WISDOM OF THE WORLD - WEEK 75

A Most Important Question

A young woman worked hard at College. She was studying to be a nurse. During the second month of nursing school, her professor gave the class a pop quiz. The young woman was a conscientious student and had breezed through the questions, until she read the last one:

"What is the first name of the woman who cleans the school?"

The student thought that surely this was some kind of joke. She had seen the cleaning woman several times. She was tall, dark haired and in her 50s. “How am I supposed to know her name?” she thought to herself.

She handed in her paper, leaving the last question blank. Before class ended, one student asked if the last question would count toward their quiz grade.

"Absolutely," said the professor. "In your careers you will meet many people. All are significant. They deserve your attention and care, even if all you do is smile and say hello." The young student never forgot this lesson throughout her career.

She also learned the cleaning women’s name was Ruthie.

WISDOM OF THE WORLD - WEEK 74

A Betting Man

A man and his wife went to visit friends in another part of the country and were taken to a racecourse. Fascinated by the sight of horses chasing one another around a track, the two of them kept betting all evening till they had no more than two dollars left.

The following day the man prevailed upon his wife to let him go to the course alone. There was a horse with a fifty-to-one odds on it in the first race. He bet on the horse and it won. He put all the money he won on another long shot in the next race and again he won. He kept doing this all evening and his entire earnings came to fifty-seven thousand dollars.

On the way back home he passed by a gambling den. An inner voice, the same that seemed to have guided him in his choice of horses, said, "Stop here and go in." So he stopped, went in, and found himself standing in front of a roulette wheel. The voice said, "Number thirteen." The man put the entire fifty-seven thousand on number thirteen. The wheel spun, and the croupier announced, "Number fourteen."

So the man walked back home with nothing in his pocket. His wife called out to him from the porch, "How did it go?"

The husband shrugged his shoulders. "I lost the two dollars," he said.

WISDOM OF THE WORLD - WEEK 73

Help Yourself

A travelling preacher finds himself in a tremendous rainstorm. Within a few hours the hotel he is staying in becomes flooded. As the water rises, the preacher climbs to the roof and starts praying.

"Lord, save me so I can continue on my mission of preaching your gospel."

Just then, a coast guard rescue party floats by in a rowboat. "Let's go mister. Into the boat."

"I'll stay here," says the preacher, "The Lord will save me."

An hour later a second boat reaches the scene and the water is close to the roof of the hotel.

"Sir, you better get in. the water is still rising."

"No thanks. The Lord will be my salvation."

Toward evening, the hotel is almost completely under water and the preacher is clinging to the satellite dish on the roof. A helicopter is spotted and on a loudspeaker is heard.

"Quick Sir, grab on to the line and we will pull you up.”

"I'm all right," says the preacher, as he looks heavenward. "I know the Lord will provide sanctuary."

As the helicopter departs, the satellite dish is hit by lightning and the preacher is killed. When he arrived at the Pearly Gates he is furious.

"What happened, " he shouts. "I thought the Lord would provide!"

Moments later a thunderous voice is heard. "Give me a break pal. I sent you 2 boats and a chopper."

WISDOM OF THE WORLD - WEEK 71

Thanks to the Gaelscoil in Buncrana for the image...

Freedom Parrot


A man, a great man, a fighter for freedom was travelling in the mountains. He stayed a night at an inn at the foot of the mountains and was amazed that there was a beautiful parrot in a golden cage, continually repeating the words "Freedom! Freedom!"

The man thought: "I have seen many parrots, and have thought they must want to be free from those cages... but I have never seen such a parrot whose whole day is spent in calling out for freedom." He had an idea. In the middle of the night, when the owner was fast asleep, he got up and opened the door of the cage. He whispered to the parrot, "Fly away."

But he was very surprised that the parrot was clinging to the bars of the cage. He said to him again and again, "Have you forgotten about freedom? Just get out! The door is open and the owner is fast asleep; nobody will ever know. You just fly into the sky; the whole sky is yours."

But the parrot was clinging so deeply, so hard, that the man said, "What is the matter? Are you mad?" He tried to take the parrot out with his own hands, but the parrot started pecking at him, and at the same time he was shouting "Freedom! Freedom!" The valleys in the night echoed and re-echoed, but the man was also stubborn. He was a freedom fighter.

He pulled the parrot out and threw him into the sky; and he was very satisfied, although his hand was hurt. The parrot had attacked him as forcefully as he could, but the man was immensely satisfied that he had made a soul free. He went to sleep.

In the morning, as the man was waking up, he heart the parrot shouting, "Freedom! Freedom!" He thought perhaps the parrot must be sitting on a tree or on a rock. But when he came out, the parrot was sitting in the cage. The door was open.

Osho

WISDOM OF THE WORLD - WEEK 70

The Wisdom Under the Ring

A king asked his advisors for a small advice that contains all wisdom to keep under the diamond of his ring. He wanted to keep it with him and use it only as a last resort – when he really needed it. The advisors worked hard but couldn’t think of a sentence, which would contain all wisdom. They went to a wise man who lived in the mountains who immediately wrote down the advice and fixed it to the ring saying “Tell the king he is not to read it out of curiosity but only when he is in such despair he feels that there is no way out.”

The king was curious but remembered his promise and did not look. Not long afterwards the king’s country was invaded and he lost the battle. He was running alone on his horse to save his life in the mountains and he reached a point, which was a dead end. Below was a sheer drop and he could hear the hoofs and the sound of the enemy coming closer. Suddenly he remembered the ring and opened it and read the following message “This too will pass.” A great silence descended over him as he realised, everything passes. He waited and strange as it seems the horses started receding. They had started to follow another path. The king returned, collected his armies together, fought the enemies and took back his kingdom. There was a great day of celebration and the king was feeling very pleased and self satisfied with himself. He had defeated a great enemy with larger armies and a bigger kingdom. Suddenly he remembered, “This too will pass.” With this remembrance his ego disappeared and he became very humble.

WISDOM OF THE WORLD - WEEK 67

The Reflection
A king’s daughter had her priceless diamond necklace stolen. A reward of £50,000 was offered if any-one found it.

One day, a clerk was walking home along a polluted river next to an industrial area. Suddenly a shimmering in the river caught his eye. Looking closer, he saw the necklace.

He put his hand in the filthy, dirty river and grabbed at the necklace, but some how missed it. He took his hand out and looked again. There it was glimmering in amongst the filth. He tried again. This time he stepped into the stinking river getting covered in the rancid pollution, but strangely, he still missed the necklace! He came out and started walking away, feeling depressed. Then again, he saw the necklace, right there. This time he was determined to get it, no matter what. He decided to plunge into the river. Although it was disgusting, he plunged in and searched everywhere for the necklace. Yet one more time, he failed. He was really confused.

Just then, a wise man, walked by and asked the clerk if what was the matter. The clerk refused to say; worried the man might take the necklace for himself.

The compassionate man promised to keep his confidence. The clerk mustered some courage. He told him about the necklace and how he tried and tried to catch it, but kept failing.

Look up rather than down, was the advice he received. There, in the branch of a tree, the necklace was dangling. He had been trying to capture a mere reflection of the real necklace all this time.

WISDOM OF THE WORLD - WEEK 66

Empty-handed

The Greek Emperor, Alexander the Great was a warrior and ruler who had conquered nearly one third of the then-known world, but he fell ill with a terminal illness. A few days before his death, Alexander called his ministers and explained how he would like his body to be carried in the burial procession. He wanted openings made on either side of his coffin, through which his hands should be kept hanging out, with the palms spread open. The Ministers were puzzled and asked their lord why he wanted this to be done.

Alexander explained that in this way, every-one would come to know that the ‘Great Alexander’, who had spent his whole life striving to possess and conquer the world, had left the world totally empty handed. Therefore they would understand how futile it is to spend one’s life chasing after the world and its objects.

WISDOM OF THE WORLD - WEEK 55

Angel of Grass

An old legend says that in the beginning, when God created the world, He gave every living thing an angel to bless and guard it - an angel for man, one for the birds, one for the beasts of the forest, one for the trees, and one for the flowers.

Even the common grass had an angel. But the angel of the grass was not pleased. Humiliated, he said, "I will have nothing to do with it. That old, homely grass can grow by itself!"

The season passed. The grass shrivelled. The flowers died because the grass held no dew. The deer in the forests and the cattle in the fields died because there was no grass. Seeing the effect and further consequences God intervened.

He turned His eyes upon the angel of the grass and asked, "Was it a small thing, or a great thing that I asked thee to do?"

In shame the angel of the grass fell at the Lord's feet and begged His forgiveness, for he saw now the unsuspected greatness of his seemingly lowly task.

Rose Bennington

WISDOM OF THE WORLD - WEEK 63

Concentration

After winning several archery contests, the young and rather boastful champion challenged a master who was renowned for his skill as an archer. The young man demonstrated remarkable technical proficiency when he hit a distant bull's eye on his first try, and then split that arrow with his second shot.

"There," he said to the old man, "see if you can match that!" Undisturbed, the master did not draw his bow, but rather motioned for the young archer to follow him up the mountain. Curious about the old fellow's intentions, the champion followed him high into the mountain until they reached a deep chasm spanned by a rather flimsy and shaky log. Calmly stepping out onto the middle of the unsteady and certainly perilous bridge, the old master picked a far away tree as a target, drew his bow, and fired a clean, direct hit.

"Now it is your turn," he said as he gracefully stepped back onto the safe ground. Staring with terror into the seemingly bottomless and beckoning abyss, the young man could not force himself to step out onto the log, no less shoot at a target. "You have much skill with your bow," the master said, sensing his challenger's predicament, "but you have little skill with the mind that lets loose the shot."

WISDOM OF THE WORLD - WEEK 59

Moving Rocks

A little boy was spending his Saturday morning playing in his sandbox with his box of cars and trucks, and his bucket and spade. In the process of creating roads and tunnels in the soft sand, he discovered a large rock in the middle of the sandbox.

The boy dug around the rock, managing to dislodge it from the dirt. With a little bit of struggle, he pushed and nudged the rock across the sandbox by using his feet. (He was a very small boy, and the rock was very large.) When he got it to the edge he couldn't roll it up and over the little wall.

Determined, the little boy shoved, pushed, but every time he thought he had made some progress, the rock tipped and then fell back into the sandbox. he grunted, struggled, pushed, & shoved; but his only reward was to have the rock roll back, smashing his fingers.
Finally he burst into tears of frustration. All this time the boy's father watched from his living room window as the drama unfolded. He walked over to the sand pit and said, "Son, why didn't you use all the strength that you had available?"

"But I did, Daddy, I did! I used all the strength that I had!"

"No, son," corrected the father kindly. "You didn't use all the strength you had. You didn't ask me." With that the father reached down, picked up the rock and removed it from the sandbox.
Do you have "rocks" in your life that need to be removed?

Are you discovering that you don't have what it takes to lift them? There is One who is always available to us and willing to give us the strength we need. Isn't it funny how we try so hard to do things ourselves.

WISDOM OF THE WORLD - WEEK 58

The Donkey in the Well

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 neighbours to come over and help him. They all grabbed a spade and began to shovel dirt into the well. At first, the donkey realised what was happening and cried horribly. Then, to everyone's amazement he quietened 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 neighbours continued to shovel dirt on top of the animal, the donkey got closer to the top

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

Life is going to shovel dirt on you, all kinds of dirt. The trick to getting out of the well is to shake it off and take a step up. Each of our troubles is a stepping stone. We can get out of the deepest wells just by not stopping, never giving up. Shake it off and take a step up.

Remember the five simple rules to be happy:

Free your heart from hatred – Forgive.

Free your mind from worries - Most never happen.

Live simply and appreciate what you have.

Give more.

Expect less.

WISDOM OF THE WORLD - WEEK 55

The Working Genie

There once was a poor man who longed to be rich. He heard tell that a man in another village had a genie and decided to go and see how he could get one. When he got to the village and found the right person, he asked after his genie.

“I don’t mind letting you have him,” said the villager. “However if you take him it is on these conditions. The genie likes to be kept busy at all times and if he has nothing to do he gets very agitated. Also if you take him you have to keep him, I can’t take him back.”

The man was overjoyed. “Don’t worry, I won’t run out of jobs for him, I have great plans,” he said, “And why would I ever want to give him back?”

He couldn’t believe his luck. “Get me a gold carriage and four beautiful white horses to take me home” The genie snapped his fingers and there they were. “When I get home I want a huge palace full of beautiful furniture and a feast for all the village.” The genie snapped his fingers.

For a few weeks the man had everything his heart desired. He made his wish and with a snap of the genie’s fingers it came true.

After a while he ran out of desires, nothing pleased him anymore and he just wanted a bit of peace. But the genie kept asking “More Work! More Work!”

“I have nothing for you to do.” The genie got angrier and angrier. “Give me more work or I will kill you,” he shouted. The poor man got more and more stressed and eventually decided to go back to the village and ask for help.

“Well, I can’t take him back, but I’ll tell you what to do,” the wise man said. “Get a pole and put it in the garden. Tell the genie to go to the top and then when he reaches the top he has to go down to the bottom, when he reaches the bottom he has to go back to the top.”

This is what the man did and had no more trouble.

Our minds can be like the genie. It can help us get what we desire but its restlessness can drive us crazy. Keep a peaceful thought or mantra in the mind to control the mind.

WISDOM OF THE WORLD - WEEK 54

Friends in the Desert

Two friends were walking through the desert. During some point of the journey, they had an argument and one friend slapped the other one in the face. The one who got slapped was hurt, but without saying anything, he bent down and wrote in the sand:

"Today my best friend slapped me in the face."

They kept on walking, until they found an oasis, where they decided to take a bath. The one who had been slapped got stuck in the mire and started drowning, but his friend grabbed hold, pulling him out and saving him. After he recovered from the near drowning, the friend wrote on a stone:

"Today my best friend saved my life."

The friend who had slapped and saved his best friend asked him, "After I hurt you, you wrote in the sand and now, you write on a stone, why?"

The friend replied, when someone hurts us we should write it down in sand, where the winds of forgiveness can erase it away. But, when someone does something good for us, we must engrave it in stone where no wind can ever erase it."