The Tibetan Monk

It was summer. Yama and Yonten were playing by the river.
"I bet you can't do this!" shouted Yonten as he jumped into the river and swam in the water, laughing.
"This is fun--come on down!"
Yama, the younger one, was afraid of the water. He did not know how to swim. He stepped away from the bank.
Laughing, Yonten came out of the river, ran behind Yama and pushed him in.

Yama immediately sank. He splashed and splashed, trying to find something to cling onto.
"Help!" He yelled, but as he opened his mouth a hand of water entered it and he choked. He continued to splash, struggling for air.
Yonten was terrified! He didn't know that Yama could not swim, and he dove back into the river to rescue his friend. However, he was not strong enough to push Yama back on shore. The two friends struggled in the water, Yonten trying to drag Yama towards the bank. By the time they reached the bank, they were both exhausted.

Yama was very angry at Yonten. After that day, he refused to be friends with Yonten. When Yonten spoke to him, he turned away. When Yonten asked him out to play, he walked off. This, of course, hurt Yonten's feelings badly. Observing all of this, was Yama and Yonten's teacher, Chodak.

One day, Yonten was feeding the chickens and as he opened the door of the fence, one of the chickens escaped. Yonten ran after it, afraid that he would lose it. Yama was nearby cleaning the chicken coop.
"Yama! Come help me chase the chicken!" He yelled.

However, Yama was still indignant. He deliberately ignored Yonten's cry for help and carried on with his work. Well, Yonten did not end up catching the chicken that day, and sadly, Yama did not care for his friend's hurt feelings. All he cared about was his own ego and pride.

Again, watching all of this, was Chodak. This time, he wanted to teach Yama a lesson.
That evening, he pulled Yama aside, and told him, "I saw what happened today, Yama."
Yama shrugged and replied, "It's not my problem."
"When a friend is in need, you must always come to his aid." Chodak said sternly. "You must never let a friend down, no matter what he's done to you. You have to learn to forgive, Yama. You have to forgive Yonten."
Yama crossed his arms and said bluntly, "It's not fair. How come he does something wrong and doesn't get punished for it?"
Chodak looked at the boy and told him, "Ok then, let's see what's fair. Every time you wrong someone,   I want you to go to the river and collect a stone. You must never leave your stones and must carry them with you in a satchel at all times. I will be watching closely to make sure that you do as you're told."

Over several weeks, Yama collected at least ten stones. One time, he accidentally misplaced an item of his friend's. Another time, he said something mean to someone else. These stones accumulated and they were so heavy to carry! Yama could no longer carry all of them at once. He went to Chodak to ask him what to do. Chodak smiled at him and asked, "What's the matter?"
"Lama, these stones are heavy to carry and it hurts." Yama said. "I can no longer carry all of them with me all the time."
Chodak pointed to a stone and said, "Yama, this stone represents one wrong you have done someone. Now, to get rid of it, you must be punished for it. Let's start with this one. To get rid of this stone, tomorrow you must do the chores of whoever you wronged for them."

And so it continued. Day by day, Yama slaved away, serving a punishment for each stone before being allowed to drop it. It took Yama at least two weeks to get rid of just over half of his stones. Yama's back hurt by the end of every day that he carried his stones. Emotionally, he was beaten and discouraged. He had done wrong--yes, but this was too cruel. Yama had had enough. He went to his teacher to tell him that this was unfair and that he had now served more than he had wronged.

When Chodak listened to all Yama had to say, he said to him, "Now, do you see what happens when you don't forgive someone? They have to carry that stone with them every day, every moment. And if you hold them for their wrong until they're punished for it, sometimes they end up serving more than what they have wronged."

Yama suddenly felt very sad. He now understood what he did to Yonten, and realised that the way he treated him was wrong. He did not mean to hurt Yonten like this; most importantly, he did not mean to be so cruel. He cried, and asked his teacher for forgiveness.
"I'm sorry," he said, sobbing. "I'm really sorry..."

Chodak opened his arms for embrace. Then, he said, "You may drop all your stones now. You have been forgiven."
Yama looked up. He put down his satchel and felt a sudden release. He felt so free and and light. It was so good to be forgiven. He could now run and play as freely as everyone else without the burden of the stones.

"And now... I believe you have something to say to someone," said Chodak lastly.
"Yes, I do." Yama replied, and he made his way to find Yonten.