The Respected Donkey

A village potter worked laboriously to earn his livelihood  making pots and planters.  He had a donkey on whose back he would load his wares and go to a near by town to sell.  Since Diwali was fast approaching, the potter decided to make some statues of Lord Ganesha and Goddess Lakshmi, to sell in town. He made some beautiful statues and painted them in bright colours. He then loaded them on to the back of his donkey and set off towards the city.


On the way, he crossed many people. They would invariably fold their hands and bow to the statues of Lord Ganesha and Goddess Lakshmi. By the time they reached the city, many people had bowed their heads before the deities.

They reached the exhibition ground where the artisans could exhibit their things. Soon the potter was able to sell his statues for a good sum. He was pleased indeed!

The potter took his donkey by the muzzle and set off on the road leading back to the village.

Every time they would cross anyone, the donkey would stop and preen himself prettily as if he were a model. But what was the matter! No one seemed to as much as glance at him! Why were people not bowing their heads before him anymore?

Desperate to catch their attention, the donkey started to bray louder and louder...He-haw, he-haw...... He went on.

The passers-by started pelting stones at him in annoyance. The potter was bewildered too.

The poor donkey had thought that everyone was bowing to him, little realizing that their reverence was directed to the idols of God tied to his back and not to him!

Many of us make this mistake. A person occupying a seat of power, often finds people saluting him. If he thinks that the salutations are in his honour, he is living in a fool's paradise, like the donkey in the story!

The respect is given to the chair and not to the person occupying it. As soon as he steps down from the position, the people around him vanish.

Just like the frogs…Frogs croak only when it rains, as soon as the rain stops, they vanish.

Morning Motivation: A Rainy Day

Morning Motivation: A Rainy Day: "The sky ablaze Thunder roaring Wind whining I look up in the sky A panorama of beauty. Clouds locked in embrace Suddenly burst Bring..."

Morning Motivation: The 99 Club

Morning Motivation: The 99 Club: "One summer morning, the King came upon a servant who was singing happily while he worked. The bewildered King thought to himself. Why was he..."

The 99 Club

One summer morning, the King came upon a servant who was singing happily while he worked. The bewildered King thought to himself. Why was he, the Supreme Ruler of the Land, unhappy and gloomy, while a lowly servant had so much joy?

The King asked the servant, "Why are you so happy?"

The man replied, "Your Majesty, I am nothing but a servant, but my family and I don't need too much - just a roof over our heads and warm food to fill our tummies."

The king was not satisfied with the reply. Later in the day, he sought the advice of his most trusted advisor.

After hearing the King's woes and the servant's story, the advisor said, "Your Majesty, I believe that the servant has not been made part of The 99 Club."

"The 99 Club? And what exactly is that?" the King inquired.

The advisor replied, "Your Majesty, to truly know what The 99 Club is, place 99 Gold coins in a bag and leave it at this servant's doorstep."

When the servant saw the bag, he took it into his house. He opened the bag and danced with joy... So many gold coins!

He began to count them. After several counts, he was at last convinced that there were 99 coins. He wondered, "What could've happened to that last gold coin? Surely, no one would leave 99 coins!"

He looked everywhere he could, but that final coin was elusive. Finally, exhausted, he decided that he was going to have to work harder than ever to earn that gold coin and complete his collection.

From that day, the servant's life changed. He was overworked, horribly grumpy and castigated his family for not helping him make that 100th gold coin. He stopped singing while he worked.

Witnessing this drastic transformation, the King was puzzled. When he sought his advisor's help, the advisor said, "Your Majesty, the servant has now officially joined The 99 Club."

He continued, "The 99 Club is a name given to those people who have enough to be happy but are never content, because they're always yearning and striving for that extra 1 - telling to themselves: "Let me get that one final thing and then I will be happy for life.."

We can be happy, even with very little in our lives, but the minute we're given something bigger and better, we want even more! We lose our sleep, our happiness, we hurt the people around us, all these as a price for our growing needs and desires.

That's what is called - The 99 Club!

Complaining and Condemning

We are always complaining and whining about each and everything even those whom we love. We find faults in others all the time. We criticize petty issues like someone’s way of walking, talking, mannerisms etc. The focus is on minute details so much so that we are preoccupied with it throughout the day and make it appear gigantic.

We fail to realize that what we condemn in others, the same needs to be addressed within ourselves. Why not learn to change our self. Instead of criticizing accept the differences and respect others.

Love and Be loved…What you give, you receive…

If you are on Facebook, I am sure you will find this hilarious.

The 76-year-old woman walked down the hallway of Clearview Addictions Clinic, searching for the right department. She passed signs for the "Heroin Addiction Department (HAD)," the "Smoking Addiction Department (SAD)" and the "Bingo Addiction Department (BAD)." Then she spotted the department she was looking for: "Facebook Addiction Department (FAD)."


It was the busiest department in the clinic, with about three dozen people filling the waiting room, most of them staring blankly into their Blackberries and iPhones. A middle-aged man with unkempt hair was pacing the room, muttering,"I need to milk my cows. I need to milk my cows."

A twenty-something man was prone on the floor, his face buried in his hands, while a curly-haired woman comforted him.

"Don't worry. It'll be all right."

"I just don't understand it. I thought my update was LOL-worthy, but none of my friends even clicked the 'like' button."

"How long has it been?"

"Almost five minutes. That's like five months in the real world."

The 76-year-old woman waited until her name was called, then followed the receptionist into the office of Alfred Zulu, Facebook Addiction Counselor.

"Please have a seat, Edna," he said with a warm smile. "And tell me how it all started."

"Well, it's all my grandson's fault. He sent me an invitation to join Facebook. I had never heard of Facebook before, but I thought it was something for me, because I usually have my face in a book."

"How soon were you hooked?"

"Faster than you can say 'create a profile.' I found myself on Facebook at least eight times each day -- and more times at night. Sometimes I'd wake up in the middle of the night to check it, just in case there was an update from one of my new friends in India . My husband didn't like that. He said that friendship is a precious thing and should never be outsourced."

"What do you like most about Facebook?"

"It makes me feel like I have a life. In the real world, I have only five or six friends, but on Facebook, I have 674. I'm even friends with Juan Carlos Montoya."

"Who's he?"

"I don't know, but he's got 4,000 friends, so he must be famous."

"Facebook has helped you make some connections, I see."

"Oh yes. I've even connected with some of the gals from high school -- I still call them 'gals.' I hadn't heard from some of them in ages, so it was exciting to look at their profiles and figure out who's retired, who's still working, and who's had some work done. I love browsing their photos and reading their updates. I know where they've been on vacation, which movies they've watched, and whether they hang their toilet paper over or under. I've also been playing a game with some of them."

"Let me guess. Farmville?"

"No, Mafia Wars. I'm a Hitman. No one messes with Edna."

"Wouldn't you rather meet some of your friends in person?"

"No, not really. It's so much easier on Facebook. We don't need to gussy ourselves up. We don't need to take baths or wear perfume or use mouthwash. That's the best thing about Facebook -- you can't smell anyone. Everyone is attractive, because everyone has picked a good profile pic. One of the gals is using a profile pic that was taken, I'm pretty certain, during the Eisenhower Administration."

"What pic are you using?"

"Well, I spent five hours searching for a profile pic, but couldn't find one I really liked. So I decided to visit the local beauty salon."

"To make yourself look prettier?"

"No, to take a pic of one of the young ladies there. That's what I'm using."

"Didn't your friends notice that you look different?"

"Some of them did, but I just told them I've been doing lots of yoga."

"When did you realize that your Facebooking might be a problem?"

"I realized it last Sunday night, when I was on Facebook and saw a message on my wall from my husband: 'I moved out of the house five days ago. Just thought you should know.'"

"What did you do?"

"What else? I unfriended him of course!"

Transformation

The Arrogance of Authority

 A DEA officer stopped at a ranch in Texas, and talked with an old      rancher.

He told the rancher, "I need to inspect your ranch for illegally grown drugs."

The rancher said, "Okay, but don't go in that field over there.....", as he pointed out the location.

The DEA officer verbally exploded saying, " Mister, I have the authority of the Federal Government with me !"

Reaching into his rear pants pocket, he removed his badge and proudly displayed it to the rancher.

"See this badge?! This badge means I am allowed to go wherever I wish.... On any land !!

No questions asked or answers given!! Have I made myself clear.....do you understand ?!!"

The rancher nodded politely, apologized, and went about his chores.

A short time later, the old rancher heard loud screams, looked up, and saw the DEA officer running for his life, being chased by the rancher's big Santa Gertrudis bull.

With every step the bull was gaining ground on the officer and it seemed likely that he'd sure enough get gored before he reached safety. The officer was clearly terrified.

The rancher threw down his tools, ran to the fence and yelled at the top of his lungs.....

"Your badge, show him your BADGE........ ! !"

Acquire an Attitude of Acceptance towards everyone & everything because 

Feelings, Attitude & Actions are the package we radiate…..

Beautiful Thought

Once Lord Buddha was travelling with a few of his followers. While they were

passing a lake, Lord Buddha told one of his disciples, "I am thirsty. Do get me some

water from the lake."

The disciple walked up to the lake. At that moment, a bullock cart started

crossing through the lake. As a result, the water became very muddy and turbid. The

disciple thought, "How can I give this muddy water to Lord Buddha to drink?"

So he came back and told Lord Buddha, "The water in there is very muddy. I

don't think it is fit to drink."

Half an hour later, Lord Buddha asked the same disciple to go back to the lake.

The disciple went back, and found that the water was still muddy. He

returned and informed Lord Buddha about the same.

After sometime, once again Lord Buddha asked the same disciple to go back.

This time, the disciple found the mud had settled down, and the water was

clean and clear. So he collected some water in a pot and brought it to

Lord Buddha.

Lord Buddha looked at the water, and then he looked up at the disciple and

said," See what you did to make the water clean. You let it be, and the mud settled down

on its own and you have clear water.

Your mind is like that too ! When it is disturbed, just let it be. Give it

a little time. It will settle down on its own. You don't have to put in any effort to calm it down.

It will happen. It is effortless."

Having 'Peace of Mind' is not a strenuous job; it is an effortless process!

TREAT EVERYONE WITH POLITENESS

EVEN THOSE WHO ARE RUDE TO YOU

NOT BECAUSE THEY ARE NOT NICE

BUT BECAUSE YOU ARE NICE.

Never Ever Give Up

Achievers never expose themselves,but their achievements expose them..do or die.