19 Horses
One rich man owned 19 horses when he died. In his last will and testament he
had written that upon his death, half the horses he owned should go to his
only son; one fourth to the village temple and one fifth to the faithful
servant. The village elders could not stop scratching their heads. How can
they give half of the 19 horses to the son? You cannot cut up a horse. They
puzzled over this dilemma for more than two weeks and then decided to send
for a wise man who was living in a neighboring village.
The wise man came riding on his horse and asked the villagers if he can be
of any help to them. The village elders told him about the rich man's last
will and testament which stated that half of the (19) horses must be given
to his only son, one fourth must go to the temple and one fifth to the
faithful servant.
The wise man said he will immediately solve their problem without any delay
whatsoever. He had the 19 horses placed in a row standing next to one
another. Then he added his own horse as the 20th horse. Now he went about
giving half of the 20 horses that is ten horses to the son. One fourth of
20-that is 5 horses were given to the temple committee. One fifth of
twenty-that is 4 horses were given to the faithful servant. Ten plus five
plus four made 19 horses. The remaining 20th horse was his own which he
promptly mounted, spoke a few inspiring words, and rode back home.
The villagers were simply dumfounded, full of disbelief and filled with
admiration. And the parting words of the wise man were inscribed in their
hearts and minds which they greatly cherished and passed on to their
succeeding generations till today.
The wise man said: In our daily lives, in our daily affairs, simply add
God's name and then go about facing the day's happenings. Ever come across
problems in life that are seemingly insurmountable? (Like the villagers, do
we feel that such problems cannot be solved?).
The wise man continued: Add the God Principle in our daily lives and the
problems will become lighter and eventually will disappear. In the manner of
the ice which, with the addition of the heat principle will turn into water,
and that will eventually evaporate as steam and disappear. And how do we add
God's name in our daily lives? Through prayers, filled with true love and
devotion with sincerity of purpose and dedication that only total faith can
bring about. Meditation is a powerful means of directing the mind Godward.
But without true love and devotion entering into it, it remains like a boat
without water. It is not difficult to push a boat that is floating in water,
but extremely hard to drag the same boat on dry land.
[ Author Unknown -- from 'E-Mail Ministry' (emailministry@emailministry.org) ]
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