The Young Man and the Sage

Hello, everyone.

    Today I am going to tell you a story of a young man and a sage. This young man loved to complain about everything. Then the sage taught him a lesson he never forgot in his life.

    Read on and find out how.

The Young Man and the Sage

    Once there was a young man in who loved to complain about everything. If anybody did anything to him he would start complaining that that person had done him a big wrong. Everybody got tired of his whining. Nobody was ready to listen to him anymore.

    One day he decided he would go and tell all his woos to the sage who was living in the forest. He was sure to listen to him and show him a way to punish the people who were always doing wrong to him. So the very next day he sat out to go to this sage who lived in the forest. He had to walk for a whole day to reach him. When he finally did reach him he was so tired that he did not even have the strength to talk to him. The sage just welcomed him and gave him whatever food and water he had and laid down a mat on the floor for him sleep on it. Now this young man was not used to sleeping on the floor and he found that he had something else to complain about. Anyway, he was so tired that he went to sleep immediately as soon as his head hit the mat.

    The next day, this when this young man woke up the sage was nowhere to be seen. He was hungry. He wanted something to eat so started to complain about it in his head. What a negligent man! How could he leave his guest and go away like that? As he was complaining to himself he saw the sage coming with some fruits in his arms. When he came near, he greeted the young man with love and kindness. Then he gave him half the fruits he had collected from the forest and he took the other half. When the meal was over the sage asked the young man why he had come to see him?

    “Well, you see, it’s like this,” the young man began and started to recite all the wrongs that had been done to him.

    The old sage listened intently and nodded his head. Then asked the young man what he wanted him to do? The young man replied that he wanted to revenge those people.

    The old sage looked at him for a while and then nodded his head.

    “If I tell you to do something will you do it?” he asked the young man.

    “Yes, I will do it, Sir,” he replied, confidently.

    “It is not an easy task,” the sage said and asked,  “Will you really be able to do it?”

    “Yes, Sir,” he said, again, “I will do it.”

     “Alright then,” the sage said, “take a sack and put a potato for every wrong that someone has done to you. Then you carry that sack around wherever you go for a whole week. Do not put it down for a second no matter what. Just carry it around with you. After one week you come to see me. Then I will tell you what to do.”

    So the young man went home joyfully that he would be able to get even with people who had done wrong to him. He will show them all. So, he took a sack and put a potato for every wrong done to him. The sack became heavy but he was not concerned about that. When he had finished he carried it around with him wherever he went. After a few days the potatoes started to rot and a very bad smell began to come from the sack. The young could not put the sack down even for a second as he had promised the old sage he would carry it around no matter what. People began to avoid him and changed paths as soon as they saw him.

    Now the young man got really tired of carrying all those rotten potatoes. He wished he hadn’t promised the old sage. He wished he hadn’t put so many potatoes in the sack. He had no peace now. He could not sleep well, he could not eat well and worse he could not get rid of the smell because it was in the sack and the sack was on his shoulder.

    After what seemed like forever the week passed and he went to see the sage.

    Just as before the old sage welcomed him and told him to put the sack of rotten potatoes down which the young man did thankfully.

    As before he was given a mat to sleep on the floor, but today he had nothing to complain about as for the first time in days he could sleep without the big burden.

   The next day as before the sage brought him a breakfast of fruits. After breakfast the sage asked him a question.

    “How did you like carrying all that burden?” he asked the young man looking at him in the eyes.

    “I could not eat, I could not sleep and I could not do anything,” he said.

    “Do you want to know why I gave you to carry that burden?” he asked the young man.

    “No, Sir,” replied the young man, looking at the sage expectantly.

    “It was not to get revenge on those people who had wronged you but to teach you a lesson,” the sage said. “When you carry grudges of people it’s like carrying those potatoes. I had told you to put a potato for every grudge to show you that grudges are like those potatoes. They weigh your mind just as the potatoes were weighing on your body. The grudges take away your peace of mind and your creativity and everything else. You become a useless person. The person who has grudged you has nothing to lose but you have everything to lose. I hope you have learnt your lesson.”

    The young man fell at the sage’s feet and started to cry.

    “I will never grudge anyone again, Sir,” he said. “Please forgive me.”

    “Don’t ask my forgiveness,” the wise old sage said. “You have to forgive yourself first and then forgive everyone then and only then will you be at peace with yourself.”

    The young man stood up and made up his mind never to keep a grudge against anyone ever again. From that day onward he was a completely different man. Soon he had made many friends and they all loved him very much.