There are countless stories and parables that have been passed down through generations, offering insights into the human condition and the nature of existence. These narratives, whether rooted in ancient wisdom or modern musings, serve as a mirror to our own lives, urging us to reflect, learn, and grow. These is a small collection that I personally resonate with.  

Here are a couple of stories that I have collected that I think illustrate timeless wisdom. 

Ajahn Chah on Attachment to Things  

Look at this cup, do you see the crack in it? No? Well the crack is already there. One day, someone may drop this cup or it will degrade in some other way and the crack will appear. It is the cup’s destiny. 

Ajahn Chah on Holding On 

While walking, Ajhan Chah picks up a large stick and asks his students how heavy it is. As they come up with estimations, he smiles and throws the stick away. “A stick is only heavy if you carry it”. 

(Source Unknown) Good, bad, Who Knows? 

A king was out hunting, his favorite past-time. The best doctor in the kingdom, was obliged to follow the king everywhere, and soon his services were needed as the king cut his finger on a sharp rock. 

As the doctor bandaged up the cut, the king asked, “Is it bad?”. The doctor replied, “Good, bad, who knows?” 

A week later the finger was now infected, and the feverish king was being treated with some medicine that the doctor was administering. As the doctor finished feeding the king, the king asked, “Is it bad?”. The doctor replied, “Good, bad, who knows?” 

A month later, the finger needed to be amputated. The king lost complete confidence in his doctor, and after the finger was chopped off, locked the doctor up in the dungeon. 

Soon he recovered and was back hunting, when he was captured by tribe of people who lived deep in the forest. As he struggled against them, he realized that they were looking for a human sacrifice for their animal gods. As they lay him on the stone and a large knife was raised above his heart, they suddenly stopped. A huge argument erupted amongst them that his hand only had 4 fingers, which did not make a good sacrifice. 


They let him go and he rushed back to the kingdom, and released the doctor and recounted the story with his gratitude to the doctor. He now understood the meaning of “Good, bad, who knows?”. The doctor replied, “I think I understand it more deeply, if you had not imprisoned me, I would have been out on the hunt with you, with my five fingers”.

(Source Unknown) Another Way of Looking At It 

In the early 70’s air travel was no where as near as reliable as today. Planes frequently broke down, flights were delayed and worse. A businessman in New Delhi, who had just completed a successful trip in the Indian capital was tired and heading home. He booked a local taxi driver to come very early to give himself plenty of time to relax and rest before his flight. 

The elderly taxi driver, unfamiliar with the route, got them lost. By the time they neared the airport, the businessman was praying for a flight delay and furious at the driver. As they approached, he saw his plane taking off, only to witness it explode in mid air.

He profusely apologized to his driver, and gave him all the money he had earned on the trip. He had saved his life after all. 

(Source Unknown) That Should Make it Easier 

A good nun lived a simple life in her cave. Her only challenge was that once a week for a few minutes she had to patch up holes in her robe, that some mice nibbled at. 

One day, she passed by a house in the village whose cat had kittens. She asked for one which the villager happily gave, and she took care of it as it grew up and of course, the mice vanished. 

However, this particular cat drank quite a bit of milk, so much so that every day, she had to go to the local farmer to get milk for the cat. She decided to ask the farmer for a cow to take back to the mountain cave, so she would not have to bother him. He reluctantly gave her the cow. 

She did not consider that the cow needed to eat a lot of grass, so now twice a day she had to find safe and good pasture for the cow to feed on. She asked the village headman to spare her a young Shepard to help her take care of the cow. The headman said, this is the last thing we will give you, and assigned a young boy to look after the cow. 


This boy had an appetite that was larger than the cow, and now for three meals a day, she needed to find food for the boy. When she walked to the village now, the villagers would run away afraid of what she would ask from them. 

She came to her senses and gave everything back, and resumed sewing her robes once a week. 

(Source Unknown) Trapped while Holding On

In ancient times, to capture a monkey only required a coconut and a banana. A person would simply cut a small hole in the coconut, drink the water and have some of the flesh and he would put a banana back into the coconut. 

A monkey would come by and smell the sweet banana. Reaching in it would be elated as it realized that there was a banana inside. As long as the hole was smaller than a monkey’s fist, it would be trapped. It would struggle for hours until the person came back and screaming it the person it would not let go. It is almost as if it wanted to shout “THIS IS MY BANANA!”. It would be easy to capture at that point. 

Human beings are like monkeys when it comes to being attached to things. This is how we get trapped too. 

(Jetsuma Tenzin Palmo) Where Do You Live?

If I ask you: “Where do you live?”

You might say:” My country is … , and then give me your address”

We clean up and decorate our homes and we think... this is where I live. 

Or maybe it is our body – we shower, work-out, beautify ourselves. 

But it will age, fade away, and get sick. 

The body is just a temporary guesthouse for the mind

How much time to we give to clean up and adorn our mind? 

t is hard for wisdom to be invited to our heart-mind if it is filthy, dirty, dusty. 

We have to create a mind that is clean, clear, and beautiful.

Swami Sarvapriyananda - Grains of Sand 

A man walks along a beach, and he categorizes every grain of sand. “You are good, you are not good…” On and on he goes until he dies. In his life, he missed the beauty of the beach and the ocean. How much of our lives to we miss by our habit of good and bad?

Lama Osel

Don’t judge a monkey by swim, or a fish by how it climbs.
In hot water, potatoes get soft, while eggs become hard.