We have prepared for you 3 short parables about love and happiness that will help you understand these concepts more deeply and allow you to better understand people and life.

We really hope that these parables will lift your spirits.

Read short parables about love and happiness

A rich young man approached one dervish, who was sitting in the market square, and, putting gold in a begging bowl, said:

Reverend, I need your advice. I like one girl. Really like. And now I am tormented, because I don’t know what to do: get married or not.
- Don't get married.

But why?!
- If you really wanted this, you wouldn't ask.

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A short parable about life

One student often suffered from prolonged depression.

The doctor strongly advises me to start taking medication to cope with depression,” he said.

Well, why don't you start? - the Master asked him.

I'm afraid that this might damage my liver and shorten my life.

What do you prefer - a healthy liver or a joyful mood? One year of life is more valuable than twenty years of hibernation.

Later he addressed his students:

Life is like a fairy tale: it doesn’t matter whether it’s long or short; what matters is whether she is good.

A short parable about happiness

Master Bahauddin was happy all his life, the smile never left his face. His whole life was saturated with the aroma of the holiday! Even dying, he laughed cheerfully. He seemed to be enjoying the coming of death. His disciples were sitting around, and one asked:

Why are you laughing? You've laughed all your life, and we all didn't dare ask how you do it? And now, in the last minutes, you laugh! What's funny here?

The Old Master replied:

Many years ago I came to my Master as a young man, seventeen years old, but already deeply suffering. The master was seventy, and he smiled and laughed just like that, for no apparent reason.

I asked him:
“How do you do this?”

And he answered:

“Inside I am free in my choice. It's just my choice. Every morning when I open my eyes, I ask myself what to choose today - bliss or suffering? And so it happens that I choose bliss, because it is so natural.”

When Beatles co-founder John Lennon was little, his mother told him that happiness is the most important thing in life. In elementary school, children were given the task of telling what they wanted to be when they grew up. John wrote "Happy." The teachers said: “You don’t understand the task!” The future great musician replied: “You don’t understand life!”

And he was right. Every person's dream is to be happy. But what kind of feeling is this, and how to feel and preserve it?

Bring me happiness
God molded a man from clay, and he was left with an unused piece.
- What else do you need to make? - asked God.
“Make me happy,” the man asked.
God did not answer anything, and only placed the remaining piece of clay in the man’s palm.

Happiness in a hole
Happiness wandered around the world, and granted wishes to everyone who met on its way. One day, Happiness carelessly fell into a hole and could not get out of there. People came to the pit and made their wishes, and Happiness fulfilled them. No one was in a hurry to help Happiness get up.
And then a young guy approached the pit. He looked at Happiness, but did not demand anything, but asked: “What do you want, Happiness?”
“Get out of here,” answered Happiness.
The guy helped him get out and went his way. And Happiness... Happiness ran after him.

Can you buy happiness?
One day a woman had a dream that the Lord God was standing behind the store counter.
- God! It's you? - she exclaimed with joy.
“Yes, it’s me,” God answered.
- What can I buy from you? - the woman asked.
“You can buy everything from me,” came the answer.
- In that case, please give me happiness.
God smiled benevolently and went into the utility room to get the ordered goods. After a while he returned with a small paper box.
- And it's all?! - exclaimed the surprised and disappointed woman.
“Yes, that’s all,” God answered. “Didn’t you know that my store only sells seeds?”

A parable about the science of being happy
Once a sage was walking along the road, admiring the beauty of the world and enjoying life. Suddenly he noticed an unfortunate man hunched over under an unbearable burden.
- Why do you condemn yourself to such suffering? - asked the sage.
“I suffer for the happiness of my children and grandchildren,” the man answered. - My great-grandfather suffered all his life for the happiness of my grandfather, my grandfather suffered for the happiness of my father, my father suffered for my happiness, and I will suffer all my life, only so that my children and grandchildren become happy.
- Was anyone happy in your family? - asked the sage.
- No, but my children and grandchildren will definitely be happy! - answered the unhappy man.
- An illiterate person cannot teach you to read, and a mole cannot raise an eagle! - said the sage. - First learn to be happy yourself, then you will understand how to make your children and grandchildren happy!

Three ideas about happiness
Once upon a time there lived three friends in this world, and each dreamed of his own happiness. But they imagined happiness differently. The first thought that happiness was wealth, the second thought talent was happiness, and the third believed that happiness was family.
Whether long or short, they all achieved their happiness. However, everything has an end. Before the hour of death, friends gathered to take stock. The first one said:
- I was rich, but I didn’t experience happiness. I am dying a miser and a misanthrope.
The second one said:
- I was talented, but I didn’t experience happiness. I am leaving this life tormented by loneliness.
The third said:
- And I learned what happiness is. I leave, treated kindly by my loved ones, and leave the most valuable thing to the earth - new people.

A parable about the search for happiness
It was a long time ago when the Lord created the earth, trees, animals and people. Man became the ruler over them all, but when he was expelled from paradise and became unhappy, he asked the animals to bring him happiness.
“Okay,” said the animals, accustomed to obeying humans. And they went around the world in search of human happiness. They searched for a long time, but never found his happiness, because they didn’t even know what it looked like. And so they decided to bring what made them happy. The fish brought fins, tail, gills and scales. Tiger - strong paws, claws, fangs and nose. Eagle - wings, feathers, a strong beak and a sharp eye. But none of this made the person happy. And then the animals told him that he should go seek his own happiness.
Since then, every person walks the earth and seeks his own happiness, but few people think of looking for it in themselves.

God molded a man from clay, and he was left with an unused piece.

- What else do you need to make? - asked God.

“Make me happy,” the man asked.

God did not answer anything, and only placed the remaining piece of clay in the man’s palm.

*****

How to find your soulmate

A wise parable about how to find your soulmate

The philosopher tossed the apple in his palm, turned it over, looking at it from different sides, and said thoughtfully:

— People believe that their souls are like apples.

- In terms of? - his student became interested.

“More precisely, halves,” the philosopher corrected himself.

- That's about it. He carefully cut the apple into two parts and placed it on the table.

“They have this belief that there is an ideal match for every person.” It seems that God, before sending souls into the world, cuts them in half, into male and female halves. Like an apple. So these halves wander around, looking for each other. And they find it? How do you imagine this? What is the probability of such a meeting? Do you know how many people there are in the world?

- A lot of.

- That's it. And besides, well, they will find each other, so what next? Do you think they will make a whole apple and live in peace and harmony?

- Well, yes. Isn't that right? — the Student was surprised.

- No not like this. The teacher took half an apple in his hands and raised them to his face.

- Here are two fresh souls descending into the world. What does the world do with human souls? The philosopher took a bite from one half with a crunch.

“The world,” he continued with his mouth full, “is not static.” And cruel. He grinds everything for himself. One way or another. He cuts it off piece by piece, or bites it off, or even grinds it into baby puree. He took a bite of the other half and was silent for a while, chewing.

The student stared at the two stubs and swallowed nervously.

“And so,” the Philosopher solemnly proclaimed, “they meet!” He connected the bitten halves.

- So, are they suitable for each other? HET!!!

“Now look here,” the Teacher interrupted and took a few more apples.

- We cut each one in half, add two halves of different apples at random - and what do we see?

“They don’t fit,” nodded the Student.

- Well, what do we see? Are they forming a couple now?

“Yes,” the student nodded thoughtfully.

“Now they match each other perfectly.”

- Because the world bit them not one by one, but together!

People who love each other become one: they enjoy life together and accept the blows of fate together, learn to understand each other perfectly, support each other and push each other to achieve success.
And over time, some couples even adopt each other’s habits, become similar in character and harmoniously complement each other.

That is, soul mates are not born, but become. And this is painstaking work.

*****

Parable about the best husband

An instructive parable about how one woman asked a wise old man for a divorce from her husband.

One day a woman came to the wise old man and said:

“You entered into a marriage between me and my husband two years ago.” Now separate us. I don't want to live with him anymore.
- What is the reason for your desire to get a divorce? - asked the sage.

The woman explained this:

“Everyone’s husband returns home on time, but my husband is constantly delayed. Because of this, there are scandals at home every day.

The elder, surprised, asks:

- Is this the only reason?
“Yes, I don’t want to live with a person who has such a disadvantage,” the woman answered.
- I will divorce you, but on one condition. Come home now, bake some big delicious bread and bring it to me. But when you bake bread, don’t take anything from the house! Ask your neighbors for salt, water, eggs and flour. And be sure to explain to them the reason for your request,” said the sage.

The woman went home and got down to business.
I went to my neighbor and said:

— Neighbor, lend me a glass of water.
— Have you run out of water? Isn't there a well dug in the yard?
“There is water, but I went to the wise old man to complain about my husband and asked him to divorce us,” the woman explained.

And as soon as she finished, the neighbor sighed:

- Oh, if you only knew what kind of husband I have!

And she began to complain about her husband.
Afterwards, the woman went to another neighbor to ask for salt.

“You’ve run out of salt, are you asking for just one spoon?”
“There is salt, but I complained to the elder about my husband and asked for a divorce,” says that woman, and before she had time to finish, the neighbor exclaimed:
- Oh, if you only knew what kind of husband I have! - and began to complain about her husband.

So, no matter who this woman went to to ask for food, she heard complaints about their husbands from everyone.
Finally, she baked a large delicious bread, brought it to the sage and gave it to him with the words:

- Thank you, taste my work with your family. Just don’t think about divorcing me and my husband.
- Why, what happened, daughter? - asked the sage.
- My husband turns out to be the best! - she answered him.

*****

The king announced that the princess's husband would be the one who would love her all his life.

On the appointed day, hundreds of suitors gathered in the palace. Everyone wanted to prove that they would love the princess forever.

The girl looked at the dressed up young men and thought. Then she called her teacher and talked with him for a long time.

“I will not talk to the suitors today,” the princess announced. - Divide them into groups. Let the first group arrive tomorrow evening. During the day I will study with the teacher.
“Daughter, you’ve already graduated from school,” the queen was surprised.
“It’s never too late to learn,” answered the princess.

The teacher's house stood near the road. When the first groom, a noble knight on horseback, rode past, he saw a beautiful beggar woman with a basket of flowers by the road. Seeing the knight, she asked:

- Buy a bouquet, young man.
“Get out of the way, beggar,” the knight shouted and galloped away.

This is what all the young men did who hurried to the palace that day.
In the evening, the sad princess received the suitors. Having said a few words, she immediately sent them away. The same thing happened on the second day and on the third.

- Daughter, why are you driving everyone away? - the queen asked worriedly.
“They are not able to see beauty, Mom.”

A month has passed. All the suitors of the last group gathered in the palace, only one groom and the princess herself were missing. They appeared together, and the princess announced that she had found her betrothed.

Then she told the queen:

My teacher advised me how to choose a husband. He said: “The love of the one who loves you in rags will live until the end of his life.”

Every day I changed into old clothes and waited for the grooms near the road. Only this young man stopped and bought a bouquet from me. He told me I was beautiful.

*****

Independent woman

Once upon a time there was Absolutely Independent Woman. About a year ago she became such - absolutely independent, which she was terribly proud of.

She woke up when the alarm went off and never lay in bed. She didn’t care whether she drank coffee or tea: it took her a long time to overcome her caffeine addiction. And she overcame it, at the same time banishing everything sweet, high-calorie and unhealthy from her diet. So she drank water in the morning and ate unsweetened and unsalted oatmeal.

She broke up with her friends because she didn't want to depend on them.

She was completely indifferent to shopping - and no one would dare to blame her for being able to lose her head because of a shiny rag. What about shopping? She did not lose her head over men either. Many months have passed since she drove away her beloved (and she almost became dependent on him).

In short, Absolutely Independent Woman I felt that a little more - and she would become Ideal Woman.

On Saturday morning, a rustling sound was heard outside her door. She opened it. Staggering from fatigue, Ko stood on the threshold

A parable is one of the most ancient types of edifying stories. Instructive allegories allow you to briefly and succinctly give any moral statement, without resorting to direct persuasion. That is why parables about life with morality - short and allegorical - have at all times been a very popular educational tool, touching on a variety of problems of human existence.

The ability to distinguish between good and evil distinguishes a person from an animal. It is not surprising that the folklore of all nations contains many parables on this topic. They tried to give their own definitions of good and evil, explore their interaction and explain the nature of human dualism in the Ancient East, and in Africa, and in Europe, and in both Americas. A large corpus of parables on this topic shows that, despite all the differences in cultures and traditions, different peoples have a common understanding of these fundamental concepts.

Two wolves

Once upon a time, an old Indian revealed to his grandson one vital truth:
– There is a struggle in every person, very similar to the struggle of two wolves. One wolf represents evil - envy, jealousy, regret, selfishness, ambition, lies... The other wolf represents good - peace, love, hope, truth, kindness, loyalty...
The little Indian, touched to the depths of his soul by his grandfather’s words, thought for a few moments, and then asked:
– Which wolf wins in the end?
The old Indian smiled faintly and replied:
– The wolf you feed always wins.

Know it and don't do it

The young man came to the sage with a request to accept him as a student.
– Can you lie? - asked the sage.
- Of course not!
- What about stealing?
- No.
- What about killing?
- No…
“Then go and find out all this,” exclaimed the sage, “but once you know, don’t do it!”

Black dot

One day the sage gathered his students and showed them an ordinary piece of paper on which he drew a small black dot. He asked them:
-What do you see?
Everyone answered in unison that it was a black dot. The answer was not correct. The sage said:
– Don’t you see this white sheet of paper - it’s so huge, bigger than this black dot! This is how it is in life - the first thing we see in people is something bad, although there is much more good. And only a few see the “white sheet of paper” right away.

Parables about happiness

Wherever a person is born, whoever he is, whatever he does, in essence, he does one thing - seeks happiness. This inner search continues from birth to death, even if it is not always realized. And on this path a person faces a lot of questions. What is happiness? Is it possible to be happy without having anything? Is it possible to get happiness ready-made or do you need to create it yourself?
The idea of ​​happiness is as individual as DNA or fingerprints. For some people and the whole world is not enough to feel at least satisfied. For others, a little is enough - a ray of sunshine, a friendly smile. It seems that there can be no agreement between people regarding this ethical category. And yet, in different parables about happiness, common ground is found.

A piece of clay

God molded man from clay. He sculpted an earth, a house, animals and birds for man. And he was left with an unused piece of clay.
- What else should you make? - God asked.
“Make me happy,” the man asked.
God did not answer, thought for a moment and put the remaining piece of clay in the man’s palm.

Money can not buy happiness

The student asked the Master:
– How true are the words that money does not buy happiness?
The master replied that they were completely correct.
- It's easy to prove. For money can buy a bed, but not sleep; food - but not appetite; medicines - but not health; servants - but not friends; women - but not love; home - but not home; entertainment - but not joy; teachers - but not the mind. And what is named does not exhaust the list.

Khoja Nasreddin and the traveler

One day Nasreddin met a gloomy man wandering along the road to the city.
- What happened to you? – Khoja Nasreddin asked the traveler.
The man showed him a tattered travel bag and said plaintively:
- Oh, I'm unhappy! Everything I own in the infinitely vast world will barely fill this pitiful, worthless bag!
“Your affairs are bad,” Nasreddin sympathized, snatched the bag from the traveler’s hands and ran away.
And the traveler continued on his way, shedding tears. Meanwhile, Nasreddin ran ahead and placed the bag right in the middle of the road. The traveler saw his bag lying on the way, laughed with joy and cried out:
- Oh, what happiness! And I thought I had lost everything!
“It’s easy to make a person happy by teaching him to appreciate what he has,” thought Khoja Nasreddin, watching the traveler from the bushes.

Wise parables about morality

The words “morality” and “morality” in Russian have different connotations. Morality is rather a social attitude. Morality is internal, personal. However, the basic principles of morality and ethics are largely the same.
Wise parables easily, but not superficially, touch on these basic principles: the attitude of man to man, dignity and baseness, attitude towards the Motherland. Issues of the relationship between man and society are often embodied in parable form.

Bucket of apples

A man bought himself a new house - large, beautiful - and a garden with fruit trees near the house. And nearby, in an old house, there lived an envious neighbor who constantly tried to ruin his mood: either he would throw garbage under the gate, or he would do some other nasty things.
One day a man woke up in a good mood, went out onto the porch, and there was a bucket of slop. The man took a bucket, poured out the slop, cleaned the bucket until it shined, collected the largest, ripest and most delicious apples into it and went to his neighbor. The neighbor opens the door in the hope of a scandal, and the man handed him a bucket of apples and said:
- He who is rich in what, shares it!

Low and worthy

One padishah sent the sage three identical bronze figurines and ordered him to convey:
“Let him decide which of the three people whose statues we are sending is worthy, who is so-so and who is low.”
No one could find any difference between the three figurines. But the sage noticed holes in his ears. He took a thin flexible stick and stuck it into the ear of the first figurine. The stick came out through the mouth. The second figurine's wand came out through the other ear. The third figurine has a wand stuck somewhere inside.
“A person who divulges everything he hears is certainly low,” the sage reasoned. - Anyone whose secret goes in one ear and comes out through the other is a so-so person. The truly noble one is the one who keeps all secrets within himself.
This is what the sage decided and made corresponding inscriptions on all the figurines.

Change your voice

The dove saw an owl in the grove and asked:
-Where are you from, owl?
– I lived in the east, and now I’m flying to the west.
So the owl answered and began to hoot and laugh angrily. The dove asked again:
– Why did you leave your home and fly to foreign lands?
- Because in the east they don’t like me because I have a nasty voice.
“It was in vain that you left your native land,” said the dove. “You don’t need to change the land, but your voice.” In the West, just like in the East, they do not tolerate evil hooting.

About parents

The attitude towards parents is a moral task that was solved long ago by humanity. Biblical legends about Ham, gospel commandments, numerous proverbs, and fairy tales fully reflect people’s ideas about the relationship between fathers and children. And yet, there are so many contradictions between parents and children that it is useful for a modern person to be reminded of this from time to time.
The constant relevance of the topic “Parents and Children” gives rise to more and more new parables. Modern authors, following in the footsteps of their predecessors, find new words and metaphors to again touch on this issue.

Feeder

Once upon a time there lived an old man. His eyes were blinded, his hearing was dull, and his knees trembled. He could hardly hold a spoon in his hands, he would spill soup, and sometimes food would fall out of his mouth.
The son and his wife looked at him with disgust and during meals began to sit the old man in a corner behind the stove, and the food was served to him in an old saucer. One day the old man's hands were shaking so much that he could not hold the saucer of food. It fell to the floor and broke. Then the young daughter-in-law began to scold the old man, and the son made a wooden feeder for his father. Now the old man had to eat from it.
One day, when the parents were sitting at the table, their little son entered the room with a piece of wood in his hands.
- What do you want to do? - asked the father.
“A wooden feeder,” answered the baby. – When I grow up, dad and mom will eat from it.

Eagle and eaglet

An old eagle flew over the abyss. He carried his son on his back. The eaglet was still too small and could not make it this way. Flying over the abyss, the chick said:
- Father! Now you carry me across the abyss on your back, and when I become big and strong, I will carry you.
“No, son,” the old eagle answered sadly. - When you grow up, you will carry your son.

Suspension bridge

On the way between two high-mountain villages there was a deep gorge. The residents of these villages built a suspension bridge over it. People walked on its wooden planks, and two cables served as railings. People were so used to walking across this bridge that they didn’t have to hold on to these railings, and even children fearlessly ran across the gorge on the planks.
But one day the ropes and railings disappeared somewhere. Early in the morning people approached the bridge, but no one could take a single step across it. While there were cables, it was possible not to hold on to them, but without them the bridge turned out to be impregnable.
This is what happens with our parents. While they are alive, it seems to us that we can do without them, but as soon as we lose them, life immediately begins to seem very difficult.

Everyday parables

Everyday parables are a special category of texts. In a person’s life, every moment a situation of choice arises. What role can seemingly insignificant little things, unnoticed little meanness, stupid provocations, absurd doubts play in fate? Proverbs answer this question clearly: huge.
For a parable, nothing is insignificant or unimportant. She firmly remembers that “the flutter of a butterfly’s wing echoes with thunder in distant worlds.” But the parable does not leave a person alone with the inexorable law of retribution. She always leaves the opportunity for the fallen to rise and continue on their way.

All in your hands

In a Chinese village there lived a sage. People came to him from everywhere with their problems and illnesses, and no one left without receiving help. For this they loved and respected him.
Only one person said: “People! Who do you worship? After all, he is a charlatan and a fraudster!” One day he gathered a crowd around him and said:
- Today I will prove to you that I was right. Let's go to your sage, I will catch a butterfly, and when he comes out onto the porch of his house, I will ask: “Guess what I have in my hand?” He will say: “Butterfly,” because anyway, one of you will let it slip. And then I’ll ask: “Is she alive or dead?” If he says that he is alive, I will squeeze his hand, and if he is dead, then I will release the butterfly to freedom. In any case, your sage will be made a fool!
When they came to the house of the sage, and he came out to meet them, the envious man asked his first question:
“Butterfly,” answered the sage.
- Is she alive or dead?
The old man, smiling into his beard, said:
- Everything is in your hands, man.

Bat

A long time ago, a war broke out between animals and birds. The hardest thing was for the old Bat. After all, she was both an animal and a bird at the same time. And therefore she could not decide for herself who it would be more profitable for her to join. But then she decided to cheat. If the birds prevail over the animals, then she will support the birds. Otherwise, she will quickly go over to the animals. So she did.
But when everyone noticed how she was behaving, they immediately suggested that she not run from one to the other, but choose one side once and for all. Then the old Bat said:
- No! I'll stay in the middle.
- Fine! - said both sides.
The battle began and the old Bat, caught in the middle of the battle, was crushed and died.
This is why he who tries to sit between two stools will always find himself on the rotten part of the rope that hangs over the jaws of death.

A fall

One student asked his Sufi mentor:
- Teacher, what would you say if you found out about my fall?
- Get up!
- And next time?
- Get up again!
– And how long can this continue – keep falling and rising?
- Fall and rise while you're alive! After all, those who fell and did not rise are dead.

Orthodox parables about life

Also Academician D.S. Likhachev noted that in Rus' the parable as a genre “grew” from the Bible. The Bible itself is littered with parables. It was this form of teaching the people that Solomon and Christ chose. Therefore, it is not surprising that with the advent of Christianity in Rus', the genre of parables took deep roots in our land.
Popular faith has always been far from formalism and “bookish” complexity. Therefore, the best Orthodox preachers constantly turned to allegory, where they generally transformed the key ideas of Christianity into a fairy-tale form. Sometimes Orthodox parables about life could be concentrated into one phrase-aphorism. In other cases - into a short story.

Humility is a feat

Once a woman came to the Optina hieroschemamonk Anatoly (Zertsalov) and asked him for a blessing for a spiritual feat: to live alone and fast, pray and sleep on bare boards without interference. The elder told her:
– You know, the evil one does not eat, does not drink and does not sleep, but everything lives in the abyss, because he has no humility. Submit in everything to the will of God - that’s your feat; humble yourself before everyone, reproach yourself for everything, bear illness and sorrow with gratitude - this is beyond any feats!

Your cross

One person thought that his life was very difficult. And one day he went to God, told about his misfortunes and asked Him:
– Can I choose a different cross for myself?
God looked at the man with a smile, led him into the storage room where there were crosses, and said:
- Choose.
A man walked around the storehouse for a long time, looking for the smallest and lightest cross, and finally found a small, small, light, light cross, approached God and said:
- Lord, can I take this one?
“It’s possible,” God answered. - This is your own.

About love with morals

Love moves worlds and human souls. It would be strange if the parables ignored the problems of relationships between men and women. And here the authors of the parables raise a great many questions. What is love? Is it possible to define it? Where does it come from and what destroys it? How to find it?
Parables also touch on narrower aspects. Everyday relations between husband and wife - it would seem that what could be more banal? But here too the parable finds food for thought. After all, it’s only in fairy tales that things end with a wedding crown. And the parable knows: this is just the beginning. And keeping love is no less important than finding it.

All or nothing

One man came to the sage and asked: “What is love?” The sage said: “Nothing.”
The man was very surprised and began to tell him that he had read many books that described how love can be different, sad and happy, eternal and fleeting.
Then the sage replied: “That’s it.”
The man again did not understand anything and asked: “How can I understand you? All or nothing?"
The sage smiled and said: “You yourself just answered your own question: nothing or everything. There can be no middle ground!”

Mind and heart

One person argued that the mind on the street of love is blind, and that the main thing in love is the heart. As proof of this, he cited the story of a lover who swam many times across the Tigris River, bravely fighting the current, to see his beloved.
But one day he suddenly noticed a spot on her face. After this, while swimming across the Tigris, he thought: “My beloved is imperfect.” And at that very moment the love that held him on the waves weakened, in the middle of the river his strength left him, and he drowned.

Repair, don't throw away

An elderly couple who had lived together for over 50 years was asked:
- Probably, you have never had a fight in half a century?
“We were arguing,” the husband and wife answered.
– Maybe you never had any need, you had ideal relatives and a full house?
- No, everything is like everyone else.
– But you never wanted to separate?
– There were such thoughts.
– How did you manage to live together for so long?
– Apparently, we were born and raised in a time when it was customary to fix broken things and not throw them away.

Don't demand

The teacher learned that one of his students was persistently seeking someone's love.
“Don’t demand love, so you won’t get it,” said the teacher.
- But why?
- Tell me, what do you do when uninvited guests break into your door, when they knock, scream, demanding to open it, and tear out their hair from the fact that it is not opened for them?
“I lock it tighter.”
– Don’t break into the doors of other people’s hearts, as they will close even more tightly before you. Become a welcome guest and any heart will open to you. Take the example of a flower that does not chase bees, but by giving them nectar, attracts them to itself.

Short parables about insult

The outside world is a harsh environment that constantly pits people against each other, striking sparks. A situation of conflict, humiliation, or insult can unsettle a person for a long time. The parable comes to the rescue here too, playing a psychotherapeutic role.
How to react to an insult? Give vent to anger and respond to the insolent? What to choose – the Old Testament “an eye for an eye” or the Gospel “turn the other cheek”? It is curious that of the entire corpus of parables about insults, the Buddhist ones are the most popular today. The pre-Christian, but not Old Testament, approach seems most acceptable to our contemporaries.

Go your own way

One of the disciples asked Buddha:
– If someone insults or hits me, what should I do?
– If a dry branch falls from a tree and hits you, what will you do? – he asked in response:
- What will i do? “It’s a simple accident, a simple coincidence that I found myself under a tree when a branch fell from it,” said the student.
Then the Buddha remarked:
- So do the same. Someone was mad, angry and hit you. It's like a branch falling from a tree on your head. Don’t let this bother you, go on your way as if nothing happened.

Take it for yourself

One day, several people began to viciously insult Buddha. He listened silently, very calmly. And that's why they felt uneasy. One of these people addressed the Buddha:
– Don’t our words hurt you?!
“It’s up to you to decide whether to insult me ​​or not,” replied the Buddha. – And mine is to accept your insults or not. I refuse to accept them. You can take them for yourself.

Socrates and the insolent

When some impudent person kicked Socrates, he endured it without saying a word. And when someone expressed surprise why Socrates ignored such a blatant insult, the philosopher remarked:
- If a donkey kicked me, would I really bring him to court?

About the meaning of life

Reflections on the meaning and purpose of existence belong to the category of so-called “damned questions”, and no one has a definite answer. However, deep existential fear - “Why am I living if I’m going to die anyway?” - torments every person. And of course, the genre of parable also touches on this issue.
Every nation has parables about the meaning of life. Most often it is defined as follows: the meaning of life is in life itself, in its endless reproduction and development through subsequent generations. The short-term existence of each individual person is considered philosophically. Perhaps the most allegorical and transparent parable in this category was invented by the American Indians.

Stone and bamboo

They say that one day a stone and a bamboo had a heated argument. Each of them wanted a person's life to be similar to his own.
The stone said:
– A person’s life should be the same as mine. Then he will live forever.
Bamboo replied:
- No, no, a person’s life should be like mine. I die, but am immediately born again.
The stone objected:
- No, it’s better to be different. Let a better person be like me. I do not bow to the wind or the rain. Neither water, nor heat, nor cold can harm me. My life is endless. For me there is no pain, no care. This is how a person's life should be.
Bamboo insisted:
- No. A person's life should be like mine. I die, it is true, but I am reborn in my sons. Isn't that right? Look around me - my sons are everywhere. And they too will have their own sons, and all will have smooth and white skin.
The stone was unable to answer this. Bamboo won the argument. This is why human life is like the life of bamboo.

What is it like?

There lived a Man in the World. He had three: to have a well-paid job, to marry a beauty and... to become famous throughout the world.

Earthly life

One day in a frosty winter, a man was in a hurry for an interview at the office of a well-known company. Suddenly, an elderly man fell right in front of him. The man looked at the fallen man, and the thought arose in his head that he was most likely drunk and did not shake hands. This helped me not be late for my scheduled meeting. The interview was unsuccessful: The person was not hired for the desired position.

One day a Man was walking around the city on a summer evening. Noticing a troupe of street performers, he stopped to enjoy the spectacle. There were few spectators, but the play was fun and exciting. After the end of the action, applause rang out and people began to disperse. Our Man also turned back, but someone timidly touched his shoulder. This was the main character of the play, an old clown. She began asking him whether he liked the performance and whether he was satisfied with the actors. But the Man did not want to carry on a conversation and, turning away with disgust, went home.

One rainy evening, a man was hurrying home from a friend's birthday party. He was very tired, and thoughts of a fragrant bath and a cozy, warm bed flashed through his head. Suddenly he heard someone's muffled sobbing. It was a woman crying. She was sitting on a bench near the Man's house. Without an umbrella. One. Noticing our hero, she turned to him for help. She had a misfortune in her family. And she only needed a sincere interlocutor. The man became thoughtful, a bath and a bed appeared before his eyes, and hurried into the entrance.

The man lived an unhappy life. And he died.

In another life

Once in Heaven, Man met his Friend, Guardian Angel. They swung on the heavenly swing and talked.
- You know, I lived a completely unhappy and worthless life. I had three dreams, but nothing came true. It's a pity…
- Hmm... My friend, I did everything to make all your dreams come true, but for this I only needed from you: your hand, your eyes and your heart.
- My God, so what?
- Do you remember the fallen man on the slippery winter road? I’ll show you this picture now... That man was the general director of the company that you so wanted to get into. A dizzying career awaits you. All that was required of you was your hand.

Do you remember the old clown who pestered you with questions after a street performance? She was a beautiful young actress who fell in love with you at first sight. A happy future awaited you, children, undying love. All that was required of you was your eyes.

Do you remember the crying woman near your entrance? It was a rainy evening, and she was soaked through with tears... She was a famous writer. She was going through a family crisis and really needed emotional support. If you helped her warm up in her apartment, warm her Soul thanks to your wise words of consolation, then she would write a book in which she would talk about this incident. The book would become famous throughout the world, and you would become famous, since on the main page the author would indicate the name of the one who became the muse of this work. And all that was required of you then was your heart. You were inattentive, my friend.
The man sighed... And they walked along the lunar path into the starry distance...

What does this World offer you now? Remember: Happiness has the face of a Mystery...