Once, a disciple asked a senior monk, “How do I calm my mind?” The monk said, “I am busy. Please ask the first dharma brother.” The disciple went to the dharma brother, but he said, “I have a headache; I can’t talk now. Ask the second dharma brother.” The second dharma brother said, “I have a stomachache. Ask the senior monk.” So, the disciple went back to the monk and complained, “I have been asking everyone, but nobody tells me anything.” The senior monk said, “Everybody has been giving you the right answer. You only need to understand it.” The disciple kept thinking about it all day, until he finally understood. We can only calm our mind ourselves. By trying to ask many people, we only confuse ourselves further. The disciple thanked the monk for his guidance, and soon achieved enlightenment.
Moral: We should have faith in our own abilities.
