________________
KIDS
Mango Magic (Preparing for the next tasty slice)
by Narendra Shak
By now you must all know about TTM Tasting The Mango Convention of 2002), where several tools were mentioned to help us grow spiritually. 2004 sees the next slice of
the mango and we are re-visiting the Mango Magic page so we can prepare to be most receptive to its offerings. One tool is Vinay, humility, which helps us overcome our ego and a sense of superiority and self-importance. This enables us to be receptive to new learnings.
The story below illustrates this very well.
KORNER
In Rajgir, under King Shrenik's rule, there lived la Chandar whose wife was expecting a baby. One day she had a desire to eat a mango. So she asked Chandar to get some mangoes. But he said, "I can't do that as the season is finished. Otherwise I would get the mangoes from any mango tree by using my special power to bend the branches without touching the tree". His wife told him that there was a mango tree in King Shrenik's orchard which gave fruit even out of season. So he went to the orchard and stealthily used a spell to bend the branches over the fence, picked a mango and then with another spell bent the branch back. In this way he began plucking a mango everyday and walked away carefully so no one would see him. The gardener, having noticed the disappearance of the mangoes, informed the King's advisor and wise-man, Abhay Kumar. So one day Abhay Kumar decided to hide in the orchard and when Chandar came to pluck the mango, he caught him. He took Chandar to the King and explained the theft. When Chandar asked for forgiveness, King Shrenik said he would pardon Chandar if he taught him the special spell. Chandar agreed to do so and sat down in front of the King, who was seated on his high throne, and
started teaching the King. After the lesson when King Shrenik tried to bend the branch of the tree, the spell did not work! Since Abhay Kumar had
seen Chandar bend the branch without
touching it he knew that
Chandar was not lying. After thinking for a while, he asked the King to step down from his high and mighty throne, sit where Chandar was sitting
and let Chandar sit high above him. He then asked them to begin the lesson again. The King agreed and after the lesson when he tried to bend the branch of the tree, it bent! The spell worked! So when the King displayed
humility and stepped down to
Chandar's level he was able to attainthe special power. Even though Shrenik held a high post, that of a a king, he was humble enough to show respect to someone who was more knowledgeable then him. In one of the scriptures, Uttaradhyayan Sutra, vinay is even described as the root of spirituality. Vinay is not just showing humility when one wants something, but it translates to showing respect to others, be they elders, teachers, people who may have helped you in the past and even strangers.
What A La
Did You Know
QL
ol
Hosing the car for 10 minutes uses almost 100 litres of water. Washing it with a bucket uses much
less water.
Patient: I'm not well, Doctor. Doctor: What seems to be the trouble? Patient: I work like a horse, eat like a bird and I'm as tired as a dog.
14075op e jou 'han e as on 14no nok ! aw on spunos:1000
Skids Korner
Jain Education International
For Person 13Private Use Only
www.jainelibrary.org
