This is one of the greatest stories I've read in my life. I hope, this small yet powerful story adds new dimensions & perpectives to your lives, leading to a more fulfilling & enriching experience of life.
A group of alumni, highly established in their careers, got together to visit their old university professor. The conversation soon turned into complaints about stress in work and life. Offering his guests coffee, the professor went to the kitchen and returned with a large pot of coffee and an assortment of cups - porcelain, plastic, glass, crystal, some plain-looking, some expensive, and some exquisite - telling them to help themselves to the coffee.
After all the students had a cup of coffee in hand, the professor said: "If you noticed, all the nice looking expensive cups were taken up, leaving behind the plain and cheap ones. While it is but normal for you to want only the best for yourselves, that is the source of your problems and stress. Be assured that the cup itself adds no quality to the coffee. In most cases, it's just more expensive and in some cases even hides what we drink. What all of you really wanted was coffee, not the cup, but you consciously went for the best cups and then began eyeing each other's cups."Now consider this: Life is the coffee, and the jobs, houses, cars, all material things, money, and position in society are the cups. They are just tools to hold and contain life, and the type of cup we have does not define nor change the quality of life we live. Sometimes, by concentrating only on the cup, we fail to enjoy the coffee.Enjoy your coffee. Being happy doesn't mean everything's perfect. It means you've decided to see beyond the imperfections.
Isn't it so obvious that all that's needed in life is good coffee? Still, we hanker after the coffee container & not the coffee itself. This is exactly what's called MAAYA in the Indian Philosophy. Somewhat similar logic is used in Indian Philosophy to teach the Truth about the Atman or the Self. We get so easily fooled by the coffee container, whereas in reality, all that we've been truly wanting deep within our hearts is a "good coffee", without even an iota of realisation of what we've been wanting truly. This is exactly what's called ignorance. Ignorance is no more the lack of education or the lack of knowledge as a consequence. Ignorance is the lack of awareness about "essentials of a fulfilling & enriching life".
Alas!!! we have neither the patience nor the perseverance to introspect deeply & prioritise - HOW AM I GOING TO ENRICH MY LIFE EXPERIENCE? In fact, in my opinion, life is fair to one & all. Whereas we indulge in giving long discourses & scripting mammoth Constitutions to define equity & how it should be discharged in our society, life silently discharges everything equitably, relentlessly, without any prejudice or judgement, but purely based on ones own Karma (as we sow, so shall we reap). It is we (each one of us), who are judgemental, prejudiced, define inequity, persecute, & make a mess of an otherwise beautiful life. At the end of the day, it is EACH ONE OF OUR CHOICE...to make life beautiful or not...to enjoy the lovely coffee or just end up admiring the container...Hope, we are all blessed with the wisdom to make the right choices for the right reasons in our lives, so that we can live a contented, meaningful, fulfilling, & enriching life.
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