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The 10 Tokens of Wisdom
A wizard, on his way to the Sangha, came across a
weary eying stranger who seemed a long way from home.
“Good evening,” said
the wizard, “Peace be with you;” upon which the stranger replied, “Oh, dear
wise one, please end my cause for wandering, and
share with me the 10 tokens
of wisdom.”
The wizard elucidated, “The 10 tokens of wisdom, young
person, are not omnisufficient but rather omnifarious, as every person should
develop his or her own wisdom principles: We all have a different call, and
therefore meet with different challenges, from which we have to learn
different lessons.
Hence, all I can share with you are the 10 tokens as I
have come to formulate them on my personal journey to freedom, and the only
reason I will share them with you is because I believe that they may
encourage you to start contemplating on your own.”
Then the wizard and
the stranger found a little rock under a fig tree, whereupon the wizard
started,
1. Keep your ears open and your mouth shut. This is not to
say that you should never speak again, but rather that you should realize
that through constant talking you don’t obtain any new knowledge. Speak only
when you are asked to, and listen for most of the time.
2. Learn
to see the futility of attaching yourself to material as well as immaterial
possessions, for either they will sooner or later leave you, or you them.
Therefore, be unafraid of letting go whenever you feel that the purpose is
served.
3. Abstain yourself from negative thinking, which includes
mindsets such as jealousy, hate, discontent, and dislike; for they merely
engender restlessness within you, and through that, they contribute to the
cycle of destruction in the world.
4. Either abstain yourself
entirely from passion or make sure you have it well under control, for being
led by passion can only be considered positive when the fulfillment of good
causes is involved. Unfortunately, passion has often been known to get one
engaged in actions, which one only regrets when maturity sets
in.
5. Give whatever you can to whomever needs it.. However, beware
of the two main mistakes made in this regard: A) Never assume that another
one needs what you perceive him or her to, based on the fact that it is
customary in your culture and not in his or hers. Rather, wait till you are
asked for help. B) Never assume that the kind of help YOU can provide is the
only and
best one there is. Your help comes forth from your personal
perspectives, but it may not fit into someone else’s.
6. Accept
the natural cycles from life to death, youth to old age, and health to
illness, for while you should do everything in your power to live as healthy
and energetically as possible, you should also realize that life is not
eternal, and that aging, illness, and death will occur regardless of how many
sophisticated tools you will use to defy them. Gracefully accepting every
stage takes courage, but it will enhance your contentment.
7. The
world is your home. Beware, therefore, of attaching yourself to one place,
group, or culture as your only place of abode. The time to move on could
arrive any moment. It is better to familiarize yourself with- and understand
as many cultures as you can, as this will liberate you from engaging in
ridicules such as ethnocentrism and misplaced patriotism.
Neighborhoods,
regions, countries and continents may be different, but none is better than
the other.
8. Recognize your blessings and be thankful for them.
Blessings come to you all the time, and in many ways. Oftentimes you may not
realize the good deed that the universe bestowed upon you, for you may have
turned your back
toward it, or have had your eyes closed. So, be thankful
anyway: definitely for the blessings you do recognize.
9.
Respect. Not just other people, but also the vegetation, all that breathes,
and everything else that comprises of the environment. Respect the elements.
Be in awe. And realize your futility.
10. Stay awake. Keep learning.
Don’t be blind for anything that happens around you. However, withhold
yourself from judging, because what you see is only a fragment of what really
is. Just learn your personal lessons from it in silence, and move
on.
Then the wizard got up, made a gentle bow for the stranger, and
proceeded his way to the Sangha.
Joan Marques, Ed.D.
Burbank,
May 17, 2004
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About the
Author:
Joan Marques emigrated from Suriname, South America, to California,
U.S., in 1998. She holds a doctorate in Organizational Leadership, a Master’s
in
Business Administration, and is currently a university instructor
in Business and Management in Burbank, California. You may visit her web
sites at http://www.joanmarques.com
and
http://www.spiritcounts.com
Joan's
manual "Feel Good About Yourself," a six part series to get you over the
bumps in life and onto success, can be purchased and downloaded at:
http://www.non-books.com/FeelGoodSeries.html
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