Metaphor Two

Swami Vivekanand, in the pursuit of self-discovery, undertook a foot march throughout the country. He would walk through small hamlets, eat whatever he would get as 'bhiksha' (donation offered to Swamis in India) and then continue.

While he was passing one of the villages, a group of monkeys saw him. The monkeys were reputed to attack men and rob them of all the food they had. The monkeys started running behind Swamiji. Swamiji began to run as well.

The monkeys kept following Swamiji for quite some time. Swamiji stopped and turned back. He stood still. The monkeys stopped too. Swamiji remained still for some time. The monkeys were not expecting this reaction. They thought something was fishy. They fled.

There is a lesson one can learn from this episode. The more we run from problems and difficulties, the more they continue to haunt and bother us. The solution to solving problems begins with facing them!