AMMA SAYS - STORIES & JOKES

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OM AMRITESWARYAI NAMAH

 

AMMA SAYS - STORY

 

The Uncontrollable Mind

 

Once upon a time, there lived in the splendid city of Samarkhand in

Central Asia, a great king by the name of Ulug Beg. His kingdom was

vast, and his wealth was great - he had many palaces, servants and

horses, and gave away much gold to the poor in his kingdom. Between

his many duties as a king, his wives and his children, his hunting

and his frineds, he kept himself very busy, with scarcely a moment

to even stop and think.

 

He was a fair king overall, and took his kingly duties seriously.

True, he was sometimes very harsh towards offenders - those who went

against the law of the land found swift punishment awaiting them.

Where all the neighboring kingdoms were wracked by bandits and

political strife, Ulug Beg's kingdom was peaceful and orderly, and

the people loved it.

 

One day he overheard the queens in his zenana whispering and

giggling, and they were giggling about his BALD HEAD. Yes, King Ulug

Beg was completely bald, with not a hair on his head.

 

Now Ulug Beg was little sensitive, and suddenly became very

conscious of his baldness. Even his queens were laughing at him!

Without further delay, he summoned the court physician.

 

"Hazrat, look in this mirror. You see now a bald-headed man. I see

myself with a magnificent full head of thick hair, like a lion's

mane."

 

The court physician's job was not to disagree with the king, so he

assumed a grave expression while smiling inside.

 

"In fact," the king continued, "I have decided that I absolutely

have to have this new look."

 

"But, sire," protested the physician mildly. "That is the way you

are. In no way does your baldness distract you from your duties or

enjoyment of your life. And you know there is simply no way of

making hair grow on a bald head!"

 

"Are you the court physician or the court jester?" the king roared

in anger. "Listen well, Hazrat. If you do not find a way for me to

get hair, your head will roll."

 

Hazrat thought about this impossible situation for a while. "I need

a month. Please give me a month," he begged. The request was granted.

 

After precisely one month, the court physician appeared with a

bottle before the king. The king gasped at the bewitching beauty of

the sparkling golden liquid in the bottle.

 

"The rare oil in this bottle will make your hair grow," said Hazrat

to the pleased king. But .... there is a condition for it to work.

Your majesty must absolutely not think of rats while applying this

oil."

 

"Rats?" queried the king, puzzled.

 

"Yes, rats. No rats at all. Your mind must be free of all thoughts

of rats while you apply this oil."

 

Eager to try out the oil, Ulug Beg got ready quickly that night. He

poured some of the precious liquid into his palm, and then, just as

he was going to apply it to his bald pate, Hazrat's condition sprang

into his mind. "No rats," he remembered.

 

But alas, it was too late. He started to think about rats.

Disappointed, he put away the madicine, and desperately tried to

think of other things. He thought of his court, his queens, his

palaces, his horses, his children, everything.

 

He put the medicine completely away, and tried again later. More

rats.

 

He got up from his sleep, and to trick his mind, tried to apply the

oil while still half-asleep. But no. His mind would not be tricked.

He sneaked up on the oil while deep in conversation with his queen,

but, all the while, his mind refused to leave the subject of rats.

 

Indeed, by then, it wasn't just a rat or two he was thinking of.

There were hordes of rats everywhere. And not just when he took up

the bottle of oil. His thoughts were turning to rats when he was

eating, or conducting court, or enjoying the hunt. In fact, his

whole mind was consumed by thoughts of those horrible rats.

 

Finally, he had had enough. He had learned something that the wise

court physician had known all along - that the more he tried to

escape a thought, the more it refused to leave his mind. In utter

disgust, he threw the rare golden oil away.

 

Upon hearing this story from Amma, everyone burst out laughing. Amma

concluded saying,

 

"Children, it will take time to bring the mind under control. Faith

and devotion to God are the only ropes with which we can bind this

mind."

::

AMMA SHARANAM