Ali Baba And 40 Thieves 01

Will Alibaba’s fearful mind risk danger? Fear clouds opportunities, time & reflection reveal them.

"Story time, Pa!" James said, as he nuzzled into his father's side.

"Long or short?" asked Sam, as he lay back into James's bed.

"Lonnie," said James, and hugged his father tightly.

"Are you telling a story, Pa?" Josh asked from outside their door. He had been passing by and seen them talking in bed.

"Yup," answered Sam. "An Arabian Nights tale, my style. The story of Ali Baba and 40 Thieves. Wanna hear?"

Josh nodded excitedly. Entering James's room, he jumped into the bed too on his father's other side.

"Once upon a time in Persia," Sam began, "there lived two brothers called Qasim and Alibaba. Their father had left them with little wealth."

The elder, Qasim, had married the daughter of a rich merchant, and so he inherited a large shop, home and slaves when his father-in-law died.

Ali Baba on the other hand, had married a poor woman and worked as a woodcutter. So they lived in a modest shack with their three asses, which he used to carry his chopped wood into the Bazar daily to sell.

One day while he was in the forest cutting wood near a towering hill, Ali Baba saw a cloud of dust rising high above the trees and moving rapidly towards him.

Fearing it was a pack of bandits riding his way, who would kill him and take away his donkeys if they saw them, he hustled his animals into dense bushes nearby and scrambled up a huge tree to hide himself.

From his hidden perch in the foliage high above the ground, he saw a troop of horsemen emerge from the dusty cloud between the trees.

They stopped when they reached the big rock and dismounted. Each unbridled his horse, hobbled it and hung on their beasts' necks a bag of corn which they carried behind them.

Then all of them took off their saddle-bags. These seemed to be quite heavy. Ali Baba peered at them carefully and was sure that they were highwaymen who had looted some caravan recently. Perhaps, they had come to this deserted place to hide their spoils or distribute their loot.

He counted forty of them. As he watched surreptitiously, a man who seemed to be their captain moved out of the group, his saddle-bag slung on his shoulder, and walked towards the big rock. When he was close enough to the rock, he uttered this strange command: "Baaz kon Simsim."

The rock face fell open, revealing a passage where an instant ago there had been solid rock. The robbers entered it one by one, with their loads slung over their shoulders. Last to enter was their Chief. When they had all disappeared in the dark portal, the rock face closed shut by itself behind them.

Ali Baba wanted to slide down the tree and run for his life. But he was up too high in the tree for that. Age was catching up with his body, so even a speedy descent was out of question. Also, the cave mouth could reopen any moment.

If it did while he was trying to get down safely from the tree and any of the bandits spotted him, they would certainly kill him. He feared detection and death. With their secret revealed to him, there was no way they could let him live.

Sweat dripped down his worried brow, and his limbs shook with fear. Breath came in slow, sharp gasps and his throat became so parched, it hurt. But a gentle breeze slowly soothed his nerves, and his hands gradually steadied. Time passed while he was forced to wait.

He had been unable and unwilling to move. But as he rested securely and well-camouflaged in the canopy of leaves around him, fear dissipated and was slowly replaced by a daring idea.

Such is human mind. Give it time, and it can see a silver lining in the darkest clouds. One moment it is paralysed by fear, the next moment it is daring the tempest and sailing perilous seas in hope.

As Ali Baba was reflecting on his inspiration, turning its pros and cons over and over in his mind, the portal suddenly flew open again. The captain emerged first out of the darkness.

He stood at the entrance, and saw the other robbers emerge one by one and pass by him. Ali Baba counted 40 men again.

When they were all safely out, the Chief turned around to the cave again and spoke the words, "Basta kon Simsim."

The rock face magically devoured the passage opening, and all trace of the passage instantly vanished. The men silently walked down to their horses. They bridled them again, slung on their saddle-bags, remounted and rode off.

Ali Baba remained still on his perch and watched them leave. Only a long time after they had vanished from sight, did he gingerly descend - his mind torn between fear and curiosity.

'Will this magic work for me too?', he pondered, as he walked fearfully up to the rock face and stood roughly where the chief horseman had stood.

There was nothing to lose. He had escaped detection. He was still alive. He was alone. Luck was surely smiling on him. He gambled. On his luck holding firm and took a deep breath.

"Baaz kon Simsim!" he appealed to the rock face, almost apologetically.

Obediently, the rock face fell open.

"Basta kon Simsim!" he tried, amazed at the power of these magical words to move a mountain.

Obediently, the rock face closed shut before him.

"In Persian or Farsi language," Sam explained to his kids, "'Baaz kon' is an order to open up something, and 'Basta kon' is an order to close something. Dar means door. So 'Dar Baaz Kon', would be an order to open the door. In Arabic, the command would have been 'Iftah ya Simsim'."

The kids nodded. Sam continued:

'Insha'Allah!' Ali Baba thought and was committed to his daring idea.

You Spit, I Bow

"Pa, how should one act?" Josh asked.

"Rightly," Sam answered.

"But isn't it hard to know what is right?" Josh continued.

"It can be hard to know what WAS right, because future interpretations change with the benefit of hindsight."

"But since action is always done in the now, it is not that hard to know what IS right in the present."

"If you are honest and it feels right, do it. It will be right."

"Essentially, it is acting with integrity at all times. Even if it turns out not to have been right later, it will have made you a better judge of what is right in future."

"Right conduct in life is important. It brings peace. In fact, it is so important that it was prescribed by Buddh as one of the key parts of his Noble 8-fold path prescription."

"How can one act with integrity at all times?" Josh asked again.

"By acting, without expectation," Sam answered. "Nishkam Karm (निष्काम कर्म), self-less or desire less action. By acting without attachment. Nirlipt Karm (निर्लिप्त काम)."

"Krishn talks about it when he teaches Arjun the way to liberation through Karm Yog (कर्म योग). It is also the central message of Krishn's Gita."

"How can there be action without desire?" asked Josh. "Desires motivate action in the first place. Without attachment, there would be no action."

"Some actions germinate from desire and attachment," Sam replied, "but not all. You breathe, though you have no conscious desire that causes you to breathe."

"You swear. That's action motivated by a desire, ichcha (इच्छा), to get even with someone. You cry. That's when your attachment, moh (मोह), with something is torn asunder."

"Desire and attachment are not the same thing. You desire to learn, so you go to school. But you take your teddy bear to school with you. That's attachment. Attachment can be to material things, like toys; or incorporeal things, like your beliefs."

"Let me tell you a story I once read somewhere. Ryutaku-ji Buddhist Monastery in Japan was founded by Zen Master Hakuin Ekaku in 1761. During the mid 20th century it was led by a number of influential Abbots, who encouraged and supported the study of Zen by Westerners."

"Americans Philip Kapleau and Professor Phillips were once visiting the Ryutakuji. Soen Nakagawa Sam was Abbot at the time. He was giving them a tour of the place."

"Both Americans had been heavily influenced by tales of ancient Chinese masters who'd destroyed sacred texts, and even images of the Buddha, in order to free themselves from attachment to anything."

"They were thus surprised and disturbed to find themselves being led into a ceremonial hall, where the Sam invited them to pay respects to a statue of the temple's founder, Hakuin Zenji, by bowing and offering incense."

"On seeing Nakagawa bow before the human image, Phillips couldn't contain himself."

"The old Chinese masters spit on Buddha statues or burnt them down!" he said. "Why do you bow down before them?"

"If you want to spit, you spit," replied the Sam. "I prefer to bow."

"So there is no conflict?" asked Josh.

"None, if you don't create it", Sam

answered, "After all, you can't be expected to give what you didn't have."

I Am Jesus’ Sower

The ambulance sped through the dark night. Victor lay unconscious on a portable stretcher inside the ambulance.

His life ebbed away slowly like sand slipping out of his lifeless fingers.

Mary sobbed silently as the tireless paramedic seemed to be losing his battle to protect the life of her husband.

The ambulance driver was instructing the hospital on the radio, "Stroke Emergency. Patient is critical."

"Wife reports that he collapsed on hearing about substantial financial losses and margin calls suffered in the share market crash today."

"Prepare Operation Theatre. Advise Cardiology of the emergency and page the surgeon. We will be at the hospital in 20 minutes."

"Patient will need to be operated on immediately..."

Victor’s wife and his two kids waited helplessly outside the Operating Theatre, worried about Victor’s fate and their own.

The surgeon and his team fought a long and bitter battle inside. The door finally opened and the surgeon emerged. His tired eyes were smiling.

His team had snatched yet another life away from death.

A silent tear rolled down Mary’s cheeks as she hugged both her sons with relief. Her prayers had been answered. Another day had begun.

Later that afternoon, Victor opened his drugged eyes and noticed Mary and his sons sitting beside him on the hospital bed. She was smiling through wet eyes. Smith held his heavy hand in his warm palms.

Seeing that he was awake, Josh came over and hugged him tightly as he whispered, “We love you Pa. We need you.”

Victor smiled weakly and replied, “I’m Jesus’ Sower. And I’m tried.” The effort to speak was too much for him, and he felt tired and weak.

As darkness descended on him again, he heard the nurse ushering his family out of his hospital room. He let the darkness take him again.

As they walked out of Victor’s room, victor asked, “What did he mean?”

Smith related the Parable of the Sower to his younger brother, “Jesus talked of a sower who once went out to sow. Some of his seeds were eaten by the birds, and some fell on stony ground where there wasn’t enough soil."

"So when they grew, they couldn’t take root and because they had no depth, they scorched and withered, and died soon."

"Some seeds had fallen amongst thorns. The thorns grew up and choked the seeds, so these seeds died too."

"But some seeds had fallen on good fertile ground. These blossomed into strong young trees and produced a crop, multiplying the Sower’s initial seeds many times over."

“Why did Pa say that he was Jesus’ Sower though?" victor

asked again. "I still don’t get it.”

Immersed in thought, Smith answered, “Only he can tell us that. But I can try and guess. Our father is an investor. He diversified his investments, sowing his seeds in various business ventures."

"Some couldn’t bear fruit because the birds took them. External agencies and events, which he had no control over."

"Some landed in thorns – insurmountable difficulties. Some landed on inappropriate ground, where it was difficult for them to survive for long enough to bear fruit. But others have found a good home and are thriving. All is not lost.”

Haunted

Ted sneaked into the bed quietly and snuggled into her husband's warm body.

"I am scared," she whispered silently to his sleeping form.

They had watched a ghost movie called Paheli (meaning Puzzle, in Hindi), together that evening.

The half-asleep Tony awoke with a start, then settled back slowly in their bed, trying to regain his slumber.

"Don't be," he mumbled, hugging her tightly to him. "It was only a movie."

"How do you make a ghost go away?"

 she asked again, staring wide-eyed into the darkness.

He awakened fully now. He sensed her stiff body, her cold hands under the covers. He took them in his own warm hands and spoke quietly into the night, "The wife of a man, once became very sick. So sick, that it was time for her to go."

"She spoke her dying words to him, "I love you so much. I don't want to leave you. I will always love you. Promise me, that you will always love me too. Promise me, or I will come back to haunt you."

"For several years after her death, the husband grieved her loss. Life passed him by, as he stumbled through it for a while, but then he met someone and fell in love with her."

"As their affair got serious and he began to contemplate marrying again, the ghost of his former wife started appearing in his dreams. The apparition blamed him for not keeping his promise, and every night thereafter, started returning to taunt him. Haunt him."

"She would remind him of everything that had transpired between them, even to the point of repeating, their conversations verbatim. It upset him so badly that he began losing his ability to sleep at all. His bedside table became piled with sleeping pills, but his condition got from bad to worse."

"Desperate, he sought the advice of a Zen master who lived nearby."

"This is a very clever ghost," the master said, upon hearing the man's story.

"It is!" replied the man. "She remembers every detail. What I say. What I do. She knows everything!"

The master smiled, "Indeed, she does. She knows that you are in love with this other woman now."

The man nodded.

"And knows that you want to marry her."

The man nodded.

"Do you really want to marry this other woman?"

The man nodded again.

"And you really want the ghost of your dead wife to release you forever?"

The man nodded again, firmly.

"Then I will tell you what to do, the next time you see the ghost."

That night, when the ghost returned, the man responded just as the master had advised.

"You are such an omniscient soul," the man said. "You know that I can hide nothing from you. If you can answer me one question, I will break off with the other woman and remain single forever after."

"Ask your question," the ghost replied.

The man scooped up a handful of pills from his bedside table and asked, "Tell me exactly how many pills there are in my hand."

"Instantaneously, the ghost disappeared and never returned. Can you guess why this was so?" Tony asked as he concluded the story.

"Because the ghost had came from the man's own mind,"Ted responded. "He had created it. That's why she knew only what he knew. It was his own guilt that came to haunt him."

"The Buddhist master wanted him to realise that the ghost existed in his own mind. Only in his own mind! It had never really existed outside, like a pink elephant does not exist outside the mind."

"The man couldn't know beforehand, how many pills he would scoop up. If she really were an all knowing ghost that existed outside his mind, she would know. But she didn't. The man didn't know how many pills he did scoop up. Neither did she."

"If she existed in the man's mind," said Tony, "she would have known what was coming. She would have known what the master had advised the man to do, as the man knew it. Why did she fall for it then?"

"Are you saying ghosts do exist?" she asked him. "That she was entrapped because she didn't know about the trap. Which means she must have existed outside his mind. But if she existed outside his mind and knew everything, why did she not know the number of pills?"

"Could it be that ghosts exist outside the mind, but they may not be all knowing. They may be just like us. So, she knew a lot about him, but not everything. Honouring a deal, jealousy, these traits make her very human-like anyway."

"Nothing in the story says she didn't know the number," Tony suggested. "Nothing in the story says she didn't know about the trap. You jumped to those conclusions. The story only says she vanished and never returned. Why?"

"Why would she know about an ambush, but want to be ambushed regardless?" Ted was bewildered. "Know about the number of pills, but vanish and release him forever. A sudden change of heart, only when she had been put to the test."

"Why indeed?" he whispered softly. "Why did she disappear? Or choose to disappear?"

Ted

pondered long into the night on that. When he hadn't spoken for a while, she turned to look at him. Sometimes, just looking at him gave her a clue to what he was really thinking.

He was already fast asleep. Sleeping like a baby. Free of any doubts or inhibitions.

She snuggled back into him. The warmth of his body tucked her away slowly into a drowsy haven. For a while...

Doctors Are Stunned By Conjoined Twins’ Transformation After They’re Separated

Doctors didn’t expect Shylah and Selah Oglesby to live. In fact, doctors believed the conjoined twins’ chances of dying were around 75 to 95 percent, leaving a small window for survival.

Shylah and Selah were conjoined at the stomach. Although they had two separate hearts, they shared a liver. Their parents, Misty and Curtis Oglesby, agreed to allow the baby girls to undergo an invasive surgery to separate them.

Physicians at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital and Medical Center spent three months creating a strategy to separate the little ones. Finally, the six hour surgery was a success. Shylah and Selah were separated, but Selah still struggled with a congenital heart defect that required several surgeries.

Two years later, and the toddlers are happy, healthy babies. Both their parents and doctors are stunned at their development.

“They are my miracles,” said Misty. “I am in awe of their progress.”

Their second birthday is a huge milestone for the girls. It’s their first birthday where they can truly enjoy themselves without being bound by health limitations.

“Today feels like their first birthday,” says their mom. “Their first birthday in which they’ll be able to eat cake. The first birthday where they’re mobile and able to get around and open presents.”

Doctors credit Misty and Curtis for providing their daughters with an incredible support system. Doctors can give you an outlook, a percentage, a few statistics, but Shylah and Selah show that it is up to each of us to beat the odds.

Video Credit: Cincinnati Children’s Hospital and Medical Center / Facebook

Young Woman Nearly Dies In Tragic Plane Crash 12 Years Ago. Now, Judges Can’t Believe Her Voice

Kechi has been through a lot in her life. Probably more then any of us could ever imagine.

When she was just 16 years old, she was in a horrible plane crash that claimed the lives of 107 passengers on board. She was one of only two survivors from the crash.

Originally from Nigeria, Kechi took to the America’s Got Talent stage to share her survival story. When asked how she was able to cope after experiencing such tragedy and loss, Kechi expressed how music was her escape during her recovery.

How it helped her through that rough time in her life.

Kechi absolutely blows the judges and audience members away with her raw talent and achingly beautiful vocals.

After she finished her rendition of “Thinking Out Loud” by Ed Sheeran, the judges and audience members erupted in applause and a standing ovation for the survivor. There wasn’t a dry eye in the room, including Kechi herself.

Even Simon Cowell looked like the waterworks were about to start caressing down his cheeks!

Kechi will surely be one to watch out for this upcoming season on America’s Got Talent. For not just her talent alone, but for her amazing bravery, and honesty.

Check out the video for yourself to see Kechi blow everyone away.

Mom Says, ‘Nobody Ever Wants My Son In Their Class,’ Then Finds Special New Program For Him

Starting school is always a tough adjustment for children. New environment, new people, new experiences that can be both exciting, and scary.

It can be a lot harder for some children who have special needs as well.

While most schools implore programs to help special needs children, there aren’t as many programs as there probably should be.

That is until “It’s A Sensory World” came along.

Cindy Chadwick, whose son Wes attends the “It’s A Sensory World” establishment praises the program for giving her what she always wanted for her son.

She said: “Teacher ran out into the parking lot and followed me out. And she goes, I want him in my class, and nobody has ever said that. Nobody has every said to me that they wanted Wes and I knew in that moment before even going forward, that it was a great place to be.”

The program specializes in providing an environment specifically intended for children with special needs. It’s areas of expertise include both educational and therapeutic practices.

According to CW 33, the site is currently trying to raise funds to buy a school bus because of the growing number of kids in the program.

The campaign to raise funds for the bus is entitled “Bus For Hope,” and the goal is $20,000. This would help cover insurance and field trips once a week for a year.

Hopefully the site can raise their goal soon!