have spreads them and I won’t Know where to find them”.
The judge then replied, “The same way, simple comments may destroy the honor of a man to such an extent that one is not able to fix it. The old man realized his mistake and asked for forgiveness”.

Moral: Do not malignant or blame anyone without knowing the fact or a truth. Your words may ruin someone’s reputation without any fault of theirs.

Never to Give Up

One day a farmer’s donkey fell down into a well. The animal cried piteously for hours as the farmer tried to figure out what to do. Finally, he decided the animal was old and the well needed to be covered up anyway it just wasn’t worth it to retrieve the donkey. He invited all his neighbors to come over and help him. They all grabbed a shovel and begin to shovel dirt into the well. At first, the donkey realized what was happening and cried horribly. Then, to everyone’s amazement, he quieted down.
A few shovel loads later, the farmer finally looked down the well and was astonished at what he saw. With every shovel of dirt that fell on his back, the donkey was doing something amazing. He would shake it off and take a step up. As the farmer’s neighbors continued to shovel dirt on top of the animal, he would shake it off and take a step up.

Pretty soon, everyone was amazed as the donkey stepped up over the edge of the well and trotted off!

Moral: Life is going to shovel dirt on you, all kinds of dirt. The trick is to not to get bogged down by it. We can get out of the deepest wells by not stopping. And by never giving up! Shake it off and take a step up!

The Cracked Pot

A water bearer in India had two large pots, each hung on each end of a pole which he carried across his neck. One of the pots had a crack in it, and while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water at the end of the long walk from the stream to the master’s house, the cracked pot arrived only half full.

For a full two years, this went on daily, with the bearer delivering only one and a half pots full of water in his master’s house. Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments, perfect to the end for which it was made. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection and miserable that it was able to accomplish only half of what it had been made to do.

After two years of what it perceived to be a bitter failure, it spoke to the water bearer one day by the stream. “I am ashamed of myself, and I want to apologize to you”.  The bearer asked, “Why? What are you ashamed of?”  The Pot replied, “For these past two years I am able to deliver only half of my load because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your master’s house. Because of my flaws, you don’t get full value for your efforts”.

The water bearer felt sorry for the old cracked pot, and in his compassion, he said, “As we return to the master’s house, I want you to notice the beautiful flowers along the path.”  As they went up the hill, the old cracked pot took notice of the sun warming the beautiful wild flowers on the side of the path, and this cheered it somewhat.  But at the end of the trail, it still felt bad because it had leaked out half its load, and so again it apologized to the bearer for its failure.

The bearer said to the pot, “Did you notice that there were flowers only on your side of your path, but not on the other pot’s side? That’s because I have always known about your flaw, and I took advantage of it. I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back from the stream, you’ve watered them. For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate my master’s table. Without you being just the way you are, he would not have this beauty to grace his house.”

Moral: Each of us has our own unique flaws.  We’re all cracked pots.  In this world, nothing goes to waste.  You may think like the cracked pot that you are inefficient or useless in certain areas of your life, but somehow these flaws can turn out to be a blessing in disguise.”