Today I'm sharing one of my favorite short stories. This one was told by my teacher when I was in grade 5. I hope you enjoy reading it.
Once Buddha was en route to some place with a few of his disciples. On their journey, they happened to pass a lake. Buddha stopped and asked one of his disciples to fetch water for him as he was feeling thirsty.
The disciple walked up to the lake. When he reached it, he noticed that some people were washing clothes in the water and a bullock cart was crossing through the lake. Hence, the water was muddy and very turbid. The disciple thought, “How can I give this muddy water to my Lord!” So he came back and told Buddha that the water was unfit for him to drink it.
After about half an hour, Buddha asked the same disciple to go back to the lake and get him some water to drink. The disciple yieldingly went back to the lake. This time to his surprise, he found that the lake had absolutely clear water in it. The mud had settled down and the water above it looked crystal clear. So he collected some water in a pot and brought it to Buddha.
Buddha 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 so you could get some clear water for me. Your mind is also like that. When it is disturbed, just let it be. Refrain yourself from giving any advices or suggestions to it. 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.”
What did Buddha emphasize here? He said, “It is effortless.” Having 'peace of mind' is not an arduous task; it is a facile process. When there is peace inside you, that peace permeates to the outside. It spreads around you and in the environment, such that people around start feeling that peace and grace.
By guest author,
Vaishali Sharma,
who blogs here.
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