One day a saint was taking a bath in a river. His disciple sat on the bank with the saint’s clothes, asana and rosary. The saint noticed a scorpion struggling in the current. Taking pity, he lifted the bedraggled scorpion in his palm and started wading toward the bank.
No sooner had the scorpion recovered than it promptly stung the saint on the palm. The saint felt an unbearable, burning pain shoot up his arm, but he did not drop the scorpion. Instead, he gently shook his hand to encourage the scorpion to move away from the wound.
The saint’s disciple, watching from the bank, became alarmed, but did not say anything.
The saint had only taken a few more steps when the scorpion stung him again. A searing pain more intense than the first one went all the way up his arm and throbbed in his hand. The saint staggered and nearly collapsed in the river.
This time the disciple did call out. “Put him down, guruji! He will only sting you again. Leave him to his fate. Your kindness is of no value to such a creature. He will learn nothing from it!”
The saint ignored him and continued walking. He had nearly reached the bank when the scorpion stung him for a third time. The pain exploded into his head, lungs, and his heart. The disciple saw a blissful smile appear on the saint’s face before he collapsed in to the river. The disciple dragged the saint to the shore, still smiling and still cradling the scorpion in his palm. As soon as they had reached shore, the scorpion crawled away as quickly as it could.
“Guruji!” said the disciple after the saint had regained consciousness. “How can you smile? That wretched creature nearly killed you.”
“You are right, my son,” said the saint. “But he was only following his dharma, his nature. It is the dharma of a scorpion to sting, and it is the dharma of a saint to save its’ life. He is following his dharma and I am following mine. Everything is in its proper place. That is why I am so happy.”
Dharma
"First you understand the Dharma with your thoughts. If you begin to understand it, you will practice it. And if you practice it, you will begin to see it. And when you see it, you are the Dharma, and you have the joy of the Buddha."
"We don't meditate to see heaven, but to end suffering"
"You say that you are too busy to meditate. Do you have time to breathe? Meditation is your breath. Why do you have time to breathe but not to meditate? Breathing is something vital to peoples lives. If you see that Dharma practice is vital to your life, then you will feel that breathing and practising the Dharma are equally important."
"What is Dharma? Nothing isnt."
– Quotes by Ajahn Chah
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Dharma
Oh I do like this India! We hear so much about Karma and rarely dharma!
What is your nature?
Great blog …
The warrior-god Sadrafa is depicted on a stele from a temple of Bel, Palmyra dated to AD 55 with his attributes the scorpion and the serpent. He is however a much older mythological figure than this, being a forerunner of of the Iranian Mithras by which time however he had lost his association with scorpions. In an ancient Persian legend Mithras the Persian god of light sacrificed the sacred bull in order that his blood might fertilize the universe thus creating life. However the evil Ahriman in order to destroy this life sent a scorpion to sting the bull on the testicles. Mithras remained a popular god throughout the mediterranean area, particularly with Roman soldiers and was actively worshiped until about 500 AD. The scorpion is frequently seen as the agent of the devil.
Excellent post!
I most enjoyed this and the additional commentary!