Pranaam yatri,
Last week’s rain gave way to this week’s sunshine.
It’s amazing to see the sudden change in the weather.
But then again, life does change very quickly, right?
And in moments where we are clueless, we turn to the experts.
Doctors for our health.
Lawyers for our legal troubles.
Friends and family for emotional relief.
A lot of people turned to Sant Kabir for help, too.
It is said that a child in Kabir’s town was bitten by a snake.
The serpent was of the poisonous variety. The boy had very little time.
His family rushed to Kabir’s house to get help.
They trusted him to have a solution.
Unfortunately, Kabir was not home.
The family was desperate. They asked Kamaali, his daughter, where he’d gone.
“He’s gone to the river to bathe,” she said, “But why are you looking so afraid? Tell me, I may be able to help you.”
The boy’s father was sceptical. How could a young girl solve a life-and-death problem?
But desperate times call for desperate measures.
“My son has been bitten by a poisonous snake. We wanted Kabir ji to cure him.”
“Oh, you don’t need Kabir ji for that,” she replied, “Go to your son and whisper ‘Ram’ three times in his ear. He’ll be fine.”
The father felt hope. But he wouldn’t let advice from a young girl decide his son’s fate. He decided to go to the river and ask Kabir himself.
While leaving Kabir’s house, he bumped into Loi – Kabir’s wife.
Seeing him tense, Loi asked what’s wrong, and the boy’s father narrated the incident.
“Oh, you don’t need to take Ram’s name three times for that,” she said, “Whisper ‘Ram’ once in his ear. He’ll be fine.”
The father was shocked. He couldn’t believe this.
But he wanted to hear the solution from Sant Kabir himself.
So he left to go to the river. Fortunately, he met Kabir on the way.
He joined his hands. “Kabir ji, please save my son.”
A stoic Kabir patiently heard the story and gave the solution.
“You don’t need to go to your son. Don’t waste time.
You need not speak Ram’s name, either. Just think of Ram once right now, and your son will be fine.”
Had you been the boy’s father, what would you have done?
Had you been in Kabir’s place, what would you have suggested?
The next time you’re in a problem, run this experiment.
As you try to devise a solution, observe how much are you trying to do/ control/ influence and how much are you believing in god/ universe?
Every logical mind knows that Irrespective of our efforts, we can’t guarantee the outcome.
The influence of external factors is completely beyond our control.
Inherently, we all have some faith in the divine. But there’s a need/fear to do something ourselves, too.
Kabir’s daughter felt she would have to do more (take name 3 times)
His wife felt she wouldn’t have to rely on her efforts much (take name only once)
While Kabir had completely surrendered to the universe (only keep the name alive in the heart)
While we must keep doing our tasks to discharge responsibilities towards self and others, a little more faith will take us a long way.
Don’t you think so, too?
