7 August 2022 — ‘AH SO’

At this moment in time I am gaining strength by reminding myself of the tale of the ‘Ah So’ Monk. This is an apocryphal story about a monk who was confronted by a woman who left a baby with him telling him he was the father. The monk’s response was ‘Ah So’ and he raised the child for some years until the woman came along and took the child away. And, once again, his response was ‘Ah So….’.

There is a part of me which thinks the monk in this story was uncaring and should have fought to keep the child. Another part, however, is touched by the moral of the story which I see as encouraging one to accept fate — to shrug one’s shoulders at what one cannot change and to get on with life regardless rather than allowing one’s self to become an emotional wreck, or, to be consumed by anger.

There is a saying telling one to ‘fight the good fight’ but, of course, it is the wise parts of us which know what is worth fighting for, and when to shrug our shoulders and say ‘Ah So’.

PONDER POINTS: on reading this I felt…..my thoughts on reading this are ….I feel I am quite laid back because …. things I tend to get upset about are …. I don't think that shrugging one’s shoulders is always the right attitude to take because ..