Wisdom for All Ages

By: Sanjay Johari
Submitted: 2007-01-17 16:41:16
Print this article | Tell a friend | For publisher | Social Bookmarking
Rating:
 

Many years ago I was attending a management development program. During the program I came across a story which I would like to share with you.

Once there was a king in a faraway land. One day he summoned 100 of his top scholars and learned people and said to them:

“You have written great books praising me and this kingdom. We will leave these books for our future generations to read. As I am growing older I feel that it is our duty to give to our descendents what we have learned from our ancestors. In addition we should also pass on to them what we have learned from our experience.

“You are all most learned and knowledgeable men of my kingdom. I would like to entrust this holy task to you.

“Please collect all the wisdom we have and put them at one place for everyone to read.”

The scholars and learned men went away and labored hard for many months. After 6 months they went to the king and presented 20 thick volumes they had prepared.

The king glanced through those volumes and said, “I am proud of you. You have truly worked hard to prepare this magnificent work which contains all we know. But I was thinking that not many people will read all those volumes. The great work you have done should benefit the common man. Please reduce the size of what you have written so that the common man will be inclined to read it.”

The learned men again labored for few more months and came out with one volume. The king was pleased to see that volume but felt that it was still too large.

The learned men then put all their knowledge in one chapter. While the king was appreciative of their work, he urged them to reduce it even further. After few weeks the learned men presented one page on which they had summarized their knowledge.

The king read the one page summary and fell into a deep meditation for some time. Then he said, “You have done a great job. But I still cannot see how a common man will read and absorb the great lines of wisdom you have written. The man who is concerned about his day to day living will not care to go through it. And what good is the knowledge which is not useful to everyone?

“I know I am asking too much from you. But please see how you can compress it even more.”

After few days the learned men came out with one-line wisdom. As soon as the king saw that line he jumped and danced with joy and shouted, “You have indeed written what I was looking for. This one line contains all the wisdom we have learned and will guide the people of all ages. No matter how much and in what direction our descendents progress, this piece of wisdom will never fade away. I am glad we will be able to leave behind our discovery of this ageless principle which will be used by all the generations to come.”

And this was the one-line wisdom – there is no free lunch.

Sanjay Johari regularly contributes articles to several ezines. Discover how the experts attain financial freedom and success in life. Visit his website on Network Marketing.

Article source: Expert Articles

Most Recent Articles in Self Improvement category

  • How to Control Your Dreams - Discover the Secrets of Lucid Dreaming - By: Samantha Miles
    How would you like to learn how to control your dreams? With lucid dreaming, anything is possible and this article will show you the secrets of controlling your dreams while you sleep soundlessly through the night.
  • Self Hypnosis Tricks and Techniques - By: Crizza Reyes
    A daily practice of self hypnosis is better than an apple a day. It's becoming more and more talked about and mentioned in media these days.
  • Media Institute - By: madison media
    If your interests seem to be all over the place--if you love pictures, words, photographs, and computers, seemingly all at once--consider attending a school that specializes in the communication arts.
  • Hypnosis CDs for Smoking and Weight Loss - By: Crizza Reyes
    There is a saying in hypnotism that "all hypnosis is self hypnosis." This is true in the respect that hypnosis is a personal and internal experience and can only be allowed by the individual, not forced upon you.
  • Happiness by Wish Granting - By: Danoel Galliatta
    It is located in the second sentence of the U.S. Declaration of Independence: we are given the right to pursue happiness. However, many individuals do not know what to do to accomplish this.
  • Achieving Higher Levels of Spirituality in Psychic Development - By: Rose Ann Schwab
    "How do we reach higher levels of spirituality?" This is the question that I am asked most in my practice.
  • Cahuenga Renaissance - By: Kyle Wong
    The past several years have seen Cahuenga rendered from grimy strip to cheeky corridor. It is no longer a last ditch effort for desperate partiers to cut loose.
  • Qi Dao Coaching and Qigong Healing - By: Lama Somananda Tantrapa
    Thousands of years ago, Qigong formed the foundation of Oriental medicine and needs to be regarded as such.
  • How to Discover the Interlife Through Hypnosis - By: Dr Georgina Cannon
    Even Oprah is a believer! You can heal yourself, find out why you are the way you are, why certain things motivate or scare you, and how to live this life to the fullest when you use hypnosis to venture into the Interlife.
  • How to Forgive after Your Divorce - By: Shelley Stile
    Forgiveness is a miraculous act that serves as a release valve that propels us forward into a new life after divorce. To forgive is to be truly free, to be unencumbered by the past.