Life will go on as long as there is someone to sing, to dance, to tell stories and to listen — Oren Lyons
An old master had two roses in his garden: one was perfect, the other was ravaged by pests. One day, a zealous pupil cut down the diseased one to protect the other. The master wept. “The roots,” he said, “beneath the ground, were intertwined. By killing the diseased one, you have also killed the healthy Continue reading "THE ROOTS BENEATH"
A farmer was complaining to the wise old man: Weeds are growing in my field, and I can’t sleep for the sheer frustration. The wise man invited him to sit beside him, under a tree, facing a field that wasn’t his own. Look at that field, he said. You don’t know it, it doesn’t belong Continue reading "PATIENT LOOKING"
A disciple asked his master: How can I recognise evil in the world? The master took him into the kitchen, where his wife was kneading bread, and pointed to the white flour on the table, dotted with tiny black insects. “Look,” said the master, “separate them.” The disciple began searching, one black speck at a Continue reading "THE FLOUR AND THE INSECTS"
A young monk came to the Master waving a scroll. Master! A great gift — land, grain, and peace for fifty years. I have only to sign. The Master said, Read it to me. The monk read the large letters. His voice glowed. The Master said nothing. The monk squinted at the small letters crowded Continue reading "THE CONTRACT"
It is entirely your fault, the master repeated, as the disciple stared at him in disbelief. My fault? the disciple stammered. But Master, I try every single day! I sit in meditation, I study the scripts, yet the world constantly interrupts me. My mind drifts, my emotions storm, and the peace I find vanishes in Continue reading "BEYOND RIPPLES"
A drunkard was walking down a street with blisters in both of his ears. A friend asked him what had happened to cause the blisters. My wife left her hot iron on, so when the phone rang I picked the iron up by mistake. Yes, but what about the other ear? The damned fool called Continue reading "BURNED TWICE"
A drunkard knocked at the wrong door. The man of the house leaned out the window and said, “Go away, you’re knocking at the wrong door!” But the drunkard said, “Maybe you’re looking out of the wrong window!” Source: A story in the tradition of Anthony de Mello SJ, from the world of folk wisdom Continue reading "MAYBE YOU RE AT THE WRONG WINDOW"
A certain grammarian embarked in a boat.That self-conceited person turned to the boatman and said, Have you ever studied grammar? No, he replied.The other said, Half your life has gone to waste. The boatman became sad, but kept silent.After a while the wind cast the boat into a whirlpool.Then the boatman cried to the grammarian: Tell me, do Continue reading "THE GRAMMARIAN AND THE BOATMAN"
A professor and a wise fisherman are sitting next to each other on a long flight. The professor says, Let s play a game. I ll ask you a question — if you don t know the answer, you pay me $5, and if I don t know the answer, I ll pay you $500. The professor asks first: What s Continue reading "WISE FISHERMAN"
On the afternoon of September 13, 1983, the day when he was elected the 29th Superior General of the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits), Father Peter Hans Kolvenbach slipped out of the Jesuit headquarters in Rome to take a walk. An Italian lady saw him leaving the building and asked: “Are you attending the General Continue reading "I DIDN T"