The Secret of Happiness

A certain shopkeeper sent his son to learn about the secret of happiness from the wisest man in the world. The lad wandered through the desert for 40 days, and finally came upon a beautiful castle, high atop a mountain. It was there that the wise man lived. 

Rather than finding a saintly man, though, our hero, on entering the main room of the castle, saw a hive of activity: tradesmen came and went, people were conversing in the corners, a small orchestra was playing soft music, and there was a table covered with platters of the most delicious food in that part of the world. The wise man conversed with everyone, and the boy had to wait for two hours before it was his turn to be given the man's attention. 

The wise man listened attentively to the boy's explanation of why he had come, but told him that he didn't have time just then to explain the secret of happiness. He suggested that the boy look around the palace and return in two hours. 

"Meanwhile, I want to ask you to do something", said the wise man, handing the boy a teaspoon that held two drops of oil. "As you wander around, carry this spoon with you without allowing the oil to spill". 

The boy began climbing and descending the many stairways of the palace, keeping his eyes fixed on the spoon. After two hours, he returned to the room where the wise man was. 

"Well", asked the wise man, "Did you see the Persian tapestries that are hanging in my dining hall? Did you see the garden that it took the master gardener ten years to create? Did you notice the beautiful parchments in my library?" 

The boy was embarrassed, and confessed that he had observed nothing. His only concern had been not to spill the oil that the wise man had entrusted to him. 

"Then go back and observe the marvels of my world", said the wise man. "You cannot trust a man if you don't know his house". 

Relieved, the boy picked up the spoon and returned to his exploration of the palace, this time observing all of the works of art on the ceilings and the walls. He saw the gardens, the mountains all around him, the beauty of the flowers, and the taste with which everything had been selected. Upon returning to the wise man, he related in detail everything he had seen. 

"But where are the drops of oil I entrusted to you?" asked the wise man. Looking down at the spoon he held, the boy saw that the oil was gone. 

"Well, there is only one piece of advice I can give you", said the wisest of wise men. "The secret of happiness is to see all the marvels of the world and never to forget the drops of oil on the spoon". 

Author: Paul Coelho in "The Alchemist"

Slaughter of Minorities: Silence of Lord of Justice & his Justice League & Tsunami

Eighteen bodies, shot, lay by the roadside with passer bys having a clear view of the barbaric nature of these humans who carried out these acts. Three days back two lawyers were shot dead of the same community. The crime which they had committed was practicing a faith against the wish of these barbarians.

When news of these killings are broken out in news, people have glumly feeling for some time but a minute or two later, normal cheerful chatter resume. 

What to do?

With so many killings, taking things too seriously can be bad for one’s mental health. In Pakistan one’s religious faith, or lack of one, has become enough to guarantee execution and slaughter. 

The killers do their job fearlessly and frequently; with quarters of our society remaining silent, some distributing sweets and those who have lost their loved ones mourn the demise of a family member or closed one. The 17th century philosopher and mathematician, Blaise Pascal, once stated that 

“Men never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when they do it for religious conviction”.

Equipped with just enough religion to hate those who practice another faith – but not enough to love those who practice something different. We as a society now have turned our backs to such religious persecutions. One’s such as when 88 Ahmadis quietly praying in Lahore on a Friday were turned into corpses, bombing of shrines of sufis and bombing of peaceful processions have also failed to motivate public response. Mass executions do not interest and are also not a part of Pakistan’s religious parties, or Imran’s Khan’s PTI’s manifesto. 

For them, only the killings by American drones matter. Hindus, Christians, and Parsis were also not left alone. Indeed, they were rounded up by presentation of the Objectives Resolution of 1949 which termed them freaks and outcasts. Some had accepted their destiny, restricting their religious freedom and also their private life.

The Tribal Areas are now a scene of sectarian warfare: Kurram, Parachinar and Hangu and now more settled districts such as DG Khan, Peshawar, Kanpur and other southern regions of Punjab are now killing grounds. 

Is it just weakness? 

Or, our responsibility? 

While intelligence agents can be seen in many places, they fail to restrict the virus of religious terrorism. More Difah-e-Pakistan Council (DPC) rallies in different parts of the country, drawing many tens of thousands. Prominent self-proclaimed killers of minorities, stand on stage hand in hand showing their strength and unity while our LORD OF JUSTICE & HIS JUSTICE LEAGUE don’t listen to the cries of people being targeted. 

Newspaper reports state that a person involved in bloodshed of hundreds named Malik Ishaq was freed by our GATEKEEPERS OF JUSTICE last year with the reason that enough evidence was not presented. But after Ishaq read out the names of his children, the judge abandoned the trial. What does the Pakistan Army think it will gain by tolerating – or perhaps encouraging – such violent forces once again? 

Our brave army men have been paying a huge price in fighting them, and their offshoots, elsewhere in the country. But the intelligence network somehow isn’t able to control them, God knows why? Whatever the reason, Pakistan’s minorities face disaster.

Concluding I would like to ask The Lord of Justice of our country and the Tsunami Leader:

Why is that you just focus on cases pertaining to government and not minorities?

Why is that sound of slaps in pooling station you can hear but not the cries of mothers & sisters who have lost their family members?

Why is it that barbaric persecution on basis of faith isn’t rejected by your JUSTICE LEAGUE & TSUNAMI as you deject corruption?

* Some parts have been taken from An article from Pervez Hoodbhoy (Daily Express Tribune)

The great fire and the little water

Among the Aztec people of Mexico, it is said that a long time ago there was a great fire in the forests that covered our Earth. People and animals started to run, trying to escape from the fire. Our brother owl, Tecolotl, was running away also when he noticed a small bird hurrying back and forth between the nearest river and the fire. He headed towards this small bird. 

He noticed that it was our brother the Quetzal bird, Quetzaltototl, running to the river, picking up small drops of water in his beak, then returning to the fire to throw that tiny bit of water on the flame. Owl approached Quetsal bird and yelled at him: "What are you doing brother? Are you stupid? You are not going to achieve anything by doing this. What are you trying to do? You must run for your life!" 

Quetzal bird stopped for a moment and looked at owl, and then answered: "I am doing the best I can with what I have." 

It is remembered by our Grandparents that a long time ago the forests that covered our Earth were saved from a great fire by a small Quetzal bird, an owl, and many other animals and people who got together to put out the fire. 

Source: "Turning To One Another" by Margaret Wheatley

“Paid in full with one glass of milk”

One day, a poor boy who was selling goods from door to door to pay his way through school, found he had only one thin dime left, and he was hungry. He decided he would ask for a meal at the next house. However, he lost his nerve when a lovely young woman opened the door. Instead of a meal he asked for a drink of water. She thought he looked hungry so brought him a large glass of milk. He drank it slowly, and then asked, 
“How much do I owe you?” 

“You don’t owe me anything,” she replied. 

“Mother has taught us never to accept pay for a kindness.” He said, 

“Then I thank you from my heart.”

As Howard Kelly left that house, he not only felt stronger physically, but his faith in God and man was strong also. He had been ready to give up and quit.

Years later that young woman became critically ill. The local doctors were baffled. They finally sent her to the big city, where they called in specialists to study her rare disease. Dr. Howard Kelly was called in for the consultation. When he heard the name of the town she came from, a strange light filled his eyes. Immediately he rose and went down the hall of the hospital to her room. Dressed in his doctor’s gown he went in to see her. He recognized her at once. He went back to the consultation room determined to do his best to save her life. From that day he gave special attention to the case.

After a long struggle, the battle was won. Dr. Kelly requested the business office to pass the final bill to him for approval. He looked at it, then wrote something on the edge and the bill was sent to her room. She feared to open it, for she was sure it would take the rest of her life to pay for it all. Finally she looked, and something caught her attention on the side of the bill. She began to read the following words:

“Paid in full with one glass of milk”

Signed, Dr. Howard Kelly

Tears of joy flooded her eyes as her happy heart prayed: "Thank You, God, that Your love is shed abroad through human hearts and hands."


(www.snopes.com)