An idol-maker had to deliver an idol to a customer. He placed it on his donkey’s back and they started on their journey.
Now the idol-maker was extremely skilled at his job and this particular idol was one of the best he had ever made.
Whoever saw it, stopped to bow down and pray.
The donkey thought they were bowing to him.
He was enormously pleased and flattered and not wishing to go away from a place where he was held in such high esteem, came to an abrupt stop.
Nothing his master did would induce him to start walking again, and finally his master lifted the idol on to own head and resumed his journey.
The donkey stood where he was, head held high, and braying sonorously until he suddenly became aware that there was no one watching him.
The people were now following his master and bowing to the idol.
The donkey realized that his pride had clouded his judgment and feeling ashamed of himself, ran to rejoin his master.
Remind Yourself
Everyone of us has pass through such circumstances. But from that circumstances who realized that we can watch ourselves only when we separate out ourselves from ego. Donkey could not realized till the time he saw from the distance to his master that people are bowing to idol. Till the time we are identify with ourselves we cannot become watchful towards ourselves. We always dream regarding our success, but we don’t realize that in this moment what is happening and how we can realized.
For our every success we feel that because of us we are successful. But we are forgetting that in all our action somany people and circumstances contribution is there. From the conception till this moments actions. Mother take care of the fetus and family members also contributing for the surrounding created around pregnant woman, so that emotionally she can be stabilized. From that to birth, bringing up by parents, contribution of teachers, friends, the circumstances from which we pass, all such small thing create us as human being, who can think, love, act, contribute, take the responsibility, etc. Give a thought, that in all your act all these contribution is not present. Realize without all this contribution you would not have been what you are today.
We always try to remember and remind others what we have contributed in their life. Just make the process reverse and see what you feel. When you remember that what is others contribution in your life, immediately you will feel silence. You don’t have to go in search for silence. It is because of our approach toward the life we are not silent, we are noisy.
If you remember what others have contributed in your life immediately you will feel that you are emperor and not bagger. Remember from your own memory that when you remind someone what you feel that you are with begging bowl for your respect. But when you recollect and remind yourself regarding other person’s contribution in your life you feel that you are capable of giving not out of ego but through your kindness, humbleness, compassion. You will feel silence within yourself.
Learning from story The Foolish Donkey: Remind Yourself
Experience Learning
Once you will practice of reminding yourself you will also find that most of your complains are drop out. Complains are nothing but our expectation from others.
One of the biggest causes of suffering in the world today is expectations. Imagine how free you would feel if every day you were able to just “go with the flow,” trusting that the Universe was organizing everything perfectly. Well, this is exactly what the Universe is doing, but by imposing your ideas of how things should be, you end up struggling against the current.
This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have desires or plans for the future. Desires and plans are fine; it’s your attachment to their outcome—your expectations—that causes the challenges. Being non-attached and letting go of expectations is like saying, “This is what I think I want, but if there’s something even better, it’s okay to send that instead.” That’s when the magic begins!
When we set up any goal, means we want to direct our thoughts in that direction. But most of the time we try to pursue the people around us to follow us and our goal. This is point from where our suffering starts, our expectation from others. It don’t mean that you are the only person who requires to accomplish your goal. No many people will join you, but you must be Remind Yourself all the time that you don’t expect them to follow your goal but create environment in which through your goal everyone can grow and participate with your goal. When you set up the goal keep in mind how many more people also can grow from your goal. This way not only you will grow but with the support of everyone you will be able to contribute in others life also.
Also when you set up goal that time remember that through this goal whoever will support you will participate and not follow you. Means there will be exchange of idea, resources, many more things will happen. When people will participate with you means you have given them freedom to be with you. You don’t want to possess them neither you will be possessed by them.
There is nothing worse than this that you can do, that you are capable of: reducing a being to a thing. And that’s what possession is.
Only things can be possessed; beings cannot be possessed. You can have a communion with a being. You can share your love, your poetry, your beauty, your body, your mind. You can share but you cannot do business. You cannot bargain. You cannot possess a man or a woman. But everybody is trying to do that all over the earth. The result is this madhouse we call the planet earth. You try to possess — it is naturally impossible, it cannot happen in the very nature of things. Then there is misery. The more you try to possess a person, the more that person tries to become independent of you, because every person has a birthright to be free, to be himself or herself. You are trespassing on the privacy of the person, which is the only sacred place in the whole world. Neither Israel is sacred, nor is Kashi sacred, nor is Mecca sacred.
The only sacred space in the true sense is the privacy of a person — his or her independence, the being hood. If you love a person you will never trespass. You will never try to be a detective, to be a Peeping Tom, peeping into the privacy of the other person. You will respect the privacy of the other person.
