Devil and his friend
So something tempted me today and I decided to quote one of the short parables contained in the book by Anthony de Mello entitled "Bird Singing".
This is a story that shows how our beliefs become the source of our troubles. How wrong we can be sometimes and we don't even realize it. How we become blind and perceive the world around us in a very limited way. The worst kind of such a situation is fanaticism.
The title of this parable is "The Devil and his friend"
A parable about the devil and blind faith
Once upon a time, the devil went out for a walk with a friend. Suddenly, he saw a man bent over the ground in front of him, trying to collect something.
- What is this man looking for? The devil's friend asked.
-"Fragments of Truth," replied the devil.
- "And it doesn't bother you?" His friend asked again.
-"Not at all" replied the devil. "I'll let him make a religious belief out of it."
Religious belief is like a signpost that points the way to the truth. People who insist on sticking to their signpost are hindered from walking toward the Truth because they have a false feeling that they already have it.
What is the moral of this story?
If we approach life in an uncritical way, we give others power over us. If we are not able to have our own opinion - we can become slaves - of someone else's ideas and someone's vision of the world.
As a wise thinker said in his sentence:
It's not true that people want freedom. People are afraid of freedom because it comes with responsibility.
It's easier when someone tells us what the world looks like and how to live. Then you don't have to search and make your choices. And when that idea doesn't work, we have someone to blame.
See also other coaching stories and parables:
Shake it off! About a donkey that could not be buried alive
What difference do you make to the world?
Endurance Coaching. How much can you take?
In a desperate search for happiness
Mindfulness Coaching. And a seagull named Jonathan
Things aren't always what they seem