He's not heavy. He's my brother...

The standing boy of Nagasaki [1] is a historic photograph taken in Nagasaki, Japan, in 1945, shortly after the atomic bombing of that city on 9th August 1945. The photograph is of a boy of about 10 with his dead baby brother strapped to his back, waiting for his turn at the crematorium. 

A soldier noticed him and asked him to keep this dead child down so that he would not get tired. He replied: He's not heavy, he's my brother! The soldier understood. Since then, this image has become a symbol of unity in Japan. Let this be our motto: 

 

"He's not heavy. He's my brother... She's my sister." 

 

If he falls, raise him. Even if you get tired, help him. And if his support is weak, and if he makes a mistake, forgive him because he is not heavy he is your brother... And if the world abandons him, carry him on your back. Friendship and family means carrying each other through; no matter whatever happens.

The photograph was taken by Joe O'Donnell [2], then working for the United States Marine Corps. Joe O'Donnell made personal copies of his Nagasaki photographs and kept them hidden in a trunk until 1989, when he put together a traveling exhibit and a book. O'Donnell's Japan 1945, Images From the Trunk was published in Japan in 1995 and read widely.

Joe O'Donnel in his book writes as below, 

I saw a boy about ten years old walking by. He was carrying a baby on his back. In those days in Japan, we often saw children playing with their little brothers or sisters on their backs, but this boy was clearly different. I could see that he had come to this place for a serious reason. He was wearing no shoes. His face was hard. The little head was tipped back as if the baby were fast asleep. The boy stood there for five or ten minutes.

The men in white masks walked over to him and quietly began to take off the rope that was holding the baby. That is when I saw that the baby was already dead. The men held the body by the hands and feet and placed it on the fire. The boy stood there straight without moving, watching the flames. He was biting his lower lip so hard that it shone with blood. The flame burned low like the sun going down. The boy turned around and walked silently away.

 

Reference

 

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Boy_Standing_by_the_Crematory

[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_O%27Donnell_(photojournalist)

Secret of Right Activity - Swami Paramananda

It is not the strong physical vehicle which makes the productive human being; it is skillfulness in action, knowing how to adjust ourselves quickly, how to perform a task with the least expenditure of energy. This is what gives immediate success.

The whole purpose of religion and philosophy is to give us that which is inspiring, elevating and constructive.

A man who does nothing, his mind and his physical vehicle quickly deteriorate. He becomes dead although carrying on an existence.

One who is so convinced of his own principles that he is indifferent to what others say, and who is willing to give himself to his task, that man will accomplish his purpose.

There are moments when we forget our environment, forget everything but the one thing that we are doing, and those are the supreme moments of our life. They make it possible for us to attain success.

Action and reaction are constantly taking place in this world. No one can escape them. We may declare that we are going to have in our life only happiness and beauty, that we will have riches and not poverty. But the pairs of opposites are always playing back and forth. We cannot have happiness without unhappiness. We cannot have light without darkness. What is the remedy? It is given in the Gita: "To work alone thou hast the right, but never to the fruits thereof."

By doing small tasks whole-heartedly, with concentration and skillfulness, we evolve within ourselves a power which will enable us later on to perform some great task which now seems like a mountain, inaccessible and unobtainable.

Non-killing, not merely refraining from partaking of animal food, but never harming another by a hateful thought. It is actually practicing non-injury in thought, word and deed.

We are placed here by a divine hand. To disconnect ourselves from that, to feel and think that we are isolated and unprotected, existing merely for our own self-gratification, is the greatest tragedy that can befall us.

We know that there is within us a pent-up energy which is constantly finding its outlet through thought, words and actions. We can use this energy for our best happiness and up-liftment; or we can misuse it and cause our own ruin. It can manifest itself in the form of anger or hatred, which will bring disastrous results; also it can manifest itself in the form of goodness, unselfish love, charity and service. It is the same energy expressing itself in different ways according to our tendency.

If you are helping a person, do not expect that person to be grateful to you. Do not always trade in your love.

Always try to be in Christ-like state, "Not my will, but Thine".

As long as we are unselfish, so long we are the gainers; but whenever we bring the thought of self, we suffer, because we demand. We demand from the person we love; and if we do not get what we demand, we naturally suffer from reaction.

We must learn to live in the world, as Lord Krishna teaches in the Bhagavad Gita, like a lotus leaf, which grows in water but is never wet by the water.

Perform all work for the purification of your soul; not with the idea of earning a wage, but with some really noble motive.

"He who worketh for Me alone, hath Me for his highest goal, who is devoted to Me, who is freed from attachment, and beareth enmity towards no creature, such a person attaineth unto Me." - Bhagavad-Gita.

The Grass is Blue

A donkey told the tiger, "The grass is blue."

The tiger replied, "No, the grass is green."

The discussion became heated, and the two decided to submit the issue to arbitration, so they approached the lion.

As they approached the lion on his throne, the donkey started screaming: ′Your Highness, isn't it true that the grass is blue?"

The lion replied: "If you believe it is true, the grass is blue."

The donkey rushed forward and continued: ′′The tiger disagrees with me, contradicts me, and annoys me. Please punish him."

The king then declared: ′′The tiger will be punished with 3 days of silence."

The donkey jumped with joy and went on his way, content and repeating ′′The grass is blue, the grass is blue..."

The tiger asked the lion, "Your Majesty, why have you punished me, after all, the grass is green?"

The lion replied ′You've known and seen the grass is green."

The tiger asked, "So why do you punish me?"

The lion replied, "That has nothing to do with the question of whether the grass is blue or green. The punishment is because it is degrading for a brave, intelligent creature like you to waste time arguing with an ass, and on top of that, you came and bothered me with that question just to validate something you already knew was true!"

The biggest waste of time is arguing with the fool and fanatic who doesn't care about truth or reality, but only the victory of his beliefs and illusions. 

Never waste time on discussions that make no sense. 

There are people who, for all the evidence presented to them, cannot understand. 

Others are blinded by ego, hatred, and resentment, and the only thing that they want is to be right even if they aren’t.

When IGNORANCE SCREAMS, intelligence moves on.