count your blessings

Here goes another short story from my childhood that stayed with me....

In a village, there was once an ardent Shiva devotee. He followed a daily ritual to hand-pick beautiful flowers and then walk bare-foot to the Shiva temple to perform pooja (prayer) every morning. Be it wind or rain, hot or cold, he performed his pooja with fervour and devotion.

In the same village, lived another man, who was a non-believer of Shiva. Just out of sheer cynicism, he that he would go to the same Shiva temple, at the same time, and kick the Shiv-ling. He was consumed with as much cynicism and ill-will, as the devotion of the first man. It hurt the devotee to see this, and he would ask the Lord for forgiveness for his fellowman.

Years passed. One fine morning, the devotee after having finished plucking the flowers for the pooja, set to walk to the temple. On his way his foot was pricked by a bunch of thorns and bled profusely. Yet he managed to get the thorns out and made it to the temple. The same morning, the cynic on his way to the temple to kick the Shiv-ling found the most beautiful coin of gold. Thrilled that he would now be able to fulfill his immediate needs he gleefully strolled to the temple, and went again to carry out his loathsome deed by again kicking the Shiv-ling.

Puzzled by the sequence of events, up in their heavenly abode at Kailash, Goddess Parvati, wife of Shiva, put forth this question to Him, "Shiva, my lord, why is such pain inflicted on your unflinching devotee ? Why O Lord, did his years of penance and worship yielded him pain from thorns, while the ill-deed of his fellow bore him the gold-coin ?"

To this, The Great Lord Shiva replied, "My Dear One, all humans are born with a destiny. But, by virtue of their karma, they are all empowered to alter that destiny."

"My devotee, had in his destiny, to die a painful death, this day, this moment. But his ardent devotion and his good karma, averted his fate. He suffered minor temporary pain of a few thorns on his feet, in lieu of death. Instead, he is now blessed with years of health, wealth and prosperity. And beyond this life on earth, he has earned a life aboard heavenly Kailash."

"And, the one who harboured ill-will, he was destined today, to be the king of a vast kingdom, and a bearer of royal pleasures and wealth abound. But due to his kukarma (bad deeds), the ignorant is lost in savouring the single gold coin. It is the last remnants of what would have been an otherwise enviable destiny. And unless he mends his way, he is bound for a very troubling life ahead, and hell thereafter his death."