What are some traditional cultural short stories of gratitude?

This is a story of the Buddha that talks about gratitude. This story is very simple, but this truth is very deep. This story tells us why we should be thankful and what kind of rewards will come from being thankful.

In the time of the Buddha, the Buddha once used a walking stick to get his seven sons to be grateful to their father.

One day, when the Buddha went out to take a bowl, he met on the road a very old Boramonist, whose back was hunched, and who struggled to walk with a crutch and a bowl. He was hunched over, bulging his back, and the crutch was propped forward one step before he could take a step. The Buddha looked at him with compassion in his heart. He stepped forward to help the old man, "Old man, you walk so inconveniently, why do you still come out to bowl? Why do you have to come out to beg for food? Don't you have children to take care of you?"

The old man replied, "Yes, I have seven sons, but all of them have wives and families, and they have wives to take care of, and children to raise, so they can't accommodate me, and have thrown me out." With that, he looked up, recognized the Buddha, and hurriedly knelt down and said, "Buddha, save me! What reasoning can I actually use to sensitize and educate my son?"

The Buddha said kindly, "The reasoning must be heard with the heart to enlighten his conscience!" The old man said, "Then it will be difficult to enlighten my sons and educate them! For now they have only their wives and children in their hearts, and have no extra time to listen to reason."

The Buddha said, "If you put your mind to it, you still can!" The old man asked, "How do I have to be attentive?" The Buddha said, "Don't think about anything, just remember to hold the walking stick in your hand with all your heart, walk steadily with all your heart when you walk, and then what, you have to be thankful for this walking stick with the most devout heart. You should be thankful for this walking stick with the most devout heart, because it helps you to walk. If an evil dog comes, you can use the walking stick to drive it away, and it will help you to walk a smooth path without kicking a stone and falling down, and all this you have to be thankful to it with all your heart; and if you are very attentive in your thoughts and your words, you will be able to touch your son.

The old man thought to himself, "This is indeed true, who else can I rely on at this time? I can only rely on this walking stick only. This walking stick has helped me the most, and I should be grateful!

From then on, the old man obeyed the Buddha's words wholeheartedly, and every day he was grateful for the kindness of the walking stick. Sometimes he would say out loud, as he walked along the road, "Gratitude! Grateful for the crutches to help me walk! Grateful for the crutches that allow me to detect the depth of water! Grateful for crutches to protect my body! Blast away the evil dogs." He kept giving thanks over and over again, his mind thinking and his mouth chanting gratitude.

The old man's seven sons were the only ones whose wives and children were their favorites in their ordinary lives. One day they heard that there was a Buddha in the city who was able to bestow blessings on the world, and that if they asked him for blessings, everyone would receive the greatest blessings! The seven brothers invited each other to go together to seek the Buddha's blessing. They even took their wives and children with them. When they arrived at Jain Mountain in the city of Wangshe, the Buddha was giving instructions to the public. That day the old man also came out begging with a walking stick and a bowl, still chanting as he walked, "Gratitude, gratitude for his walking stick." Someone passing by, seeing the old man so kind and full of gratitude, asked him, "Old man, your heart is so contented and grateful, you must be a blessed man!" The man went on to say, "Do you know that the Buddha is speaking at Jain Mountain in the city of Wangshe, and would you like to go and see the Buddha? Would you like to go and see the Buddha? Let the Buddha bless you. The old man was filled with joy, and he said, "Ah! I am very grateful to the Buddha, who had enlightened me on the way, so I am now living a joyful life! The mind is at ease, I wonder how I can see the Buddha again? Hear the Buddha's enlightenment again." This kind person passing by then said, "I am on my way to pay homage to the Buddha and hear the Dharma, so we can go together.

So the old man went with the kind passer-by to Jain Mountain, where the Buddha had already begun to speak. The old man came slowly from a distance, still chanting 'Thanksgiving, thanksgiving for the crutches to help me' as he walked until he came to the Buddha, who saw him and said, "You have come? Seeing you so joyful, how exactly are you thankful? You come here and recite a few more times!" There were many people listening to the Dharma, and the old man did not know that his sons were present. With a smile on his face, full of splendor, and not troubled at all, he said, "I am thankful for this walking stick, which accompanies me in my walks, in my life, and helps me to pass through dangerous paths; it lets me know the depths of the water when I cross it, and if there are evil dogs I can still use it to protect me and drive the dogs away, so I am thankful for this walking stick in my hand!"

The Buddha was delighted to hear this, and sweeping his eyes over his seven sons and seven daughters-in-law, the Buddha said in a heartfelt tone, "Yes, yes, the most important thing in life is to be grateful. A walking stick can help you live and can make you so joyful, so you should be grateful. There are many people in the world who are not as good as a walking stick! If you don't know how to honor your parents, you will be tormented by your son just as much as your future karma! And fall into hell! A life like this is a lack of gratitude. If you can honor your parents you are the ones who have great blessings."

The seven sons and daughters-in-law, looking at their old fathers and hearing the Buddha's words, were truly ashamed beyond words! Their consciences were instantly enlightened, and the seven sons stood up at the same time, followed by their daughters-in-law, who came to bow before the Buddha in gratitude. Then turning to their old father, they held him up and said, "We are so ashamed and repentant that from today we will ask our father to come home and make sure to serve you!" At this, all seven sons fought to welcome their father home for filial support.

So the reason why traditional Chinese culture can drive businesses to success is that traditional Chinese culture tells us the first thing people should be grateful! People should know and repay kindness; knowing is called understanding, I know where the grace is, repaying is called behavior, and the solution and behavior should be connected.