Guest guest Posted July 20, 2004 Report Share Posted July 20, 2004 OM AMRITESWARYAI NAMAH AMMA SAYS - STORY Firewood & Matchbox There were once four men who had gone to attend a religious conference and had to pass the night together on an island. It was a bitter-cold night. Each traveller carried a matchbod and a small bundle of firewood in his pack, but each one thought that he was the only one who had firewood and matches. The first man thought, "Judging from the medallion around that man's neck, I would say he is from some other religion. If I start a fire, he will also benefit from its warmth. Why should I use my wood to warm him?" The second man thought, "That person is from the country that has always fought against us. I wouldn't dream of using my wood to make him comfortable!" The third man looked at one of the others and thought, "I know this guy. He belongs to a sect that always creates problems in my religion. I'm not going to use up my wood for his sake!" The last man thought, "This guy has a different skin colour than mine, and I hate that! There's no way I'm going to use my wood for him!" In the end, not one of them was willing to light his wood to warm the others, and so, by morning they all froze to death. Similarly, we quarrel in the name of religion, caste, nation, and colour, without showing any compassion towards our fellow beings. Religion and spirituality form the path that helps transform the anger within us into compassion, our hatred into love, our lustful thoughts into divine thoughts, and our jealousy into sympathy. Yet in our present deluded mental state, most of us do not understand this. "From Amma's keynote address at the Parliament of World's Religions 2004, Barcelona, Spain." :: AMMA SHARANAM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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