The Thieves and the Silent Monk

A Jain monk was standing in Kayotsarga (motionless meditation) in a dense forest on a dark night. A gang of fierce thieves, carrying stolen treasure, ran into the forest to hide from the King's guards.

In the pitch black, they bumped into the unmoving monk. Feeling a solid, upright form, the leader of the thieves thought it was a wooden post marking a safe spot. 'We will hide here,' the leader whispered. 'Lean the bags of gold against this post. We will guard it until dawn.'

All night long, the thieves sat around the 'post,' keeping watch, oblivious that it was a living human. The monk, feeling the heavy bags of gold leaned against his legs and hearing the ruthless thieves, did not break his meditation. He remained in a state of absolute equanimity, not feeling fear for his life, nor greed for the gold.

When the sun finally rose, the morning light revealed the truth. The thieves gasped in horror, realizing they had spent the night leaning their stolen loot against a holy ascetic. They expected the monk to shout or report them to the guards.

Instead, the monk gently opened his eyes, radiated a peaceful smile, and blessed them without a word of judgment.

The thieves were completely disarmed. They had faced armies and weapons without fear, but this weaponless, absolute peace broke their hardened hearts. The realization that a human being could possess such supreme self-control and fearlessness made their stolen gold seem like worthless dirt. They dropped their weapons, abandoned the treasure, and begged the monk to teach them the path of non-violence.