The questions of a monk

The questions of a monk

Ask yourself this simple question!
Who am I?

For a moment, I thought it would not be that difficult to answer the question!
A brief pondering and a reflex-like high-speed response raged through my head.

Of course, I know who I am. What my name is and where I live … but my answer felt weird, not right – rather strange.

I started to ponder …… Was that the right answer? Was the question really that easy to answer?

Who am I?

I do not really have time to philosophize about the first question, because there were more questions to reinforce the main question!
Can you taste your own tongue? Can you see your own eyes (without a mirror) or feel your fingertip with the same finger?

Who am I?

Now I realized how difficult it was to answer this question!

Another question, followed by a gentle smile, demanded my attention.
Think about your childhood and compare it to today. Are you the same person? If you were the same person, why did you grow in size, have more knowledge than you used to, and many new friends since that time?

Who am I?

He realized how difficult it was for me to answer the question and said the following words to me.

Live only in the present moment. The present moment is all you will ever have!
There will never be a time when this moment is not your life! The here and now is the only existing moment! Have you ever felt or experienced anything in the past or in the future? Life is lived only in the present moment. The only stability in a human life is the stability of the instability!

Every moment is marked by change!
Pay attention to your words, your thoughts and your deeds! It is your fate as a human being to live in true happiness.

He smiled gently and recited a verse from the Dhammapada.

„Rare is the birth as a human-being. Hard is the life of mortals. Difficult is the chance of hearing the Dhamma. Rare is the appearance of the Supreme Buddhas.“ (Dhammapada Verse)

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