A scrolling story · for children aged 5 to 11 and their grown-ups
Gentleness (Ahimsa)
A little monk meditates in a small boat on a misty lake when another boat bumps into his. He opens his eyes ready to shout, and finds the other boat is empty, just drifting. He realises the anger was never in the other boat; it was in his own mind.
Scroll down, or use the arrow keys, to walk through the story. Nothing is narrated: it is made for reading aloud together.
Act 1 · The World & the Conflict
Act 1 · card 1 of 3
High in the hills, beside a monastery with a golden roof, lay a quiet lake. Every morning before sunrise, a little monk named Bodhi rowed out alone in his small wooden boat to meditate. The mist curled over the water like soft white wool. The only sounds were the drip of his oars and the call of a faraway bird.
Act 1 · card 2 of 3
Bodhi was learning Ahimsa (gentleness: not hurting anyone with our hands, our words or even our thoughts). It was harder than it sounded! Only yesterday another monk had spilled tea on his robe, and Bodhi had felt hot anger rush to his cheeks. So today he closed his eyes and promised himself, “I will be calm. I will be calm.”
Act 1 · card 3 of 3
He sat very still. His breathing slowed. The boat rocked gently, like a cradle, and peace began to settle over him like the morning mist. Then, out of nowhere: BUMP! Something knocked hard into his boat. Water splashed over the side. Bodhi’s eyes flew open, and his heart began to pound like a drum.
Act 2 · The Crossroads
Act 2 · card 1 of 1
Anger bubbled up inside him like a kettle about to whistle. “Who did that?” he thought. “Some careless rower has spoiled my meditation! I’ll shout so loudly the whole monastery hears!” His fists tightened. His face grew hot. Through the mist he could just make out the shape of another boat, pressed right against his own.
The crossroads · every path is a kind one
Tap a path to see where it leads. You can open all three: there is no wrong answer.
Bodhi chose Satya (truth). He said to himself, “Wait. I don’t know what really happened yet.” Instead of shouting at a shape in the mist, he rowed a little closer to see the truth for himself. Sometimes the story our anger tells us is not the real story at all.
Bodhi chose Dharma (doing what is right). He remembered his promise of Ahimsa: no hurting with hands or words. He opened his fists, one finger at a time, and decided, “Whatever happened, I will not shout. I will speak kindly.” Then he leaned forward to peer through the mist and see who had bumped him.
Bodhi chose Shanti (peace). Before saying a word, he took three slow breaths. In… out. In… out. In… out. The kettle inside him stopped whistling and became a calm cup of tea. With a cooler head, he leaned forward to see who was there, ready to speak gently instead of yelling.
Act 3 · The Inner Awakening
Act 3 · card 1 of 2
The other boat was… empty. Nobody was rowing it. Its rope had come loose in the night, and it had simply drifted across the lake on the current. Bodhi laughed softly. There was nobody to be angry with! The anger had not come from that boat at all. It had been inside his own mind, waiting for a bump.
Act 3 · card 2 of 2
When we sit in Dhyan (meditation), we begin to notice our feelings before they take over. The teachings of Brahm Gyan (divine knowledge) point us to the peaceful light within, deeper than any anger. From that calm place we can see that others are often like empty boats, drifting without meaning to hurt us, and gentleness comes naturally.
Try it tonight
Tonight, when someone bumps into you, takes your toy or says something that stings, imagine they are an empty boat. Take three slow breaths before you answer, and ask yourself, “Is the anger in their boat, or in mine?” Then choose gentle words, like oars dipping softly into still water.
The heart of the story
Things outside us cannot take away our peace unless we let them. Gentleness begins with calming our own mind.
Inspired by the ancient parable of the empty boat (Zhuangzi)
