Jake was travelling in India, absorbing all the exotic sights and sounds of a new land. He loved the food, the culture and the wildlife. When it came to animals, none impressed him more than the elephants. He watched how the mahouts handled them as they worked. He was in awe at the way an animal weighing 4 tons and able to shift huge loads could also move so delicately. When it walked, it placed each hind foot exactly where the front foot had been.
When it was time for the elephant to stop work, it was tied to a small tree or a handy fence post. Jake was intrigued – surely the elephant could easily uproot these and wander off. He asked one of the mahouts about it. He was told that the elephant had been tethered like this ever since it was young. Back then it didn’t have the strength to get away and, as we all know, an elephant never forgets. It still believed that it could not free itself.
An elephant has the biggest brain of all land animals and typically lives to about 70 years old, a coincidentally similar life-span to humans. Yet through most of its life, it forfeits its freedom because of a mistaken belief. This can be a warning for all of us.
We can be tethered by out-dated beliefs. Conditioning that we inherited years ago can still limit our achievements. We can be shackled by a misguided sense of consistency that dictates we must behave the same way as in the past. To liberate ourselves – to get out of the rut – we need to forget the stake we are tied to. We have the power to break free.
Freedom is only a single thought away. When you switch your attention to what you can do – your full repertoire of strengths and talents – you will find exciting new possibilities where previously there had been only impossibilities. If you had that freedom, what would you do?
Great story Trevor. Thanks for sharing a simple message in an engaging tale.
Mark
Great story Trevor I have seen this many times both in my own life and those of others. Indeed one day I was doing some healing work with a client and was shown an image of him with shackles round his legs which were not locked or closed and could easily be parted and removed to allow him his freedom. After the session i spoke to him about this image and asked him if he could make any sense of it. Immediately he said yes he could and went on to ay he was in a job thta he no longer enjoyed but it paid well and he was afraid he would not survive on less money which is what was keeping him there. When we looked at a lot of his expenditure it was was on things and experiences that were antidotes to a job he did not enjoy so this meant that stopping the job could mean reducing his outgoings enormously. Many months later he left and found a lovely job that pays well and allows him the balance he wanted in life. Luckily he saw the trick that no longer could have a hold over him and broke the old habit.
As far as what would I do, I would finish the book i started, i would buy a camper van and I would do some travelling