Friday, 8 May 2009

The idiot

Tomorrow being Wesak Day, I would like to share one of Ajahn Brahm's wickedly delicious stories from his deliciously wicked book, Who Ordered This Truckload of Dung? (page 226). This one is about someone calling you an idiot.
Normally, if someone were to call you an idiot, how would you respond?

First, you'd start thinking to yourself: "How can they call me an idiot? They've got no right to call me an idiot! How rude to call me an idiot! I'm get them back for calling me an idiot!"

And suddenly you'd realise that you have just let them call you an idiot another four times.

Every time you remember what they said, you allow them to call you an idiot yet again. Therein lies the problem.

If someone calls you an idiot and you immediately let it go, then it doesn't bother you. There is the solution. Why allow other people to control your inner happiness?

3 comments:

Jeffrey Chew said...

SS Quah - again your posting touches my heart again. I am very sure during the toughest times of my life, you were there to tell me the right path and the right things to do. Thank you and thanks for not making me call anyone else an idiot.

Anonymous said...

A great article to share with us. Thanks for the reminder!

theo said...

Yup that's what the jews did more than half a century ago - ignore all the lies hurled at them by a gentleman from Germany, and they survive, right?!?