On sunday dilip sri veriveraji was at the store talking about the benefits of tm on body and mind when patrick came in to get his mid morning coffee. patrick is our neighborhood cobbler. he had a difficult marriage and we have heard all his terrible stories over the years.
He has met a number of very nice and respectable ladies and without exception he has messed up every relationship by saying the wrong things and generally having a angry attitude toward women. and these women not knowing his miserable past history never came back. now patrick has become friends with another lady and even though it is not a romantic relationship he seems to have messed up this one too by saying the wrong things and hurting her feelings. when dilip saw patrick he asked him how his new friendship was coming along and patrick told him that as usual he has messed it up and must have said the wrong thing. only if these women knew that patricks anger was not coming from a dark and black heart but was only a self defense reaction. dilip thought a little and said that patricks situation reminded him of a story.
A stranger was traveling through a village when he sees a thin and injured dog lying in the shade of a wall. he takes a piece of bread from his pocket and offers it to the dog. as he brings his hand close to the dog the dog nips him on the finger. he runs away from the dog with disgust without feeding him the bread. a man who was standing nearby tells the stranger that he should not be angry with the dog. he said that this dog has been beaten by every one in the village and he does not trust the hands of humans even when they have food in them. he prefers to go hungry and die than have the hands of a human being near him. you my friend are the same as that dog. some women you have met in the past have been bad to you and have hurt you and now you don’t trust all women. you bite them with your words before they can get close to you. you don’t give them a chance to show you that they have no intention of hurting you. call your new friend and tell her this story. tell her that you are like the hungry and injured dog. patrick said that he doesn’t want to show anyone that he is weak like a fallen dog. dilip said to him that sometimes being humble and to show your weakness only shows how strong and great you are. go and do as i say and i promise you that if she cares for you she will understand and will change her mind and ways and will be more patient and understanding in the future. for the first time i realized how deep and wise dilip was.
