CHANGE THE ATTITUDE & SEE THE MIRACLE

Li-Li a girl in China got married and went to live with her husband and mother-in-law.

She found it difficult to get along with her mother-in-law. Their personalities were very different, and she was angered by many of her mother-in-law’s habits. In addition, she criticized Li-Li always. Arguing and fighting were common in their house. To make the things worse, according to ancient Chinese tradition, Li-Li had to bow to her mother-in-law and obey her every wish. All the anger and unhappiness in the house was causing the poor husband great distress.

Li-Li found it difficult to tolerate this situation and decided to do something about it.  She went to see her father’s good friend, Mr. Huang, who sold herbs. She narrated him the situation and asked if he would give her some poison so that she could solve the problem once and for all. Mr. Huang thought for a while, and finally said, “Li-Li, I will help you solve your problem, but you must listen to me and obey what I tell you.”

Li-Li said, “Yes, Mr. Huang, I will do whatever you tell me to do.”

Mr. Huang went into the back room and returned in a few minutes with a few packets of herbs. He told her, “You can’t use a quick-acting poison to get rid of your mother-in-law, because that would cause suspicion in the people around.  Therefore, I am giving you a number of herbs that will slowly build up poison in her body.  Every day prepare some delicious meal and put a little of these herbs in her serving. Now, in order to make sure that nobody suspects you when she dies, you must be very careful to act very friendly towards her.  Don’t argue with her, obey her every wish, and treat her like a queen.”

Li-Li was so happy that she thanked Mr. Huang and hurried home to start her plot of murdering her mother-in-law.

Every day, Li-Li served the specially treated food to her mother-in-law. She was keen to control her temper and obeyed her mother-in-law, and treated her like her own mother, as advised by Mr. Huang. After a couple of months, the whole household had changed.

Li-Li had practiced controlling her temper so much that she found that she almost never got mad or upset.  She hadn’t had an argument in six months with her mother-in-law, who now seemed much kinder and easier to get along with. The mother-in-law’s attitude toward Li-Li changed and she began to love Li-Li like her own daughter.  She kept telling friends and relatives that Li-Li was the best daughter-in-law one could ever find.  Li-Li’s husband was very happy to see what was happening.

Li-Li regretted about her plot against her mother-in-law. She didn’t want her mother-in-law to die. So she went to Mr. Huang and requested, “Mr. Huang, please help me to stop the poison from killing my mother-in-law! She has changed into such a nice woman. I love her like my own mother. I do not want her to die because of the poison I gave her.”

Mr. Huang smiled and nodded his head, “Li-Li, there is nothing to worry about. I never gave you any poison. The herbs I gave you were vitamins to improve her health.  The only poison was in your mind and your attitude toward her, but that has been all washed away by the love which you gave her.”  

Make a conscious choice to see the good qualities of the person in relationships, act it out, if necessary. Gradually and surely time shall heal broken relationships. Let us start making amends. It shall be rewarding!

COMPASSION CANNOT BE STOPPED BY EVIL DEEDS

Once a guru was walking with his disciples and, as they passed a small river, they saw a scorpion drowning in the water. The guru reached in to save the creature. As soon as his fingers touched the panicking Scorpion, it stung him. He dropped the Scorpion back into the water because of the pain. But he tried to save it the second and third time with a firmer grip. Again and again it stung and he could not but drop it into the water.

Then the disciples asked in confusion, “Master, why do you keep trying to save that scorpion? It stings you every time you come near it!”

The monk paused before reaching in again and smiled. He took a fallen leaf from the ground and pulled the scorpion out to safety. He finally said, “Because it is its nature to sting, and my nature to save. Don’t forget, soon, either I’ll stop feeling the pain of the sting and it will be saved, or it will stop being afraid and be saved. Compassion cannot be stopped so easily.”

What are the excuses we say to be good to others? Don’t we say that we are not good to some people who associate with us because, they are not good? How many times have we failed to be loving saying that others are not good to us? I know a person who is always rude in his behavior. The reason he behaves rudely is, he says, “The one who was supposed to be kind (referring to God) to me has not been kind; then why I should be kind to others.” (his children are born with physical and mental growth problems and they create all kind of havoc in their home!) In order to be kind to that person, never expect kindness from him. Be compassionate!

The life of Jesus Christ is a good example for compassion. He could pray for those who betrayed him, regardless of their betrayal. He could forgive them, despite their cruelty against him.  He could extend love in spite of the spiteful behavior from his ‘enemies’ (He was enemy to them but they were not enemies to him)

You can be good to others not because they are good to you; but just because you are compassionate. So is vice versa: You cannot be good to others just because you are not compassionate. And you blame others for you not being kind! 

Only those who are controlled by compassion can be good to others in spite of the evil reactions from others! 

ARE YOU IN THE 99 CLUB?

Once upon a time, there lived a king who, despite his luxurious life style, was neither happy nor content.

One day, the king came upon a servant who was singing happily while he worked. This fascinated the king; why was he, the supreme ruler of the land, unhappy and gloomy, while a lowly servant had so much joy. The King asked the servant, “Why are you so happy?”

The man replied, “Your Majesty, I am nothing but a servant, but my family and I don’t need too much – just a roof over our heads and warm food to fill our tummies.”

The king was not satisfied with that reply. Later in the day, he sought the advice of his most trusted advisor. After hearing the king’s woes and the servant’s story, the adviser said, “Your Majesty, I believe that the servant has not been made part of the 99 Club.”

“The 99 Club? And what exactly is that?” the king inquired.

The advisor replied, “Your Majesty, to truly know what the 99 Club is, place 99 gold coins in a bag and leave it at the servant’s doorstep.”

When the servant saw the bag, he took it into his house. When he opened the bag, he let out a great shout of joy….So many gold coins!

He began to count them. After several counts, he was at last convinced that there were 99 coins. He wondered, “What could have happened to that last gold coin? Surely, no one would leave 99 coins!”

He looked everywhere he could, but that final coin was elusive.  Finally, exhausted, he decided that he was going to have to work harder than ever to earn that gold coin and complete his collection.

From that day, the servant’s life was changed.  He was overworked, horribly grumpy, and castigated his family for not helping him make that 100^th gold coin. He stopped singing while he worked.

Witnessing this drastic transformation, the king was puzzled. When he sought his advisor’s help, the advisor said, “Your Majesty, the servant has now officially joined the 99 Club.”

He continued, “The 99 Club is a name given to those people who have enough to be happy but are never content, because they are always yearning and striving for that extra one telling to themselves, “Let me get that one final thing and then I will be happy for life.”

We can be happy, even with very little in our lives, but the minute we are given something bigger and better, we want even more! We lose our sleep, our happiness, we hurt the people around us; all these as a price for our growing needs and desires. That is what joining the 99 Club is. 

LAUGHTER  CAN  CURE!

Many years ago, Norman Cousins was diagnosed as “terminally ill”. He was given six months to live. His chance for recovery was one in five hundred.

He could see the worry, depression and anger in his life contributed to, and perhaps helped cause, his disease. He wondered, “If illness can be caused by negativity, can wellness be created by positivity?”

He decided to make an experiment of himself. Laughter was one of the most positive activities he knew. He rented all the funny movies he could find – Keaton, Chaplin, Fields, the Marx Brothers. (This was before VCRs, so he had to rent the actual films.) He read funny stories. He asked his friends to call him whenever they said, heard or did something funny.

He fully recovered from his illness and lived another twenty happy, healthy and productive years. (His journey is detailed in his book Anatomy of an Illness. He credits visualization, the love of his family and friends and laughter for his recovery.

Some people think laughter is a waste of time. It is a luxury, they say, a frivolity, something to indulge in only every so often.

Nothing could be further from the truth. Laughter is essential to our equilibrium, to our well-being, to our aliveness. If we are not well, laughter helps us get well; if we are wel, laughter helps us stay that way.

Since Cousin’s ground breaking subjective work, scientific studies have shown that laughter ha a curative effect on the body, the mind and the emotions.

So, if you like laughter, consider it sound medical advice to indulge in it as often as you can. If you don’t life laughter, then take your medicine – laugh away.

Use whatever makes you laugh.  – Movies, comedy shows, books, cartoons, jokes, friends, family, laughter club …

Give yourself permission to laugh – long and loud – whenever anything that strikes you as funny.  The people around you may think you are strange, but sooner or later they will join in even if they don’t know what you are laughing about.

Some diseases may be contagious, but none is as contagious as the cure: LAUGHTER. 

 GRATITUDE CAN CHANGE DESTINIY

                    

There was a small bird living in a desert. With no sign of greenery the bird used to hop around on the hot sand through the day. An angel while on his way to God saw the little bird and felt pity.

He went and asked “O little bird! What are you doing in this hot desert? Can I do something for you?”

The little bird said, “I am very pleased with my life, but this heat is unbearable. Both my feet are getting burnt. Only if there was a tree here, I’d be delighted”.

Angel said, “Growing a tree in the middle of desert is beyond my scope. I am going to meet God, let me speak to Him and ask if He could fulfill your desire.”

Angel asked God, if he could help the bird.

God said, “I could grow a tree, but her destiny doesn’t allow it. And I can’t change that. However, you can give her my message, which will help her survive the heat. Ask her to hop with one foot at a time. That way she can rest the other one for a while and change foot often. This way only one of her foot will have to bear the heat and other one will be able to rest and recover. Also tell her to remember all the good things that have happened in her life and be thankful to God for that.

Angel came back to where the bird was and gave her this message from God. The bird was delighted by the idea and thanked him for the effort he made to make her comfortable.

After a few days, Angel was crossing the same desert and thought of checking on the little bird. He saw the bird sitting on big green tree, right in the middle of the desert.

Angel was happy to see the bird in comfort but was very disappointed with God who suggested that there was no tree in this bird’s destiny.

He went to meet God and told Him the whole story. God replied, “I never lied to you. There was no tree in the bird’s destiny. However, after you gave her my message, which asked her to be grateful to God for the kind things, she did put those words to action. She remembered every possible thing from her life and thanked God with a pure heart. I was moved with her feeling of gratitude and that’s what made me change her destiny”.

Angel was pleased with the answer.

A small gratitude can bring so much in our lives.

Always thank God and all who shared something happy and worth to your life; have a habit of gratitude in day to day life and stay blessed.

REACHING TOGETHER IS BETTER THAN WINNING ALONE!

A fable tells the story of the young athletic boy hungry for success, for whom winning was everything and success was measured by such a result.

One day, the boy was preparing himself for a running competition in his small native village, himself and two other young boys to compete. A large crowd gathered to witness the sporting spectacle and a wise old man, upon hearing of the little boy, had travelled far to bear witness also.

The race commenced, looking like a level heat at the finishing line, but sure enough the boy dug deep and called on his determination, strength and power. He took the winning line and was first. The crowd was ecstatic and cheered and waved at the boy. The wise man remained still and calm, expressing no sentiment. The little boy, however, felt proud and important.

A second race was called, and two new young, fit, challengers came forward, to run with the little boy. The race was started and sure enough the little boy came through and finished first once again. The crowd was ecstatic again and cheered and waved at the boy. The wise man remained still and calm expressing no sentiment. The little boy, however, felt proud and important.

“Another race, another race!” – pleaded the little boy. The wise old man stepped forward and presented the little boy with two new challengers, an elderly frail lady and a blind man. “What is this?” – quizzed the little boy. “This is no race,” he exclaimed.

“Race!” said the wise man. The race was started and the boy was the only finisher, the other two challengers left standing at the starting line. The little boy was ecstatic; he raised his arms in delight. The crowd, however, was silent showing no sentiment toward the little boy.

“What has happened? Why don’t the people join in my success?” he asked the wise old man.

“Race again”, replied the wise man, “this time, finish together, all three of you, finish together.” – continued the wise man.

The little boy thought a little, stood in the middle of the blind man and the frail old lady, and then took the two challengers by the hand. The race began and the little boy walked slowly, ever so slowly, to the finishing line and crossed it. The crowd was ecstatic and cheered and waved at the boy. The wise man smiled, gently nodding his head. The little boy felt proud and important.

“Old man, I don’t understand! Who is the crowd cheering for? Which one of us they are cheering?” asked the little boy.

The wise old man looked into the little boy’s eyes, placing his hands on the boy’s shoulders, and replied softly, “Little boy, for this race you have won much more than in any race you have ever ran before, and for this race the crowd cheer not for any winner!”

BE DEPENDENT ON 

THE WINGS OF FAITH AND SELF CONFIDENCE       

A sparrow was sitting on a twig of a huge banyan tree in a forest. It was chirping away merrily. Its high-pitched notes filled the air and resonated through the forest. It was a happy song.

Suddenly, there came a strong gust of wind which soon developed into a storm. At first, the twig on which the sparrow sat began to shake. As the wind grew in its strength, the whole branch began to sway uncontrollably. Soon, the huge banyan tree itself was reeling under the impact of the powerful storm. It was trembling as the furious wind began to lash at it.

In a moment, the little branch on which the sparrow was sitting snapped! The branch fell to the ground.

What happened to the little sparrow?

Nothing because it just flew away! It fluttered its wings even as the branch broke and it just flew away.

Though the sparrow sat on a twig of a huge tree, it did not depend on it. Rather it depended on its wings. Hence it was saved.   

Though we are in this world, we should not be over-dependant to the world. In our life too, our perch is disturbed by the winds of change. Problems and disasters strike with all force and seem to have the capacity to uproot us. At such times, do not depend on the flimsy twigs or even the seemingly sturdy branches that the world offers to us. We should learn to depend on our wings and we will always be safe.

What are these wings? They are the wings of faith and self-confidence!

“WHAT SHALL I DO TO CALM MY MIND?”

  

Once a wise guru was traveling with a few of his disciples. One of the disciples asked him, “Guru, what shall I do to calm my mind?”

The guru did not answer him at that moment. After some time they came near a lake. The guru told the disciple who raised the question to bring some water from the lake to quench his thirst.

The disciple walked up to the lake. At that moment, a bullock cart started crossing through the lake. As a result, the water became very muddy and dirty.

The disciple thought, “How can I give this muddy water to my guru to drink?”

So he came back and told, “The water in there is very muddy. I don’t think it is fit to drink.”

After about half an hour, again the guru asked the same disciple to go back to the lake to bring some water. The disciple went back to find the water still muddy.

He returned and informed the wise man about the same.

After sometime, again the guru asked the same disciple to fetch the water. This time, the disciple found the mud had settled down, and the water was clean and clear. So he collected some water in a pot and brought it.

The wise guru looked at the water, and then he looked up at the disciple and said, “See what you did to make the water clean. You let it be, and the mud settled down on its own, and you have clear water.”

“Your mind is like that too! When it is disturbed, just let it be. Give it a little time. It will settle down on its own. You don’t have to put in any effort to calm it down. It will happen. It is effortless.”

You cannot buy peace of mind. Obtaining ‘peace of mind’ is not a strenuous job; it is an effortless process. Keep your mind cool and peace of mind shall be the natural outcome. All the efforts from your side shall make it more upset.