Sanjay

Early one morning King Birbhadra went out hunting. While he was returning to his palace he felt very tired, hungry and thirsty. Suddenly by the roadside he saw a field of watermelons. What else could be more desirable to a thirsty person? Be ordered his attendants to bring some good watermelons. While they were proceeding […]

the wise old owl

A large group of owls came to settle in a jungle. The jungle was full of green and lively trees. They were free to pick a tree of their choice to build their homes. The young owls chose a green and well-built tree for themselves. There was an old owl in their group, who was […]

woo-hoo what a ride

Ben Franklin said: “In wine there is wisdom, in beer there is freedom, in water there is bacteria”. In a number of carefully controlled trials, scientists have demonstrated that if we drink 1 liter of water each day, at the end of the year we would have absorbed more than 1 kilo of Escherichia coli, […]

coming full circle

When a novice starts learning martial arts, he wears a white belt, symbolic of innocence. After months of practice, the white belt gets dirty and turns brown, symbolic of the first degree of attainment. After more practice, the belt gets soiled and eventually turns black, symbolic of full attainment. If the practitioner does not stop […]

zen-women

When the nun Chiyono studied Zen under Bukko of Engaku she was unable to attain the fruits of meditation for a long time. At last one moonlit night she was carrying water in an old pail bound with bamboo. The bamboo broke and the bottom fell out of the pail, and at that moment Chiyono […]

eye for an eye

  Fran the Frog was the best chef in the whole swamp, and all the toads and frogs of the region enjoyed coming to her very select restaurant. Her ‘Flies in spicy bug sauce’ and her ‘Caramelised dragon flies wings with honey of bee’ were the kind of delicacies that every self-respecting frog should try; […]

the birdcage

A man was on the side of the road with a large birdcage. A boy noticed that the cage was full of birds of many kinds. “Where did you get those birds?” he asked. “Oh, all over the place,” the man replied. “I lure them with crumbs, pretend I’m their friend then when they are […]

the power of words

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A Thousand Words Last night, the wife, my little 9 year old daughter and I watched the movie, “A Thousand Words.” I was taken by the movie’s ‘zen’ appeal and of course ‘Eddie Murphy’s’ comic charm. Even my lil girl laughed and loved the movie that was charming and filled with a wonderful message of, “the […]

What’s important to you?

A Native American and his friend were in downtown New York City, walking near Times Square in Manhattan.  It was during the noon lunch hour and the streets were filled with people.  Cars were honking their horns, taxicabs were squealing around corners, sirens were blaring, and the sounds of the city were almost deafening. Suddenly, the […]

handsome is as handsome does

Handsome is as handsome does Every morning, before leaving his home, the great philosopher Socrates used to stand in front of a mirror and gaze attentively at his reflection for several minutes.   One day, a disciple came upon him doing this, and was unable to suppress a smile at the sight of his master […]