A beautiful story as told by Osho.
There is a very famous story about Judo: There was a famous swordsman. There was no one equal to him in all Japan. One night, he was returning home at about 2 A.M. As he entered his room, he saw a rat come out of his hole, and sit on his bed. He was very angry. He tried to frighten him away but the rat did not move. The swordsman was puzzled. He could frighten away the strongest of men and this rat – ? He was now very angry. He picked up a toy-sword with which his daughter used to play and hit the rat hard. The rat moved barely an inch. But he had dealt the blow in such anger that the sword fell down and broke into pieces. The rat sat silent in his place. Now the man was disturbed and a little frightened himself. The rat did not seem to be an ordinary rat. He had never missed a blow – he could not imagine how he missed this?
He went and fetched his own sword. Now if a person brings a real sword to kill a rat, his defeat is certain. A warrior bringing a sword to kill a rat! He is now afraid of the rat. It seems an uncommon rodent! His hands began to tremble. Now he feared if the real sword broke there would be no way of redressing the insult and infamy. So he hit very cautiously. It is a known fact that a blow dealt cautiously, always misses the target. The very fact that you are cautious, shows that there is fear within. If there is no fear within, a man is never cautious. He acts and the work is done. He had wielded a sword many times in his life but today as he brought it down on the rat, his hand trembled. The sword fell from his hand and broke into pieces. The rat moved just a little bit. The man was confounded – he lost his senses.
The story goes on, that he made it known in the town that if anyone had a clever cat, he should bring it to him. The wealthiest man of the town brought his cat the next day. She was an expert rat-killer. But the swordsman was frightened and so was the owner of the cat when he heard the full story. If the greatest swordsman broke his sword over him, and he was not stirred, what chance did the cat have? The cat also got wind of it. She too was frightened. All night she lay awake making various plans to kill the rat. At times she wondered why all this preparations. Rats run away at sight of her! But then she said to herself, ”This rat is uncommon. I might as well be prepared.” The next morning she came and stood at the entrance of the room. She looked in and saw the rat. She trembled at the sight – there was the rat still and silent and the swordsman’s sword lying in pieces! Now to her consternation, instead of she advancing, the rat advanced. She could never have anticipated such a move – and that too from a rat! She quickly ran out!
Now the swordsman was really frightened. He sent a request to the king to send the palace-cat. Now this cat was the best cat in town. Before leaving the palace she told the king, ”Are you not ashamed to send me to kill an ordinary mouse? I am not an ordinary cat!” The fact is, she too had heard that the rat was no ordinary rat so in the order to dissuade the king from sending her, she was trying this trick. The king said, ”It is no ordinary rat and it is I who am afraid whether you will return alive.” The cat was taken to the swordsman’s house. She pounced on the rat with all her might; but she missed the rat and her head struck against the wall. She went back to the palace with blood streaming down her head. The rat sat still where he was.
Now in that town there was a fakir. He had a cat that was the master of all cats. The palace cat recommended that this master-cat’s services should be employed. Perhaps she would have a method of tackling this rat. The master-cat was called. All the cats of the town gathered to see what would happen. It was going to be a decisive game. If the cat lost, the cats will forever lose against rats.
Now the rat was where he was. The fakir’s cat entered the room. All the other cats began to advise her what she should do. The fakir’s cat shouted at them and said, ”You foolish things – making plans to kill a rat! The very fact that you plan, shows that you are frightened. After all, he is merely a rat – I’ll catch him! There is no need for any method. To be a cat is the very art of catching a rat.” The swordsman also warned her that it was no ordinary rat. He said if she failed, he would have to leave his house forever. The cat said, ”What is so great about this rat? Please keep your calm!”
The cat went in, caught the mouse and brought it out! All the cats gathered round her to know how she had done it? The cat replied, ”The fact that I am a cat, was enough. I am a cat and he is a rat and the rat always co-operates with the cat for the cats have always caught them. This is our nature – I am a cat and he is a rat. I will catch and he will be caught. You all made plans and hence you lost for you brought your intellect in-between.”
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