A wise woman, who was travelling in the mountains, found a precious stone in a stream.
She reverently placed the gem in her bag.
The next day, she met another traveller, who was hungry.
The wise woman opened her bag to share her food.
The hungry traveller saw the precious stone in the wise woman's bag,
admired it, and asked the wise woman to give it to him.
The wise woman did so without hesitation.
The traveller left, rejoicing in his good fortune.
He knew the jewel was worth enough to give him security for the rest of his life.
But a few days later, he came back, searching for the wise woman.
When he found her, he returned the stone and said,
"I have been thinking. I know how valuable the stone is, but I would like to exchange it in the hope that you can give me something much more precious. If you can, teach me the secrets about the power you have within you, the power that enabled you to,
without hesitation, give me this precious stone."
I read the above story on my way to work this morning. It's a short and simple story but it gave me immense clarity. Such an act would be near crazy in the world today. It's like walking into the house of a millionaire and asking for all the material things that he has and he immediately hands over to you wholeheartedly.
Material comforts are important to us inthe world today. Since young, we are taught to ensure we will earn enough to have a good life. To try to have a successful career to live as comfortable as possible. We plan for our retirement. In units of dollars and cents. Sometimes I wonder if being well-off financially and being rich spiritually can co-exist?
Despite all religions and great philosphers' teachings on the transcient nature of material things, our collective conscious stand triumphant as we worship the importance of having enough or the more the merrier. It's takes wisdom and quiet courage to be able to treasure the non-material. There is a thin line between contentment and laziness which most people can't differentiate and choose to abhor altogether in the competitive world today. There is an even thinner line between contentment and detachment.
To all who have enough gems in life for a lifetime of security, I congratulate you.
To you who is able to appreciate the material comforts and yet stay detached, I hope to learn from you.