Value Education

Posted by gopalakrishna





























A New Preacher


We should believe in Total Surrenderence to God.  Only then we can lead a peaceful life.
... and the disciple eager to know what was in store for him in future was inquiring of the older preacher. The older preacher walked up to a rosebush and handed the young preacher a rosebud and told him to open it without tearing off any petals.
The disciple wondered what was wrong with the older preacher and was trying to figure out what a rosebud could possibly have to do with his wanting to know the WILL OF GOD for his life and for his ministry. Because of his high respect for the older preacher, he proceeded to TRY to unfold the rose, while keeping every petal intact. It wasn't long before he realized how impossible it was to do so. Noticing the disciple’s inability to unfold the rosebud while keeping it intact, the older preacher began to recite the following poem.
"It is only a tiny rosebud, a flower of God's design; but I cannot unfold the petals with these clumsy hands of mine. The secret of unfolding flowers is not known to such as I. GOD opens this flower so sweetly. When in my hands they die. If I cannot unfold a rosebud this flower of God's design, then how can I have the wisdom to unfold this life of mine? So I'll trust in Him for leading each moment of my day. I will look to him for His guidance each step of the pilgrim way. The pathway that lies before me, only my Heavenly Father knows. I'll trust Him to unfold the moments, just as He unfolds the rose"
God knows everything.  God takes care of us.



A Wise Woman


How do we know what is the most precious gem ?
A wise woman who was travelling in the mountains found a precious stone in a stream. 
The next day she met another traveller who was hungry, and the wise woman opened her bag to share her food. The hungry traveller saw the precious stone and asked the woman to give it to him. She did so without hesitation. 
The traveller left, rejoicing in his great fortune. He knew the stone was worth enough to give him security for a lifetime. But a few days later he came back to return the stone to the wise woman.
"I've been thinking," he said, "I know how valuable the stone is, but I give it back in the hope that you can give me something even more precious. Give me what you have within you that enabled you to give me the stone." / Material wants can be driven away not by providing material comforts but by giving spiritual help.


Our Life Style



An elderly carpenter was ready to retire. 
We don’t realize that we have one and only one life.  We lead our life as if we are leading somebody else’s life.
He told his employer-contractor of his plans to leave the house-building business and to live a more leisurely life with his wife enjoying his family life.
He would miss the paycheck, but he needed to retire. They could get by. The contractor was sorry to see his good worker go and asked if he could build just one more house as a personal favour.
The carpenter said yes, but in time it was easy to see that his heart was not in his work. He resorted to shabby workmanship and used inferior materials. It was an unfortunate way to end a dedicated career.
When the carpenter finished his work the employer came to inspect the house. He handed the front-door key to the carpenter. "This is your house,” he said. "My gift to you."
The carpenter was shocked! What a shame! If he had only known he was building his own house, he would have done it all so differently. So it is with us. We build our lives, a day at a time, often putting less than our best into the building. Then with a shock we realize we have to live in the house we have built. If we could do it over, we'd do it much differently. But we cannot go back. What has happened has happened.
You are the architect of your own future.
You are the carpenter. Each day you hammer a nail, place a board, or erect a wall. "Life is a do-it-yourself project," someone has said, ‘Your attitudes and the choices you make today, build the "house" you live in tomorrow’.
Build wisely! Remember...
Work like you don't need the money.
Love like you've never been hurt.
Dance like nobody is watching.



An Employer's Consciousness



Little acts of kindness bring out the greatness in a little person.
A person had an extremely devoted servant. One day, a pen accidentally slipped from the hand of the servant. It fell to the ground and broke. The man got very upset and said, "See what you have done? This pen was presented to me by a dear friend."
The servant did not say anything. He went out and started to clean the hallway. He was extremely saddened about what had happened.
A little later, the man called the servant in. He held his servant's hand and said, "You serve me well with all your ability. I could not live without your help. Today, for a small mistake, I became so angry. It is silly on my part.
" The servant was dumbfounded. He could not imagine his master requesting him to forgive him. So he said, "Babu, I made a mistake. You were right in getting angry at me."
The master's eyes were filled with tears. He was moved by the good nature of his servant. With great difficulty, he said, "I will not let leave you unless you forgive me."
Such a great master was pleading his humble servant.  This made the servant's heart heavy, and he started to weep like a child. He wiped the tears from his master's eyes and said, "Babu, please do not be sorry. I forgive you."
The 'master' was no other than the first President of India, Dr. Rajendra Prasad, and the servant was Sita Ram. Needless to say, the relation between them was like a father and son. ‘To Err is human, to plead for forgiveness is divine’.



Bad Temper


      You can take a step you put, but you can never take back a word you say.  The damage is already done.
    There once was a little boy who had a bad temper. His father wanted to nip it in the bud. His father gave him a bag of nails and told him that every time he lost his temper, he must hammer a nail into the back of the fence. The first day the boy had driven 37 nails into the fence. Over the next few weeks, as he learned to control his anger, the number of nails hammered daily gradually dwindled down. He discovered it was easier to hold his temper than to drive those nails into the fence.... Finally the day came when the boy didn't lose his temper at all, he told his father about it and the father suggested that the boy now pull out one nail for each day that he was able to hold his temper.

    The days passed and the young boy was finally able to tell his father that all the nails were gone. The father took his son by the hand and led him to the fence. He said, "You have done well my son, but look at the holes in the fence. The fence will never be the same. When you say things in anger, they leave a scar just like this one. You can put a knife in a man and draw it out. It won't matter how many times you say ‘I'm sorry,’ the wound is still there." A verbal wound is worse than physical one. The physical wound may heal, but a verbal wound would never heal.  Friends are the best jewels you can ever possess since they make you smile and encourage you to succeed. They lend an ear, they share words of praise and they always want to open their hearts to us. Show your friends how much you care. ‘YOU ARE MY FRIEND AND I CARE Please forgive me if I have ever left a hole in Your fence.’



Books


No entertainment is so cheap as reading, nor any pleasure so lasting."
-- Mary Wortley Montagu
"Books are the carriers of civilization. Without books, history is silent, literature dumb, science crippled, thought and speculation at a standstill. They are engines of change, windows on the world, lighthouses erected in the sea of time."
--Barbara W. Tuchman
"A book is a garden, an orchard, a storehouse, a party, a company by the way, a counsellor, a multitude of counsellors" --Henry Ward Beecher
"Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body." -- Joseph Addison
“Reading is a basic tool in the living of a good life." -- Mortimer J. Adler
"The man who does not read good books has no advantage over the man who can't read them." --Mark Twain
"Read not to contradict and confute, nor to believe and take for granted, nor to find talk or discourse, but to weigh and consider." --Francis Bacon
When I get a little money I buy books; and if any is left, I buy food and clothes.
Desiderius Erasmus
The best effect of any book is that it excites the reader to self activity. Thomas Carlyle
Book:I s a garden carried in a pocket.  Arabian Proverb
The things I want to know are in books; my best friend is the man who'll get me a book I ain't read. Abraham Lincoln
The most technologically efficient machine that man has ever invented is the book.
Northrup Frye



Divine Music



Personal liberty and the love of work brings out the best in anyone. Tansen was a great musician in the court of Emperor Akbar in Delhi.
Akbar was charmed by his music and he said, "there is none who can equal you in music".
Tansen replied, "No my lord, there is one person"
Akbar got curious. Tansen explained, "He is no ordinary person. His name is Haridas and he is a saint. He lives in Vrindaban and he is my guru."
Akbar wanted to invite Saint Haridas to the court to listen to his singing. Tansen replied, "He will not stir out of Vrindaban. Many have tried to persuade him but failed".
Akbar said ‘I would like to listen to his music. Tansen replied, "If you are willing to come disguised as my disciple, I can take you there and I will try to make him sing when we are there"
Akbar immediately agreed. So, a disguised Akbar and Tansen left for Vrindaban. On reaching the place of the Saint Tansen and Akbar paid their respects to the Saint. The saint did not sing at all.
In the evening, Tansen started singing. While singing, he deliberately made a mistake. His trick worked immediately the Saint corrected him and to explain the correction started singing. Akbar and Tansen sat spellbound listening to his singing. It was the most divine music that Akbar had ever heard.
After sometime, the saint absorbed in meditation fell unconscious. Akbar said, "You should be blessed to have such a teacher. How does he sing so well?"
Tansen replied, "He does not sing for mere mortals like me. He sings for God. That is why his music is so good"
If you do any work in the thought of god and for god without expecting any materialistic reward it will turn out to be the ultimate work



Gautam Buddha and his Disciple
Time is the best healer for any problem.
One day Gautam Buddha asked one of his disciples to fetch water for him to drink from a nearby pool.

When the disciple reached the pool he found that water in the pool had been muddied by an elephant that had waded through. As he was going to another source of water, Gautam Buddha called him . The disciple explained that water in the pool was muddy and that he was going to another stream a little distance away.
“No need ”  said Buddha politely “ the water from the same pool will do”. The disciple went back to the pool and found that by that time the mud had settled down and that the water was then clear and sparkling.
“ Never do anything in haste ” advised Gautam Buddha when the disciple handed him the water. Action in haste and repetence in leisure is no good.

Things to Know



Many people will walk in and out of your life



But only true friends will leave footprints in your heart.
To handle yourself, use your head;
to handle others, use your heart.
Anger is only one letter short of danger.
If someone betrays once, it is his fault;
if he betrays you twice, it is your fault.
Great minds discuss ideas;
Average minds discuss events;
Small minds discuss people.
He, who loses money, loses much;
He who loses a friend, loses much more;
He who loses faith, loses all.
Beautiful young people are accidents of nature,
but beautiful old people are works of art.
Learn from the mistakes of others
you can't live long enough to make them all yourself.



Nothing is Impossible

Elders’ Voice

Nothing is impossible in the dictionary of man. Look at the word impossible critically it also conveys a secret and miraculous meaning I’m possible.
To achieve anything you require- Strong determination, perseverance and undaunted spirit. First of all we need to set our target before us. The age you are in - is right age. Suppose you dream to become computer engineers, now itself you should spend at least half an hour on computers. You should learn more about computers. You should make friendship with people, who are well versed with computers. When you are asked about ambition you should say my first ambition is to become a computer engineer, my second ambition is to become a computer engineer is computers. My Third ambition is to become a computer engineer and so on. That is the kind of determination you should have and then work towards achieving your goal. This strong zeal will lead you to your goal.
So think of your goal right Now. All the best.



Postponement



We never know what is in store for us tomorrow.
When Dharma raja was ruling over Indraprasthanagara, one day a Brahmin came to meet him. As the Brahmin was going out of the main gate, Bhimasena saw him. He saw the Brahmin while going in also but he did not talk to the Brahmin because it was usual for several people to come and seek from Dharma raja what they wanted. But this Brahmin was empty-handed and did not appear to have received anything from his elder brother.
 So Bhimasena asked him, “Sir, you are returning empty handed. Have you met my brother? Or shall I take you to him?” The Brahmin was happy at this courteous enquiry from Bhima. He replied, “Yes, I met your brother. As he did not have with him what I asked immediately now, he asked me to come tomorrow. He promised to keep it ready by tomorrow”
Bhimasena was surprised. Imagine his elder brother postponing a good deed till the next day! He thought over for a minute and smiled. He went near the big drum kept at the main gate and started beating the drum thunderously. The drum at the main gate was not usually used. It was meant for special occasions when something very important happened and all had to be immediately informed of it. When the big drum was beaten, it was a summons for all in the palace to stop doing whatever work they might be engaged in and rush to the main gate.
When the drum went on sending loud sounds played by the powerful hand of Bhimasena, Dharmaraja hurried towards the main gate from the court, Draupadi from the kitchen, Arjuna from his weapons, the twins from their studies, all people big and small gathered there. Still Bhimasena did not stop beating the drum. In great ecstasy he was playing with vigour, until Dharmaraja put a hand over his shoulders and said, “Stop it, Bhimasana. All of us are here. Now tell us why you summoned us all here.”
Bhimasena saluted his elder brother and then turned towards the others who gathered there. “I have gathered you all here to make an announcement about the greatest victory obtained by our elder brother here. The victory is so great that all of us should rejoice and celebrate it.”
Dharmaraja was surprised. What victory was Bhima talking of? Today he did not even leave the palace.  He asked in bewilderment, “What are you talking, Bhima? I did not have any victory at all.”
Bhima laughed and said, “Let me announce your victory. Hear you all, my brothers and kinsfolk; today our brother conquered the unconquerable death. Who else can have greater victory? When the Brahmin asked for some favour, our elder brother promised to keep it ready by tomorrow. Now, our brother is sure that he will be alive till tomorrow.”
As soon as he heard the words of Bhima, Dharmarja understood what his mistake was. He admitted his mistake and said, “Yes Bhima, you were correct to remind me. Postponement of good deeds is very bad. I should not have done so.”
He took the Brahmin inside and gave what all he wanted and sent him away fully satisfied.



Rain or Shine



Bad people can easily influence others, but good are no less.  They too can bring out the good in others.
There was a severe drought in a village and when an old timer predicted that the drought would continue for another three years, the farmers there lost heart and migrated to the city with their families.
One farmer however stayed behind. He did not waste a single minute He ploughed his field, sowed seeds and continued to work as if he were expecting normal rainfall.
One day, a passing cloud was surprised at his actions. Unable to contain the curiosity shouted down to him.
“Why are you working so hard? Don’t you know there won’t be rain for another three years? ”
“Oh Yes, I know that,” replied the man, but if I don’t plough and sow and do all the other things I’m used to, I might forget them for good and then I would cease to be a farmer.”
This made the cloud question itself.  It thought “ And if I don’t give rain for three years, I might forever lose the ability to do so”
It began to shed its moisture. That had put other clouds in the mood for rain too, and soon it started raining cats and dogs.
The drought was over. One man’s determination had averted a catastrophe.
Self discipline and treating work as worship brought the impossible results quite simply !





A Cracked Pot



Nobody is perfect in this imperfect world.
A water bearer in India had two large pots, each hung on each end of a pole, which he carried across his neck. One of the pots had a crack in it, and while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water at the end of the long walk from the stream to the master's house, the cracked pot arrived only half full. For a full two years this went on daily, with the bearer delivering only one and a half pots full of water in his master's house.

This made the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments,. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, After two years of what it perceived to be a bitter failure, it spoke to the water bearer one day by the stream. "I am ashamed of myself, and I want to apologize to you." "Why?" asked the bearer? "I have been able, for these past two years, to deliver only half my load because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your master's house. Because of my flaws, you have to do all of this work, and you don't get full value from your efforts," the pot said.

The water bearer felt sorry for the old cracked pot, but he simply said, ‘You just notice the flower beds on our way back. Indeed, as they went up the hill, the old cracked pot took notice of the sun warming the beautiful wild flowers on the side of the path, and this cheered it Then the bearer said to the pot, "Did you notice that there were flowers only on your side of your path, but not on the other pot's side? That's because I have always known about your flaw, and I took advantage of it. I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back from the stream, you've watered them. For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate my master's table. You have helped him doubly ! you gave him water and you beautified his house with lovely flower.






Egoistic Man





THE EGOISTIC MAN- EGO MAKES MAN BLIND

Mere prayer will not do.  We should humble ourselves before God.
Once upon a time there was a poor man. He was very pious and used to pray to God daily. He used to ask every holy man he met why God was not taking pity on him and helping him .One day a holy man took pity on him and prayed to God to make the poor man rich. God being ever merciful appeared to the Holy man and told him that even if He wanted to help the poor man it was of no use as the poor man's ego was coming in the way. But the Holy man insisted that God should give a chance to the poor man.

At last God relented and told the holy man “Well! see for yourself, I will give him a chance".

Accordingly, God made a bundle of very costly gems and put it in the path of the poor man while he was coming to pray.

On that day the poor man thought, "Well for the last forty years I have been walking the same path. So let me see if I can walk with my eyes closed".

So the poor man started walking with his eyes closed. He hit the bundle of gems which the God had kept in his way with his legs but took it to be some stones and did not open his eyes to see. So he kept walking. A trader who was coming behind saw the bundle and took it.

The poor man remained poor as before, for the simple reason he did not shed his ego.





Today





Jiddu Krishna Moorty the great philosopher of yesteryears always insists on this ideology. According to this saint the past is dead and stale. The future is unknown. Unfortunately, we always dwell in the dreams of the future or engross in memories of past. Thereby we often ignore the present.
We should always and always try to live in the present. Let ‘s live up every moment of today.  Only then, we will achieve our goals.
An economist rightly quotes - Yesterday is a cancelled cheque. Tomorrow is a promisory note. Today is ready cash.
Today ! Yes Today is the most import word for every one of us. Today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday. Today is very precious, let it not fade into tomorrow wastefully. If  you take care of today, a golden tomorrow awaits you.







Om Tat Sat
                                                        
(Continued...)       





 (My humble salutations to  Hinduism com  for the collection)
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