Saturday, May 10, 2008

The Cheerful Monk

Far beyond the hills, in a small hut, lived a huge Monk.
So simple was his living, emptiness was all that the hut had in it.

As the sun descended down the hills, villagers near by descended down to where He lived.
All the mornings, the hut was deserted, save the Monk.
All the evenings, the village was deserted, save none.
Hundreds of people thronged the Monk's hut every evening.
Wonder what sermons the Monk gave daily.

Speechless! The Monk never gave any speech.
Neither He uttered a single word.
The hut stayed as calm as in the mornings.

As the villagers took turn to visit Him,
He looked into their eyes and smiled.
What lied in the smile that attracted the villagers is not known.

Days and years passed, unknown to the outside world, the evening ritual continued.
All that the Monk did to the villagers is to look into their eyes and smile at them.
Never did the villagers see Him in any other colour.

One day, the orange red sun stayed unusually long in the western sky, before it descended down the hills.
The villagers reached the Monk's hut as the sun disappeared into darknness.
There the Monk, as usual, greeted them with His smile of Infinte Love.
Only that he was lying on the ground, His heart no more active.
All in His life He smiled, in death He smiled.
He knew nothing but to smile.

Surprisingly, neither grief nor sorrow was visible on the villager's face.
Cheerful, as ever, they were, lifted the Monk onto their shoulders and buried Him in His hut.

The Monk possessed nothing and left behind nothing,
A few cheerful villagers, with everlasting joy in their hearts.
Never did the villagers frown nor let their hearts drown in sorrow,
Never did they break their promise to the Monk.
The Monk has left behind a legacy, truly a great legacy.

2 comments:

Pramoda Meduri said...

Beautiful way of narration... I loved it... :)

Really those cheerful villagers are the treasure of the monk ...

Anonymous said...

***Surprisingly, neither grief nor sorrow was visible on the villager's face.Cheerful, as ever, they were..

These lines had gr8 impact on me.

My own reflections for your post are:
Happiness can never be separated from gratitude. Neither is possible without the other..

Everywhere we turn, we see people who have managed to get whatever they wanted, to achieve whatever they hoped to achieve - and yet they are not happy...

Because they are not grateful. They do not pay attention to the present moment, to life as it is. Instead, they view their lives from a position of materialism, and, no matter how well things go for them, they want more. They are never satisfied; they might experience some euphoria when they get something they want, but it soon wears off and they go back to their habitual frustration, looking for the next achievement or acquisition in the hope that it will bring fulfillment.

To be happy, we have to be grateful that we can eat, that we can breathe, that we can feel ground under our feet and fabric against our skin, that we can see and hear, that we love and are loved. If we do not have all of these things, we must pay attention and be grateful for whatever we do have.

This does not mean we should give up, do nothing to improve our situation, but it means that we can be happy irrespective of our situation.

Finally ....to be happy, we must experience each day, each hour, each present moment afresh, as it is, and be grateful for what that day contains.

...Sry for such a long explanation...!!..:).:)...