The Richest man in Babylon

Seven Cures For a Lean Purse
Down through the ages Babylon's reputation comes to us as the richest of cities, its treasures as fabulous. Yet it was not always so. The riches of Babylon were the results of the wisdom of its people. They first had to learn how to become wealthy.

When the Good King, Sargon, returned to Babylon after defeating his enemies, the Elamites, he was confronted with a serious situation. The Royal Chancellor explained it to the King thus:


"After many years of great prosperity brought to our people because your majesty built the great irrigation canals and the mighty temples of the Gods, now that these works are completed the people seem unable to support themselves.The laborers are without employment. The merchants have few customers. The farmers are unable to sell their produce. The people have not enough gold to buy food."
"But where has all the gold gone that we spent for these great improvements?" demanded the King.
"It has found its way, I fear," responded the Chancellor, "into the possession of a few very rich men of our city. It filtered through the fingers of most of our people as quickly as the goat's milk goes through the strainer. Now that the stream of gold has ceased to flow, most of our people have nothing to show for their earnings."
The King was thoughtful for some time. Then he asked, "Why should so few men be able to acquire all the gold?"
"Because they know how," replied the Chancellor. "One may not condemn a man for succeeding because he knows how. Neither may one with justice take away from a man what he has fairly earned, to give to men of less ability."
"But why," demanded the King, "should not all the people learn how to accumulate gold and therefore become themselves rich and prosperous?"
Quite possible, your excellency. But who can teach them? Certainly not the priests, because they know naught of money making."
"Who knows best in all our city how to become wealthy, Chancellor?" asked the King.
"Thy question answers itself, your majesty. Who has amassed the greatest wealth, in Babylon?"
"Well said, my able Chancellor. It is Arkad. He is the richest man in Babylon. Bring him before me on the morrow."
Upon the following day, as the King had decreed, Arkad appeared before him, straight and sprightly despite his three score years and ten.
"Arkad," spoke the King, "is it true thou art the richest man in Babylon?"
"So it is reported, your majesty, and no man disputes it"
"How becamest thou so wealthy?"
"By taking advantage of opportunities available to all citizens of our good city."
"Thou hadst nothing to start with?"
"Only a great desire for wealth. Besides this, nothing."
"Arkad," continued the King, "our city is in a very unhappy state because a few men know how to acquire wealth and therefore monopolize it, while the mass of our citizens lack the knowledge of how to keep any part of the gold they receive. It is my desire that Babylon be the wealthiest city in the world. Therefore, it must be a city of many wealthy men. Therefore, we must teach all the people how to acquire riches. Tell me, Arkad, is there any secret to acquiring wealth? Can it be taught?"
"It is practical, your majesty. That which one man knows can be taught to others."
The king's eyes glowed. "Arkad, thou speaketh the words I wish to hear. Wilt thou lend thyself to this great cause? Wilt thou teach thy knowledge to a school for teachers, each of whom shall teach others until there are enough trained to teach these truths to every worthy subject in my domain?"
Arkad bowed and said, "I am thy humble servant to command. Whatever knowledge I possess will I gladly give for the betterment of my fellowmen and the glory of my King. Let your good chancellor arrange for me a class of one hundred men and I will teach to them those seven cures which did fatten my purse."
A fortnight later, in compliance with the King's command, the chosen hundred assembled in the
great hall of the Temple of Learning, seated upon colorful rings in a semicircle.
"As a dutiful subject of our great King," Arkad began, "I stand before you in his service.
Because once I was a poor youth who did greatly desire gold, and because I found knowledge that enabled me to acquire it, he asks that I impart unto you my knowledge.
"I started my fortune in the humblest way. I had no advantage not enjoyed as fully by you and
every citizen in Babylon. "
The first storehouse of my treasure was a well-purse. I loathed its useless emptiness. I desired it
be round and full, clinking with the sound of gold. Therefore, I sought every remedy for a lean purse. I found seven.
"To you, who are assembled before me, shall I explain the seven cures for a lean purse which I
do recommend to all men who desire much gold. Each day for seven days will I explain to you one of the seven remedies.

"Listen attentively to the knowledge that I will impart. First must each of you start wisely to build a fortune of his own. Then wilt thou be competent, and only then, to teach these truths to others. I shall teach to you in simple ways how to fatten your purses. This is the first step leading to the temple of wealth, and no man may climb who cannot plant his feet firmly upon the first step.
THE FIRST CURE: Start thy purse to fattening:
Arkad proceeded to find out how each man labored to earn his living. When he had done questioning them, he said:
"Now, my students, ye can see that there are many trades and labors at which men may earn
coins. Each of the ways of earning is a stream of gold from which the worker doth divert by his labors a portion to his own purse. Therefore into the purse of each of you flows a stream of coins large or small according to his ability. Is it not so?"
Thereupon they agreed that it was so. "Then," continued Arkad, "if each of you desireth to build
for himself a fortune, is it not wise to start by utilizing that source of wealth which he already has
established?"
To this they agreed.
Then Arkad turned to a humble man who had declared himself an egg merchant. "If thou select
one of thy baskets and put into it each morning ten eggs and take out from it each evening nine eggs, what will eventually happen?"
"It will become in time overflowing."
"Why?"
"Because each day I put in one more egg than I take out."
Arkad turned to the class with a smile. "Does any man here have a lean purse?"
First they looked amused. Then they laughed. Lastly they waved their purses in jest.
"All right," he continued, "Now I shall tell thee the first remedy I learned to cure a lean purse.
Do exactly as I have suggested to the egg merchant. For every ten coins thou placest within thy purse take out for use but nine. Thy purse will start to fatten at once and its increasing weight will feel good in thy hand and bring satisfaction to thy soul.
"Deride not what I say because of its simplicity. Truth is always simple. I told thee I would tell how I built my fortune. This was my beginning. I, too, carried a lean purse and cursed it because there was naught within to satisfy my desires. But when I began to take out from my purse but nine parts of ten I put in, it began to fatten. So will thine.
"Now I will tell a strange truth, the reason for which I know not. When I ceased to pay out
more than nine-tenths of my earnings, I managed to get along just as well. I was not shorter than before. Also, ere long, did coins come to me more easily than before. Surely it is a law of the Gods that unto him who keepeth and spendeth not a certain part of all his earnings, shall gold come more easily.
Likewise, him whose purse is empty does gold avoid.
"Which desirest thou the most? Is it the gratification of thy desires of each day, a jewel, a bit of
finery, better raiment, more food; things quickly gone and forgotten? Or is it substantial belongings, gold, lands, herds, merchandise, income-bringing investments?

THE SECOND CURE: Control thy expenditures:
"Some of your members, my students, have asked me this: How can a man keep one-tenth of all
he earns in his purse when all the coins he earns are not enough for his necessary expenses?" So did Arkad address his students upon the second day.
"Yesterday how many of thee carried lean purses?"
"All of us," answered the class.
"Yet, thou do not all earn the same. Some earn much more than others. Some have much larger
families to support. Yet, all purses were equally lean. Now I will tell thee an unusual truth about men and sons of men. It is this; That what each of us calls our 'necessary expenses' will always grow to equal our incomes unless we protest to the contrary.
"Confuse not the necessary expenses with thy desires. Each of you, together with your good
families, have more desires than your earnings can gratify. Therefore are thy earnings spent to gratify these desires insofar as they will go. Still thou retainest many ungratified desires.
"All men are burdened with more desires than they can gratify."
"I say to you that just as weeds grow in a field wherever the farmer leaves space for their roots, even so freely do desires grow in men whenever there is a possibility of their being gratified. Thy desires are a multitude and those that thou mayest gratify are but few.
"Study thoughtfully thy accustomed habits of living. Herein may be most often found certain
accepted expenses that may wisely be reduced or eliminated.
"Therefore, engrave upon the clay each thing for which thou desireth to spend. Select those that
are necessary and others that are possible through the expenditure of nine- tenths of thy income. Cross out the rest and consider them but a part of that great multitude of desires that must go unsatisfied and regret them not."
"Budget then thy necessary expenses. Touch not the one- tenth that is fattening thy purse. Let
this be thy great desire that is being fulfilled. Keep working with thy budget, keep adjusting it to help thee. Make it thy first assistant in defending thy fattening purse."

THE THIRD CURE: Make thy gold multiply:
"Behold thy lean purse is fattening. Thou hast disciplined thyself to leave therein one-tenth of
all thou earneth. Thou hast controlled thy expenditures to protect thy growing treasure. Next, we will consider means to put thy treasure to labor and to increase. Gold in a purse is gratifying to own and satisfieth a miserly soul but earns nothing. The gold we may retain from our earnings is but the start. The earnings it will make shall build our fortunes." So spoke Arkad upon the third day to his class.
"How therefore may we put our gold to work? My first profitable investment was a loan I made to a man named Aggar, a shield maker. Once each year did he buy large shipments of bronze brought from across the sea to use in his trade. Lacking sufficient capital to pay the merchants, he would borrow from those who had extra coins. He was an honorable man. His borrowing he would repay, together with a liberal rental, as he sold his shields.
"Each time I loaned to him I loaned back also the rental he had paid to me. Therefore not only
did my capital increase, but its earnings likewise increased. Most gratifying was it to have these sums return to my purse.
"I tell you, my students, a man's wealth is not in the coins he carries in his purse; it is the income he buildeth, the golden stream that continually floweth into his purse and keepeth it always bulging.
Gaining wisdom from this experience, I extended my loans and investments as my capital increased. From a few sources at first, from many sources later, flowed into my purse a golden stream of wealth available for such wise uses as I should decide.
"Behold, from my humble earnings I had begotten a hoard of golden slaves, each laboring and
earning more gold. As they labored for me, so their children also labored and their children's children until great was the income from their combined efforts.

THE FOURTH CURE: Guard thy treasures from loss:
"Misfortune loves a shining mark. Gold in a man's purse must be guarded with firmness, else it
be lost. Thus it is wise that we must first secure small amounts and learn to protect them before the Gods entrust us with larger." So spoke Arkad upon the fourth day to his class.
"Every owner of gold is tempted by opportunities whereby it would seem that he could make
large sums by its investment in most plausible projects. Often friends and relatives are eagerly entering such investment and urge him to follow.
"The first sound principle of investment is security for thy principal. Is it wise to be intrigued by larger earnings when thy principal may be lost? I say not. The penalty of risk is probable loss. Study carefully, before parting with thy treasure, each assurance that it may be safely reclaimed. Be not misled by thine own romantic desires to make wealth rapidly.
"Before thou loan it to any man assure thyself of his ability to repay and his reputation for
doing so, that thou mayest not unwittingly be making him a present of thy hard-earned treasure."
"Before thou entrust it as an investment in any field acquaint thyself with the dangers which
may beset it. My own first investment was a tragedy to me at the time. The guarded savings of a year I did entrust to a brickmaker, named Azmur, who was traveling over the far seas and in Tyre agreed to buy for me the rare jewels of the Phoenicians. These we would sell upon his return and divide the profits. The Phoenicians were scoundrels and sold him bits of glass. My treasure was lost. Today, my training would show to me at once the folly of entrusting a brickmaker to buy jewels. Therefore, do I advise thee from the wisdom of my experiences: be not too confident of thine own wisdom in entrusting thy treasures to the possible pitfalls of investments. Better by far to consult the wisdom of those experienced in handling money for profit. Such advice is freely given for the asking and may readily possess a value equal in gold to the sum thou considerest investing. In truth, such is its actual value if it save thee from loss.
"This, then, is the fourth cure for a lean purse, and of great importance if it prevent thy purse
from being emptied once it has become well filled. Guard thy treasure from loss by investing only where thy principal is safe, where it may be reclaimed if desirable, and where thou will not fail to collect a fair rental. Consult with wise men. Secure the advice of those experienced in the profitable handling of gold. Let their wisdom protect thy treasure from unsafe investments."

THE FIFTH CURE: Make of thy dwelling a profitable investment:
"If a man setteth aside nine parts of his earnings upon which to live and enjoy life, and if any
part of this nine parts he can turn into a profitable investment without detriment to his wellbeing, then so much faster will his treasures grow." So spake Arkad to his class at their fifth lesson.
"All too many of our men of Babylon do raise their families in unseemly quarters. They do pay
to exacting landlords liberal rentals for rooms where their wives have not a spot to raise the blooms that gladden a woman's heart and their children have no place to play their games except in the unclean alleys. No man's family can fully enjoy life unless they do have a plot of ground wherein children can play in the clean earth and where the wife may raise not only blossoms but good rich herbs to feed her family."
"Also I say to you, my students, that the money lenders gladly consider the desires of men who
seek homes and land for their families. Readily may thou borrow to pay the brickmaker and the builder for such commendable purposes, if thou can show a reasonable portion of the necessary sum which thou thyself hath provided for the purpose."
"Then when the house be built, thou canst pay the money lender with the same regularity as
thou didst pay the landlord. Because each payment will reduce thy indebtedness to the money lender, a few years will satisfy his loan.
"Thus come many blessings to the man who owneth his own house. And greatly will it reduce his cost of living, making available more of his earnings for pleasures and the gratification of his desires. This, then, is the fifth cure for a lean purse: Own thy own home"

THE SIXTH CURE: Insure a future income:
"The life of every man proceedeth from his childhood to his old age. This is the path of life and
no man may deviate from it unless the Gods call him prematurely to the world beyond. Therefore do I say that it behooves a man to make preparation for a suitable income in the days to come, when he is no longer young, and to make preparations for his family should he be no longer with them to comfort and support them. This lesson shall instruct thee in providing a full purse when time has made thee less able to learn." So Arkad addressed his class upon the sixth day.
"The man who, because of his understanding of the laws of wealth, acquireth a growing surplus, should give thought to those future days. He should plan certain investments or provision that may endure safely for many years, yet will be available when the time arrives which he has so wisely anticipated.
"There are diverse ways by which a man may provide with safety for his future. He may
provide a hiding place and there bury a secret treasure. Yet, no matter with what skill it be hidden, it may nevertheless become the loot of thieves. For this reason I recommend not this plan.
"A man may buy houses or lands for this purpose. If wisely chosen as to their usefulness and
value in the future, they are permanent in their value and their earnings or their sale will provide well for his purpose.
"A man may loan a small sum to the money lender and increase it at regular periods. The rental
which the money lender adds to this will largely add to its increase. I do know a sandal maker, named Ansan, who explained to me not long ago that each week for eight years he had deposited with his money lender two pieces of silver. The money lender had but recently given him an accounting over which he greatly rejoiced. The total of his small deposits with their rental at the customary rate of one fourth their value for each four years, had now become a thousand and forty pieces of silver.
"I did gladly encourage him further by demonstrating to him with my knowledge of the
numbers that in twelve years more, if he would keep his regular deposits of but two pieces of silver each week, the money lender would then owe him four thousand pieces of silver, a worthy competence for the rest of his life.
"Surely, when such a small payment made with regularity doth produce such profitable results,
no man can afford not to insure a treasure for his old age and the protection of his family, no matter how prosperous his business and his investments may be.
"I would that I might say more about this. In my mind rests a belief that some day wise thinking men will devise a plan to insure against death whereby many men pay in but a trifling sum regularly, the aggregate making a handsome sum for the family of each member who passeth to the beyond. This do I see as something desirable and which I could highly recommend. (What a foresight..!! many thousands of years ago about "Insurances")
But today it is not possible because it must reach beyond the life of any man or any partnership
to operate. It must be as stable as the King's throne. Some day do I feel that such a plan shall come to pass and be a great blessing to many men, because even the first small payment will make available a snug fortune for the family of a member should he pass on.
"But because we live in our own day and not in the days which are to come, must we take
advantage of those means and ways of accomplishing our purposes. Therefore do I recommend to all men, that they, by wise and well thought out methods, do provide against a lean purse in their mature years. For a lean purse to a man no longer able to earn or to a family without its head is a sore tragedy.
"This, then, is the sixth cure for a lean purse. Provide in advance for the needs of thy growing age and the protection of thy family."

THE SEVENTH CURE: Increase thy ability to earn:
"This day do I speak to thee, my students, of one of the most vital remedies for a lean purse. Yet, I will talk not of gold but of yourselves, of the men beneath the robes of many colors who do sit before me. I will talk to you of those things within the minds and lives of men which do work for or against their success." So did Arkad address his class upon the seventh day.
"Not long ago came to me a young man seeking to borrow. When I questioned him the cause of
his necessity, he complained that his earnings were insufficient to pay his expenses. Thereupon I
explained to him, this being the case, he was a poor customer for the money lender, as he possessed no surplus earning capacity to repay the loan.
" 'What you need, young man,' I told him, 'is to earn more coins. What dost thou to increase thy
capacity to earn?'
" 'All that I can do' he replied. 'Six times within two moons have I approached my master to
request my pay be increased, but without success. No man can go oftener than that.'
"We may smile at his simplicity, yet he did possess one of the vital requirements to increase his
earnings. Within him was a strong desire to earn more, a proper and commendable desire.
"Preceding accomplishment must be desire. Thy desires must be strong and definite. General desires are but weak longings. For a man to wish to be rich is of little purpose. For a man to desire five pieces of gold is a tangible desire which he can press to fulfillment. After he has backed his desire for five pieces of gold with strength of purpose to secure it, next he can find similar ways to obtain ten pieces and then twenty pieces and later a thousand pieces and, behold, he has become wealthy. In learning to secure his one definite small desire, he hath trained himself to secure a larger one. This is the process by which wealth is accumulated: first in small sums, then in larger ones as a man learns and becomes more capable.

"Desires must be simple and definite. They defeat their own purpose should they be too many,
too confusing, or beyond a man's training to accomplish. "
As a man perfecteth himself in his calling even so doth his ability to earn increase. In those
days when I was a humble scribe carving upon the clay for a few coppers each day, I observed that other workers did more than I and were paid more. Therefore, did I determine that I would be exceeded by none. Nor did it take long for me to discover the reason for their greater success. More interest in my work, more concentration upon my task, more persistence in my effort, and, behold, few men could carve more tablets in a day than I. With reasonable promptness my increased skill was rewarded, nor was it necessary for me to go six times to my master to request recognition.
"The more of wisdom we know, the more we may earn. That man who seeks to learn more of his craft shall be richly rewarded. If he is an artisan, he may seek to learn the methods and the tools of those most skillful in the same line. If he laboreth at the law or at healing, he may consult and exchange knowledge with others of his calling. If he be a merchant, he may continually seek better goods that can be purchased at lower prices.
"Always do the affairs of man change and improve because keen-minded men seek greater skill
that they may better serve those upon whose patronage they depend. Therefore, I urge all men to be in the front rank of progress and not to stand still, lest they be left behind. "Many things come to make a man's life rich with gainful experiences. Such things as the following, a man must do if he respect himself:
"He must pay his debts with all the promptness within his power, not purchasing that for which
he is unable to pay.
"He must take care of his family that they may think and speak well of him.
"He must make a will of record that, in case the Gods call him, proper and honorable division
of his property be accomplished.
"He must have compassion upon those who are injured and smitten by misfortune and aid them
within reasonable limits. He must do deeds of thoughtfulness to those dear to him.
"Thus the seventh and last remedy for a lean purse is to cultivate thy own powers, to study and
become wiser, to become more skillful, to so act as to respect thyself. Thereby shalt thou acquire
confidence in thy self to achieve thy carefully considered desires.
"These then are the seven cures for a lean purse, which, out of the experience of a long and
successful life, I do urge for all men who desire wealth. "There is more gold in Babylon, my students, than thou dreamest of. There is abundance for all.
"Go thou forth and practice these truths that thou mayest prosper and grow wealthy, as is thy
right.
"Go thou forth and teach these truths that every honorable subject of his majesty may also share
liberally in the ample wealth of our beloved city."

-Excerpts from The Richest Man in Babylon.

DAANAT

The hungrier one becomes, the clearer one's mind works — also the more sensitive one becomes to the odors of food. Tarkad, the son of Azure, certainly thought so. For two whole days he had tasted no food except two small figs purloined from over the wall of a Babylonian garden. Not another could he grab before the angry woman rushed forth and chased him down the street. Her shrill cries were still ringing in his ears as he walked through the market place. They helped him to retrain his restless fingers from snatching the tempting fruits from the baskets of the market women.

Never before had he realized how much food was brought to the markets of Babylon and how good it smelled. Leaving the market, he walked across to the inn and paced back and forth in front of the eating house. Perhaps here he might meet someone he knew; someone from whom he could borrow a copper that would gain him a smile from the unfriendly keeper of the inn and, with it, a liberal helping. Without the copper he knew all too well how unwelcome he would be.
In his abstraction he unexpectedly found himself face to face with the one man he wished most to avoid, the tall bony figure of Dabasir, the camel trader. Of all the friends and others from whom he had borrowed small sums, Dabasir made him feel the most uncomfortable because of his failure to keep his promises to repay promptly.
Dabasir's face lit up at the sight of him. "Ha! 'Tis Tarkad, just the one I have been seeking that he might repay the two pieces of copper which I lent him a moon ago; also the piece of silver which I lent to him before that. We are well met. I can make good use of the coins this very day. What say, boy? What say?"
Tarkad stuttered and his face flushed. He had naught in his empty stomach to nerve him to argue with the outspoken Dabasir.
"I am sorry, very sorry," he mumbled weakly, "but this day I have neither the copper nor the silver with which I could repay." "Then get it," Dabasir insisted. "Surely thou canst get hold of a few coppers and a piece of silver to repay the generosity of an old friend of thy father who aided thee whenst thou wast in need?"
" 'Tis because ill fortune does pursue me that I cannot pay."
"Ill fortune! Wouldst blame the gods for thine own weakness. Ill fortune pursues every man who thinks more of borrowing than of repaying. Come with me, boy, while I eat. I am hungry and I would tell thee a tale."
Tarkad flinched from the brutal frankness of Dabasir, but here at least was an invitation to enter the coveted doorway of the eating house.
Dabasir pushed him to a far corner of the room where they seated themselves upon small rugs. When Kauskor, the proprietor, appeared smiling, Dabasir addressed him with his usual freedom, "Fat lizard of the desert, bring to me a leg of the goat, brown with much juice, and bread and all of the vegetables for I am hungry and want much food. Do not forget my friend here. Bring to him a jug of water. Have it cooled, for the day is hot."
Tarkad's heart sank. Must he sit here and drink water while he watched this man devour an entire goat leg? He said nothing. He thought of nothing he could say.
Dabasir, however, knew no such thing as silence. Smiling and waving his hand good-naturedly to the other customers, all of whom knew him, he continued.
"I did hear from a traveler just returned from Urfa of a certain rich man who has a piece of stone cut so thin that one can look through it. He put it in the window of his house to keep out the rains. It is yellow, so this traveler does relate, and he was permitted to look through it and all the outside world looked strange and not like it really is. What say you to that, Tarkad? Thinkest all the world could look to a man a different color from what it is?"
"I dare say," responded the youth, much more interested in the fat leg of goat placed before Dabasir.
"Well, I know it to be true for I myself have seen the world all of a different color from what it really is and the tale I am about to tell relates how I came to see it in its right color once more."
"Dabasir will tell a tale," whispered a neighboring diner to his neighbor, and dragged his rug close. Other diners brought their food and crowded in a semi-circle. They crunched noisily in the ears of Tarkad and brushed him with their meaty bones. He alone was without food. Dabasir did not offer to share with him nor even motion him to a small corner of the hard bread that was broken off and had fallen from the platter to the floor.
"The tale that I am about to tell," began Dabasir, pausing to bite a goodly chunk from the goat leg, "relates to my early life and how I came to be a camel trader. Did anyone know that I once was a slave in Syria?"
A murmur of surprise ran through the audience to which Dabasir listened with satisfaction. "When I was a young man," continued Dabasir after another vicious onslaught on the goat leg, "I learned the trade of my father, the making of saddles. I worked with him in his shop and took to myself a wife.
Being young and not greatly skilled, I could earn but little, just enough to support my excellent wife in a modest way. I craved good things which I could not afford. Soon I found that the shop keepers would trust me to pay later even though I could not pay at the time. "Being young and without experience I did not know that he who
spends more than he earns is sowing the winds of needless self-indulgence from which he is sure to reap the whirlwinds of trouble and humiliation. So I indulged my whims for fine raiment and bought luxuries for my good wife and our home, beyond our means. "I paid as I could and for a while all went well. But in time I discovered I could not use my earnings both to live upon and to pay my debts.

Creditors began to pursue me to pay for my extravagant purchases and my life became miserable. I borrowed from my friends, but could not repay them either. Things went from bad to worse. My wife returned to her father and I decided to leave Babylon and seek another city where a young man might have better chances.
"For two years I had a restless and unsuccessful life working for caravan traders. From this I fell in with a set of likeable robbers who scoured the desert for unarmed caravans. Such deeds were unworthy of the son of my father, but I was seeing the world through a colored stone and did not realize to what degradation I had fallen.
"We met with success on our first trip, capturing a rich haul of gold and silks and valuable merchandise. This loot we took to Ginir and squandered."
The second time we were not so fortunate. Just after we had made our capture, we were attacked by the spearsmen of a native chief to whom the caravans paid for protection. Our two leaders were killed, and the rest of us were taken to Damascus where we were stripped of our clothing and sold as slaves.
"I was purchased for two pieces of silver by a Syrian desert chief. With my hair shorn and but a loin cloth to wear, I was not so different from the other slaves. Being a reckless youth, I thought it merely an adventure until my master took me before his four wives and told them they could have me for a eunuch.
Then, indeed, did I realize the hopelessness of my situation. These men of the desert were fierce and warlike. I was subject to their will without weapons or means of escape.


"Fearful I stood, as those four women looked me over. I wondered if I could expect pity from them. Sira, the first wife, was older than the others. Her face was impassive as she looked upon me. I turned from her with little consolation. The next was a contemptuous beauty who gazed at me as indifferently as if I had been a worm of the earth. The two younger ones tittered as though it were all an exciting joke."
It seemed an age that I stood waiting sentence. Each woman appeared willing for the others to decide. Finally Sira spoke up in a cold voice. 'Of eunuchs we have plenty, but of camel tenders we have few and they are a worthless lot. Even this day I would visit my mother who is sick with the fever and there is no slave I would trust to lead my camel. Ask this slave if he can lead a camel.'
"My master thereupon questioned me, 'What know you of camels?'
"Striving to conceal my eagerness, I replied, I can make them kneel, I can load them, I can lead them on long trips without tiring. If need be, I can repair their trappings."
" 'The slave speaks forward enough, observed my master. If thou so desire, Sira, take this man for thy camel tender.'
"So I was turned over to Sira and that day I led her camel upon a long journey to her sick mother. I took the occasion to thank her for her intercession and also to tell her that I was not a slave by birth, but the son of a freeman, an honorable saddle maker of Babylon. I also told her much of my story. Her comments were disconcerting to me and I pondered much afterwards on what she said."
'How can you call yourself a free man when your weakness has brought you to this? If a man has in himself the soul of a slave will he not become one no matter what his birth, even as water seeks its level? If a man has within him the soul of a free man, will he not become respected and honored in his own city in spite of his misfortune?'
"For over a year I was a slave and lived with the slaves, but I could not become as one of them.
One day Sira asked me, 'In the evening time when the other slaves can mingle and enjoy the society of each other, why dost thou sit in thy tent alone?'
"To which I responded, 'I am pondering what you have said to me. I wonder if I have the soul of a slave. I cannot join them, so I must sit apart.'"
'I, too, must sit apart,' she confided. 'My dowry was large and my lord married me because of it. Yet he does not desire me. What every woman longs for is to be desired. Because of this and because I am barren and have neither son nor daughter, must I sit apart. Were I a man, I would rather die than be such a slave, but the conventions of our tribe make slaves of women.'
" 'What think thou of me by this time?' I asked her suddenly, 'Have I the soul of a man or have I the soul of a slave?'
" 'Have you a desire to repay the just debts you owe in Babylon?' she parried.
" 'Yes, I have the desire, but I see no way.'
" 'If thou contentedly let the years slip by and make no effort to repay, then thou hast but the contemptible soul of a slave. No man is otherwise who cannot respect himself and no man can respect himself who does not repay honest debts.'
" 'But what can I do who am a slave in Syria?'
" 'Stay a slave in Syria, thou weakling.'
" 'I am not a weakling,' I denied hotly.
" 'Then prove it.'
" 'How?'
" 'Does not your great king fight his enemies in every way he can and with every force he has? Thy debts are your enemies. They ran you out of Babylon. You left them alone and they grew too strong for you. Had you fought them as a man, you could have conquered them and been one honored among the townspeople. But you had not the soul to fight them and behold thy pride hast gone down until you are a slave in Syria.'
"Much I thought over her unkind accusations and many defensive phrases I worded to prove myself not a slave at heart, but I was not to have the chance to use them. Three days later the maid of Sira took me to her mistress.
" 'My mother is again very sick,' she said. 'Saddle the two best camels in my husband's herd. Tie on water skins and saddle bags for a long journey. The maid will give thee food at the kitchen tent.' I packed the camels wondering much at the quantity of provisions the maid provided, for the mother dwelt less than a day's journey away. The maid rode the rear camel which followed and I led the camel of my mistress. When we reached her mother's house it was just dark. Sira dismissed the maid and said to me:
" 'Dabasir, hast thou the soul of a free man or the soul of a slave?'
" 'The soul of a free man,' I insisted.
" 'Now is thy chance to prove it. Thy master hath imbibed deeply and his chiefs are in a stupor. Take then these camels and make thy escape. Here in this bag is raiment of thy master's to disguise thee. I will say thou stole the camels and ran away while I visited my sick mother.'
" 'Thou hast the soul of a queen,' I told her. 'Much do I wish that I might lead thee to happiness.'
" 'Happiness,' she responded, 'awaits not the runaway wife who seeks it in far lands among strange people. Go thy own way and may the gods of the desert protect thee for the way is far and barren of food or water.'
"I needed no further urging, but thanked her warmly and was away into the night. I knew not this strange country and had only a dim idea of the direction in which lay Babylon, but struck out bravely across the desert toward the hills. One camel I rode and the other I led. All that night I traveled and all the nest day, urged on by the knowledge of the terrible fate that was meted out to slaves who stole their master's property and tried to escape.
"Late that afternoon, I reached a rough country as uninhabitable as the desert. The sharp rocks bruised the feet of my faithful camels and soon they were picking their way slowly and painfully along. I met neither man nor beast and could well understand why they shunned this inhospitable land.
"It was such a journey from then on as few men live to tell of. Day after day we plodded along. Food and water gave out. The heat of the sun was merciless. At the end of the ninth day, I slid from the back of my mount with the feeling that I was too weak to ever remount and I would surely die, lost in this abandoned country.
"I stretched out upon the ground and slept, not waking until the first gleam of daylight."
I sat up and looked about me. There was a coolness in the morning air. My camels lay dejected not far away. About me was a vast waste of broken country covered with rock and sand and thorny things, no sign of water, naught to eat for man or camel.
"Could it be that in this peaceful quiet I faced my end? My mind was clearer than it had ever been before. My body now seemed of little importance. My parched and bleeding lips, my dry and swollen tongue, my empty stomach, all had lost their supreme agonies of the day before.
"I looked across into the uninviting distance and once again came to me the question, 'Have I the soul of a slave or the soul of a free man?' Then with clearness I realized that if I had the soul of a slave, I should give up, lie down in the desert and die, a fitting end for a runaway slave.
"But if I had the soul of a free man, what then? Surely I would force my way back to Babylon, repay the people who had trusted me, bring happiness to my wife who truly loved me and bring peace and contentment to my parents.
" 'Thy debts are thine enemies who have run thee out of Babylon,' Sira had said. Yes it was so.
Why had I refused to stand my ground like a man? Why had I permitted my wife to go back to her father?
"Then a strange thing happened. All the world seemed to be of a different color as though I had been looking at it through a colored stone which had suddenly been removed. At last I saw the true values in life.
"Die in the desert! Not I! With a new vision, I saw the things that I must do. First I would go back to Babylon and face every man to whom I owed an unpaid debt. I should tell them that after years of wandering and misfortune, I had come back to pay my debts as fast as the gods would permit. Next I should make a home for my wife and become a citizen of whom my parents should be proud.
"My debts were my enemies, but the men I owed were my friends for they had trusted me and believed in me.
"I staggered weakly to my feet. What mattered hunger? What mattered thirst? They were but incidents on the road to Babylon. Within me surged the soul of a free man going back to conquer his enemies and reward his friends. I thrilled with the great resolve.
"The glazed eyes of my camels brightened at the new note in my husky voice. With great effort, after many attempts, they gained their feet. With pitiful perseverance, they pushed on toward the north where something within me said we would find Babylon.
"We found water. We passed into a more fertile country where were grass and fruit. We found the trail to Babylon because the soul of a free man looks at life as a series of problems to be solved and solves them, while the soul of a slave whines, 'What can I do who am but a slave?'
"How about thee, Tarkad? Dost thy empty stomach make thy head exceedingly clear? Art ready to take the road that leads back to self respect? Canst thou see the world in its true color? Hast thou the desire to pay thy honest debts, however many they may be, and once again be a man respected in Babylon?"
Moisture came to the eyes of the youth. He rose eagerly to his knees. "Thou has shown me a vision; already I feel the soul of a free man surge within me."
"But how fared you upon your return?" questioned an interested listener.
"Where the determination is, the way can be found" Dabasir replied. "I now had the determination so I set out to find a way. First I visited every man to whom I was indebted and begged his indulgence until I could earn that with which to repay. Most of them met me gladly. Several reviled me but others offered to help me; one indeed did give me the very help I needed. It was Mathon, the gold lender. Learning that I had been a camel tender in Syria; he sent me to old Nebatur, the camel trader, just commissioned by our good king to purchase many herds of sound camels for the great expedition.

With him, my knowledge of camels I put to good use. Gradually I was able to repay every copper and every piece of silver. Then at last I could hold up my head and feel that I was an honorable man among men."
Again Dabasir turned to his food. "Kauskor, thou snail," he called loudly to be heard in the kitchen, "the food is cold. Bring me more meat fresh from the roasting. Bring thou also a very large portion for Tarkad, the son of my old friend, who is hungry and shall eat with me."
So ended the tale of Dabasir, the camel trader of old Babylon. He found his own soul when he realized a great truth, a truth that had been known and used by wise men long before his time.
It has led men of all ages out of difficulties and into success and it will continue to do so for those who have the wisdom to understand its magic power. It is for any man to use who reads these lines.
Where the determination is, the way can be found.
- George S. Clason

Mischief

MISCHEVIOUS INTENTIONS

JAN 08, 2012 | FILED UNDER ARTICLES, HINDU MYTHOLOGY, LEADERSHIP.

Published in Corporate Dossier, ET, Oct. 21, 2011

Krishna brought the Parijata tree from Swarga, the paradise of the gods, and presented it to his wives: Rukmini and Satyabhama. Rukmini was Krishna’s poor wife who had eloped from her father’s house on Krishna’s chariot and had come to Dwarka with nothing except the clothes on her body. Satyabhama was Krishna’s affluent wife who had been given in marriage to Krishna by her extremely rich father Satrajit. She had entered Krishna’s house with a huge dowry. Satyabhama never lost an opportunity to dominate Krishna’s household with her wealth. So it was rather surprising that when Krishna presented the Parijata, Satyabhama insisted that it be planted in the garden of Rukmini. Everyone saw this as an act of graciousness, but Krishna divined Satyabhama’s intention.

A wall separated the gardens of the two queens. Satyabhama’s garden was located in the east, in the direction of the rising sun. The Parijata tree, planted in Rukmini’s garden would grow towards the sun and all the flowers would fall into Satyabhama’s garden. So while Rukmini would do all the work of taking care of the plant, Satyabhama would literally reap its benefits.

Realizing Satyabhama’s mischievous intentions, Krishna declared, “Since Rukmini will be taking the trouble of watering the plant and tending to its need, it is only fair that the plant bloom every time I spend time with her.” And so it came to pass that every time the flowers bloomed, Satyabhama knew her husband was with his other wife and so could never really enjoy the beauty of the Parijata.  Satyabhama finally apologized to her husband for her pettiness that he clearly did not appreciate.

As a manager and boss, it is necessary to understand the intentions behind the actions of our team. Appearances are often deceptive. Krishna could have made Satyabhama’s mischief transparent but that would have only led to denials and rage. Instead, he took decisions such that the message was passed without anyone’s dignity being wounded.

When Jivan Seth decided to divide his business between his two sons, he saw the elder son more than eager to let the younger son get the car dealership business, so long as he got the restaurant business. Jivan Seth realized this was because potentially the car dealership business had more risks that the restaurant business which was older and on more solid ground. He did not like the public display of affection shown by his elder son. He was being clever and mocking Jivan Seth’s intelligence and he clearly did not care much for his younger brother’s fortune. Confrontation would only lead to angry denials so Jivan Seth came up with a different solution. He declared that the two companies would be divided unequally with the condition that the operations belong to the minority stakeholder. Thus, the elder son got the maximum share of the car dealership business but would operate the restaurant business while the younger son got the maximum share of the restaurant business with operating rights over the car dealership business. This was not completely viable, but by simply raising this suggestion, Jivan Seth clearly communicated his displeasure. And the two sons got the message.

Wise Lord

THE CONTAINER OF WISDOM

Unable to bear his poverty, a priest went to the temple and begged the deity there for a solution. That night the deity left a golden pot in the courtyard of the priest’s house. The priest found the golden pot with some water in it. He threw the water out and went to the market where he sold the pot to a merchant. With the money he received, he repaid all his debts and returned home a rich man laden with gifts for his family. Soon after, his family fought over the vast wealth, everyone from his wife to his children to his parents and his siblings demanding their share. Unable to bear the mental agony, the priest went back to the temple and complained to the deity. “You have added to my problem not solved it with the golden pot”. And the deity said, “Golden pot? What golden pot? I gave you the elixir of contentment, enough for you and your family. It happened to be contained in a golden pot. Did you not drink it?”

Every job is a golden container full of water. The pot is the salary that pays our bills and the designation that pleases our desire to feel significant. But in each job is potentially the opportunity to grow intellectually and emotionally. Each job contains the seed of learning that can germinate in our mind, if we allow it to. Unfortunately, jobs are seen more in economic terms (the pot) than in learning terms (the water).

When Jacob retired, he expected that the company would throw a farewell party. This did not happen. When Jacob retired, he expected that the company would miss him terribly and call him back. Even this did not happen. He felt unwanted and small. He did not matter, he realized. So when he went back to claim his final dues, he went with a heavy heart. As he waited outside the office, familiar faces passed him by. Some stopped and spoke to him, some smiled, some just ignored him. At that moment, Jacob had a Eureka moment. He realized he did not need his job to validate himself. That is what he was doing and that was his problem. The office like the forest outlives the resident beasts. The beasts find nourishment in the forest but eventually they die. The forest continues to be neither loving nor hating its resident beasts. Animals do not resent the forest when it is time for them to go, but humans do. Why?

Animals work for survival. Humans are the only animals who also work for meaning. Hence in Sanskrit, the same word, artha, is used to indicate economics, politics and meaning. Jobs can give us money and power (the pot) but they can also give us wisdom (the water). Do we drink the water?

As Jacob speculated, he drank the water. Suddenly wisdom dawned. He felt like Newton hit by an apple. He realized that he was expecting too much from the organization. It neither loved him nor hated him. It gave him value and he gave value to it. And now it was time to part ways, without rage or resentment. With that realization, Jacob found his final artha and quenched his thirst. He took his dues and left with a smile.

The Lord's ways

Once there was a sweeper in a well known temple and he was very sincere and devoted. Every time he saw thousands of devotees coming to take darshan of the Lord, he thought that the Lord is standing all the time and giving darshan and He must be feeling very tired. So one day very innocently he asked the Lord whether he can take the place of the Lord for a day so that the Lord can have some relief and rest.

The Deity of Temple replied, "I do not mind taking a break. I will transform you like Myself, but you must do one thing, you must just stand here like Me, smile at everyone and just give benedictions. Do not interfere with anything and do not say anything. Remember you are the deity and you just have faith that I have a master plan for everything.”

The sweeper agreed to this.

The next day the sweeper took the position of the deity and a rich man came and prayed to the Lord.

He offered a nice donation and prayed that his business should be prosperous. While going, the rich man inadvertently left his wallet full of money right there.

Now the sweeper in the form of deity could not call him and so he decided to control himself and keep quiet.

Just then a poor man came and he put one coin in the Hundi (offer box) and said that it was all he could afford and he prayed to the Lord that he should continue to be engaged in the Lord's service. He also said that his family was in dire need of some basic needs but he left it to the good hands of the Lord to give some solution. When he opened his eyes, he saw the wallet left by the rich man. The poor man thanked the Lord for His kindness and took the wallet very innocently.

The sweeper in the form of the Deity could not say anything and he had to just keep smiling.

At that point a sailor walked in. He prayed for his safe journey as he was going on a long trip.

Just then the rich man came with the police and said that somebody has stolen his wallet and seeing the sailor there, he asked the police to arrest him thinking that he might have taken it.

Now the sweeper in the form of Deity wanted to say that the sailor is not the thief but he could not say so and he became greatly frustrated.

The sailor looked at the Lord and asked why he, an innocent person, is being punished?!

The rich man looked at the Lord and thanked Him for finding the thief. The sweeper in the deity form could no more tolerate and he thought that even if the real Lord had been here, he would have definitely interfered and hence he started speaking and said that the sailor is not the thief but it was the poor man who took away the wallet. The rich man was very thankful as also the sailor.

In the night, the real Lord came and He asked the sweeper how the day was. The sweeper said, "I thought it would be easy, but now I know that Your days are not easy, but I did one good thing." Then he explained the whole episode to the Lord.

The Lord became very upset on hearing this whereas the sweeper thought the Lord would appreciate him for the good deed done.

The Lord asked, "Why did you not just stick to the plan? You had no faith in Me. Do you think that I do not understand the hearts of all those who come here?

All the donation which the rich man gave was all stolen money and it is only a fraction of what he really has and he wants Me to reciprocate unlimitedly! On the contrary, the single coin offered by the poor man was the last coin he was having and he gave it to Me out of faith. The sailor might not have done anything wrong, but if the sailor were to go in the ship that night he was about to die because of bad weather and instead if he is arrested he would be in the jail and he would have been saved form a greater calamity.

The wallet should go to the poor man because he will use it in My service. I was going to reduce the rich man's karma also by doing this and save the sailor also. But you cancelled everything because you thought you know My plan and you made your own plans!"

"Every incident, event or happening has a divine timing and a divine order and is divinely planned."

Secrecy Begets Success

Trading is just like any other business - more the secrecy, more the success.

Can trading be considered for a living...as a profession..as a major source of income..?

It is a definite yes. But then, Can you derive your major source of income as a professional sportsperson..? Yes, but you need to put in a tremendous amount of time, discipline, hard work and above all a lot of patience.

Just like in any other business, if you have a winning formula, stick to it. Do it consistently. You go around the "Temple City - Madurai" and live there for 24 hours, you could become a better trader watching those "ant like" nature of people there. They don't miss a thing when it comes to making money. Their enthusiasm is quite infective. Their hard work is quite admirable. Most of the street vendors have "never say die" attitude. I guess, all the traders are alike. If someone can make his living out of a 1000- 5000 Rs capital taking enormous risk on the street, Traders in dalal Street too can. If they fail, they have only themselves to blame and no one else. Traders on the street don't repeat their mistakes because they know the hard realities. Traders in dalal street generally have casual approach to "money making" and tend to repeat theirs.

So Change that approach, you can get rich slowly and steadily. Wait for those opportune moment to make your winnings. Play it low during corrections as NO ONE can get that right while it is on but go full throttle once the trend is clear. Leave the intelligence at home, just follow the market like a herd .. Doubters can never make it. Believe in yourself, your own past experience will provide riches unimaginable.

Know your trade..So learn all the basics and methods and leave them to the analysts. Use only that works for you.

Consistent work, patience and a calm temperament and sticking to your plan/ method is a sure shot to Success. Talk less about your trades - Secrecy begets success.

(Live with a trader's family and know that they are so easy going with the life but "steadfast in their seriousness to their trade")

Socrates and BACHCHAN

Plenitude and prosperity make us lazy and inactive. When our power is secure we don't feel the need to act. This becomes a serious danger especially for those who achieve success and power at an early age. Playwright Tennesse Williams, for instance, found himself skyrocketed from obscurity to fame by the success of his play, The Glass Menagerie."The sort of life which I had previous to this popular success," he later wrote, "was one that required endurance, a life of clawing and scratching, but it was a good life because it was that sort of life for which the human organism is created. I was not aware of how much vital energy had gone into this struggle until the struggle was removed. I sat down and looked about me and was suddenly very depressed.

With no fresh challenges in sight, with no more mountains to scale, Williams eventually had a nervous breakdown. This, in fact, proved good for him. He was in the valley once again. He could see new mountain slopes, which beckoned and challenged him to climb again. He started his journey again and produced his most famous work, A Streetcar Named Desire.

If the past successes are not quickly digested, the psyche begins to disfigure. It is imperative, therefore, to quickly digest the power one achieves. There are several ways of doing it. First every achievement should be viewed as a milestone, not as a mountain peak. If past glories begin to weigh heavier than your future dreams, take it as a warning that decay is setting in. Enjoy the adulation, respect and comfort that success brings, but don't become complacent. Remember, what made these pleasures possible and sustained the efforts that led you till this point, as the thrill of life lies in this journey; destinations are mere parking spaces to stretch your limbs and refuel. Action is life, lassitude is death. So when you reach one landmark, relax and relish the experience, but do not abandon the effort required to travel further. Set the bar higher.

Or look at people whose achievements are bigger than yours. Seeing your place in the larger scheme of things also helps change one's perspective as this story illustrates.

Socrates was sitting in his school with several of his students, when an extremely rich and famous man of Athens entered the hall to meet him. Socrates didn't notice his arrival and continued his discussions with his students. The man felt affronted but still decided to wait a while. But with every passing minute, his anger mounted. After about half an hour of waiting, he suddenly shouted at Socrates, "You don't know who I am?"Socrates looked at his visitor and said, “Let us decide that too.” He called for a world map and asked this man to point out where was Athens in the map. After careful scrutiny, the man pointed to a little speck. Socrates then asked him to point out on the map where his estate was, where his palace was and so on. Realising those possessions that he was so proud of were specks within specks in the larger scheme of things, the man was at a loss and came to term with his own insignificance. The lesson was completed. Socrates folded the map and handed it over to him as a reminder of his humble status in the world.

Another tip for digesting power is to develop your feminine polarity. Man is aggressive by nature; woman is compassionate. It is said, God completed the creation of world in six days, yet every subsequent day, he kept refining his creations until he created man. Even then he was not satisfied. So he took a bone from man’s rib and created a woman – a more refined version of man. In fact, a man becomes complete and capable of great achievements only when he recognizes his own feminine polarity – his warm, giving and kind self.

For instance, Amitabh Bachchan, the Indian film superstar, gets up early in the morning at 6 and runs a packed schedule till late in the night. Even after such a hectic daily schedule, before going to bed, he tends to his old bed-ridden mother, sits by her side and tells her all that transpired during the day.Once in a blue moon, his weary, bed-ridden mother speaks a sentence or two to him. In these couple of sentences, Bachchan finds his reward. How many of us spend time with our aging parents? How many of us feel kindly towards them? I feel it is this rare and highly developed feminine polarity of compassion which has helped Bachchan digest his riches and fame. This excellent digestion creates space for more riches and fame.

Understanding the principles of Tao, the hidden order that governs the universe, is the key to handling power. The principle of cosmic justice is based on the maxim that a person reaps what he sows. The doctrine of Karma and belief in divine retribution are different expressions of a common principle that the world is governed by the principle of justice. Justice (Balance) is inherent in the fabric of cosmos.

Thus, when giddy with power we lose touch with our inner rhythm, or the Tao, and behave recklessly or cruelly, retribution does come. It perhaps does not come from some God sitting in heavens, but from within us when, due to our physical and mental imbalance, we are no longer available to our possibilities.

The recognition of the role of luck in our achievements also helps keep humility alive in us. It is indeed not just one’s prowess, but alsoprovidence that leads him to a position of power. This realization subdues the ego.

Lastly, we need to learn to love our people and be kind to them. Love is an enzyme that digests power, and compassion is the best antidote against power’s corrupting influence.

Source: When you are sinking, Become a submarine by Pavan Choudary.

Namaste

Once upon a time, there was an ashram in the Himalayas where a great sage and his disciples lived. They all respected their Guru not only for his knowledge, but also for his love and kindness towards all.

Because of his kind nature he often accepted disciples who were spiritually immature. This resulted in silly misunderstandings and quarrels among some of his disciples breaking the peace and tranquility of the hermitage.

One day the Guru was very disturbed to see their immature behavior even after his repeated advice. It saddened his good heart to see his disciples turning into slaves of jealousy and anger. His compassion did not let him throw anyone out of his hermitage. Instead, he sincerely prayed to God to give him a solution. He fasted for many days, and spent the days by himself in meditation and prayer.

After some days of fasting and intense prayers, he had a vision of the Lord. In the vision, God asked him why he was sad. He explained everything and requested Him to come to the ashram and free their minds of jealousy, anger, and desire for power. To his surprise, the Lord immediately agreed and told him that He would come to the ashram on one condition: He would come in disguise as one of the disciples, and nobody would know who was God in disguise. The Guru announced to his disciples about his vision and Bhagavan's kind decision to come as one of his disciples.

The disciples were very happy when they heard about Bhagavan's plan to come and live with them in disguise. But they did not know who was Bhagavan and everybody was very gentle and considerate to each other thinking that the other disciple might be Bhagavan Himself in disguise. When they lived like that for a few months, peace and tranquility filled their hearts as well as the hermitage.

In their pure minds, they felt the Lord's blissful presence and they started treating each other, and thinking of each other, as none other than Bhagavan Himself in disguise! The whole ashram was reverberating with blissful positive vibrations emanating from everyone! This great sage and his disciples told their experience to others and inspired them also to respect each other and to pranam to the divinity in every one.

Since then, everybody started greeting each other saying "namaste" with folded hands : namah + te, meaning "I bow to That (Divinity) inherent in you."

May the Lord help us also to see His divinity in everybody! Namaste!

Source: Unknown.

When your mind becomes pure, everything looks divine.