There was a man who had spent quite a long time in prison. He shared with us, in front of 25 other inmates, a little bit of what he had gone through in the past months. He had suffered a stroke and that changed his practice intensely. He turned his attention towards the other inmates and expressed much love and kindness towards them. He was so thankful that the others accepted and supported him over his difficult situation that he cried.

In the end, he gave an offering and sang a song for all with a joyful heart. I knew he must have done something very wrong that landed him in prison. That probably must have caused a lot of guilt in him initially. But through learning the Dharma, he experienced kindness and joy at heart, and had learnt to open his heart to the other inmates. He showed me an example of what forgiveness can do for oneself and others.

“365 Gems of Wisdom” e-book is out now!