Judging Things Quickly

A father and his daughter were playing in the park.

The young daughter spotted an apple vendor. She asked her father to buy her an apple. Father didn't bring much money with him, but it was enough to purchase two apples.

So, he bought two apples and gave his daughter. His daughter held one apple each in her two hands. Then father asked her if she can share one apple with him.

Upon hearing this, his daughter quickly took a bite from one apple. And before her father could speak, she also took a bite from the second apple.

The father was surprised !!

He wondered what mistake he made raising her daughter that she acted in such a greedy way. His mind was lost in thoughts, that perhaps he is just thinking too much - his daughter is too young to understand about sharing and giving.

A smile had disappeared from his face.

And suddenly his daughter with an apple in her one hand said, "Father have this one, this one is much juiciest and sweeter".

Her father was speechless !!

He felt bad about reaching to the judgement so quickly about a small child. But, his smile same back now, knowing why his daughter quickly took a bite from each apple.

Many a times, we judge people or situations way too quickly and it so happens, that later when the clouds of misconceptions are cleared, we see the real motive of an action or a happening, around us.

This is a beautiful story to remind us that let us take time to understand and gauge on the invincible things, and then arrive at a decision, with a better quality of perception.

This will avoid many a frowns and unncessary thoughts, to debar or stop us from being Happy and Present.

Balloons With Names

There was a seminar happening in which many people had come to attend. The speaker conducted a small exercise to engage everyone. He gave one balloon to each person and asked them to write their names on it. Then, all the balloons were collected and put in a room.

Everyone was then let in that room and asked to find the balloon which had their names within 5 minutes. As we all can imagine, there was a chaos that ensued as everyone started searching their balloons in hurry. At the end, none of them were able to collect their own balloons.

Then the speaker asked everyone to randomly collect any balloon and simply give it to the person whose name was written on it. Within 5 minutes, everyone had their own balloons in their hands.

Balloons = All that we strive for in this life - happiness, contentment, satisfaction

Let's try to co-relate. When we help others around us in any small or big way possible, the experiential contentment and happiness we get, cannot be marked in words and can only only be felt inside. We all have experienced that moment in our lives when we have given to someone, without any expectation or intent or return.

It is said that a person is happy when he gives people a bit of his heart rather a piece of his mind. If we can give someone's contentment or happiness (balloon) back to the person, whom it belongs to - the Universe and Nature makes sure that someone hands over our contentment or happiness (balloon) back to us.

Rich in heart or kind

Someone asked Bill Gates, "Is there anyone richer than you in the world". He said, "Yes, there is a person richer than me."

He then narrated an incident when he was neither rich nor famous. I was in New York Airport where I saw a newspaper vendor. I wanted to buy one newspaper but found that there was not enough change with me. So I returned the paper back to the vendor.

The vendor said, "I am giving this to you for free." On his insistence, I took the paper. Coincidentally, after 2-3 months, I landed in the same airport and again I was short of change to buy the newspaper. However, the vendor again gave it to me saying, "You can take it, I am giving it to you from my profit, so I would not be at loss". I took the newspaper.

After 19 years, I became famous and known to people. Suddenly one day I remembered the vendor. I began searching for him and found him couple of months later.

I asked him, "Do you know me". He said, "Yes. You are Bill gates".

I asked him again, "Do you remember once you gave me newspaper for free". He said, "Yes, I remember. I gave you twice".

I said, "I want to repay the help you had offered me at that time. Whatever you want in your life, tell me - I shall fulfill it".

The vendor said, "Dont you think by doing so, you won't be able to match my help". I asked, "Why". He said, "I had helped you when I was a poor newspaper vendor and you are trying to help me now when you have become the richest man in the world. How can your help match mine".

Henry Ward Beecher, an Americal social reformer rightly said, "It is the heart that makes a man rich. He is rich according to what he is, not according to what he has"

One time or another, all of us must have felt atleast once, that we would do something for the people in need when we have ample bank balance or assets worth mentioning.

However, due to our own conditioned societal reasonings, we pan ourselves out later. The fact is, which we know deep down under, it would never be enough and hence the right time will never come.

Depending on our capacity and understanding, let us do something selfless periodically, with the notion of simply making lives better than before. If we think with the right nerves and intent, we will figure out our ability quotient and then act accordingly.

Fixing It or Throwing It Away

There was a King who had a pack of 10 wild dogs. He used them to punish all those who committed blunders. One day one of his ministers made a mistake. The King was furious and passed an order that the minister should be thrown to the dogs. Desperate to save his life, the minister pleaded "I served you faithfully for 10 years and in return this is what you would do to me. Ok, fine, if that's what you want it to be. But for serving you these many years, can i ask you a small favour".

The King said, "Agreed, tell me what do you want". The minister asked - "Just give me 10 more days". The King agreed readily.

The minister then went to the guard who was the caretaker of the wild dogs and pleaded him to allow taking care of the wild dogs for 10 days. Unaware of the King's order, the guard was little surprised though he agreed as it would have reduced his daily work routine.

The minister took care of the wild dogs for the next 10 days with utmost love and care, feeding them, bathing them, cleaning for them and making them feel very comfortable. After 10 days were over, the king ordered the minister to be thrown to the dogs but to his utter amazement, the dogs started licking the feet of the minster !!

Being baffled by this behaviour, the King asked, "What has happened to these dogs ?" The minister replied, "My King, I served the dog for only 10 days, and even in such a short term of service, they didn't forget what I did for them"

This story tells a lot about how should we deal with our relationships. Isn't it a fact that sometimes just because of a mistake, a small or a big one from someone whom we are related to closely, we tend to forget all the numerous times when they had immensely cared for us, shared their love to us, made us feel good, better and best, helped us to be what we can, making us believe in ourselves - all those moments contributing in its own unique way - making us what we are, how we are and where we are, right now !!

A reporter asked an elderly couple, "What is the secret of your happy marriage". They replied, "We were born in a time when if something was broken, we would fix it. Not just throw it away"

That statement pretty much summarises the intent and clearly says a lot about having a long lasting relationship with people, who matter most to us. Let's be mindful about it and not be intimidated by provocative situations, thus gracefully embracing and paving way for those everlasting moments to come in our relationships.

Story about a Cave and Light

There once lived a cave, deep down under. Once a voice called upon it and said - Come up into the light and enjoy the sunlight. The cave said, I do not know what is light, all my life I know only darkness.

The cave, however with sincere effort, reached the ground, where there was light everywhere. It was so amazed to see  how life thrives with peace, love and joy above.

The cave asked the light to come to its home now. The light agreed and when it came, it asked where is the darkness, for the darkness was nowhere to be found.

The Light dispelled the darkness - where there is light - peace, clarity, understanding, joy, calmness in Us -- there cannot be darkness near or around.

Let us sincerely strive to come above our caves, or bring light to our caves within. In both cases, the light will shove away the darkness.

Understanding Faith and Devotion

Ramakrishna Paramhamsa, the great seer once narrated a story to his disciples. There was a priest who asked a milk maid to deliver milk daily, at early morning hours. The lady had to cross a river for which she used to take a ferry boat. One day, the milk maid got late - the priest was very angry on her, as he could not perform religious rituals on time.

The lady enquired what she could have done, as it was the situation that made her delayed. Out of anger, the priest said, "Say the name of God and you can travel any terrain or landscape, without fail - Have faith in Him".

Next day, lady was quite earlier than usual. Priest jokingly enquired how did she made it early. She said "I kept unconditional and complete faith in Him, I came walking on the water". He saw from his own eyes that she was literally doing it. He tried enacting the same, but his mind was more on his clothes getting wet and hence, could not do so. Of all the years he chanted verses for God and performed rituals, he never really believed. The lady did and miracle happened.

Of course, the point here is not to walk on water thinking that God will ensure that we dont get drowned.

The real point here is to keep that wholesome, unwavering and complete faith, devotion and belief in Him (the one who is Omnipresent, the Omniscient, the Omnipotent) with such a strong conviction that even an iota of doubt won't flutter and delude our minds.

I believe that a person who can keep and maintain that kind of heart, mind and body state continuously & with that kind of devotion & faith, he can, should and will definitely go on to make his dreams, a reality.

What is Real Peace

A king once organised a painting competition in his kingdom. The theme of the contest was to showcase peace.

There were so many entries but at the last, there were only 2 paintings selected for the finale. One painting was about a serene and calm lake, surrounded by snow capped mountains. It was a perfect depiction of peace, where everything was soothing to the eyes.

The other painting showed torrential downpour on a deserted land where everything looked opposite to a calm surrounding. The King saw something else. He saw a small bird perched on a tree, giving food to her tiny fledgelings in her drenched nest.

The second painting won. King explained that real peace is not what we feel when everything around us is good or calm. The real peace is when despite tribulations, worries, problems, we still continue to remain in sync with ourselves and do what is the best thing to be done at that moment.

A Donkey and The Untied String

A man had 3 donkeys. Once he was travelling with them to a distant place. He came across a river and wanted to get refreshed but he had a problem. He had only 2 ropes to tie his animals to a nearby tree. There was every chance that the 3rd one could go astray.

A Wise man was travelling by and seeing his dilemma offered to give an advice. He said pretend that you are tying the 3rd one to the tree - just make sure that donkey is facing you.

The man did the same and went to get refreshed. When he came back, he was surprised and happy to see the 3rd one still holding on to the tree.

He untied the other 2 donkeys and started his journey. There was one problem. The 3rd one would not budge an inch from the tree. He tried all his tricks but no respite.

The Wise man comes back to the scene and answers the riddle. You have forgot to pretend that 3rd one's rope has not been untied. A gasp of disbelief came upon the man after he saw that pretending to untie made the donkey move freely around.

A beautiful story where untied strings signify our apprehensions, dilemmas, worries, stress, uncertainties and all such similar attributes that deny us invariably to move forward in our life.

No one can teach us how to untie these strings. We need to figure that out as most of the times they are our own creation and for some reason, we keep these in our minds for quite long, than needed.

Sometimes, we suffer much more in imagination than in reality. This Realization is the first step to untie the string.

Falcon and Comfort Zone

There was a king who received a very special gift - two beautiful, magnificent, peregrine falcons. He handed them over to a man, who was expert in training falcons. After a couple of months, the trainer informed the King that one of the falcons was doing really well - Flying majestically ! Soaring into heights of the sky ! But the other one - it had not moved at all from its branch - from the very day he had started training them.

The King brought healers and sorcerers from all over the place to try and get the falcon to move, but the bird just wouldn't fly. Having tried everything he could, the frustrated king said to his minister - "Maybe we need someone more familiar with nature. Someone who understands animals and birds. I think only such a person can solve this problem. Go. Look for someone like this from the countryside and assign the task to him."

The next morning, the king was thrilled to see the 2nd falcon soaring high above the palace gardens. Delighted, he called his minister and asked him to get the doer of this miracle to him. The minister brought a simple farmer to the King. The King asked the farmer - "How did you make this falcon fly?" The farmer replied - "It was very easy, Your Royal Highness. I simply cut the branch on which the bird was sitting."

Falcon = We
Branch = Comfort Zone
Fly = Growth

We all tend to slowly and unknowingly slip into our self-made comfort zone - a zone where we limit ourselves of all possibilities and probabilities, keeping ourselves tied to our notions of knowledge about everything out there. It is the journey with experience that helps us grow to be a better person, than we are in the previous moment.

Coffee Vs Cups

This came to me as an Whatsapp forward but had a simple message to ponder upon for a minute.
Read on to get the message, which has always been there, to be considered in our daily lives.


Once a group of students highly established in their careers, got together to visit their old university professor. Suddenly their conversation turned into complaints about stress in Work and Life.

The Professor offered the students coffee and went to the kitchen, returning with a large pot of coffee and an assortment of cups : Plastic/Glass/Crystal - Some were plain looking, some were expensive, some exquisite.

The Professor told them to help themselves to the coffee. When all the students had a cup of coffee in their hand, the professor said : "If you noticed, all the nice looking expensive cups were taken up, leaving behind the plain and cheap ones. While it is normal for you to want only the best for yourselves, that is the source of your problems and stress."

"Be assured that the cup itself adds no quality to the coffee. In most cases, it is just more expensive and in some cases even hides what we drink. What all of you really wanted was coffee, not the cup, but you consciously went for the best cups...and then you began eyeing each other's cups."

"Life is the Coffee. The jobs, money and position in society are the cups. They are just tools to hold and contain life, and the type of cup we have does not define us, nor change the quality of life we live. Sometimes, by concentrating only on the cup, we fail to enjoy the coffee that life has provided us."

Enjoy your coffee !!

"The Happiest persons dont have the best of everything. They just make the best of everything.."

Buddha Explains Peace Of Mind Example

One day when Buddha and his followers were passing a lake, Buddha told one of his disciples, "I am thirsty, do get some water from the lake". At that moment, a bullock cart started crossing through the lake. As a result, the water became very muddy and turbid.

The Disciple thought, "How can I give this muddy water to Buddha to drink?". So he came back and told Buddha, "The water in there is very muddy I don't think it is fit to drink". After about half an hour, again Buddha asked the same disciple to go back to the lake. The disciple went back, and found that the water was still muddy. He returned and informed Buddha about the same.

After sometime, again Buddha asked the same disciple to go back. This time, the disciple found the mud has settled down, and the water was clean and 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 in 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. Having 'Peace of mind' is not a strenuous job, it is an effortless process to keep your mind cool and have a great life ahead."

Perception can soar the spirits

One day a father and his rich family took his young son on a trip to the country with the firm purpose to show him how poor people can be. They spent a day and a night in the farm of a very poor family. When they got back from their trip the father asked his son, "How was the trip?"

Very good, Dad!"

"Did you see how poor people can be?" the father asked.

"Yeah!"

"And what did you learn?"

The son answered, "I saw that we have a dog at home, and they have four. We have a pool that reaches to the middle of the garden, they have a creek that has no end. We have imported lamps in the garden, they have the stars. Our patio reaches to the front yard, they have a whole horizon."

When the little boy was finishing, his father was speechless.

His son added, "Thanks, Dad, for showing me how poor we are!"

Isn't it true that it all depends on the way you look at things? If you have love, friends, family, health, good humor and a positive attitude toward life, you've got everything!

You can't buy any of these things. You can have all the material possessions you can imagine, provisions for the future, etc., but if you are poor of spirit, you have nothing!

Sitting by the side of the mind !!!

One day Buddha was passing by a forest on a hot summer day and he felt very thirsty. He said to Ananda, his chief disciple, “Ananda, you go back. Just four miles back we passed a small stream of water. You bring a little water — take my begging bowl. I am feeling very thirsty and tired.”

Ananda goes back, but by the time he reaches the stream, a few bullock carts have just passed through the stream and they have made the whole stream muddy. Dead leaves which had settled into the bed have risen up; it was no longer possible to drink the water — it was too dirty. He came back empty-handed, and he said, “You will have to wait a little. I will go ahead. I have heard that just two, three miles ahead there is a big river. I will bring water from there.” But Buddha insists. He said, “You go back and bring water from the same stream.”

Ananda could not understand the insistence, but if the master says so, the disciple has to follow. Seeing the absurdity of it — that again he will have to walk three, four miles, and he knows that water is not worth drinking — he goes.

When he was going, Buddha said, “And don’t come back if the water is still dirty. If it is dirty, you simply sit on the bank silently. Don’t do anything, don’t get into the stream. Sit on the bank silently and watch. Sooner or later the water will be clear again, and then you fill the bowl and come back.”

Ananda goes there. Buddha is right: the water is almost clear, the leaves have moved, the dust had settled. But it was not absolutely clear yet, so he sat on the bank just watching the river flow by. Slowly slowly, it became crystal-clear. Then he understood why Buddha was so insistent. He gave the water to Buddha and touched his feet.

Buddha said, “What are you doing? I should thank you that you have brought water for me.”

Ananda said, “At first I was angry, because it was absurd to go back. But now I understand the message. Sitting on the bank of that small stream, I became aware that the same is the case with my mind. If I jump into the stream I will make it dirty again. If I jump into the mind more noise is created, more problems would start unravelling"

“Now I will be sitting by the side of my mind too, watching it with all its dirtiness and problems and old leaves and hurts and wounds, memories, desires. Unconcerned I will sit on the bank and wait for the moment when everything is clear.”

As they say, if we can control our mind we can control everything inside-out not only concerning us but the whole universe. The objective should be crystal clear, that's the ask

Well and the Donkey

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 began 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. He was astonished at what he saw. With each shovel of dirt that hit 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 happily trotted off!

If at all, we can sustain and shove off things just like the four-legged, things would be brighter most of the time, if not everytime

"Dont just hope...Decide !!" was the answer

When Amar went to drop his friend in the airport, he seldom thought that he would be the witness to the most beautiful thing everyone wants in this world....Love And Affection. A family was waiting anxiously for their Head to land and when the opportune moment came, the father hugged his elder son first and then his younger son.

In the meantime, the little baby girl was almost jumping from her mother's lap to greet her returning father. Father took her in his shoulders and hugged her with all the compassion and love for his lovely daughter. She immediately got relaxed as she lay her head on his shoulders.

Then came the man's beloved's turn. He kissed her passionately for some time and then they hugged each other with all the contentment and happiness of being a happy couple, as they were.

Amar went to the couple, greeted the man and said, "I have been looking you guys for some time. I felt so good to see your family union. How long have you guys been married".

"Twelve years !!!" came the reply.

"Great...and you both still seem to have the same feelings you would have carried before marriage...that's wonderful"

"How long have you been away from your family then" and the startling answer was "Two whole Days !!"

Amar replied, "How I only hoped and wished that I too have the same fervour of togetherness with my family even after 12 years"

"Brother, dont wish just take the decision for once and for all, that your family would be the most cherished and the best-thing-to-have-happened in your life"

For any matters of life, there's this decision making which takes and makes the cut of making things wondrous around us or dreary around us. Its all a matter of decision to be right and to be not right. If you are not able to come to the right perspective, fight the seemless situations/un-opportunes and dont stop vying till your last's last

Serendipity Within Us

George Dantzig was a famed mathematician who contributed inmmensely to Operations Research and Systems Engineering. He was a hard working student during the school days and often slept late in nights. One day he overslept and arrived late for Professor's class.

He quickly copied the 2 math's problems on the board, assuming they were the homework assignments. It took him several hours to work through the problems, but finally he got the breakthrough and dropped the homework on the professor's desk.

Six weeks later, on a Sunday morning, his excited professor awakened George at 6 AM telling him the unparalleled news. Since George was late for the class, he hadn't heard the professor announce that the two unsolvable equations on the board were mathematical mind-teasers that even Einstein hadn't been able to answer.

But George Dantzig working without any thoughts of limitation had solved not one, but two problems that had stumped mathematicians for thousands of years. And how did he do it...He simply didn't knew that he couldn't.

We are always under the impression that the things which we are doing or as a matter of fact, things which we ought to do are only the ones which we can do. But we never realise our true potential unless and until serendipity occurs in our life, which sometimes turns out to be a life changing one and sometimes not !!!!

Have the courage to not blink

During the civil war in Korea, a certain general and his troops were advancing implacably, taking province after province, destroying everything in their path. The people in one city, hearing that the general was approaching and knowing his cruel reputation, fled to a nearby mountain.

The troops found the houses empty. After much searching, though, they found one Zen monk who had stayed behind. The general ordered that he be brought before him, but the monk refused to go.

Furious, the general went to him instead.

‘You obviously don’t know who I am!’ he bawled. ‘I am capable of stabbing you in the chest with my sword without so much as blinking.’

The Zen master turned and replied calmly:

‘You obviously don’t know who I am either. I am capable of letting myself be stabbed in the chest by a sword without so much as blinking.’

This is what is courage in its exact sense. We all tend to get into adversities but how many of us really face them with full vigor and grit and still manage to do things in the correct way. Its what lies within us that usually decides how much fight lies within us.

Onam Ashamsakal - The Story Behind Kerala's Biggest Festival

Come September 9, 2011. The day happens to be the most popular and big festival of my native state, Kerala. It is called Onam or Tiruvonam. Almost all the local channels, hoardings and shopping malls would be buzzling with the offers, discounts and debits - to happen from the shopping cards !!!

Well, to commemorate the advent of Onam, here's the real story behind the festivities in God's Own Country.

It marks the advent of a great demon King, called Mahabali(grandson of Bhakt Prahlad), who used to reside in Kerala long time ago. It is said that everyone in his kingdom were happy and prosperous and no one was touched with the sadness or unhappy quotient.

His rule and vigor became so famous that he was thought to be a replacement of Indra, the God of Gods. Maha Vishnu then took the Vamana (Dwarf) avataram and came with the intention of tricking him

When he came, he asked Mahabali to grant him some land. The majestic king humbly agreed and asked him to take as much land as he wants. The Vamana then started increasing in size in cosmic proportions and in first step, he measured the whole of earth. On the second step, he measured the whole of skies.

Third step was still to be kept and there was no place to keep or measure anything. The noble king asked Mahavishnu, in disguise, to keep the third step on him and he was pushed to Patala (the nether world).

It is said that Mahavishnu was so touched by his generousity that he asked him any wish he wanted. And the king, as he was attached to his kingdom, asked him to let him come and visit his kingdom atleast once a year.

The day happens to be now called "Onam". To wish any Keralite, here's the magic age-old mantra "Ellavarkum Hridayam Niranja Onam Ashamsakal" which means "Heartful wishes for Onam to everyone !!!"

A Trapped Whale in 2005

If you read the front page story of the San Francisco Chronicle on Thursday, Dec 15, 2005, you would have read about a female humpback whale who had become entangled in a spider web of crab traps and lines.

The fifty-foot whale was weighed down by hundreds of pounds of traps that caused her to struggle to stay afloat. She also had hundreds of yards of line rope wrapped around her tail, her torso and a line tugging in her mouth.

A fisherman spotted her just east of the Farallone Islands (outside the Golden Gate), USA and radioed an environmental group for help. Within a few hours, the rescue team arrived and determined that she was so bad off, the only way to save her was to dive in and untangle her - a very dangerous proposition. One slap of the tail could kill a rescuer.

They worked for hours with curved knives and eventually freed her. When she was free, the divers say she swam in what seemed like joyous circles. She then came back to each and every diver, one at a time, and nudged them, pushed them gently around - she thanked them. Some said it was the most incredibly beautiful experience of their lives.

The guy who cut the rope out of her mouth says her eye was following him the whole time, and he will never be the same.

It doesn't matter whether we helped a large being or a small one. It does matter whether we helped or not, for it may have made a world of difference to someone, including you.

Barber and The God

A man went to trim his hair and beard. As always happens, he and the barber chatted about this and that, until – commenting on a newspaper article about street kids – the barber stated:

"As you can see, this tragedy shows that God doesn’t exist. Don’t you read the papers? So many people suffer, abandoned children, there’s so much crime. If God existed, there wouldn’t be so much suffering."

"You know something? Barbers don’t exist."

"What do you mean, don’t exist? I’m here, and I’m a barber."

"They don’t exist!" insisted the man. – "Because if they did, there wouldn’t be people with such longs beards and such tangled hair."

"I can guarantee that barbers do exist. But these people never come in here."

"Exactly! So, in answer to your question, God exists, too. It just so happens that people don’t go to Him. If they did, they would be more giving, and there wouldn’t be so much misery in the world.