happy maths - numbers - mala kumar (1.4 mb pdf) - Arvind Gupta

4
Grains of Rice
Acharya Vinoba Bhave was a freedom fighter. He followed the
teachings of Mahatma Gandhi and lived between the years 1895
and 1982.
When he was a young boy in Maharashtra, his mother had made a
vow of offering 10,000 grains of rice to God. She carefully counted
a hundred grains each day and offered it in prayer, reciting God’s
name each time she made an offering.
Vinoba’s elder brother had an idea. He said, “Mother, why do
you do this everyday? After counting a hundred grains on one
day, measure its weight. From the next day, you just have to
weigh out an equal amount and offer it to God. This will save you
time and effort.”
Vinoba said, “I don’t think that would be right. When you count
100 grains of rice each day, you will repeat God’s name 100 times.
But if you weigh out 100 grains, you would say God’s name only
once!”