What will people say?

A monk was sitting by the sea on a rock. He had been up all night cleaning the monastery. He was tired. He decided to take a nap. He lay down on a large stone, pushing a smaller stone under his neck, making a stony pillow.

Two old ladies came by, saw the monk lying down and commented, "He is a monk, but look at the clever bedspread he has made for himself," they mocked.

The monk was embarrassed. He quickly slid off the stone from under his neck.?

"Look, now he is pretending he doesn't need comfort," One old lady chuckled.

The monk was perplexed. He got up from the stone and lay on the sand under a palm tree. As soon as he closed his eyes, he heard a man saying, "Are monks lazy too? He's sleeping in the daytime," He said. "He seemed to have had a loooong night," His friend added snidely.

The monk was disturbed. He sat up, leaned against the palm tree, closed his eyes and began to meditate.

"Why is the monk here? Shouldn't he be in the monastery?" A young fellow said. "Will he scold me for drinking beer?"

The monk had reached his wit's end. He got up and quietly headed for the monastery.

"Thank god we have a space for peace here in the monastery. The world outside is a chaotic mess," The monk told the master.

"From now, you will only meditate outside the monastery," the master said.

"It's impossible, master," the monk pleaded.

"Meditation in isolation is only a step for you to understand peace of mind. To retain and become it, you must be out in the world, allowing people their confusion and criticism without being affected. Your peace is not inspiring them to participate in your world; they are still confused and take a stand for their harsh ways. Why are you participating in their disturbance and letting go of your calmness?

"Go back. Meditate outside the monastery till you find peace within." The master instructed.

The monk returned to the rock by the sea, sat on it and began to meditate. People came, and people went. They commented, they sniggered, they retreated, they judged, they admired, they mocked, they hollered, they took his blessings, they laughed—the monk heard nothing. He meditated. Opened his eyes, expressed his gratitude for the space he had, and walked back to the monastery.

"Did the world outside disturb you?" The master asked.

"I didn't notice, master," the monk said, "my attention was on my world inside, in peace," the monk said.

"Welcome back," the master said.

~ author unknown

My lessons:

1. What people say about you is a reflection of who "they" are.
2. If you keep listening to people, you will never be able to get anything done, let alone be yourself.
3. If your work and presence do not concern them, their comments should not concern you.

Rooting for your success,

Priya Kumar

Email: [email protected]