Walking the Path

I sometimes meet people who have learnt meditation techniques & have been on the spiritual path for many years but are not satisfied with their spiritual growth.

'We do our practices every single day, but are still unhappy in life, why is this so?' Answering this question, I would like to share a short story:

Once a disciple came to Gautam Buddha & said ‘I have been coming to you for the last 10yrs. But I don’t see any changes in my life. Whereas I can see people around me, who came & joined you much later; there is so much progress & change in them. How come?’


Buddha ignored his question & asked, ‘Oh you have been coming here for 10yrs!! How far is your village? Have you ever told other people from your village about your meditations practices. Have you ever asked them to join you’.

The disciple was a little disappointed that Buddha chose to ignore his question, ‘My village is at a distance of 4kms. Yes, I have told many people about this place.’ Said the man.

Buddha ‘...and has anyone ever joined you. Did they come?’

Disciple, ‘Sometimes, yes, but most of the time people make excuses.’

Buddha, ‘Oh did you guide them properly, maybe they were not sure about the path / road from your village to this place.’

Now the disciple was getting a little irritable. Buddha had ignored his very important question & was now expressing doubts over his capacity to give instructions to his fellow villagers.

In an agitated tone, the Disciple responded ‘Oh!! I have given the exact instructions. I know every tree, every turn on this path. Every mile, every stone on the road is familiar. When I guide people I tell them exactly how they can reach this place. But if they choose not to walk this path, what can I do.’

Buddha smiled & said, ‘EXACTLY. My job is to guide you on how to bring a transformation in your life, how to make spirituality a part of your everyday life. If you make a choice not to walk on the path, and there is no transformation in your life, then what can I do?”

Message for the week:

It does not matter about how much knowledge you have heard or how many books you have read, what matters is how much are you able to retain & practically use in your day to day life!

Find your Path, Walk the Talk!!