By Paulo Coelho
There is a German folk tale about a man who woke up to find that his axe had disappeared. Furious and convinced that his neighbour had stolen it, he spent the rest of the day observing him.
He saw that he acted like a thief, that he had a thief’s furtive way of walking and that he spoke in whispers like a thief trying to conceal his crime. He was so sure that his suspicions were correct that he decided to go back into the house, change his clothes and go straight down to the police station.
As soon as he went indoors, however, he found his axe, which his wife had moved from its usual place. The man went outside again and again studied his neighbour, and he saw that he walked, spoke and behaved just like any other honest man.
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{ 17 comments… read them below or add one }
Dearest Paulo,
This story holds alot of truth. It is so often one's perception of someone is clouded by their own idea of that someone. One should not assume, judge others and think that they know who they are. There is good and bad in everybody, and its what you choose to focus on in them is what creates your perception of them. Its so often when we lose things, are so ready to jump to the conclusion that someone stole it, when its often just misplaced. It just shows the manner at which most of think, so ready to condem our neighbours, than rather looking for other explanations. One should try to have some faith in people at times. And one should not assume, or judge others, for they do not truely know who they are, and they have not lived in their shoes. Absolutely lovely story Paulo. Mwah. Love you like always.
Thank you for being.
Yajna
yeah right
Taika
My thoughts exactly
I asked he whom I gave as wise;
what does deja`vous (dodgy spelling, sorry) mean?
He said
its’ meaning I do not know – but it is only as important as you make it.
I took this to heart
and along the way I decided that many things we can make important
like the smile we choose or not to give to a stranger
Everything in my life now is important
because I used to be afraid of missing the point
now I make a point of looking at the details, unafraid…
though I still sometimes feel the need of a microscope, hehe.
If I don’t know the answer, – Badri
I make it up, HA!
Because
my beautiful child at the age of seven, told her disappointed friend, quote;
I find that what you (I) expect to happen, generally does happen.
THAT is Faith
That is belief, and you have to believe in yourself.
as Paulo said once, not quite quote (sorry, sir);
If you have a past of which you are ashamed
invent a story for the future, to be proud of.
or something like that.
It’s all the same to me.
LOVE to all.
I hope the Presidents of Iran and America read this tale….Ciao
ps – Happy Ramadan to you all
Neither the event, nor the happening…but the look we ADD to it!
It seems to me that in the end, and at every moment, we are the “givers of meaning”. That’s our ultimate freedom in motion!
Tanks for remembering me.
Love
Taíka
We see what we “want” to see…
(or fear to see)
like when learning to drive a car
and the instructor say “don’t hit the pole”
I look at the pole and hit it.
All about focuse.
Badri,
you’ve asked a number of questions, which i feel you already know the answer to. No one can tell you who or what you truely love, only you can discover that, and its the journey through self growth that will help you find out what it is you truely love to you. You asked why there is such a thing as boredom, etc, and i think to an extent its the frame of mind your in. You choose to be bored, you can get up and do something. Anything, just walk down the street and smile at people. And hey, might just discover you hate walking or you love it. I know that alot of times in life, things are scary, and other people will always judge you. But you can not live your life based on what others think you should be. You’l never truely find out who you are that way, and you’l never experience life to the full extent. Never let fear prevent you from getting something you want. Yes, life can be terrifying, and sometimes you just wanna stay inside and be safe, but you can’t live a life of fear, because you might hurt in the future, or because something can go wrong. Have some courage, because i know you do, every single one of us has incredible inner strength that they just need to realise. Go out into the world, screw fear and anything else that steps in your way, grow as a person and find what you love. You have the strength, just have some faith in yourself.
lots of love,
Yajna
In hinduism the world is called “maya’ illusionary.
Not that the physical world is not there, but we perceive it as per our own prejudices, we ‘see’ what we want to ‘see. To see reality as it is —hmmmmmmm..
aditya
Hi badri
u have said “….I knwo that I need to change but why do I dont?
….”,
accept it ferind u don’t really seem convinced that u need to change ( the cocoon is too comforting ?!!! ). If u really knew u won’t be asking, if u feel the heat of fire on your skin u don’t ask anyone how tos, you just pull away instictively.
these r mind games freind. know u’r self as the boss of your mind, accept the truth if u don’t really know. once a problem is acknowledged maybe something can be done about it.
aditya
very true..
very nice…and very true
the german guy has changed his point of view when he found that axe.everything changes.i just hope he has learned his lesson.the suspicion sleeps in every one.some people with bad experience just suspect that bad is after them,they can not understand-it is possible to control it and let it go(away…).interesting.;)
It’s so difficult no to judge people. It’s an excercise that cn be achieved with the most of the mind control you can have. My fanther says, that an aunt of him usually said, “if you think bad, you will guess right”. Confidence on peopelo is so low. What can we do about it?
Dearest Paulo,
This story holds alot of truth. It is so often one’s perception of someone is clouded by their own idea of that someone. One should not assume, judge others and think that they know who they are. There is good and bad in everybody, and its what you choose to focus on in them is what creates your perception of them. Its so often when we lose things, are so ready to jump to the conclusion that someone stole it, when its often just misplaced. It just shows the manner at which most of think, so ready to condem our neighbours, than rather looking for other explanations. One should try to have some faith in people at times. And one should not assume, or judge others, for they do not truely know who they are, and they have not lived in their shoes. Absolutely lovely story Paulo. Mwah. Love you like always.
Thank you for being.
Yajna
Don’t we do the same Mr.Paulo?. but let me say that sometimes we go and kill our neighbor
an aha experience for me. reflects that man is the world and every body is one. it also shows that love is seeing the other in urself.
Question: How do I find what I truly love to do? and How can I be free from this mental torture of judgment/anger/laziness?
Questions for Paul:
Please comment in my website blog on some of my articles:
http://badri-inwardflowering.blogspot.com/
Paul:
How can I find out what I truly love to do?How can I be free from fear and opinions of others? how do I gather the strength for it?Why am I just going through the motions in life without passion? I knwo that I need to change but why do I dont?
Would man be free from suffering if he is free from thinking? why cant I(humanity) live peacefully with one another or with oneself. Why is there this boredom/anxiety/laziness/ and why would not man come out of it?
I was once blessed with the label ‘paranoid schizophrenic’ and can relate to this totally.
Thank you
LOVE