A millionaire`s secret-give a straw
A millionaire created through giving!
There is an old historical Japanese tale about giving and it shows how we can receive the most extraordinary gifts when we’re giving and appreciative of what we already have.
Here is the story.
Once upon a time, there was a poor young farmer. Everything he did in his life never seemed to produce any wealth for him. He was totally broke with no money, no family and no food. So one night he sneaked into a temple and sat by the altar and in desperation asked the Gods what he was supposed to do.
“I have always been sincere and industrious, but all my industriousness never became beneficial to me. Where have I gone wrong?”
He slept at the feet of the deity after having put that question. In the morning, just as he woke up, one of the Gods of his dream appeared before him enveloped in a brilliant golden light. The voice of the God resounded in his mind.
“When you wake up in the morning, cherish what you have in your hand and go on giving it to others liberally as you proceed,” the God commanded.
The farmer was brimming with questions when he woke up but he tried to shake off his sleep and clear his mind of the strange but clear dream he had. However, he saw a bit of a straw in his hand. It must have remained on his clothes while he worked in his fields.
He nearly dropped it to the ground, but stopped for a moment remembering what the God said. He sat down again. And looked at the straw.
He sat for a long while wondering what that meant. He had no idea how a broken bit of a straw can be of any use to him. Suddenly he saw a wasp buzzing around. The wasp soon alighted on the tip of the straw. He caught hold of the wasp and bound it to the straw with a piece of string from his dress. Thus with a piece of straw with a wasp at one end, he proceeded.
He had gone a little way when he found a small boy and his mother coming towards him from the other end of the road. The boy was weeping. When he said hello to the boy, the child noticed the straw that the man had with a wasp at one end. He stopped his weeping and wanted to have the straw. The farmer was hesitant to give it but then he remembered that God had asked him to value what we owned and also give it to others profusely. So he gave the straw to the boy. The mother was relieved as the boy stopped crying when he got the straw and the wasp. In return she gave the man three tangerines.
The farmer continued on. And as he walked, he began feeling a little hungry. He thought of eating the tangerines but he reminded himself it was about giving the gift to others, not to himself.
The farmer was going over a steep hill and on the way he saw a merchant sitting under a tree. The man had a wooden box near him. The farmer wished the man. He appeared to be very tired. He saw the tangerines the farmer held and asked him if he would give it to him. The merchant told the farmer that he was very thirsty.
The farmer was as thirsty as the trader as he had been walking for long on that hot day. Nevertheless, he offered the tangerines to the trader, who then ate all the three tangerines and felt recharged. He felt very happy about the help rendered to him and opened the wooden box that was by his side. Inside the box were rolls of silk that was dyed with hand. The merchant gifted the farmer one roll and proceeded on his way.
So off the farmer went again following the path. He found a stream along the way and he took a deep drink making him feel totally refreshed. Life seemed to be easier and was flowing now.
He continued to walk for a long time but did not see anyone again. So he decided that the silk could be what would bring him luck. He felt he should go to the town nearby and try to sell the silk.
But as soon as he turned the corner, he found a group of soldiers. One of them, who appeared to be the leader of the group, was standing near a horse that had fallen on the ground. The leader of the soldiers was saying something to the men of his group.
“This horse is not likely to live long. We will have to abandon it here. Just look after it and follow me.” Saying this, he climbed on to another horse and rode off and disappeared.
The fighters who remained there conferred among themselves as to what to do. They had no interest in putting it to death but there was no other option. Finally one of them drew the sword.
The farmer pleaded with them not to do that. He said he was ready to look after the animal. He said they can have the bolt of silk for letting him care for the horse. They agreed to the deal and left the place quickly.
With the dying horse by his side, the farmer just remained there. He wondered if he had done things wrongly and whether he would never become rich. Suddenly he remembered the river he had seen on the way.
He immediately went back to the stream, took off his shirt and soaked it in the fresh water so he could give water to horse. He returned to the horse still lying there on the ground. The farmer squeezed the wet cloth over the horse’s mouth. Very soon the horse began to respond and regained its consciousness, so the farmer pulled it up with all his might.
Once the horse was up the farmer was able to lead it to the river. The animal drank to its satisfaction and there was also green grass nearby that it could feed on. With both that the horse became fully recharged.
So now the farmer owned the horse! The man and the animal traveled together, and the farmer had to run as the horse led the way. They traveled together for miles. Finally, as the sun was setting, the horse came to a halt in front of a big house. The animal pushed the farmer towards the gate when he finally drew level with it.
When the farmer moved towards it, the gates opened and an old man came out of the house. The old man had dashed out of the house and he looked wan. He spotted the horse and the farmer, both just in front of the house.
The old man asked the farmer what he was doing. The farmer said he was looking for a place to stay the night. The old man said he was going to the town for an urgent matter. He asked the farmer if he minded looking after his house until he returned. He said he might not be able to come back for a little while.
The old man looked as if he was in a hurry, so the farmer told him he can take his horse. The old man was very grateful about it and immediately left with the horse. As he left, he said something totally unexpected to the farmer.
“If I do not come back in three years’ time, this house belongs to you.”
As you probably guessed, the old man never returned.
The farmer lived in the large house for the rest of his life with a land full of crops surrounded by kind neighbors happily ever after. But he never forgot to always give away the things he had.
Thank you for reading this story. And what do you think it is all about?
Perhaps there is a secret to things. When we can turn the business of getting into the business of giving, our life gushes forward with greater plentitude. Still it might not be easy to incorporate into practical life this age old wisdom.
The following are the interesting principles we can see in the tale:
* When we are willing to provide what others want, their value for it enhances more than when we are trying to ‘barter’ it (as mostly we hope to get something out of it) since they compare the price with what we expect for it and would obviously pay less.
* When we are not possessive of whatever we have, we will perceive that we thereby have more chances as we can release the existing possessions.
* When life seems to deal us a bad hand, instead of focusing on the problem if instead we focused on giving and caring, life seems to end up bringing better luck later.
* If we try to turn into cash what we have accumulated, because of the conviction that “this is all it would get” thinking that if we do not encash it, we will lose, our life will stand still. Instead, why don’t we keep on giving more and more irrespective of what we have or whether we are actually rich or not.
Gifting is an inherent part of the lives of most winners. When we are ready to give first, we have better chances of living a life of perfection, ease and growth.