in our world there are countless people who work for the poor and with their power to try to reduce the suffering here. The more one deals with the suffering and it is mindful, one recognizes the context and also notes that a lot of help, objectively considered, only leads to a worsening situation. Some time ago I had a great teacher, this teacher I would like to tell you.
The monkey of the Abbot
It was a sunny day in the Buddhist theme park south of Phnom Penh. I did as so often my walk through the plants. The young monks were back to the green, cut back that constantly grew. After several days of intensive inter-trying to convince them that plants are as beautiful as they are, and take the stoppage of gas-powered trimmers distance, I had given to influence them active.
I was back on the road to the site of the Temple of the "Buddha's teaching," where I attended Borisot, the architect, of course. On the way was the kitchen of the monastery, was tied in the vicinity of a young monkey at a ten-foot chain to a tree. The monkey made a gift to the abbot and ekes out since then his life within the circular path which he had trampled over time the tree. The novices often spent time playing with him or tease him. One can say that they gave each other much. Sometimes one of the little monks wore a bruise from a bite of it, another time the monkey had cuts on his hands after she had annoyed him with a machete and he wanted to grab it.
I always spent a few minutes at the edge of his territory. Sitting on the floor I watched the little monkey, trying to familiarize myself with it. Contrary to the attitude toward the monks, but he was afraid to come closer to me. After some time I accepted it and used only to sit there to watch him. He spent most of rain or sun on the chain under the tree. When a monk noticed that I was sitting with him, he came and brought the monkey to eat.
On that day they had taken with the monkeys and chained near them. He was allowed to swim in the moat of mango plantation and the young monks had fun watching him as he dived for food. I sat down with them and chatted with one of the monks. He told me of the monkey, and he was sorry and I asked him why did she not let free. He said that he was already gone, but had brought people from a distant village. He also said that he belonged to the abbot and therefore would have very good care of him. If he were free he would not survive. I went back my way.
Every time I sat in the monkey, I wished that he would come to me, then I could release him. Would I want to catch him, he would fear me and probably bite.
After nearly two months of waiting for the arrival of the abbot his appearance was disappointing for us. We now knew that we were no longer desired. On the evening of his arrival, I made my way to the kitchen of the monastery. At six clock where the monks took their tea with milk, the only food in the evening, after a busy day. I told a monk that we would break out again and made them the offer that I would like to have something to talk about the Dharma with them if it allows the abbot. His expression told me that they will not come, so I turned around and made my way back to our accommodation. After a few meters, I came to the tree of the monkey and gave him a glance. Something was different. After a second, he put his arm towards me and glancing sideways on the floor. I approached and he took my hand, pressed himself against her and bit her gently in the crook between thumb and forefinger. He looked into my eyes. It was a moving moment. With my left hand, I stroked him and opened his chain.
When he realized he was no longer tied up, he was immediately run away. He remained between me and the monk, looking into the distance. The monk gave him receive food, but he gave him one look. I was excited and I turned around to go further. After a few steps, I felt that the monkey had clung to my foot. I walked on as if there were nothing. The monk said aloud to the others: "Look, he thanks". He bit me gently in the calf and then ran away from my foot. Two steps later, I turned around briefly. The monkey looked sitting on the footpath to me later in the eye and a moment he ran away. With a beam in my heart I was in the twilight to reach our house.
The monkey had me two very important things clear again. Help is only possible if one trusts a. Only when someone turns with confidence to you, you can reach him, he is only open for a change.
The second lesson has to do with the fact that it safely back end of the chain. Someone before has set itself the task to help him and care for him. He has forgotten that the monkey has thus become lazy and fearful. Even if he is hanging on the chain, he will prefer this life to free life. He gets his men food and so it works for him as if he were a god. The assistance or food that was offered in, had made him dependent on him again to get used to the freedom would be a lengthy and perhaps impossible task. Now you can build it only with a lot of money and work a "golden cage. His freedom was lost, for their benefactors, he will remain for now always a reason for pity and depression.
Many types of assistance, the so-called development aid is nothing more than a knitting in our prisons. From a gilded cage we call the free, it make us equal. We see how they find it difficult to get food and entangle them in our system that is not real and does not escape the suffering.
The monkey is a true teacher, because it reflects the source of our suffering. It is based only on our permanent will, a will that has its origins in fear and laziness. We have to starve to death anxiety, fear that we have too little anxiety that we are sick and afraid that we die. We are mindful of being too lazy, too lazy to go out on his way to lazy to look around at all times. If we live simply, live in the moment, there is no fear. In the present, do not fear. If we take careful, it will never want for anything. The universe, nature, some will call it God, enough for all our lives. Let us not forget that we are down to a dependent exemption, will always lose everything. Everything is impermanent. The only thing is we keep aware of our rebirth. What if we also lose and quite deliberately.
What does the future we do not know. Our future depends more on the present moment. The present is the mother of the future. The past is long gone. If we stay in the present we note how different the world than we think. It is up to us to change them or continue to strive for survival than the life to begin.
All the best
a monkey