My Space

A psychologist walked around a room while teaching stress management to an audience. As she raised a glass of water, everyone expected they'd be asked the "half empty or half full" question. Instead, with a smile on her face, she inquired: "How heavy is this glass of water?" Answers called out ranged from 100ml to 200ml.  She replied, "The absolute weight doesn't matter. It depends on how long I hold it. If I hold it for a minute, it's not a problem. If I hold it for an hour, I'll have an ache in my arm. If I hold it for a day, my arm will feel numb and paralyzed. In each case, the weight of the glass doesn't change, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it becomes."  She continued, "The stresses and worries in life are like that glass of water. Think about them for a while and nothing happens. Think about them a bit longer and they begin to hurt. And if you think about them all day long, you will feel paralyzed – incapabl...

A soldier went to a sage and said, "I have faced death many times, defended weak, helped people in need and i know i have never done anything to be ashamed of. Yet when i see you meditating in peace, i feel like my life have no importance and i feel so inferior." Sage replied, "I will answer you once i attend all those who came to see me, wait till then." Soldier waited whole day, watching people go in and out for advice. He saw that sage received all of them with patience and smile on this face. At nightfall when everyone was gone, he went to sage and said, "Can you teach me now??" Sage invited him inside and lead him to his room. The full moon shone in the sky, and the atmosphere was one of profound tranquility. Sage pointed towards the moon and said, 'Do you see moon?? Should moon ask why i don't shine like sun?? Is it because i am inferior to sun??" Soldier answered, "Of course not..!! They both are different and have their own...

There once lived a rich businessman who had a lazy and fun loving son, simply spending father’s money. One day he summoned his son and said: “Today, I want you to go out and earn something, failing which you won’t have your meals tonight.” This demand by his father scared him and he went crying straight to his mother. Her heart melted at the sight of tears in her son’s eyes. In a bid to help him she gave him a gold coin. In the evening when the father asked his son what he had earned, the son promptly presented him the gold coin. The father then asked him to throw it into a well. The son did as he was told. The father was a man of wisdom and experience and understood that the source of the gold coin was the boy’s mother. The next day he sent his wife to her parent’s town and asked his son to go and earn something with the threat of being denied the night meals if he failed. This time he went crying to his sister who sympathized with him a...

Once a father and son went to the kite flying festival. The young son became very happy seeing the sky filled with colorful kites. He too asked his father to get him a kite and a thread with a roller so he can fly a kite too. So, the father went to the shop at the park where the festival was being held. He purchased kites and a roll of thread for his son. His son started to fly a kite.  Soon, his kite reached high up in the sky.  After a while, the son said, “Father, It seems that the thread is holding up a kite from flying higher, If we break it, It will be free and will go flying even higher.  Can we break it?”   So, the father cut the thread from a roller.  The kite started to go a little higher.  That made a son very happy. But then, slowly, the kite started to come down. And, soon it fell down on the terrace of the unknown building. The young son was surprised to see this. He had cut the kite loose of its thread so it can fly high...

Long ago Scotland was ruled by King Bruce. During his time Scotland and England were always at war. The English wanted to conquer Scotland and make it a part of their empire. Thus, the mighty English army once defeated King Bruce and his men. King Bruce collected his forces and was at war again with the English soldiers. This time too it seemed like defeat for the Scots. Defeated, King Bruce left the battlefield and sat in one of the caves in the hills. He felt it was no use to fight any more as they were bound to loose. As he was thus sitting in the cave with his spirits down he saw a spider building a web. It had almost completed when a gust of wind flew it away. Patiently the spider started to build another one right from the beginning. Finding nothing better to do. King Bruce was absorbed in watching the Spider. The second time too the spider's web was blown off. It promptly began to build another one. King Bruce wondered at the perseverance of that tiny insec...

Once a man went to saint and said, I desire to be better in my life. Please guide me. Saint gave him some cotton, one candle and one needle and said, "here take these, they are your guide.” Man wondered and asked, “Maharaj, I am not able to understand why you gave me all these things? How are these things going to help me in making my life better? Saint smiled and said, each of these things which I gave you has deep meaning of their own. ** The beauty of cotton is that it is used to make thread which is used to make clothes that protects the honor of a man. ~ Similarly, you should always be honoring others. ** Candle burns and melts to give light to others. Similarly, you should sacrifice yourself to brighten other’s life. ** Needle stitches the torn clothes. Similarly, you should help to mend broken hearts of people. After listening this, man understood the way to make life better. Lesson : A good human is one who contributes to make other’s life be...

Once a ship was wrecked in a storm and only survivor left was washed up on a small inhabited island. He prayed to God to rescue him but for days there was no help and no one came to rescue him. Exhausted, one day he look around for things and built a little hut for himself using the wood from the drifted parts of wrecked ship. He felt very bad that his prayers are not listened and he have to stay here alone at this island. He collected things from around to help him live by and kept all those inside hut till he can find any help. Days were going by but one day when he was gone for scavenging food. After a while when he came back to find his hut in flames and all possession burned inside that hut. Man was broken, he lost everything he built till now. He was stunned with grief and anger. He cried and shouted looking toward sky, "Why God? Why? how could you do this to me??" However early next day he was awakened by the sound of ship that was approaching that island. He wa...

Once a man came to the Sage and said, “Oh Sage, I have many bad habits. Which one of them should I give up first?” The Sage said, “Give up telling lies first and always speak the truth.” The man promised to do so and went home. At night the man was about to go out to steal. Before setting out, he thought for a moment about the promise he made with the Sage. “If tomorrow the Sage asks me where have I been, what shall I say? Shall I say that I went out stealing? No, I cannot say that. But nor can I lie. If I tell the truth, everyone will start hating me and call me a thief. I would be punished for stealing.” So the man decided not to steal that night, and gave up this bad habit. Next day, he felt like drinking wine. When he was about to do so, he said to himself, “What shall I say to the Sage if he asks me what did I do during the day? I cannot tell a lie, and if I speak the truth people will hate me.” And so he gave up the idea of...

Once a thirsty Stag was roaming around in the forest in search of water. After a while he found a clear water lake. Stag went to lake and drank water. After drinking water while looking in the water, he saw his own reflection. In reflection, he saw his beautiful horns. He was so happy to see how beautiful his horns are and admired them. But as soon as he saw reflection of his legs, he despised them because they were looking thin and ugly. Just then Stag heard sound of someone approaching toward the lake. Stag saw and there were bunch of wild dogs who were running towards the lake. Stag got scared, and in great fear he started to run. In order to save himself he ran fast in opposite direction. While running stag got caught upon the creepers because of his horns and couldn't free himself. Stag tried really hard to free itself from creepers but even after many tries, he couldn’t free himself. In the meantime, Dogs who were chasing him, caught up to him and killed him. Just bef...

Once upon a time, there was a king who had gone to visit neighboring kingdoms. During his visit, he was gifted with a pair of baby Macaw Parrots. 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 ...

Once upon a time, there was a Kingdom. The king there had only one leg and one eye, but he was very intelligent and kind. Everyone in his kingdom lived a happy and healthy life because of their king. One day the king was walking through the palace hallway and saw the portraits of his ancestors. He thought that one day his children will walk in the same hallway and remember all the ancestors through these portraits. But, the king did not have his portrait painted. Due to his physical disabilities, he wasn’t sure how his painting would turn out.  So he invited many famous painters to the court. The king then announced that he wants a beautiful portrait made of himself to be placed in the palace. Any painter who can carry out this should come forward. He will be rewarded based on how the painting turns up. All greatly skilled painters began to think that the king only has one leg and one eye. How can his picture be made very beautiful? So one by one, all started to make excu...

Once in a town, a sage visited, who used to do Satsang. A man used to go for his Satsang everyday.This man had a parrot which used to live in a cage. One day his parrot asked him, 'Where do you go daily?' He replied, "I go for Satsang to learn good things." Parrot Said, "Can you do me a favor? Please ask that sage - When I will be able to get freedom?" Next day, man went for Satsang. After Satsang was over, he went to Sage and said, "Maharaj, There is a parrot at my home and he wanted to know when he will get freedom?" Just after listening to him, Sage got unconscious and fell. The man saw this, he got scared and left from there silently. When he reached home. His parrot asked him, 'Did you asked my question to Sage? Man replied, 'I did but it seems you have a bad luck. As soon as i asked him your question, he got unconscious and fell." Parrot replied, "It's ok. I understand." Next day when man was leaving. He s...

When I was young, I remember one night in particular when mother had made dinner after a long, hard day at work. She placed a plate of sabji, salad and burnt chapattis in front of my father and me.  I remember waiting to see if anyone noticed! Yet, all father did was reached for his food, smiled at my mother and asked me how my day was at school. I do remember watching him eating each bite of that chapatti ! When I got up from the table that evening, I remember hearing my mother apologize to my father for burning the chapattis. And my father responded: “Oh you do not know, I love burnt chapattis.” Later that night, I went to say father good night and I asked him if he really liked his chapattis. He wrapped me in his arms and said, “Your Mother had a hard day at work today and she’s really tired. And besides – a little burnt chapattis never hurt anyone!”   Lesson : Life is full of imperfect things and imperfect people including ou...

A man moving through the forest and while passing through, he saw the wonderful scene.   There was a fox. It had only two legs and still was crawling on them happily. The man thought, how can this fox stay alive in such condition?! The fox can’t run, how he must be able to feed himself or stay alive from the threat of other animals. Suddenly, he saw the lion coming towards the fox with a piece of meat already in his mouth. The man immediately climbed up on the tree to save himself. But, the fox stayed there only, it didn’t have the ability to run on two legs. But what happened next surprised the man. The lion left a piece of meat which was in his mouth for the fox! The man felt happy seeing God’s play. He thought that God who is the creator of all, always has a plan to feed his children. He felt that God must have some way to feed him too. So, he sat alone waiting for someone to feed him too. As time starting to pass, he kept looking at the road, waiting...

A Father and his Daughter were playing in the park.  His 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 apple.  So, he bought two apples and gave his daughter. His daughter held one apple each in her two hands.  Then, a 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. Father was surprised.  He wondered why she acted in such a greedy way.  His mind was lost in thoughts… And suddenly his daughter with an apple in her one hand, said, “Father, have this one, this one is more juicy and sweeter”.   Father was speechless.    Words to remember:   To serve & offer our best is natural in love OR Bhakti. It doesn’t require mu...

One day a young lady was driving along with her father. They came upon a storm, and the young lady asked her father, What should I do? He said keep driving. Car began to pull over to the side, the storm was getting worse. What should I do. The young lady asked? Keep driving, her father replied. On up a few feet, she noticed that even eighteen wheelers had stopped over to the side. She told her dad, “I can barely see ahead. It is Terrible, and everyone is stopping on side!” Her father told her, Don’t give up, just keep driving! Now the storm was terrible, but she never stopped driving. After a couple of miles she was again on dry land, and the sun came out. Her father said, Now you can stop on side and get out. She said, “But why now?” He said, “Look back at all the people that gave up, are still in the storm. Because you never gave up, your storm is now over.” Words to Remember Never give up our endeavor in facing the storm of our ...

There was a quiet forest dweller an old gentleman, who lived high above an Austrian village along the eastern slope of the Alps. The old gentleman had been hired many years earlier by a young town councilman to clear away the debris from the pools of water up in the mountain crevices that fed the lovely spring flowing through their town. With faithful, silent regularity, he patrolled the hills, removed the leaves and branches, and wiped away the silt that would otherwise have choked and contaminated the fresh flow of water.  The village soon became a popular attraction for vacationers. Graceful swans floated along the crystal clear spring, farmlands were naturally irrigated, and the view from restaurants was picturesque beyond description. Years passed. One evening the town council met for its semiannual meeting. As they reviewed the budget, one man’s eye caught the salary figure being paid to the obscure keeper of the spring. He said, “Who is this old man? Why do w...

Once upon a time, a young daughter complained to her father that her life was miserable and she was tired of fighting and struggling all the time. It seemed as if one problem was solved, and another one soon followed.  Her father, a chef, took her to the kitchen. He filled a pot with water and placed it on a high fire. Once the pot began to boil, he placed potatoes in that pot. He then let them sit and boil, without saying a word to his daughter. The daughter moaned and impatiently waited, wondering what he was doing. After twenty minutes he turned off the burner. He took the potatoes out of the pot and placed them in a bowl. Turning to her, he asked. “Daughter, what do you see?” “Potatoes” she hastily replied. “Look closer”, he said, “and touch the potatoes.” She did and noted that they were soft. “Father, what does this mean?” she asked. He then explained that the potatoes were hard in the beginning. They faced t...

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 ho...

One young academically excellent person went to apply for a managerial position in a big company. He passed the first interview; and many other subsequent interview rounds.  The director called him for the last interview. The director asked, “Was it your father who paid for your school fees?” The youth answered, “My father passed away when I was one year old, it was my mother who paid for my school fees. The director asked, “Where did your mother work?” The youth answered, “My mother worked as a clothes cleaner. The director asked, “Have you ever helped your mother wash the clothes before?” The youth answered, “Never, my mother always wanted me to study and read more books. Furthermore, my mother can wash clothes faster than me. The director said, “I have a request. When you go back today, go and clean your mother's hands, and then see me tomorrow morning” The youth cleaned his mother's hands slowly. His tear...

It was a sunny day. Three old men with long white beard were wandering on the road. They saw a beautiful little house and decided to enter the house.  The old men knocked the door. A lady opened the door. The old men asked whether they have all members of the family. The lady replied, ‘Me and my mother-in-law are here. My husband and children will be back to home in the evening. Please let me know how can I help you?’  The old men told her, ‘then we will wait until all members of your family return home.’ The lady replied, ‘but you look so tired and weak. I will bring you some food. You may have some rest.’ They said, ‘We are not hungry and we don’t need anything. We shall wait till evening.’ All three men were sitting under a tree and relaxing. Children reached home after school and the old men talked to them. It was almost 6 pm and the lady again requested the three men to have some drink at least. However, th...

There was a rich couple who was arranging a big Birthday 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 was not 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 Rs.50, 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 Rs.30.  The porter was struggling to make meal even for one time, so he needed anything he can earn. The couple was very happy thinking how well they bargained with the poo...

Once upon a time two brothers who lived on adjoining farms fell into conflict. It was the first serious rift in 40 years of farming side by side. They had been sharing machinery, trading a labor and goods as needed without a hitch. Then the long collaboration fell apart. It began with a small misunderstanding and it grew into a major difference which exploded into an exchange of bitter words followed by weeks of silence. One morning there was a knock on elder brother’s door. He opened it to find a man with a carpenter’s toolbox. “I am looking for a few days of work”, he said. “Perhaps you would have a few small jobs here and there. Could I help you?” “Yes!” said the elder brother. “I do have a job for you. Look across the creek at that farm. That’s my neighbor, in fact, it’s my younger brother and we don’t get along. Last week he dug a wider passage for water into his farm. And he ended up creating a very wide ...

Once a highly successful businessman Mr. Mehata, running a health insurance company was getting ready to go to his office. Upon reaching his office, the businessman calls a meeting of his managers and during the meeting he becomes very angry upon 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. After the office time is over, Office peon 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!” Now the wife got upset, She puts her anger on her son who was watching TV and gave him a slap, “This is all you do, you have no ...

 In a temple, the deity of the lord and the stepping stone were having a discussion. The stepping stone said, “What a good fate you have. We both were the same lump of rock for thousands of years. The sculptor carved a deity out of you and everyone worships you. And look at me, I am a stepping stone and every one stands on me and stamps on me. What kind of life is this?” The deity replied, “Do you remember that when the sculptor set out to carve an idol, it was you he chose first. You were so impatient. In one blow, you broke into two. But when he tried on me, I grinned and bore all the hammers and chisel blows with patience. Thus, I am the worshipful deity and you are the stepping stone...” Lesson : The difference between success and failure is patience and persistence.

When I was a boy growing up, we had several gardens around our old house. The largest one of all was used just for growing potatoes. I can still remember those potato planting days. The whole family helped After my father had tilled the soil, my Mother, brother, and I went to work.  It was my job to drop the little seed potatoes in the rows while my Mother dropped handfuls of fertilizer beside them.My brother then covered them all with the freshly turned earth. When the harvest time came I was amazed at the huge size of the potatoes my father pulled out of the soil. Those little seedlings had grown into fruits of sweet sustenance. They would be served in meal as baked potatoes, mashed potatoes, fried potatoes, and so on. They would keep the entire family well fed throughout the whole year. It truly was a miracle to behold. Every single day of our lives we step out into the garden of this world. Every single day we have opportunity to plant seeds that can grow into somethi...

Long ago, in a hermitage, there lived a great sage. One day, as he sat down to have his lunch, a mouse fell from the beak of a crow, on the ground near him. He picked the mouse up, took him inside the ashram and fed him some rice. One day, the sage saw a cat chasing the mouse around the ashram. He was afraid that his pet mouse would be killed by the cat. By the power of his penance, he turned the mouse into a cat so that it could defend itself against other cats. Soon a dog appeared on the scene and started barking at and chasing the cat.  When the sage saw this, he changed the cat into a dog. One day his dog was frightened by a tiger. The sage immediately changed his dog into a tiger, again by the power of his penance. However, the sage always treated the tiger as if it was still his little mouse.  Whenever the villagers who passed by the sage's ashram saw the tiger, they would say, "Ha! That's not a tiger! It's just a mouse that the sage changed into a tige...

A lady went to visit a counsellor to seek out happiness. The counsellor called over an old lady who cleaned the office floors. Counsellor asked this old lady, “How did she found happiness?” So the old lady put down her broom and sat on a chair and told her story: "Well, my husband died of malaria and three months later my only son was killed by a car. I had nobody. I had nothing left. I couldn't sleep, I couldn't eat, I never smiled at anyone, I even thought of taking my own life. Then one evening a little kitten followed me home from work. Somehow I felt sorry for that kitten. It was cold outside, so I decided to let the kitten in. I got some milk, and the kitten licked the plate clean. Then it purred and rubbed against my leg and, for the first time in months, I smiled. Then I stopped to think, if helping a little kitten could make me smile, may be helping other people could make me happy. So, the next day I baked some biscuits and took them to a neighbour who ...

Once there was a king who had presented his daughter, the princess, with a beautiful diamond necklace. Somehow she lost the necklace and searched everywhere but could not find it. Some said a bird might have stolen it. The king then asked everyone to search for it and put a reward for Rs.50,000 for anyone who found it. One day a clerk was walking home along a river next to an industrial area. This river was completely polluted, filthy and smelly. As he was walking, the clerk saw a shimmering in the river and when he looked, he saw the diamond necklace. He decided to try and catch it so that he could get the Rs.50,000 reward. He put his hand in the filthy, dirty river and grabbed at the necklace, but somehow missed it and didn’t catch it. He took his hand out and looked again and the necklace was still there. He tried again, this time he walked in the river and dirtied his clothes in the filthy river and put his whole arm in to catch the necklace. But strangely, he still missed...

A fox once invited a stork to dinner at his home in a hollow tree. That evening, the stork flew to the fox’s home and knocked on the door with her long beak.   The fox opened the door and said, “Please come in and share my food.” The stork was invited to sit down at the table. She was very hungry and the food smelled delicious!   The fox served soup in shallow bowls and he licked up all his soup very quickly. However, the stork could not have any of it as the bowl was too shallow for her long beak. The poor stork just smiled politely and stayed hungry.   The fox asked, “Stork, why haven’t you taken your soup? Don’t you like it?” The stork replied, “It was very kind of you to invite me for dinner. Tomorrow evening, please join me for dinner at my home.”   The next day, when the fox arrived at the stork’s home, he saw that they were also having soup for dinner. This time the soup was served in ta...

A son and his father were walking on the mountains. Suddenly, his son hurts himself and screams “AAAhhhhhhhhhhh!!!” To his surprise, he hears the voice repeating, somewhere in the mountain:”AAAhhhhhhhhhhh!!!”   Curious, he yells: “Who are you?” He receives the answer: “Who are you?” Angered at the response, he screams: “Coward! “ He receives the answer: “Coward!”   He looks to his father and asks: “What’s going on?” The father smiles and says: “My son, pay attention.”   And then he screams to the mountain: “I admire you!” The voice answers: “I admire you!” Again the man screams: “You are a champion!” The voice answers: “You are a champion!” The boy is surprised, but does not understand.   Then the father explains: “People call this ECHO, but really this is LIFE. It gives you back everything you ...

1. A guy met one of his school mates several years after school and he could not believe his eyes; his friend was driving one of the latest sleek Mercedes Benz cars. He went home feeling awful and very disappointed in himself. He thought he was a failure. - What he didn't know was that his friend was a driver and had been sent on an errand with his boss's car! 2. Savita nagged her husband always for not being very concerned & loving. She accused him for not getting down to open the car door for her, as her friend Jane's husband did when he dropped her off at work. - What Savita didn't know was that Jane's husband's car had a faulty door that could only be opened from the outside! 3. Prashant went to visit one of his longtime friends and was very troubled for seeing the 15 well cooked items served by his friend’s wife. Prashant’s problem was that his wife would offer him only 6 items (Rice, Dal, Vegetable, Chapati, sweet, Snack) daily. - What Prashant d...

A sage presented a prince with a set of three small dolls. The prince was amused. “Am I a small boy that you give me dolls?” – He asked.   “This is a gift for a future king,” Said the sage. “If you look carefully, you’ll see a hole in the ear of each doll.” The sage handed him a piece of string. “Pass it through each doll.” – He said.   Intrigued, the prince picked up the first doll and put the string into the ear. It came out from the other ear.  “This is one type of person,” said the sage, “whatever you tell him, comes out from the other ear. He doesn’t retain anything.”   The prince put the string into the second doll. It came out from the mouth. “This is the second type of person,” said the sage, “whatever you tell him, he tells everybody else.”   The prince picked up the third doll and repeated the process. The string did not ...

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 spread them and I don’t know where to find them”.  ...

The Pencil Maker took the pencil aside, just before putting him into the box. “There are 5 things you need to know,” he told the pencil, “Before I send you out into the world. Always remember them and never forget, and you will become the best pencil you can be.” One: “You will be able to do many great things, but only if you allow yourself to be held in someone’s hand.” Two: “You will experience a painful sharpening from time to time, but you’ll need it to become a better pencil.” Three: “You should be able to correct any mistakes you might make.” Four: “The most important part of you will always be what's inside.” And Five: “On every surface you are used on, you must leave your mark. No matter what the condition, you must continue to write.”   The pencil understood and promised to remember, and went into the box with purpose in its heart. Now replacing the place of the pencil ...

In a boxing match, a boxer may be knocked down, but only when the fallen player fails to rise does the knock down becomes a knock out. In our life, we may be knocked down many times; however never become knock out. There is always a scope to rise after every fall. We are all engaged in a match with temptation, which sometimes gains an upper hand and with a sudden sweeping punch knocks us down. It devastates our intellectual defences, decimates our determination and drags us down to activities that go against our ethical and spiritual principles. Such a knock down can be disheartening. But we can take heart from the fact that it’s only a knock down, not a knock out. No matter how badly we fall, we always have the power to rise. Nothing can make us stay fallen unless we lose the will to rise. But once we lose the will to fight, just a small push, that would otherwise have not even shaken us, can knock us not only down, but also out. Temptation can knock us down but it can't kn...

Samesh made it big in business so he spent money buying a piece of land in the suburbs and built a three-storey villa. He had an impressive swimming pool in the garden with a hundred-year-old Lychee Tree in the backyard to boot. In fact, he bought the property precisely because of this tree. His wife loved eating lychees. During renovations, his friends urged him to get guidance from a Vastu master, just to tread on the side of caution. Samesh took the advice to heart and went out of his way to meet a great Vastu master. The Vastu Master was in the profession for over thirty years, renowned in the Vastu circle. They had a meal in the city, then Samesh drove the Vastu Master to the suburbs. Along the way, when cars behind them tried to overtake, Samesh would simply give way. The Vastu Master laughingly remarked: "Samesh, your driving is really safe." Samesh laughed at the remark: “Usually people who need to overtake have some urgent matter to attend to, so we shouldn'...

Once, Lord Indra got upset with Farmers, he announced there will be No rain for 12 years & you won't be able to produce crops  Farmers begged for mercy from Lord Indra, who then said, Rain will be possible only if Lord Shiva plays his Damru, but he secretly requested Lord Shiva not to agree to these Farmers & when Farmers reached Lord Shiva he repeated the same thing that he will play Damru after 12 years   Disappointed Farmers decided to wait till 12 years but one Farmer regularly was digging treating & putting manure in the soil & sowing the seeds even with no crop emerging  Other Farmers were making fun of that Farmer. After 3 years, all Farmers asked that Farmer why are you wasting your time n energy when you know that rains will not come before 12 years  He replied " I know that crop won't come out but I'm doing it as a matter of "practice". After 12 years I will forget the process of growing crops and working in the field. So I must...

A group of 15 soldiers led by a Major were on their way to the post in Himalayas, where they would be deployed for the next 3 months. The batch who would be relieved waited anxiously. It was cold winter, intermittent snowfall made the treacherous climb more difficult. If someone could offer a cup of tea , the Major thought, knowing it was a futile wish.. They continued for an hour before they came across a dilapidated structure, which looked like a tea shop but locked. It was late in the night. "No tea boys, bad luck", said the Major. But he suggested all take some rest there as they have been walking for 3 hours.   "Sir, this is a tea shop and we can make tea... We will have to break the lock", suggested one soldier. The officer was in great dilemma to the unethical suggestion but the thought of a steaming cup of tea for the tired solders made him to give the permission. They were in luck, the place had everything needed to make tea and also packets of biscu...

Very long ago, there lived a huge apple tree offering tasty apples to the people. A little boy became close friend to the apple tree. The boy used to play with the tree, climb the branches, sleep under the shadow, pluck apples, etc. Every day he visited the tree, and ate apples. The apple tree was so kind to the boy and enjoyed spending time with the little boy.   The boy joined school and could not spend any time with the apple tree. After several months the boy came to the apple tree. The tree was so happy to see the boy and asked him to play with it.   The boy said that he was not a little one to play with the trees. But he had another request to the tree.  The tree asked what he wanted. The boy said that he needed toys to play, but his parents did not have sufficient money to buy toys for him.   The tree replied, ‘Dear friend, I do not have any money to buy toys for you, but you can pick the apples, sell them, get money and buy the t...

A crab was once running on sea shore and was admiring its beautiful footprints.. suddenly a huge wave splashed and washed away the footprints. The crab said to the wave: I considered you as one of my best friends, then what made you do this? The wave replied: A fisherman was following your footprints, that's why I cleared it off. Lesson : It is always good to clarify, before being judgemental upon others.

A well-dressed man made an appointment to see a psychologist. He arrived at the psychologist's office and said to him, "Doctor, I always feel depressed. No matter what I do I still feel depressed. I just don't know what to do." The psychologist looked at him and said, "Come with me to the window." The man followed and then the psychologist pointed outside and said, "Do you see that tent over there in the distance? Well, there is a circus in town and it is really good. There are lots of acts to watch, specially the clown acts. And there is one clown in particular who is extremely funny. He will make you rock with laughter over and over again. Go and see that clown and I guarantee that you will not have reason to be depressed again!" The man turned to the psychologist with sad eyes and said, "Doctor, I am that clown!" Lesson : No one can replace the need of God’s shelter, not even the Clown. Without God’s shelter, one can never fi...

A store owner was tacking a sign above his door that read “Puppies for Sale.” Signs like that have a way of attracting small children and sure enough, a little boy appeared by the store owner’s sign. “How much are you going to sell the puppies for?” he asked. The store owner replied, “Anywhere from Rs.600 - Rs.1000.” The little boy reached in his pocket and pulled out some change. “I have Rs.46,” he said. “May I please look at them?” The store owner smiled and whistled. Out of the Store came Lady, who ran down the passage of his store followed by five teeny, tiny puppies of fur. One puppy was lagging considerably behind. Immediately the little boy singled out the lagging, limping puppy and said, “What’s wrong with that little dog?” The store owner explained, “Doctor had examined this little puppy and had found that it didn’t have a hip socket. It would always limp. It would always be lame. The little boy became excited. “That is the little puppy that I want to buy.” The stor...

One day Krishna & Arjuna were taking their usual walk, when they came across an old man begging, taking pity on his condition, Arjuna gave him a bag of gold coins. The man was overjoyed. On his way to home, he was robbed by a thief in the forest. He cursed his fate and the next day set off to beg again. Arjuna & Krishna saw him again & got to know his story. Arjuna once again took pity and gave him a large diamond. The man took it home and kept it in an old pot which had been unused for many years in order to keep it safe and went to sleep. The next morning before he could wake up, his wife went to fetch water from the river & on her way back, she slipped and her pot broke. She immediately remembered the pot at home which lay unused and brought it to fill it with water. Just as she dipped the pot in to the river the diamond escaped the pot and went in to the river. When she returned home the man was desperately searching the house for the pot & when he saw ...

One day, Buddha was walking from one town to another with a few of his followers. While they were traveling, they happened to pass by a lake. They stopped to rest there and Buddha asked one of his disciples to get him some water from the lake.   A disciple walked up to the lake. When he reached it, he noticed some people were washing clothes in the water and, right at that moment, a bullock cart started crossing through the lake. As a result, the water became very muddy. The disciple thought, “How can I give this muddy water to Buddha to drink!” So he came back and told Buddha, ”The water in the lake is very muddy. I don’t think it is suitable to drink.” After a while, Buddha again asked the same disciple to go back to the lake and get him some water. The disciple obediently went back to the lake. This time he found that the mud had settled down and the water was clean so he collected some in a pot and brought it to Buddha. Buddha looked at th...

Mahatma Gandhi was on an expedition to collect funds from various cities and villages for Charkha Sangh. He went to several palaces and reached Orissa. He had organised a meeting in Orissa.  He requested to offer funds for the Sangh and gave a speech. After the speech, a very old woman with bent back, faltered clothing, white hair, dry and shrunk skin got up. She was trying to reach the stage and requested the volunteers to allow her to reach Gandhi Ji. She touched the feet of Gandhi Ji. Then she took out a copper coin kept in her folds of saree and placed the copper coin at his feet. The old lady left the stage.  Gandhi Ji very carefully took the coin and placed it safely. The in-charge of the Sangh asked Gandhi Ji for the copper coin, but he refused to give it.  “I keep cheques worth thousands of rupees for the Charkha Sangh,” the in-charge said laughingly “yet you won’t trust me with a copper coin.”  Gandhi Ji said, “This...

John and James were best friends. They fought for many reasons and but never gave up their friendship. They went in search of a job and visited many places to earn more money. They passed through various places, villages, towns, forests, beaches, and were supporting each other all the way throughout their journey.  One day they reached a desert and they had a very little food and water. John told James to eat half the quantity of food and then once they get very tired and feel like they cannot make a step they can eat another half and save water for later use.   However, James disagreed. He wanted to drink water as he was very thirsty. They quarreled each other to have water. John slapped James and they walked in silence. They decided to have food and continue their journey. James wrote in sand, ‘My best friend slapped me!’   They shared the meagre amount of food and water and finally reached an oasis. They were very tired after passing through th...

It was the coldest winter ever. Many animals died because of the cold. The porcupines, realizing the situation, decided to group together to keep warm. This way they covered and protected themselves, but the quills of each one wounded their closest companions. After a while, they decided to distance themselves from the other and they began to die, alone and frozen. So they had to make a choice. Either accept the quills of their companions or disappear from the Earth. Wisely, they decided to go back to being together. They learned to live with the little wounds caused by the close relationship with their companions in order to receive the warmth and heat that came from others. This way they were able to survive. Lesson : It is better to accept some pains from the loved ones while being with them, than to be in solitude.

Once a teacher sent his students to the forest to gather firewood. One of them found a tree with no leaves. He thought that l am lucky, It will be easy to break the branches without having to break the leaves first. There is no need to hurry now. He decided to take rest for some time. It was evening by the time he woke up. The other students were getting ready to back with their wood. He quickly started breaking the branches but discovered that they were actually still green and not dry. Thus, he lamented for his wrong judgement & Laziness. Lesson : Do not give priority to Laziness, before your Service.

An American gets a visit from a friend arrived from India and takes him downtown New York. It was noon and the streets were full of people. Cars horning and taxi cabs rushing on the streets, sirens approaching, It was such a sound that seemed to make any person crazy. Suddenly his Indian friend said, “I heard a bird!” “It’s impossible to hear a cricket in all this noise!” (told the American) “I’m sure I heard a bird!” (Indian insisted) “That’s crazy!” The Indian listened carefully for a moment then he crossed the street to an area where there were a few trees. He looked around under the branches and found little bird. American friend was amazed, “It’s incredible! You must have a superhuman hearing!” No, said the Indian. My ears are no different from yours. It depends on what you listen with them. “But this isn’t possible! I could never hear a bird in this noise!” “It dep...

A parrot used to live on a fig tree along with other birds. He loved the figs and enjoyed living on the tree. After several years, once there was drought in that area. The fig tree stopped bearing fruit and leaves. The birds who were living in that tree left the tree and migrated to different places.  The parrot felt sad but did not leave the tree. Gradually, without having any food and water, the parrot became sick. But still he continued to live in that tree.    God saw this. He disguised himself as a bird and asked the parrot, "Why do you not leave this tree? It is not bearing fruit anymore." The parrot replied, "I cannot leave my friend. It has fed me for so many years."  God was happy to hear this answer. He came to his original form and said to the parrot, "Your faithfulness to the tree has impressed me. Ask me what you want." The parrot replied, "O Lord! Please shower rain and bless the tree to bear fruit again l...