Two Monks on a Journey
It is some time since I posted a blog. I had done so every day for a number of years and had many very encouraging comments made about how my blogs had helped. I began to think it was time to return. Having done so I intend to change the format slightly. Some days I may include a painting . I may instead introduce the blog with a poem and say something about it.
Yesterday I was reading some of the old Chinese TalesI have always found very interesting. The one about the two monks was one that I used in sermons when I was a minister. Yesterday I composed a poem of the tale.
The Burden of the Mind.
Two monks, in silence, tread the way,
Beneath the suns warm, golden ray.
Under a tree they found cool shade, and rest,
Their journey calm, their hearts at best.
Then rain descended, fierce and fast,
The path grew slick, the dry spell passed,
A pool of mud blocked their advance,
Where stood a girl, in tearful trance.
Her dress was fine, her heart distressed,
For muddy waters marred her quest.
“My friends to celebrate,” she cried,
But mire will stain my joy and pride,”
One monk, with grace, stepped in the flood,
His robes now soaked in clay and mud.
He bore her through to cleaner air,
The two pressed on, no words were said,
Yet thoughts grew heavy in one’s head,
At last, with anger, he broke free:
“You touched a woman, how could it be?”
The first monk smiled, his eyes serene,
“I left her there, where mud had been.
Her weight was light, a fleeting load,
Why carry her with you along this road?”
This tale and I hope the poem, attempts to diverse us of the habit we often have of carrying things around with us , filling our heads with doubts and worries. Here one of the monks does just that, carrying in his mind for most of the day something that made him uncomfortable and full of doubts about his fellow traveller.
It spoiled the rest of their journey that day and had the other monk not helped him let go of his concerns and worries may have festered in his mind for much longer. Such actions can spoil more than a moment but longer into the future and spoil friendships and peace of mind.
How often in life we lay our burdens down and enjoy something that makes us forget only to pick up our burdens again and the cycle of disturbance continues. How many burdens are you carrying? How and when will you let them go and enjoy life to the full again?
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