There once lived a man in Chi who was obsessed with gold. But he was so poor that he was never able to amass more than one gold coin, old and shabby and clipped about the sides. This man arose from his bed each morning thinking about gold and then went to bed at night to dream about it. But no matter how hard he tried he could never earn any more gold. He went around to every rich man’s house and asked for work. But the only work that he was given was menial and extremely badly paid. He tried to gamble with the rough men outside the wine shop but lost almost every time, until he had lost even his one shabby piece of gold.
One day he got up at dawn, got dressed and set out for the marketplace. He went over to the stall that dealt in gold, snatched up a great gold bar and ran off down the street. In his haste to get away he ran right into the constable and was dragged off to prison.
At his arraignment the judge asked him, “What did you think you were doing stealing someone else’s gold right in front of so many people?”
“When I took the gold,” he replied, “I did not see any other people. I only saw the gold.”
Thus do we all often lose sight of what is really precious in our lives by only concentrating on what we wish were so instead of what is.
LIEH TZU
Not exalting the gifted prevents quarrelling.
Not valuing treasures prevents stealing.
Not seeing desirable things prevents
confusion of the heart.
LAO TZU
