Zen Stories

We will see

There is a Taoist story of an old farmer who had worked his crops for many years. One day his horse ran away. Upon hearing the news, his neighbors came to visit.
"Such bad luck," they said sympathetically.
"We'll see," the farmer replied.
The next morning the horse returned, bringing with it three other wild horses.
"How wonderful," the neighbors exclaimed.
"We'll see," replied the old man.
The following day, his son tried to ride one of the untamed horses, was thrown, and broke his leg. The neighbors again came to offer their sympathy on his misfortune.
"We'll see," answered the farmer.
The day after, military officials came to the village to draft young men into the army. Seeing that the son's leg was broken, they passed him by. The neighbors congratulated the farmer on how well things had turned out.
"We'll see" said the farmer.

Working very  Hard

A martial arts student went to his teacher and said earnestly, "I am devoted to studying your martial system. How long will it take me to master it."
The teacher's reply was casual, "Ten years."
Impatiently, the student answered, "But I want to master it faster than that. I will work very hard. I will practice everyday, ten or more hours a day if I have to. How long will it take then?" 
The teacher thought for a moment,
"20 years."

Of Birds and Rainbows

Nothing says “hope” more brightly than rainbows. I love rainbows; there is something magical about the colors, the perfect curve and of course the symbolic representation that the sun is smiling through the clouds. Would rainbows be as pretty if we didn’t have to bear the rain and dark clouds? I doubt it.

Recently I have been fascinated by birds – not any particular kind , just the crows perching on the wires, or seagulls playing in the fields or occasionally an eagle soaring by or chirping of the sparrows. There is something liberating when birds spread their wings, when they sing and communicate with each other – happy to be just what they are. A crow doesn’t compete to sing like a cuckoo or be pretty like a dove, just “being”, loving life and their very existence. Maybe because they are so elusive, giving you just a glimpse of their personalities that they keep me asking for more.

Walking my son to school, on some rare sunny days , I feel so blessed to tune in to the songs of the birds hiding somewhere within the branches of swaying  trees or the stern and  majestic mountains staring down at me. I love not talking, not thinking, just being present and being aware of my every movement. The 15 minutes walk is my meditation – something that charges me to smile and face the brand new 24 hours ahead of me.

I have realized that I have been complaining less – comparing less – not with others but my own situation . A rainy and gloomy day doesn’t affect me as much because I don’t accumulate the cloudy days of yesterday or the weather forecast of tomorrow. It is rainy and cloudy today period. 

Life is definitely easier and happier once you start to live in the present. Of course, I am still in the nascent stage and have a long way to go – but then I am not looking in the future either. It is now and here and I am taking baby steps to keep it that way.

Winnie the Pooh Wisdom – Quotes by A.A Milne

Ø      Weeds are flowers, too, once you get to know them.

Ø      Sometimes,' said Pooh, 'the smallest things take up the most room in your heart." 

Ø      Sometimes, if you stand on the bottom rail of a bridge and lean over to watch the river slipping slowly away beneath you, you will suddenly know everything there is to be known." 

Ø      Don't underestimate the value of Doing Nothing, of just going along, listening to all the things you can't hear, and not bothering.

Ø      The things that make me different are the things that make me.

Ø      Rivers know this there is no hurry. We shall get there some day.

Ø      The third-rate mind is only happy when it is thinking with the majority. The second-rate mind is only happy when it is thinking with the minority. The first-rate mind is only happy when it is thinking."

Ø     
Pay attention to where you are going because without meaning you might get nowhere.

Ø      "Promise me you'll always remember: You're braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think." 

Lucky or unlucky

Once upon the time there was an old farmer who worked on the fields for many years. One day his horse ran away.  His neighbors who came to visit him, showing pity said “That’s too bad for you.”

“Maybe,” the farmer replied.

The next morning the horse returned, bringing with it three other wild horses. “How lucky” the neighbors they said. .

“Maybe,” replied the old man.

The following day, his son tried to ride one of the untamed horses, was thrown, and broke his leg. The neighbors again came to offer their sympathy on his misfortune.

“Maybe,” answered the farmer.

The day after, military officials came to the village to draft young men into the army. Seeing that the son’s leg was broken, they passed him by. The neighbors congratulated the farmer on how well things had turned out.

“Maybe,” said the farmer.

I love this story for the simple fact that we are so quick to judge what happens in our life as lucky or unfortunate. Everything in our life happens for a reason – reason far beyond our understanding at the point of it occurring. We may not understand  the whys of it and being so close to it not see it clearly too, but from a distance, the panoramic view displays a different picture. All the people we meet, all the heartbreaks, disappointments have their roots in directing us to a higher elevation of human life.

Whenever I look back at my own life, I realize that all – the good, the bad that I am or that is in my life, is based on something that I thought was an adverse incident in my life. Life gives us opportunities in the form of undesirable situations everyday to rise above ourselves, to love, to give, to forgive, do the right thing and grow stronger.  

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Zen inspirations

How many times have we trusted someone and have had that trust broken? How many times have you agreed to help someone (albeit reluctantly and against your will) knowing you are being taken for a ride? And to sum it up how many times have you said, “Never again ’and gone ahead and repeated and then regretted it?

In the last couple of months, I have lent some strangers some money, and going by my past experience, I was stupid to expect them to pay me back. I did this in spite of a better sense prevailing over me. I berated myself for being foolish and was reminded of a quote by Einstein, “Insanity is doing the same thing, over and over again, but expecting different results”. Yet, I was proving the theory right.

I have struggled to change myself for years, to be more worldly and practical, to fight against my basic instinct to help someone (you only get hurt) or to just keep my mouth shut( especially knowing how much trouble it has got me into )! . In my mind, I have played up situations , where I say “no” to people, where I only care about my needs, yet in real time and life, I end up reacting exactly the way I promised myself I won’t. Then I read this story and it brought a smile to my face; for we all are slaves to our basic instincts and believe me you can read all the self-improvement books, try everything, but the inherent qualities that you are born with never changes. You can mask them, you can distort it, subdue it, but it is like the dormant volcano – always ready to erupt. So, here is this fabulous Zen anecdote that has made me accept myself and to let go.


Two monks were washing their bowls in the river when they noticed a scorpion that was drowning. One monk immediately scooped it up and set it upon the bank. In the process he was stung. He went back to washing his bowl and again the scorpion fell in. The monk saved the scorpion and was again stung. The other monk asked him, "Friend, why do you continue to save the scorpion when you know its nature is to sting?"
"Because," the monk replied, "to save it is my nature."

The mirage of youth

Do you remember when we were kids and we just couldn’t wait to grow up. At 3 we wanted to be 5 so that we could go to school like the big kids and then when we turned 9, 13 was the age to be a teenager with all the freedom that came with being a young teenager. 13 was fine, but, 16 seemed to come with more freedom; it came with a


learner’s driver’s licence and of course more in charge of our lives. Next were 19, weaving the dreams of completing graduation, driving, independence and our first step into the world as a young adult.



Stepping into the world of dreams, marks the commencement of a long wait for the mirage of perfect life – waiting for Mr. Maybe Right, perfect job, and happiness that is expected. Entering the world of adulthood quickly opens up avenues of disappointment, rejection, and the wait for the “perfect life” seems all the more distant. After few years of working, relationships and all that makes up life, if we are lucky, we might discover our purpose in life, and fine tune our goals. Congrats, but wait, before you embark on your new found hope of living you have to wait for the mortgage to pay off, the infants to grow older and go to school – which stretches to college, to be free of the responsibilities to finally realize that you are in your 40s and approaching mid life crisis!



When I reached 30, I did mourn the end of my youth, but a decade later in hindsight, the 30 was pretty good. 40 brings with it the wisdom, that it is only going downhill from here, and all you want is the time to slow down. Savoring every moment, wishing for the pause button on the remote of life, you finally maybe start enjoying life. Now, I have learnt better than to talk or plan ahead for the next decade – 10 years from now, if I am lucky, I will be in 50s and looking forward for retirement and pension.



So, although late in life, I have learnt my lesson, and am going to breathe in every new moment in my life in the futile hope that it will slow down time and the imminent aging process

Lessons from nature

Last Sunday, after almost four straight weeks of work, I finally took a day off. It was a perfect spring day, no rain which is a huge relief for someone living on the West Coast. I love being outdoors , but unfortunately time and weather can be impediments to enjoying the beautiful city I live in.

There is something about nature -which calms me down. Maybe like a puzzle piece fitting right into the bigger picture,I feel that I have come home. The rustling of trees, the rushing water, the smoothed out rocks, the tall trees trying to touch the sky all make me realize, how small I am, yet paradoxically how limitless. I didn't do much - just walking down the path along the river, sitting and watching how the water works its  way around the water, not stopping,not fighting , but working around, hugging the rocks, yet flowing and a realization dawned on me - this is the way to live. Work around your problems, sometimes it is in your favour to go with the flow.

If there are some lessons to learn from nature  it would be :

Change: Every season  reminds us, that change is universal and the same law applies to us. Nothing stays the same - no matter how bitter the winter, it does have to end into spring , and no matter how beautiful the fall , it leads to winter.
Cycle : Walking down the woods, you see new trees growing on trees that have decayed. Every death gives birth to something new and wonderful. Every end has a new beginning.
Patience :Everything takes time. Flowers don't bloom instantly, trees don't bear fruits immediately. In fact the longer you have to wait for something, the longer it lasts. Flowers that take shorter time to bloom , wilt earlier.
Interdependence: Birds build nests on trees, bees help pollinate, every being is dependent on someone else to lead a fulfilling life. We would be fools to believe we can live isolated - no one can.
Work : All creatures have to work for their food and shelter. Right from a bird building its nest, to the lion hunting for its next meal. Food is there, but believing we are priveleged to not work for it , is our fallacy.

And finally, nature teaches us to go with the flow. We would be much happier if we could live in the present moment without comparing it to the past or expecting anything from  it for the future.