ENLIGHTENED PURSUITS
  • Home
  • About Us
  • Ideas
  • Quick Thoughts
  • Journal
  • Long-Form
  • Poetry
  • Gallery
  • Forum
  • Donate
  • Join Us
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Service

"You will always find an answer in the sound of water."

​- Zhuangzi

Blue Heaven

1/31/2018

0 Comments

 
Picture

An individual was born and raised in the middle of barren desert.

Their childhood and adolescence was adequate enough, but other than the odd rainstorm, every day was quite the same.

They absolutely adored reading, and they would throw themselves head first into the wildest and fantasmagorical stories and tales of fiction.

Those works would tell of immense tropical rainforests or the wildest blizzards to hit the most northern of tundras…

...and the kid wanted to experience it.

However, they soon realized that their fantasies were just that and they were not going to encounter a tropical rainforest anytime soon; however, they wished to experience just one thing if they could find a way to.

They wanted to see the ocean.

Seeing much of anything though; even relaxing in their spare time, was almost impossible because they were working so hard.

Given the climate of where they lived, the most prized profession was well digging and work was always available.

Early one morning, after only a few hours of sleep, they started drilling a well; but started to doze off in the middle of it.

When they awoke, they were startled to see a pool of water surrounding their excavator and a geyser shooting water some 20 feet in the air.

The “damage” was already done, but interestingly enough after a few birds came to take a drink in the ever growing pool which eventually became a lake and the animals came their to cool off…

...only in a matter of months did this spring become a little ocean oasis in the desert.

​
0 Comments

Staring Contest

1/29/2018

0 Comments

 
Picture

Two friends entered a staring contest.

The one had great eyelid stamina.

The other had a lot of competitive practice.

On paper, it was an even match up; the only thing that would result in the winner was sheer will and determination.

Or the opening trailers before the movie starting, requiring the contest:

“To be continued.”

0 Comments

The Tree

1/29/2018

0 Comments

 
Picture


​There was this ancient and tall tree in a forest on the outskirts of the city.


It was very well known:

Stories and myths had been told of it’s planting.

Schools used it as their mascot and shops referred to it in their names.

Scientists studied it religiously by collecting various types of data.

And it had a day set aside solely for its celebration once a year.

A traveler walking on the road leading to the town spotted the top of the 300 foot tree from miles away.

When they got into town, they headed straight towards it and began to climb.

First, a couple of kids walking by took a passing interest and went on, but they did not fail to tell their friends, who in turn told other friends…

...this game of telephone eventually reached the whole town and the situation was soon made a spectacle.

All of this went unnoticed to the climber who was only concerned with finding the next tree branch.

It took the whole day for them to climb up and the whole night for them to climb down, but when they reached the floor just after dawn, they were accosted by a garrison of reporters and television cameras; who only had one question to ask:

“Why did you climb the tree?”

“For exercise.”



0 Comments

A Child's Future

1/28/2018

0 Comments

 
Picture

​“What do you want to be when you grow up?”


“Why do I have to become something?”

“Because it is good to find something to do for a job and a career.”

“What should I do?”

“Whatever you like to do that makes a good wage.”

“What if I don’t want to do anything?”

“That is no excuse, you must find something.”

“But if I don’t want to do anything and choose something still, I will not like what I am doing.”

“So be it; better to have something to do than nothing at all.”

“Why is that?”

“Because when you do nothing you will be restless and unfulfilled.”

“Necessarily?”

“Necessarily.”

“What if I like to do nothing?”

“Liking to do nothing will not put food on the table.”

“What if liking to do nothing can put food on the table?”

“How could that happen?”

“What if people give me food?”
“That is called freeloading and an embarrassing thing for an able-bodied man to do.”

“What if I make the food myself?”

“You would have found the thing to do then.”

“What if I don’t want to do that?...”

0 Comments

Fighting Fires

1/27/2018

0 Comments

 
Picture

​A town suffered terrible destruction when a fire raged through it.


The main reason for it getting out of hand was that there was no fire department; individual neighborhoods had to come together to fight the fires as best as they could.

Seeing the massive damage, an individual resolved to establish a town fire department; however, the town was quite poor before the fire and a lot of the resources they had went to rebuilding.

The individual never lived to see a fire department in the town.

They had a child, however, who had developed a talent in tailoring and established a clothes making and laundry business.

Their clothes were very sought after for being quite durable and yet very sumptuous and fashionable.

They knew their talent was unique and popular, and therefore they did not hesitate to ask top dollar for their clothes.

A woman came to them to make a dress, and they made sure to tell them the steep price up front.

“I will pay any price that you ask for,” said the woman.

The dress was made and the tailor was paid their price, but the woman proceeded to besmirch the tailor’s reputation for being greedy.

After developing their name and business for some time, they had accrued a substantial personal wealth.

They contracted a modern firehouse to be built in the center of the town, replete with a fleet of fully outfitted fire trucks that could face any situation.

After the firehouse’s opening, the tailor retired; never touching a needle and thread again.

0 Comments
<<Previous

    Archives

    February 2020
    January 2020
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017

    RSS Feed

    Categories

    All
    Consciousness
    Fear
    God
    Happiness
    Illusion
    Living Well
    On Reality
    Philosophy
    Poetry
    Self Improvement
    Sense
    Spirituality
    Thought
    Time
    Wisdom
    You
    Zen Stories

    Benchmark Email
    Email Marketing Services by Benchmark
Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.
  • Home
  • About Us
  • Ideas
  • Quick Thoughts
  • Journal
  • Long-Form
  • Poetry
  • Gallery
  • Forum
  • Donate
  • Join Us
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Service