Apply this when your emotions get in the way
An aging master grew tired of his apprentice’s complaints. One morning, he sent him to get some salt. When the apprentice returned, the master told him to mix a handful of salt in a glass of water and then drink it.
“How does it taste?” the master asked.
“Bitter,” said the apprentice….
The master chuckled and then asked the young man to take the same handful of salt and put it in the lake. The two walked in silence to the nearby lake and once the apprentice swirled his handful of salt in the water, the old man said, “Now drink from the lake.”
As the water dripped down the young man’s chin, the master asked, “How does it taste?”
“Fresh,” remarked the apprentice.
“Do you taste the salt?” asked the master.
“No,” said the young man. At this the master sat beside this serious young man, and explained softly,
“The pain of life is pure salt; no more, no less. The amount of pain in life remains exactly the same. However, the amount of bitterness we taste depends on the container we put the pain in. So when you are in pain, the only thing you can do is to enlarge your sense of things. Stop being a glass. Become a lake.”-from facebook
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Thank you Rinpoche for this sharing . Nothing comes easy in life, there is always pain, suffering before success. Accept our emotions, accept that bad feelings are occasionally unavoidable and think of ways to make ourselves feel better. Negative emotions like fear, sadness, and anger are a basic part of life, we have ways to deal with them effectively. A great teachings , reading this post tells us more . Learning to forgive ,leave our emotions and move on.
This is a very powerful teachings. When we are suffering, we tend to magnify it and victimise ourselves. We think we are the most miserable person in the world and no one cares about us.
However, when we start to focus out and not focus on our pain, the pain become bearable. We will be able to get through the difficult period and heal ourselves. Happiness is really a state of mind, it is not determined by what we have and how other people treat us.
We have to appreciate the things that we have, it will make us happier. When we focus only on the things that we don’t have, we will always be miserable. There are many people who are unfortunate than us, help them however we can. It is always better to be a giver than a receiver.
Thank you for a thoughtful article. Every emotions comes from the way we act on it. A very simple but means a lot. Pains and problems can be helped. It can be eased and sometimes vanished completely.
Life will not be perfect without pains, problem and struggles. If we closely think and understand, it has many lesson and reason that need to be learned whether it’s easy or hard. Many people don’t cherish life at all and there are some who don’t value it. There a many who struggle to overcome their difficult times with a lot of patience through prayers. But has a results they will gain good experience and wonderful feeling upon the success.
The greater feeling of success always has a pain to say and the journey of life is always an interesting chapter to go through. Feel Life a Wonderful Journey and Enjoy every moment of the time.
This is a very good reminder to us when we suddenly feel emotionally depressed because of the external factors that take control of us. We should be the one who takes control of our emotions and be responsible of our own reactions. Thank you Rinpoche and blog team for sharing this short teachings on how to handle our emotions ???
It is true all the emotions comes from our mind. Most of the time we tend to see a problem to be so big which we can actually have a choice to dilute it and make it smaller. We always have our expectation on everything and once it goes against ours, we are not happy and anger arise. Therefore we should control our mind and not let it direct us to think and act negatively.
Happiness , depression, anger, frustration, bitterness is a choice. All is based on how we interpreting each situation in our life and the meaning we associate with. To feel happy, focus on things in our life that will make us feel happy. What ever we see and thinks can lead to thoughts and influences our performance. It is our emotions that influence the way we think and behave We are to accept and the ability to adapt to the challenges of our daily life. A powerful meaning behind this short story. Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this wonderful and powerful post that will helps us in our daily life.
Very well explained article. Thanks for sharing Rinpoche.
Well many of us always living in misery and bitterness reason being, all of us have the ability of self pitiness and also selfishness, hence we need Dharma. it will actually give us wisdom to overcome all this matters.
I think relativity just got explained here.
The event that happens which cause us pain is just an event. We could no do anything to change that event but we can change the way we look at the event. When we look at the larger scale, our pain is just too tiny to be considered pain.
I always believe in experiencing the pain then move on. But do not indulge in that pain until it disables you.
When you see how others suffer more, you realise that you are a drop in the ocean. Your own sufferings cannot compare. Don’t compare. You are more fortunate.
Dear Rinpoche,
Our problems is just like the salt . If we enclose it within the glass the taste is very salty and bitter. When we hold on to the problems, we will feel the pain ie. bitterness. We will keep complaining, suffering the pain and feel depressed.
When we put the salt into the sea is just like letting go of our problems which is our attachments and delusions. We will have a more positive mind to overcome daily difficulties and obstacles in our life. As in a chinese proverb….. ‘A big problem will become a small problem and a small problem will be no problem at all’. Hence, there will be more peace and happiness within ourselves and with the people around us. We will be able to generate good positive vibes and benefit others for their well being.
Thank you Rinpoche for this profound teaching to help us in our daily life.
With folded hands
Rena
When we view our problems from a wider perspective, the problems become smaller and less “bitter”. It is our choice whether to suffer with pain or suffer without pain by focusing out rather than inwards.
Thank you, Rinpoche, for sharing this story.
Thank you Rinpoche. This is truly a very effective reminder to us when we suddenly feel emotionally depressed because of the external factors that take control of us. We should be the one who takes control of our emotion and be responsible of our own reactions.
Most of the time we only focus and care for ourselves and our loved ones. For myself I’ve wasted almost two third of my life chasing after those elements which could not be brought with me upon my passing over. Upon flipping through the pages in my book of life, reflecting of my past doings , it resemble the glass of water mixed with handful of salt, tasted salty followed by bitterness!! Thus, upon contacting with the dharma, I yearned to open a new chapter and stop being a glass beconme a lake !!
Thank you Rinpoche .
Dear Rinpoche,
Thank you Rinpoche for this wonderful and powerful post. I had the honor to share it with friends on Face book and many love it. Many also shared it on their on facebook page…and their posting also got many likes.
Life is painful and the more we focus on the pain, the more intense it gets. In fact, it can get to a point where we cannot even function from the pain we feel. I experience that physical pain is actually the easiest pain to bear. Emotional pain is what can cripple us for a long, long time.
Dharma is the “medicine” for our emotional pains because, as indicated in the post, it expands our minds from a “glass” to a “lake”.
I look forward to practice Dharma more and am grateful to have a space like Kechara Forest Retreat to do so in. Yes, there are pains when I learn to practice Dharma as reflection and coming to terms with the truth can sometimes be painful. However, this pain is a short-term one because in facing the truth, we eventually grow (into a lake) and move forward. On the contrary, if we avoid the truth the underlying pain will just keep growing within us…or if we sugar-coat the truth, the bitterness will eventually come through again.
Thank you again, Rinpoche!
This is so true. See things from different angle will give a completely different perspective. Thanks for sharing this.
Thank u Rinpoche for such an short but empowering story.
It is true when I check back at all the people I have met, some who has gone through so much but they make so much out of their life. Some who has only gone through so little, does the opposite instead. At the end of the day, I always remember what Rinpoche said to me many years ago, the choice how u want ur life to be is in your hand. Nobody put a gun to your head to make any decisions.
Yes, when we are enlarge problem, more calculative and keep on complaint this, complaint that, of course feeling life is painful. If we can be lake or ocean,be more patient, sure can handle our emotions. Thank you Rinpoche for sharing.
We all have our pain in life, how much we experience the bitterness depend on different perspective we see of the situation. The only thing you can do is to enlarge your sense of things when we are in pain. Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this beautiful story.
Thank you, Rinpoche for giving us such a great illustration for us to reflect on how very small minded and self centred we are.
Another method which Rinpoche has always taught us, is simply to focus out to others instead of self and we will be happy and contented and live our life with great abundance and purpose.
With greatest appreciation, as always
The glass is the focus of us as an individual & the comfort zone we hold dearly. The lake is the focus on others & their welfare. Being able to focus out, whatever bitterness we have will be dissolved. This is a simple story, but it gives profound teachings. A timely reminder for me to not be influenced by my emotions. Thank you Rinpoche!
Life is always suffers,
“So when you are in pain, the only thing you can do is to enlarge your sense of things. Stop being a glass. Become a lake.”
Regardless you are physically or mentally in pain, focus out and look at the pains as positive strength. in order to reduce the bitterness in life, be open minded, letting go on one’s grasping mind.
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing such a beautiful story.
Thank you Rinpoche for this great story. Your prayer Happy Suffering has been a precious guide in my journey as well as your Teaching. Forever grateful for this precious connection with you and your Kechara team.
Wow this is very educational although it’s just a short article. What the master said is true, we all have our own bitterness, happiness in life, but it’s up to us to make the decision of you either get over it and stop complaining or you can just stay there and do nothing else but only complaining.
This is very well done and very deep. Thank you, Rinpoche for sharing this story. It shows that a vessel that is very narrow can be afflicted by small things but once you are more open minded any suffering will not be “tasted”.
Thank you Rinpoche,
I have been dealing with a few different situations and after reading this a few times gives me a different perspective of the situation. Thank you for all your teachings.
面对苦痛的时候，要做一面湖水，不做一个小杯子，扩大自己承受苦痛的能力。䏻还是不能承受，承受的能力有多少，是在于我们放大了这个苦痛，或者选择缩小了这个苦痛。
将自己的苦痛放在比较大的范畴来看，跟过去我经历的苦痛来做比较，这时你会发现：以前那样难熬的日子都走过去了，现在这个遭遇比较起来并比之前那个困难，所以你肯定䏻度过。以前的经验和承受的能力也强化了你现在䏻承受的能力和韧性。人生路不可能是白走的。
举个例子，你年少轻狂时失恋可能是件天塌下来，整个世界都被摧毁了的大事。有了一些人生经验的你，今天回头看时，可能会忍不住笑出来，甚至觉得自己无限夸大了那份苦。你会这么看，可能是因为你把一大把盐丢入一个小杯子里一口喝下，所以苦不堪言。走过许多路看过浩瀚大海的你，这个时候懂得如何把那把盐投入大海后再饮用。
又或者再放到其他面对更多苦痛和煎熬的人／社群来看，对比之下，自己的苦难其实也变得“轻”了。或许，有人会说：“这根本是阿Q嘛，自欺欺人。”
然而，许多发生在自己身上的事情，此刻的我暂时没有能力改变，或者客观环境十分不利，让自己继续陷入不快乐的情绪和无力的泥沼里，对自己无法带来正面的利益。更多事情，是现在的我无法理解的，再思索下去，饭就不用开了，日子就不用过了。所以，就往前走，将心力放在做一些䏻潜在改变现状的事情。
我发现，就算创不出一片天，却也将精力投资在值得和有意义的事情上。这样一来，客观环境要改变也指日可待。
An apt reminder whenever we feel down and find it difficult to accept the situation we’re in. The trick is not to change the situation because the problem is inside you, not outside. Change your perspective and change your experiences… just like Rinpoche’s teachings on https://www.tsemrinpoche.com/tsem-tulku-rinpoche/buddhas-dharma/nothing-changes-everything-changes.html
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this beautiful story, with its profound lesson.
“Stop being a glass. become a lake”. How true. When we let our negative emotions get the better of us, we become overwhelmed and we narrow our perception to “Me” and “my problem”, and do not see the “We” and “Us” anymore..Then the feeling of bitterness sets in and enhances the pain.
Dear Rinpoche,
This is a very good motivate story.
I was thinking on how to focus out instead focus in always.
This story come in time to give me an idea on looking in the big picture.
Sometimes, things do not go as what we hopes, the pain come from not fulfilling our hopes for certain aspect. The unsatisfied bring many pains. The mind just could not and will not give up on the grasping even when i know the grasping is wrong.
In a way, i thanks the bad situation arise to make me realize how deep the grasping is.
May i able to win the battle and mind get more easy.
Thank you my dearest Guru. You never give us up but always be with us timely.
This inspire me a lot.
I hopes i will too not give up on people.
When talking about salt, I always compare it with desire. It is like drinking salt water- always keeping you thirsty! Perhaps I can turn it around to think in this way too – lessen my attachment to any problems that I may encounter..
Very well explained.
Thank you Rinpoche
Judy Chen