The Old Man and the Bowl

Buddhism and Self-Cultivation, Latest Recommended

【Description】

There were two national treasured heirloom antiques. One of them was donated to the government, and the other fell into the hands of an outsider. Why did the heirloom antique fall outside the family? Who was the outsider? How did the outsider get such a valuable heirloom? If you want to know the answers, listen carefully to this story told by Grandmaster JinBodhi.

【You will learn】

  • The story about “virtue has its rewards”
  • The importance of loving and caring for your parents

【Featured aphorism】

  • If you don’t respect, cherish and love your parents, you don’t deserve to be a human. All precious things will slip away from you. Only those with noble and kind morals will be loved and taken care of by Heaven.

【Content】

An old man worked for the State Cultural Relic Department in Beijing. He had 2 daughters and a son. His wife died long ago so he had to play the role of a mother.

He never stopped providing for his children, even after they began working and got married. His children were his priority. He bought only a bit of clothing for himself. During his career, he didn’t earn much. He spent it all on his children, especially the youngest one. He didn’t want to spend on himself, but he always tried to buy delicious food for his kids. He was always like this. At Chinese New Year, he bought a piece of pork; he let his kids eat all of it, he didn’t even have broth. That’s how much he loved his children. He was a cultured and elegant old man.

He was old, retired and alone; his wife was dead. One day, he fell sick; he was coughing and feverish. He was sick for 2-3 months. When the father was sick, his children visited and checked on him. If his son couldn’t make it, his daughters would. They will always bring up one thing during their visits. “Dad, is it true that you are keeping the emperor’s bowl? It is a great treasure. Where do you keep it?” The old man could sense his children’s greed. “Oh, it is not with me now, I will show it to you later.”

His children kept reminding him of how filial they had been; they often brought him snacks, half a grilled chicken or half a bottle of wine. They kept doing so, even after he had recovered. His children seemed to have filial piety toward him. Then the old man called his children to him. “Actually, the bowl is supposed to be kept by the country, but I stole it. Now, I tell you the truth. I stole it. How could we afford such an expensive bowl? Selling it is prohibited. We can’t sell this; let’s donate it.”

His children were stunned. “Let’s not donate it, we will keep it.” “What if the cops come after us?” The 3 children had no choice but to agree to the plan. “Alright, let’s donate it, I don’t want to go to jail.” “Let’s pretend that it is our gift to the State Cultural Relic Department.” They sent the bowl back to the government. The government cited them for their conduct. This bowl is a true cultural relic, very famous and precious. There are only a few in the whole world. This event even went on the front page of the newspaper.

“So, Dad, what else have you got?” “Nothing, just that bowl. I only stole that bowl. If you don’t believe me, you can search the house.” They searched the house and found nothing valuable. Of course, it had been tough for the old man to support a family alone. His meager wage had to feed all of them. There was no way he could afford expensive things.

After the donation was made, the old man fell ill again. For a whole year, none of his children came to visit him. He initially thought maybe they were too busy. Then he thought maybe his words had offended them. When he called them, they made up excuses not to come. During the year when none of his children cared for him, a high-school student next door came to visit him frequently. The kid liked coming over for stories. He found the old man to be a well-behaved, cultured person. Seeing that he was alone, the kid would often bring him noodles and dumplings. He would then talk to the old man and play chess with him. The kid knew nothing about the bowl.

The old man grew weaker and fell sick again. The cold weather triggered his lung and windpipe issues. At first, the kid would look after him until 10:30pm; then he would go home to sleep. Later, he told his mom that he would stay at the old man’s place to make sure the man had water and medication. He told his mom that no one was taking care of the old man. The kid took care of the old man like his own father. A few years later, the kid made it into a university. That meant he couldn’t visit the old man anymore.

The old man realized that he was going to die soon. He knew he had to do something while the kid was still around. He got the kid’s family together and told them something. He said this bowl was from his grandfather who’d spent big money in purchasing it. The current price of only one bowl can buy 10 mansions. That is how valuable the bowls are.”

The old man’s grandfather swore to keep them forever. But the old man’s greedy children were not filial; they only kept thinking about the bowl. The old man donated one of them to reveal his children’s true characters. The other bowl was safely kept elsewhere. The old man said, “This kid is so sensible and kind. I see you as my own son. You are going to study at a university; I may not be able to see you again. Take this bowl, son.”

The kid had no idea about that bowl. He said, “We have enough bowls in our home; we don’t need this bowl.” He didn’t understand how valuable the bowl was. The old man told him that the bowl was a valuable antique. There were only 7 or 8 of them in China. Only one was in the Forbidden City. The bowl was so expensive that when his grandfather bought it, 3 bullcarts were used to deliver the silver ingots for that one bowl. That is how expensive it was.

The kid refused his offer, saying that it was too valuable. “Son, I am going to die with regret if my kids get their hands on it. It would be a waste if this bowl were in my greedy children’s hands. A good treasure should be kept by a good person like you. We don’t live forever. Let’s make our lives worthwhile by keeping treasures safe, even if we are destined to do so for only a day or a year. Be the next keeper, son.” The old man told him to do whatever he wanted with it.

Later, an antique dealer from China offered the kid big money for that bowl. Knowing that the bowl could attract unwanted attention, the kid had to move several times, and I have no idea where he is now. He rejected all monetary offers, no matter how high they were. He made a promise and he wouldn’t sell, no matter what. That is the story of a bowl.

If a person has no respect or gratitude for their parents, they have lost their humanity. They will keep no treasures without humanity. No matter how miserable your life is, if you practice kindness and righteousness, the gods will take care of you. I hope this story inspires you a little.


The Old Man and the Bowl

About Karma, Buddhism and Self-Cultivation, Dharma, hot topic, Latest Recommended, Popular live clips

【Description】

There were two national treasured heirloom antiques. One of them was donated to the government, and the other fell into the hands of an outsider. Why did the heirloom antique fall outside the family? Who was the outsider? How did the outsider get such a valuable heirloom? If you want to know the answers, listen carefully to this story told by Grandmaster JinBodhi.

【You will learn】

  • The story about “virtue has its rewards”
  • The importance of loving and caring for your parents

【Featured aphorisms】

  • If you don’t respect, cherish and love your parents, you don’t deserve to be a human. All precious things will slip away from you. Only those with noble and kind morals will be loved and taken care of by Heaven.

【Content】

An old man worked for the State Cultural Relic Department in Beijing. He had 2 daughters and a son. His wife died long ago so he had to play the role of a mother.

He never stopped providing for his children, even after they began working and got married. His children were his priority. He bought only a bit of clothing for himself. During his career, he didn’t earn much. He spent it all on his children, especially the youngest one. He didn’t want to spend on himself, but he always tried to buy delicious food for his kids. He was always like this. At Chinese New Year, he bought a piece of pork; he let his kids eat all of it, he didn’t even have broth. That’s how much he loved his children. He was a cultured and elegant old man.

He was old, retired and alone; his wife was dead. One day, he fell sick; he was coughing and feverish. He was sick for 2-3 months. When the father was sick, his children visited and checked on him. If his son couldn’t make it, his daughters would. They will always bring up one thing during their visits. “Dad, is it true that you are keeping the emperor’s bowl? It is a great treasure. Where do you keep it?” The old man could sense his children’s greed. “Oh, it is not with me now, I will show it to you later.”

His children kept reminding him of how filial they had been; they often brought him snacks, half a grilled chicken or half a bottle of wine. They kept doing so, even after he had recovered. His children seemed to have filial piety toward him. Then the old man called his children to him. “Actually, the bowl is supposed to be kept by the country, but I stole it. Now, I tell you the truth. I stole it. How could we afford such an expensive bowl? Selling it is prohibited. We can’t sell this; let’s donate it.”

His children were stunned. “Let’s not donate it, we will keep it.” “What if the cops come after us?” The 3 children had no choice but to agree to the plan. “Alright, let’s donate it, I don’t want to go to jail.” “Let’s pretend that it is our gift to the State Cultural Relic Department.” They sent the bowl back to the government. The government cited them for their conduct. This bowl is a true cultural relic, very famous and precious. There are only a few in the whole world. This event even went on the front page of the newspaper.

“So, Dad, what else have you got?” “Nothing, just that bowl. I only stole that bowl. If you don’t believe me, you can search the house.” They searched the house and found nothing valuable. Of course, it had been tough for the old man to support a family alone. His meager wage had to feed all of them. There was no way he could afford expensive things.

After the donation was made, the old man fell ill again. For a whole year, none of his children came to visit him. He initially thought maybe they were too busy. Then he thought maybe his words had offended them. When he called them, they made up excuses not to come. During the year when none of his children cared for him, a high-school student next door came to visit him frequently. The kid liked coming over for stories. He found the old man to be a well-behaved, cultured person. Seeing that he was alone, the kid would often bring him noodles and dumplings. He would then talk to the old man and play chess with him. The kid knew nothing about the bowl.

The old man grew weaker and fell sick again. The cold weather triggered his lung and windpipe issues. At first, the kid would look after him until 10:30pm; then he would go home to sleep. Later, he told his mom that he would stay at the old man’s place to make sure the man had water and medication. He told his mom that no one was taking care of the old man. The kid took care of the old man like his own father. A few years later, the kid made it into a university. That meant he couldn’t visit the old man anymore.

The old man realized that he was going to die soon. He knew he had to do something while the kid was still around. He got the kid’s family together and told them something. He said this bowl was from his grandfather who’d spent big money in purchasing it. The current price of only one bowl can buy 10 mansions. That is how valuable the bowls are.”

The old man’s grandfather swore to keep them forever. But the old man’s greedy children were not filial; they only kept thinking about the bowl. The old man donated one of them to reveal his children’s true characters. The other bowl was safely kept elsewhere. The old man said, “This kid is so sensible and kind. I see you as my own son. You are going to study at a university; I may not be able to see you again. Take this bowl, son.”

The kid had no idea about that bowl. He said, “We have enough bowls in our home; we don’t need this bowl.” He didn’t understand how valuable the bowl was. The old man told him that the bowl was a valuable antique. There were only 7 or 8 of them in China. Only one was in the Forbidden City. The bowl was so expensive that when his grandfather bought it, 3 bullcarts were used to deliver the silver ingots for that one bowl. That is how expensive it was.

The kid refused his offer, saying that it was too valuable. “Son, I am going to die with regret if my kids get their hands on it. It would be a waste if this bowl were in my greedy children’s hands. A good treasure should be kept by a good person like you. We don’t live forever. Let’s make our lives worthwhile by keeping treasures safe, even if we are destined to do so for only a day or a year. Be the next keeper, son.” The old man told him to do whatever he wanted with it.

Later, an antique dealer from China offered the kid big money for that bowl. Knowing that the bowl could attract unwanted attention, the kid had to move several times, and I have no idea where he is now. He rejected all monetary offers, no matter how high they were. He made a promise and he wouldn’t sell, no matter what. That is the story of a bowl.

If a person has no respect or gratitude for their parents, they have lost their humanity. They will keep no treasures without humanity. No matter how miserable your life is, if you practice kindness and righteousness, the gods will take care of you. I hope this story inspires you a little.