A young boy once had difficulty reading the Bhagavad Gita. So he asked his grandfather, "I try to read the Bhagavad Gita like you but I don't understand it, and what I do understand I forget as soon as I close the book."
The grandfather turned from his coal stove and replied, "Take this old coal basket down to the river and bring me back a basket of water." The boy did as he was told, but all the water leaked out of the basket before he got back to the house.
The grandfather laughed and said, "You'll have to move a little faster next time," and sent him back to the river to try again. This time the boy ran faster, but again the basket was empty before he returned home.
The grandfather told him to try one more time. So the boy dipped the basket into river again and ran as fast as he could, but when he reached his grandfather the basket was empty again. Angry and out of breath, he said, "See Grandpa, it's useless!"
"So you think it is useless?" The old man said, "Look at the basket."
The boy looked at the basket and realized that it had been transformed. The basket had been dark and dirty with coal dust. But the water had washed it clean, inside and out.
The grandfather said, "Son, this is what happens when you read the Bhagavad Gita. You might not understand or remember everything, but by reading it you will be changed, inside and out."
-Traditional Story
-Traditional Story
