There was this saint who saw a scorpion floundering around in the water.He decided to save it by stretching out his finger, but the scorpion stung him. The man still tried to get the scorpion out of the water, but the scorpion stung him again.A man nearby told him to stop saving the scorpion that kept stinging him.The sadhu replied: "My dear child, the scorpion is not stinging me out of malice or evil intent. Just as it is the water's nature to make me wet, so it is the scorpion's nature to sting. The scorpion doesn't realise that I am carrying it to safety. That is a level of conscious comprehension greater than what his brain can achieve. But, just as it is the scorpion's nature to sting, so it is my nature to save. Just as he is not leaving his nature, why should I leave my nature? Why should I let a small scorpion rob me of the divine nature which I have cultivated through years.
Living in this world, disagreements are normal, in fact, natural. You will meet people ranging from scorpions to saints, thankful to thankless, from weak to wild, and so forth. In our lives we encounter people who harm us, insult us, plot against us, whose actions seem calculated to thwart the successful achievement of our goals. Sometimes these are obvious acts, such as a co-worker who continually steals our ideas or speaks badly of us to our boss. Sometimes these acts are subtle - a friend, relative or colleague who unexpectedly betrays us or who we find has been surreptitiously speaking negatively about us behind our back.
Most of the time we changed ourselves due to the nature and attitude of the other person and loose our own unique identity.But we must not let their actions or their ignorance deprive us.We must not allow ourselves to be lowered by their ignorance, their habits or their greed. The darkness in their heart should not be allowed to penetrate into the lightness of our hearts. When in any conflict, if we retain our goodness, we will emerge as a winner. If you stoop down to their level, treating them the way they treated you, that invariably means they have won, that means you have become like them.
In our lives, we will encounter people who may harm us intentionally or unintentionally. We should never let our actions, thoughts and words to be affected by the negativity in others. We should continue to perform our duty with love and honesty, even if others do not reciprocate our righteous actions. Whether you are a sage or a scorpion, it is a matter of choice, an independent choice. Don’t give up loving. Don’t give up your goodness. Even if people around you sting.Be honest, loyal and faithful and rest leave to God.
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