A certain student from Rajasthan had failed in his
high school examinations. He appeared again the
following year, but failed again. After having failed
for the third time the next year he was so ashamed
of his performance that he left his home, unable to
show his face to his family.
He just kept walking about aimlessly. After a long
time he stopped at a well to quench his thirst.
Women and children had gathered around it, filling
their pots by turns. There he caught sight of
something. Something, small, but of great
significance. He was deeply moved, and his thirst
was gone. All of a sudden he felt as though he had
found something far greater than the water he had
come for. What happened was quite simple. The
villagers who visited the well for water, usually
brought two earthen pots. They would place one
pot on a stone near the well while letting the other
down on a rope inside the well to draw water. To
his astonishment, the part of the stone on which the
pot was placed had rubbed away and there was a
hollow there. The pot was made of earth, he
thought, but when it was placed on the same spot
over and over again, it had worn away the stone
which was a far harder a substance. The strong
element had given way to the weak, just through
constant action. “Then why should I not succeed in
my examinations if I too persevere? I can surely
overcome my shortcomings by putting greater
effort into my studies!”
Such thoughts brought him to a halt. He
immediately decided to go back home and start
working hard on his studies once again. The
following year he appeared for the fourth time in
his high school examinations. This time the result,
astonishingly, was the opposite of the previous one.
He had done his papers so well this time that he
had first class marks. After having failed three times
he had finally distinguished himself. The lesson of
the stone had worked like a miracle and this had
altered his attitude altogether. The same student
who had run away from home, unable to face
defeat, had come to stand first in all the
examinations he took. When he topped in his M.A.
examinations, he was given a scholarship to study
abroad and from there he took his doctorate.
This may be a solitary instance that occurred in an
isolated village, but, indeed, in every place there
exists such a “stone” which, by pointing out man’s
shortcomings and failures, can teach him a lesson
provided he shows sufficient receptiveness to the
message it conveys. It he only cares to look, he will
find around him some such “stone” which will set
him on the right course again.
Ref - The Moral Vision
- by Maulana Wahiduddin Khan
