FW: Basket full of water - Bhagavad Gita

[Guest guest]

Namaste:

 

I have received an email with this message from a friend and the

author of this story is unknown. The punch-line of this story comes

at the end. This is a typical Hindu way of communicating powerful

message through story (great oral tradition) by the elders to the

young generation,

 

Enjoy!

 

Ram Chandran

 

=======================

An old Farmer lived on a farm in the mountains with his young

grandson. Each morning Grandpa was up early sitting at the kitchen

table reading his Bhagavad Gita. His grandson wanted to be just like

him and tried to imitate him in every way he could.

 

One day the grandson asked, " Grandpa! I try to read the Bhagavad Gita

just like you but I don't understand it, and what I do understand I

forget as soon as I close the book. What good does reading the

Bhagavad Gita do? "

 

The Grandfather quietly turned from putting coal in the stove and

replied, " Take this coal basket down to the river and bring me back a

basket of water. "

 

The boy did as he was told, but all the water leaked out before he

got back to the house. The grandfather laughed and said, " You'll have

to move a little faster next time, " and sent him back to the river

with the basket to try again.

 

This time the boy ran faster, but again the basket was empty before

he returned home. Out of breath, he told his grandfather that it was

impossible to carry water in a basket, and he went to get a bucket

instead. The old man said, " I don't want a bucket of water; I want a

basket of water. You're just not trying hard enough, " and he went out

the door to watch the boy try again.

 

At this point, the boy knew it was impossible, but he wanted to show

his grandfather that even if he ran as fast as he could, the water

would leak out before he got back to the house.

 

The boy again dipped the basket into river and ran hard, but when he

reached his grandfather the basket was again empty. Out of breath,

he said, " See Grandpa, it's useless! " >

 

" So you think it is useless? " The old man said, " Look at the basket. "

 

The boy looked at the basket and for the first time realized that the

basket was different. It had been transformed from a dirty old coal

basket and was now clean, inside and out.

 

" Son, that's what happens when you read the Bhagavad Gita. You might

not understand or remember everything, but when you read it, you

will be changed, inside and out. That is the work of Krishna in our

lives "

[Guest guest]

Hare Krishna, NamakArams

 

advaitin , " Ram Chandran " <ramvchandran wrote:

 

> " Son, that's what happens when you read the Bhagavad Gita. You might

> not understand or remember everything, but when you read it, you

> will be changed, inside and out. That is the work of Krishna in our

> lives "

>

 

it is very true.in my personal life it has been so.depressed with out

a job for close to two years in the later part of sixties i just

hapenned to read Gita by ChitbhavAnandA from first page to last in one

stretch.all that i know at that time was an inexplainable peace

descending on me.that made me read it whenever i was down in my

spirits. Slokas like " yo mam pasyathi " , " anthakale cha mameva " and

" ananya chinthayantho " got embeded in me all these years. later only

in 92 to 95 i understood the essence of gita through my guru Swami

ParamArthAnandA .after that i have read quite a few versions of Gita

and even edited and redrafted from them for my own use some three

times.that was the foundation to my being an advaitin and lead my life

to the best of my ability the Gita way.

 

Baskaran