Put Down Your Burden - A Parable

quotes-haven (69)in #parables • 6 years ago (edited)

Different versions of this story has been making the rounds on the internet. You may have heard of it before. It is still good to read it again, to remind ourselves of the moral of the story.

I had also included this in my book Parables

Here goes:

The Venerable raised a glass of water and said to the audience: “How heavy do you think this glass of water is? It depends on how long you hold it. If you hold it for a minute, it is okay. If you hold it for an hour, you will have an ache in your arm. If you hold it for a day, you will have to call an ambulance.

“It is the exact same weight, but the longer you hold it, the heavier it becomes. If we carry our burdens all the time, sooner or later, we will not be able to carry on, the burden becoming increasingly heavier.

“What you have to do is to put the glass down, rest for a while before holding it up again.”

Moral of the story:
When faced with a particularly difficult problem, we should consider putting the problem aside momentarily. If we keep thinking about the problem, it will stress us out. It might cause us to lose sleep. So, take a break, take a rest, and don’t think of the problem. The problem will still be there when we come back, but we will be rested, and in a better frame of mind to deal with it.

The next time you come face to face with a difficult problem, (may you not have to), give it a try and see. Set the problem aside, and take it up again after you have given yourself a rest from it.