Gautama Buddha was traveling with his friends. After a long walk, they decided to take a rest under the tree. While resting, one of the friends raised a question to Buddha on how to calm the mind when having disturbing thoughts.
Buddha was resting under the tree – said he was thirsty and wanted to drink water. He requested his friend to get water from the nearby stream. His friend went to the stream and returned with muddy and dirty water. Buddha asked him to get clean water instead but his friend replied that there is no other option as all the water from the surrounding streams are muddy.
Buddha then took a piece of cloth, put it on the mouth of his begging bowl, and asked his friend to pour the muddy water into it. The water slowly passed through the cloth and became clean as it filled up the begging bowl.
Buddha then explained to his friends, just like how we can filter dirty water through a cloth to make it clean, similarly, we can calm our minds by filtering our thoughts and letting go of the negative ones. This technique can provide us with a clear and calm state of mind.
Moral of The Story
So next time when you are having troubling thoughts, remember to filter them just like how we filter dirty water. Let go of the negativity and embrace positivity in order to achieve a peaceful state of mind.
