As incredible as it may seem, many people are afraid of happiness. To these people, being happy with their lives means changing a series of habits and losing their own identity. Many a times, we judge ourselves unworthy of the good things that happen to us. We don’t accept the miracles because accepting them gives us the sensation that we owe something to God. In addition, we are afraid of “getting used” to happiness. We think: “better not to try the chalice of joy, because when this lacks us, we will suffer much.” For being afraid of diminishing, we refrain from growing. For the fear of crying, we refrain from laughing. Here are some stories about it.
The donkey dies of tiredness: Once, a man named Nasrudin decided to search and look for new meditation techniques. He saddled his donkey and travelled to many countries including India, China, Mongolia. He met many great masters, but had no success. While travelling, he heard of a wise man in Nepal. So he travelled there, but when he was climbing the mountain to meet the wise man, his donkey died of tiredness. Nasrudin buried the donkey and started crying of sadness. A passerby saw him mourning and asked Nasrudin: “You were looking for a saint and this is probably his grave. You are certainly lamenting his death.”
“No, this is where I buried my donkey, which died of tiredness,” Nasrudin answered. “I can’t believe it,” said the newcomer. “No one cries for a dead donkey. That must be a place where miracles happen and you want to keep it just for yourself.” No matter how much Nasrudin argued, the passerby wasn’t convinced. The man went to the neighbouring village; spread the story about a great master who worked cures on his grace and soon pilgrims began to arrive.
Little by little the news about the discovery of the “Wise Man of the Silent Mourning” spread throughout Nepal and crowds started gathering. A rich man even got a monument built at the place where Nasrudin had buried his “master” Nasrudin decided to leave things as they were. But he learned once and for all that when someone wants to believe in a lie, no one will convince him of the contrary.
On Moses’ steps: Rabbi Zuya wanted to discover the divine mysteries. For that reason, he decided to imitate Moses’ life. Over many years he tried to behave like the Prophet but was unable to get desired results. One evening, exhausted from studying, he ended up falling asleep. God came to him in a dream: “Why are you so upset, my son?” He asked. “My days on Earth will end and I am far away from being like Moses,” Zuya answered.
“If I needed another Moses, I would have already created one,” God said. “When you come before me for your judgment, I won’t ask you why you weren’t like Moses, but who were you. Try to be a good Zuya.”
Translated by Bettina Dungs
