While being kind and forgiving to others, we often forget to do the same for ourselves. We seldom pay heed to the fact that we too are humans, and just like everyone else, we can commit mistakes. Now, there are two ways to look at it, we can either become extremely self-critical and wallop ourselves or accept the mistake, learn the lesson and move on. To do the latter, we should start practicing forgiveness, for forgiveness gives happiness!
“To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner was you.”
What Better Than This Tale Of Lord Mahavira To Explain That Forgiveness Gives Happiness –
Once, Lord Mahavira was commuting from one village to another when he sat down under a tree to meditate. At the same time, a cow herder happened to pass by. He asked Lord Mahavira if he could take care of his cows for a while. Fully engulfed in meditation, he did not respond and the herder mistook his silence for a yes.
After a few hours when the herder returned, he was surprised to see all his cows missing. Furious, he questioned Lord Mahavira about his cows. However, there was only silence in return as Lord Mahavira was still in the state of meditation. Desperate, he went out to look for them in the valley.
Unable to find them anywhere, he returned with his head hung low. Only to see that all his cows were near Lord Mahavir, who was still meditating. Now, the herder was burning in anger thinking it was Lord Mahavira who had hid them. Without thinking twice, he took out a whip to punish him. Just as he was about to hit him, an angel figure descended from heaven and held his rope.
The angel recited the entire episode to him, explaining that Lord Mahavira had nothing to do with his cows. Upon hearing this, the herder turned red with shame and immediately started apologizing to Lord Mahavira.
We often make hasty decisions when we’re angry and end up hurting others. Thus it is essential that we should always observe forgiveness in life!
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