Rash action

The Miser's Dream

There was a Brahmin who lived in a city. He was known to be a great miser. Every day, he would go out begging and save some of the cornflour he received as alms. He stored the flour in an earthen pot. When it was full, he hung it on a peg above his bed so that he could see it all the time.

One day, the Brahmin returned home very tired and went to sleep. He had a dream.

In his dream, he thought, "This pot is full of flour, and if there is a famine I will get a high price for it. With that money, I will buy two goats. In some time, I shall own a big herd. I will sell them for a large profit and buy cows with that money. Then I will buy buffaloes and later, horses. When the stables would be full of horses, I'll sell them and buy lots of gold.

'I will build a big house with many rooms with this gold. Impressed with my wealth, a Brahmin will marry his beautiful daughter to me. She will soon give birth to a son. When he would be one year old, I will go and hide in the stable and call out to him to find me. But my son will wander toward the horses. I will shout at my wife to take him away. Busy with housework, she will ignore my call. For that I shall kick her

His dream ended and hopes shattered when be kicked the pot of flour hanging from the peg and spilled Its contents over his body!

The fourth Brahmin continued, "That is why I said that he who desires impossible things will always be sad, like the poor miserly Brahmin

'However, I don't think you are the only one who would be called greedy,' said his friend. Everyone becomes a slave to greed, sooner or later. Whosoever is overcome by greed without thinking of the result, is bound to be deceived, like the king in this story The third Brahmin then narrated the story of the king.