Lessons from a Mirror !!
The old man
had a mirror in his hand. He looked at the mirror frequently and then looked
away with deep thoughts. Observing this action of the elderly person, the boy
next door was very much intrigued. He wondered,” What is so mysterious about
that mirror? Why is this person staring at it frequently? Is it a magic mirror?’
He could not control his curiosity. To satisfy his curiosity, he approached the
old man.
“Sir”
“Yes, my boy?”
“Is that a
mirror in your hand?”
“Yes, very
much so!”
“What do you
see in it please?”
“If I look, I
see my face; if you do, you will see your face”
“So then, it
is an ordinary mirror only, no?”
“Yes, very
much so”
“ Then why do
you look at this mirror all the time. I have watched you frequently gazing at
this mirror and looking away. What is the reason sir?”
The old man
smiled. He said, “This is an ordinary mirror, but the lesson it teaches are so
many!”
“ Lessons? What
lessons? What lessons do we learn from a mirror please?”
“ That is a
nice question!! Please listen to me. Each one of you here is like a mirror to
the other person”
“ What a deep
comparison this is! How can you compare the two? I do not understand it one bit”
“ This small
comparison teaches you how one person can point out the drawbacks or faults of another correctly.
Also, it teaches you how the other person can correct himself.”
“How does it
teach this, pray, tell me please”
“ If we have
some stain or dirt on our face, it is shown in the mirror as we look at it. The
mirror does not increase or decrease the fault, but depicts what is seen as
is, isn’t it?”
“ Yes, very
much so!”
“ Similarly,
when you look at your brother or your friend, you should be in a position to
point out his faults as it is…. no more, no less…without adding or joining
anything. While doing so, you should not make a pillar out of a particle or a
mountain out of a mustard! This is the FIRST LESSON the mirror teaches you.”
“ OK! Very interesting..
What is the next lesson?”
“ When you
stand in front of the mirror, it shows any faults that it sees, but when you
move away, the mirror is silent, isn’t it?
“ Yes, very
correct!”
“ Similarly,
if you look at a friend’s faults, you should point it out directly to him only….
And not discuss the same with anyone else or in his absence. This is not
correct. This is the SECOND LESSON a mirror teaches us”
“ Great! Then….?”
“ Just because
it points out our flaws, do we get angry with the mirror?”
“ No! on the
other hand we still continue to take care of the mirror understanding its
fragility. “
“ Exactly!! Similarly,
when someone points out one of our faults as they see it, we should not get
angry or upset with them. On the other
hand, we should try and correct ourselves and get rid of the fault. This is the
THIRD LESSON a mirror teaches us!”
“ Sir! What a
nice comparison this is! The philosophy that you have explained is very
noteworthy.”
“ Good, my dear boy that you think so! If you ponder a little more deeply, you might even come across more points of comparison!”
“ Good, my dear boy that you think so! If you ponder a little more deeply, you might even come across more points of comparison!”
“ Thanks Sir!
Now when I stand in front of a mirror, I will always remember your words and the
lessons that I did learn from you today! Thanks very much sir!”
The old man
smiled and patted the young boy’s back.
--oo00oo--
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Translated from Tamil by Shanta Ramakrishnan, January o1, 2016
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