The Blind Man with a Lamp Once there lived a blind man in a small town. He always carried a lighted lamp in his hand whenever he went out at night.  On one dark night he was going with his lighted lamp in his hand. A group of men were passing that way.  They saw the blind man and made fun of him. They said,” O Blind man why do you...

Making a Difference Ryokan was a Zen teacher of repute. One day a fisherman saw him walking on the beach soon after a storm. The storm had washed up thousands of starfish on the shore, and they were beginning to dry up. Soon all of them would be dead. Ryokan was picking up starfish and throwing them into the sea.   The fisherman caught up with the teacher and said, “Surely,...

Two friends Two friends were walking through the desert. During some point of the journey they had an argument, and one friend slapped the other one in the face. The one who got slapped was hurt, but without saying anything, wrote in the sand “Today my best friend slapped me in the face”. They kept on walking until they found an oasis, where they decided to take a bath. The one...

Poor Man’s Wealth! Ramchand and Premchand were neighbours. Ramchand was a poor farmer. Premchand was a landlord. Ramchand used to be very relaxed and happy. He never bothered to close the doors and windows of his house at night. He had deep sound sleeps. Although he had no money he was peaceful. Premchand used to be very tensealways. He was very keen to close the doors and windows of his house...

The Boy Who Became a Stone One day a little boy named Elonen sat out in the yard making a bird snare, and as he worked, a little bird called to him: “Tik-tik-lo-den” (come and catch me). “I am making a snare for you,” said the boy; but the bird continued to call until the snare was finished.  Then Elonen ran and threw the snare over the bird and caught it,...

How long it would take One day a man who had been to gather his coconuts loaded his horse heavily with the fruit. On the way home he met a boy whom he asked how long it would take to reach the house.  “If you go slowly,” said the boy, looking at the load on the horse, “you will arrive very soon; but if you go fast, it will take you...

Why We Shout In Anger A Hindu saint who was visiting river Ganges to take bath found a group of family members on the banks, shouting in anger at each other. He turned to his disciples smiled ‘n asked. ‘Why do people shout in anger shout at each other?’  Disciples thought for a while, one of them said, ‘Because we lose our calm, we shout.’ ‘But, why should you shout when...

Cup of coffee A group of alumni, highly established in their careers, got together to visit their old university professor. Conversation soon turned into complaints about stress in work and life. Offering his guests coffee, the professor went to the kitchen and returned with a large pot of coffee and an assortment of cups – porcelain, plastic, glass, crystal, some plain looking, some expensive, some exquisite – telling them to help...