Wild Dandelions

Dandelions are wide-spreading yellow flowers. For some, it is a useful herb. Others look at them as unwanted weed. A traditional Sufi story on appreciating dandelions that exist in our lives. The excerpt below is taken from the storybook “Soul Food”, written by Christina Feldman, Jack Kornfield [1].

Story

Mulla Nasrudin decided to start a flower garden. He prepared the soil and planted the seeds of many beautiful flowers. But when they came up, his garden was filled not just with his chosen flowers but also overrun by dandelions. He sought out advice from gardeners all over and tried every method known to get rid of them but to no avail. Finally he walked all the way to the capital to speak to the royal gardener at the sheik's palace. The wise old man had counseled many gardeners before and suggested a variety of remedies to expel the dandelions but Mulla had tried them all. They sat together in silence for some time and finally the gardener looked at Nasrudin and said, "Well, then I suggest you learn to love them."

Message

The short story tells us to be at peace, whenever the situation is unavoidable. Everything does not go our way. One should start learning to love what's abhorrent. The story also hints that making everything our way would destroy the beauty of life. Sometimes, you have to take a back seat and enjoy the ride.

Source

1. Book : "Soul Food - Stories to Nourish the Spirit and the Heart", by Christina Feldman & Jack Kornfield