Who is the most powerful one?

A disciple and a master were going on a pilgrimage in northern India. Tired, they sat on a big rock under a tree. After a while disciple asked the master, “Dear Sir, this rock is so hard and strong. What could be stronger than this rock?”

“Iron, my son. Iron can cut the rocks and hence is stronger than the rock.”

“Hmm.... what could be stronger than iron, Sir?”

“Well, fire can melt the iron. So, you can consider fire to be more potent than the iron.”

“You are right. Is there anything more potent than the fire.”

“You can say that water can pacify the fire, so water can be considered as more powerful than the fire.”

The disciple thought for a moment and then said, “In that case, wind can even lift the water to the clouds. So air should be considered as more powerful than the water.”

“Exactly. You see son, the one which is having more potential is also more profound and subtle in nature. It is more easily available in nature. Do you agree?”

“Yes dear master, I agree with you. So, please tell me what is the strongest?”

“The thoughts, resolutions and will of a living being is the most powerful one. A small insect can dig a hole in the earth. The will of a human being can do wonders – can control the flow of water with dams, can control the fire and utilize it properly, can tap the energy of wind to generate electric power. There is nothing impossible for a strong willed being. He can climb to the highest mountain peak, can live in Antarctica, can go to the moon and what not. The human mind is the most powerful one.”

After a brief pause, the master continued, “ Even subtler and more profound than the mind is the consciousness – the Supreme Consciousness which supports and sustain the mind- the omnipresent non-dual Truth, in which thousands of thoughts arise and dies down. But it remains the same – Sat-Chit-Shant-Ananda (Eternal-Conscious-Peaceful-Blissful). Try to know and realize that supreme Truth. After such a wonderful realization all your doubts will evaporate and you will attain a state of oneness with that bliss.”