There was a poor man. Every day, he would go to his Guru’s ashram, clean the place and then head off to his work. Often, he would say to his Guru, “Please bless me so that I gain lots of wealth.”
One day, Guru asked, “Is this why you come here to serve in the ashram?”
Poor man honestly replied, “Yes, my only aim is to become wealthy. That’s why I come to see you. I sell goods on the roadside. I don’t know when my days of happiness will come.”
Guru said, “Don’t worry. When opportunity comes, it will silently open doors in front of you.”
Man left. Time changed. He started earning a lot of money. He got so busy that he stopped going to the ashram altogether.
Years later, one morning, he returned to the ashram and began cleaning.
Guru was surprised and asked, “What’s the matter? You have come after so many years. I heard you have become a wealthy man now.”
The man replied, “I earned a lot of money. I married off my children into good homes. There is no shortage of wealth, but my heart is not at peace. I always felt like returning to serve here but couldn’t. Guruji, you gave me everything, but not peace of mind.”
Guru responded, “But when did you ever ask for peace? What you asked for, you received. So why have you come here today?”
With tears in his eyes, the man fell at the Guru’s feet and said, “From now on, I will not serve to ask for anything. I just want inner peace.”
Guru said, “First make a firm decision that from now, you will not serve in order to get something in return, but only for peace of mind.”
Guru explained, “You may get anything by asking, but peace of heart is never gained that way. Service should never be done in expectation of reward.”
Man looked at the Guru with deep sadness and said, “I want nothing. Just let me serve. Truly, peace of mind is the most precious treasure.”
This story teaches us:
“If you ask, you will receive but you won’t find peace. If you serve, you will receive even what you never asked for.”
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