More Than Enough for Everyone
May 15, 2012 in growth, mind-body, parenting, partnership, peace
How many of us look at the “bowl” as half full, rather than half empty?
Recently when it was our turn to contribute for snack day we made popcorn with butter & nutritional yeast. There was so much left over popcorn that my youngest son and I passed it out to his friends, after school.
The endless bowl of popcorn finally diminished and most of the yeast (in our opinion the best part) was gone, the bowl seemed all but empty. A child came and asked for more and I told him it was empty. He looked in the bowl, took his hand and scraped the side and said, “There is still a bunch!”
As I looked in the “empty” bowl and saw the yeast stuck to the side I was amazed at the abundance perspective I was given.
I was reminded of a story from the great Indian classic “The Mahabarata”.
A Grain of Rice (Enough to Feed an Army)
To assist the exiled Pandavas (the sons of Pandu who were the rightful rulers of the land), the Sun God gave Draupadi (wife of the Pandavas) a special pot as a gift. With it she could always feed her own family as well as an unlimited number of guests. The only rule was that after Draupadi had eaten for that day, the magical pot would produce no more food until the next day.
Once, the great sage Durvasa, who was known for his quick anger, suddenly decided to drop in along with his army of followers. He wanted something to eat for himself and his followers, but the Pandavas had just eaten and there was no more food left. Thinking quick she asked him to go and have his bath first.
Fearful of Durvasa’s anger, Draupadi prayed to Krishna. When Krishna appeared before her, He listened as Draupadi explained the situation. He did not offer a solution, instead He said, “I am hungry, Draupadi, please feed me?” Confused, Draupadi replied, “As I’ve already told You, the pot is empty.”
Krishna simply smiled. “Please just bring Me the pot.” Still puzzled, Draupadi brought the pot and Krishna looked within. Seeing one grain of rice left in the pot He ate it saying, “Oh, this is delicious.”
Meanwhile, Durvasa and his followers, bathing at the river, suddenly became so full that they did not want anything to eat, and thus left without coming back.
The common moral given for this story, is that if the Divine is satisfied, the whole world is satisfied.
How different will our lives be if we see one grain of rice as being enough to feed an army of followers? What if, we could look at what we have right now and see it as more than enough?
You can! Simply start practicing right now! It is possible by imbibing an attitude of gratitude.
One declaration I say with my children when they are arguing over food or toys or anything else is:
“There is more than enough for everyone.”
So I invite you to take a look at your life from this perspective.
Gratefully Blessed,
Bhagavan Bauer