Daily Meditation: Saturday, December 12, 2009

The story goes that three yogis who were seeking perfection …

12/12/2009

The story goes that three yogis who were seeking perfection had gone to meditate in the forest. A man who was passing by, finding the first yogi in his path, hit him. The yogi stood up and hit him back twice! Perfection was still a long way off for that one, and we’re not told whether he returned to his meditation. Continuing on his way, the man met the second yogi and hit him too. This yogi got up to hit him back but suddenly checked himself and sat down again. He, at least, had learned mastery over himself! As for the third yogi, he received the blow without even noticing and continued to meditate peacefully. The lesson is easy to draw: the first yogi still belonged to the category of ordinary human beings who say they’re retaliating because it’s only fair but, unfortunately, get carried away to the point of being unfair themselves. The second was one of those people who have learned to control themselves, because they have reflected on the consequences of their actions; they tell themselves, ‘It’s not worth it, it’ll only create more confusion.’ As for the third one, he was already so advanced that he didn’t even feel the blow.