The Fruit Of Obedience And Patience

In this world, there are many cultures, religions and ways of life for us to learn and apply in our life. All are for human choices to choose. When the choices are being chosen, there is an advice; “Don’t die choosing, choose the most suitable one for you, then learn and practise it with obedience and patience”. After learning and practising it obediently and patiently, we can gain the fruit of our learning and practising. I’m sure that the fruit of obedient and patient actions which awaits us is really sweet as told in the motivational Zen story. Here is the story;

Once a little boy came to an old monk and begged him to take him as his disciple. The old monk agreed and let him stay in his monastery. The next day early in the morning the old monk woke up the young boy and after his ablutions took him to the garden. The young boy asked the old monk, “What are we doing in the garden?” The old monk said, “I will teach you how to be obedient and patient”. The boy looked stunned and waited. The old monk took out a seed and planted it in the garden, and then he showed the boy how to water it.

“When will it bear fruit?” asked the boy.

“Be obedient and patient,” said the old monk.

And the boy was as told for three years, walking two miles to fetch water for the plant. In the third year it bore fruit. He was very happy and reported it to the old monk. “Now taste the fruit of obedience and patience,” said the monk, allowing the boy to pluck a fruit from the tree. “Oh! It tastes very good”, the boy exclaimed.

The moral of the story; slow but sure, it is true though as the boy wondered at the beginning, “When will it bear fruit?” When he obeyed his master’s advice and was patient with his activity. Finally, he surely tasted the fruit of his obedient and patient actions. In our working-life, if we do our job obediently and patiently, we can reap what we do sweetly and proudly. Therefore, it is said, “The fruit of obedient and patient actions is really sweet”.