Guest guest Posted October 28, 1999 Report Share Posted October 28, 1999 Namaste Jairam, It has been a while since we " met. " Re your questions regarding monk, cow, and butcher...... Firstly, because no monk need be present for the butcher to guess which way the cow went, I do not believe that the monk is involved in the butcher's guessing correctly. Secondly, you present three potentially contradictory situations: 1. The monk's commitment to truth 2. The value of protecting the cow 3. The butcher's need to make a living. Has not the monk reconciled all of these by the twin action of acknowledging to the butcher that he knows which way the cow went, but refuses to tell him? Simple truth would say, " Yes, the cow went that way. " The monk does not lie, nor does he simply tell the truth. Rather he takes the action to protect the cow which is within his power. He does this boldly by stating that he knows, but will not tell! We are seldom so brave or bold! At the same time, the future is free to play out as it is meant to. The monk has taking a firm stand in principle without the folly of trying to control the outcome. Should the butcher become angry and beat him, the monk will stand firm accepting the beating as God's will.. Likewise, should the butcher run off after the cow, this too is God's will. Is this sitting on the fence? I think we let our attachment to outcome blind us to effective action. We decide HOW a situation MUST play out, and become determined to MAKE this happen whether we have the ability to do so or not. As a result we often sacrifice our principles and integrity in the process. We become weak and ineffective by not recognizing the source of the power within our reach. And we bring in awareness of conflict, rather than leaving/trusting the outcome to unfold as the Divine or Nature wills. If by chance the monk IS to save the cow, what is more be powerful than to stand before the butcher and declare, " Yes, I know where the cow is, but I will tell you. " Sincerely, Jayanti > " JAIRAM SESHADRI " <seshadri > >Dear Dr. Shah.. > >thank you Sir for your appreciation of my encounters with the birds >and the mice..but after reading the encounter with spiders and the >Lord Shiva's Vasuki mine are dwarfed... but thank you again. > >in reference to your posting on the reply that the Ramakrishna monk >made...what if the butcher had guessed the right way and thereby >killed the cow,,, would not the monk lament the cruel killing... in >this very life...? >Is this answer not adopting the attitude of " sitting on the fence " >for he is telling the truth( and thereby ensuring that he is not >damned and at the same time he does not venture to save the cow in a >proactive manner, nor for that matter does he go out on a limb to >satisfy the needs of the butcher..which are very legitimate needs as >well.) > >i am sorry if i sound as if i am beating this (cow) to death in the >process...forgive me...but i for one, have always been reticent to >question a Ramakrishna monk directly in what might seem a >confrontatational manner. I do not mean this to be at all, but >questions such as these are often construed as being >confrontational,,,when they are not in the least...They are merely >sincere questions that are searching for the Truth.. > >and i am sure you will only take it in that vein Sir. > >respectful pranaams to you >jairam > >> The monk, the butcher and the cow! >> >> Dear friends, >> Remember our story about truthfulness? >> The answer I got from one swami of Ramakrishna Order is as follows: >> >> " The monk should say to the butcher that he knows in what direction the >> cow has gone. But he would not tell it to him. " >> >> The monk is ready to face the consequences for this answer. >> >> dr c s s > >>Sri Ramakrishnaye Namah >Vivekananda Centre London >http://www.btinternet.com/~vivekananda/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 29, 1999 Report Share Posted October 29, 1999 > Jayanti <jayanti > > Namaste Jairam, > > It has been a while since we " met. " > > Re your questions regarding monk, cow, and butcher...... > > Firstly, because no monk need be present for the butcher to guess > which way the cow went, I do not believe that the monk is involved in > the butcher's guessing correctly. This is true. > Secondly, you present three potentially contradictory situations: > 1. The monk's commitment to truth > 2. The value of protecting the cow > 3. The butcher's need to make a living. > > Has not the monk reconciled all of these by the twin action of > acknowledging to the butcher that he knows which way the cow went, > but refuses to tell him? > > Simple truth would say, " Yes, the cow went that way. " The monk does > not lie, nor does he simply tell the truth. Rather he takes the > action to protect the cow which is within his power. He does this > boldly by stating that he knows, but will not tell! We are seldom so > brave or bold! > At the same time, the future is free to play out as it is meant to. > The monk has taking a firm stand in principle without the folly of > trying to control the outcome. Should the butcher become angry and > beat him, the monk will stand firm accepting the beating as God's > will.. Likewise, should the butcher run off after the cow, this too > is God's will. I fully agree with your point that all our decisions are evaluated based on the future outcomes, rather than the circumstances during which the decision is made. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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