OH, MIND RELAX PLEASE !

A fisherman went to sell fish in a crowded market.  He was going to this market the first time.  He chose a place by the side of a compound wall.  He put up a board that read “Fresh Fish Sold Here”.  Standing back, he viewed his own handiwork, checked if everything was okay.  He read what he wrote once again.

Now, he thought to himself, “Would any one sell stale fish? Then why should I use the word ‘fresh’?’   He erased the word ‘fresh.’

The board read ‘Fish Sold Here.’ When he saw the signboard again, he wondered, “Have I brought the fish to donate it? It is well understood that I am going to sell it”, so he erased ‘sold’ too. Now the signboard read, ‘Fish Here.’  Looking intently at the signboard, he began to laugh. It was obvious that the fish was here and not somewhere else! So why the word ‘here’?’ And he removed that word also.

Now all that remained on the signboard was the word ‘Fish.’ The man took one last look at  the signboard and thought, “Anyone who comes to the market can identify this pace by the very smell of fresh fish. As soon as they see the fish, they will recognize it. There is no doubt about that.  Then why use that word? He erased the word ‘Fish’. Now the signboard was blank and empty!

All our problems are like the signboard of the fisherman. Once we learn to view the problems in the right perspective, our problems too will disappear. But the saddest part is that most of us do not even know how to view things!

The word for philosophy in Sanskrit, ‘darshan’, literally means vision. It means ‘seeing.’ What are the things necessary for seeing? Is it enough to have eyes? “No, eyes alone are not enough, one must have awareness”, says Lord Krishna.

Only when we have awareness shall we know how to discern differences between things, people and ourselves.

‘How many houses do you own? What is the market value? Which car do you use?’

We ask such questions while we talk about material objects/things. Things must be viewed mathematically. Things must be viewed as tools and used as tools!

Next, how do we see human beings? One cannot measure human beings with the same yardstick that we use for things. “Affectionate father, loving mother, dear sister, and grateful friend” We use attributes such as these to characterize people; we use yardsticks like love, affection and relationship.

But in reality, what do we do?