The Devoted Son

Jamadagni was a Great Rishi. He lived a pious life with his wife Renuka. One day Renuka and the rishi were making a shivalinga from clay.

Just as they were giving in the finishing touches, Renuka’s concentration was distracted by the sound of hooves. The shadow of the Kshatriya king who rode that way fell on the shivalinga.

Rishi Jamadagni who noticed the loss of concentration of his wife was enraged. He called his eldest son.

“Your mother must be killed now,” the rishi ordered. But Jamadagni’s son refused to kill her.

The rishi then called his second son. The second son wanted to know why he should kill an innocent woman who was also his mother.

Jamadagni then called his third son. “Cut off your mother’s head now,” he ordered. The third son was Parashurama. Without a word Parashurama beheaded his mother. Jamadagni was pleased. ‘Ask for two boons and it shall be yours. I am pleased with you,” said the rishi to Parashurama.

“Father”, said Parashurama, “bring mother back to life. I know not why you wanted her beheaded but let her not remember what caused her death.”

Jamadagni granted his son’s wishes. Renuka was brought back to life.

In later years Parashurama came to be known for both his valour and anger. He lost out in a battle of strength to Rama. He handed over his weapons to Rama and renounced the world.

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The foolish lion and the clever rabbit

Once upon a time there lived a ferocious lion in the forest. It was a greedy lion and started killing animals in the forest indiscriminately. Seeing this, the animals gathered and decided to approach the lion with the offer of one animal of each species volunteering itself to be eaten by the lion everyday.

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Story of The Brahmin and the crooks

Mitra Sarma was a Brahmin living in a small village. He used to daily worship Fire. It was the month of Magha (February). The sky was full of clouds and it had already started raining. Sarma left for a neighbouring village at that time to seek the gift of a sacrificial lamb from some rich man. He called on a well-to-do man in the village and requested him to make him a gift of a healthy lamb for sacrifice to Gods. The wealthy man gave him one of the well-fed lambs he had. Carrying the lamb on his shoulders, the Brahmin began his homeward journey. Three crooks, very hungry and emaciated, crossed his path and seeing the healthy lamb on the Brahmin’s shoulders thought, “Ah, God has sent us good food. Let us trick the Brahmin into parting with it and free us from hunger and cold.” At once, they began to act. One of them changed into a disguise, and overtaking the Brahmin by another route, stopped him and said, “O what a fool you are? Such a great worshipper of Fire, why are you carrying this dog on your shoulders? This will bring you ridicule. Don’t you know that it is a sin to touch a dog, or a rooster, or a donkey?” The Brahmin lost his temper and said, “You stupid fellow, are you blind? Why do you call a lamb a dog?” The first crook replied, “Don’t be angry, if you think he is not a dog, please carry on. I have no objection.” The Brahmin hardly walked a little distance when the second crook greeted him and said, “O respected sir, it is highly regrettable that you are carrying a dead calf on your shoulders, however dear it is to you. The man who touches dead animals or birds has to undergo purification rites.” The Brahmin challenged him, “Are you too blind? This is a live sacrificial lamb and you say he is a dead calf.” The second crook said, “All right, sir. Please excuse me. I am an ignorant fool. Do as it pleases you.” Now it was the turn of the third crook to cross the Brahmin’s path. Turning to the Brahmin, the crook said, “Sir, it is highly improper. You are carrying a donkey on your shoulders. This is not done. The elders have said he who touches a donkey, knowingly or otherwise, has to take a bath fully dressed. So, please leave him before anybody notices it.” Thinking that he was really carrying a donkey, the poor Brahmin threw the lamb to the ground and went home. Moral of the Story : The learned have said that men with great common sense and a little bit of cunning can subdue stronger enemies like the tricksters who cheated the gullible Brahmin of his lamb

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Don't judge a book by its cover

Some people are just doomed to be failures. That's the way some adults look at troubled kids. Maybe you've heard the saying, "A bird with a broken wing will never fly as high." I'm sure that T. J. Ware was made to feel this way almost every day in school.

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Tips for enjoying every moment of your life

1. Forgive yourself and others
   Life is too short to hold on to regrets, grudges, miscommunications, or disappointments. Free yourself by forgiving and letting go of any negative energy you're holding on to about yourself or others. The process of forgiving yourself and others will result in your feeling light and free.
   

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In her mother's dress

"Do you like my dress?" she asked of a passing stranger. "My mommy made it just for me." She said with a tear in her eye.

"Well, I think it's very pretty, so tell me little one, why are you crying?"
With a quiver in her voice the little girl answered. "After Mommy made me this dress, she had to go away."
"Well, now," said the lady, "with a little girl like you waiting for her, I'm sure she'll be right back."

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The power of encouragement

Dante Gabriel Rossetti, the famous 19th-century poet and artist, was once approached by an elderly man.
The old fellow had some sketches and drawings that he wanted Rossetti to look at and tell him if they were any good, or if they at least showed potential talent.

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Honor women

They smile when they want to scream.

They sing when they want to cry.

They cry when they are happy and laugh when they are nervous.

They fight for what they believe in.

They stand up for injustice.

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A warm story to make your day brighter

I am a mother of three (ages 14, 12, 3) and have recently completed my college degree. The last class I had to take was Sociology. The teacher was absolutely inspiring with the qualities that I wish every human being had been graced with. Her last project of the term was called "Smile."  The class was asked to go out and smile at three people and document their reaction. I am a very friendly person and always smile at everyone and say, hello-anyway...so, I thought, this would be a piece of cake

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Life In The Fast Lane

A young and successful executive was traveling down a neighborhood street, going a bit too fast in his new Jaguar. He was watching for kids darting out from between parked cars and slowed down when he thought he saw something.

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Mom's last laugh

Consumed by my loss, I didn’t notice the hardness of the pew where I sat. I was at the funeral of my dearest friend — my mother. She finally had lost her long battle with cancer. The hurt was so intense, I found it hard to breathe at times.

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Pick up in the rain

One night, at 11:30 PM, an older African American woman was standing on the side of an Alabama highway trying to endure a lashing rain storm. Her car had broken down and she desperately needed a ride. Soaking wet, she decided to flag down the next car. A young white man stopped to help her generally unheard of in those conflict-filled 1960s.

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The obstacle in our path

In ancient times, a king had a boulder placed on a roadway. Then he hid himself and watched to see if anyone would remove the huge rock. Some of the king's wealthiest merchants and courtiers came by and simply walked around it.

Many loudly blamed the king for not keeping the roads clear, but none did anything about getting the big stone out of the way. Then a peasant

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Learn to listen

At the prodding of my friends, I am writing this story. My name is Mildred Hondorf. I am a former elementary school music teacher from DeMoines, Iowa. I've always supplimented my income by teaching piano lessons--something I've done for over 30 years. Over the years
I found that children have many levels of musical ability. I've never had the pleasure of having a protege though I have taught some talented

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The brick

About ten years ago, a young and very successful executive named Josh was traveling down a Chicago neighborhood street. He was going a bit too fast in his sleek, black, 12 cylinder Jaguar XKE, which was only two months old.

He was watching for kids darting out from between parked cars and

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Be patient

This is a true story which happened in the States. A man came out of his home to admire his new truck.

To his puzzlement, his three-year-old son was happily hammering dents into the shiny paint.

The man ran to his son, knocked him away, hammered the little boy's hands into pulp as punishment.

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Attitude is everything

Jerry was the kind of guy you love to hate. He was always in a good mood and always had something positive to say. When someone would ask him how he was doing, he would reply, "If I were any better, I would be twins!"

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The carrot, the egg, and the coffee bean

A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how things were so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up. She was tired of fighting and struggling.
It seemed that, as one problem was solved, a new one arose. Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Soon the pots came to a boil. In the first, she placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs, and in the last she placed ground coffee beans.

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Alexander and Diogenes

Now when Alexander [the Great] appeared before the Greek leaders in Corinth they greeted him warmly and paid him lavish compliments- all of them, that is but one. A funny fellow, a philosopher named Diogenes. He had views not unlike those of the Buddha. According to him, possessions and all the things we think we need only serve to distract us and get in the way of our simple enjoyment of life. So he had given away everything he owned and now sat, almost naked, in a barrel in the market square in Corinth where he lived, free and independent like a stray dog.

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This is good

An old story is told of a king in Africa who had a close friend with whom he grew up. The friend had a habit of looking at every situation that ever occurred in his life (positive or negative) and remarking, “This is good!”
One day the king and his friend were out on a hunting expedition. The friend would load and prepare the guns for the king. The friend had apparently done something wrong in preparing one of the guns, for after taking the gun from his friend, the king fired it and his thumb was blown off. Examining the situation the friend remarked as usual, “This is good!” To which the king replied, “No, this is NOT good!” and proceeded to send his friend to jail.

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