Striving towards Excellence

-Karthik Gurumurthy

I do notice lot of people get upset by comparing their weaknesses with other people's strengths. It is not a wise thing to do. God has given all of us with unique talents and abilities and each one has a God's gift which has to be realized by the individuals themselves.

Let me relate a story from Buddhism. Crowds used to come flocking to see a monk, from morning till night. This became intolerable for the commander of the army. One day he went to the monk and asked, “I am the commander of this country. I have thousands of soldiers under my command. But you, almost like a beggar, get more respect and regard than I do! How is it possible? I feel bad and jealous looking at you”.

The monk led him out of his hermitage. He pointed to the moon and asked him, “What is that?” The Samurai assertively said, “The moon.” The monk then pointed out to the rose in the garden and asked, “What is this?” The Samurai said, “A rose”! “Does this rose compare itself to the moon and say, ‘Oh, I am not white and bright like you? Does the Moon ask the rose and say, ‘Why am I not colorful like you?’ The rose possesses one kind of beauty, while the moon is pleasant in another way,” the monk explained. Even before the monk finished, the Samurai understood.

He begged pardon of the monk and left in peace. He realized that each of us is unique. We should rejoice in our uniqueness. Comparing our lives to others’ blinds us from seeing wonderful happenings in our own lives.