In honor of healers everywhere, SARA BUBBER shares a Buddhist tale of a visionary physician whose holistic approach encompassed the patients’ well-being and that of society, bringing growth and prosperity through love.

Once upon a time, in the Philippines, there lived a young girl named Lola. Lola lived by herself but considered all the plants around her as her family. They gave her food, shade, and tree-lined avenues, and she loved tending and caring for her garden. Then, Lola planted a different tree altogether.

All the trees in her garden grew tall under her care, as did this new tree. Strangely, it had no leaves! It seemed to be shy. Every monsoon, Lola would wish the trees a happy growth. She would hug the strange tree and tell it to grow into its own. One monsoon, the new tree grew three fruits that looked rough, brown, and hairy.

Everyone made fun of this strange appearance. “It looks like a monkey!” said some people. “Oh no, it’s a foot scrubber,” said others. Lola didn’t mind. She told everyone that it was a special tree and that it would grow in its own unique way.

One day, a terrible storm hit the village. Waves rose high, roofs flew off, and people ran for shelter. But Lola stayed, hugging her tree. When the storm cleared, nearly every house had been washed away, except the one under the strange tree, which stood firm, protecting Lola’s hut like a soldier.

 

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The next morning, a brown fruit fell into her lap. Curious, she opened it and discovered sweet water and soft, white flesh inside. When the villagers came running, hungry and tired. Lola offered the fruit to everyone. “Here,” she said, “try the monkey’s head.”

 

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The children giggled, but soon every family planted one of the new trees.

The people of the village named it “niyog”, the coconut. They believed the three dots on its shell were eyes and a mouth—the face of the brave spirit who protected Lola that stormy night.

And from that day on, every time someone drank coconut water, they thanked the tree that found its head—and never lost its heart.

 

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ACTIVITY: FIELDS OF MEDICINE:

Just like the coconut, you have many hidden areas of your personality. Let’s discover this for ourselves through a reflection activity.

Think of your qualities in the following areas and fill in the grid to get to know yourself better:

Open Arena: Things that you know about yourself, and others know about you

Blind Spot: Things that people may have told you about you, but which you don’t know yourself

Facade area: Things that you know about yourself, but others don’t know about you

Unknown area: Things that you don’t know about yourself, and others don’t know about you

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Sara Bubber

Sara Bubber

Sara is a storyteller, Montessori consultant, and a children’s book author. She is also a naturalist, doing her doctoral work in eco-consciousness in childhood. She has been practicing Heartfulness for eight y... Read More

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