25 Oct

A single-minded will is essential for overcoming any form of crises and difficulties. Anxiety and worries are nearly unavoidable at all strata of life while facing challenges and various forms of hardships.

‘Anxiety’ in Greek meaning is ‘to be divided or distracted’, which could cause us to lose energy, confidence and courage to overcome difficulties. The opposite of division and distraction is ‘single-mindedness’ that is required to minimize anxiety.

Myanmar is now facing two major challenges this year: The first one is the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and the second one is the November 8 General Elections.

A strong expectation or singed-minded will is very vital to manage both issues, as well as to achieve the goal for establishing a Democratic Federal Union.

All the people living in this country need to avoid division and distraction in struggling for a better future, instead of fears, worries and anxiety.

There is a story about the ‘Quail King and the Hunter’ in the Buddha’s jataka stories.

Once upon a time the Buddha-to-be was born as a quail who led a flock of a thousand quails.

A very clever quail hunter caught the quails by covering them with a net for selling them in the market. After the declining number of quails in the forest, the Quail King realized the net trap of the hunter and called together the entire quails in thousands of number. He advised that when the hunter covered them with a net, every single quail was to raise their necks at the same time and fly away with the net and drop it on a thorn bush to escape from the net.

In following the guidelines and instruction of the Quail King when they were trapped by the net of the hunter the next day, the hunter caught no quails at all and his net was also lost in the thorns of bush, failing to use it again.

It should be an excellent example for our people nowadays. All our citizens should have a single-minded will to achieve our goals and fulfil our expectations, while distraction or division could lead all of us to deviate from our goals or fail to overcome our challenges.