The sun had barely risen over Aranyapur when the Market Monk received an urgent knock on his door.
It was Mr. Tejas, a man with tired eyes, trembling hands, and a phone gripped so tightly it looked like an extension of his palm.
“Master, please help me!” Tejas pleaded.
“I can’t sleep… I can’t work… I check my stock prices every hour!”
The Monk gave a gentle smile.
“Come with me. Bring Aryan as well. Today, you will learn how fear controls the impatient investor.”
⭐ THE MAN WHO LIVED INSIDE HIS PHONE
Tejas showed them his phone screen.
His portfolio blinked red, then green, then red again.
Aryan asked, “Sir… how often do you check this?”
Tejas replied sadly,
“Every morning, every afternoon, every evening…
sometimes even at midnight.”
Aryan’s jaw dropped.
“Why?”
“Because,” Tejas whispered,
“I am scared of losing money.”
The Monk nodded.
“Fear is natural.
But constant checking feeds fear, not knowledge.”
⭐ THE MONK’S WALK TO THE MARKET
They walked toward the city market. Shops opened slowly. People prepared for the day.
The Monk led them to a fruit stall.
The vendor was arranging mangoes—green, yellow, orange.
“Would you buy mangoes by checking their color every hour?” the Monk asked Aryan.
Aryan laughed.
“Master, mangoes ripen slowly! Checking often won’t change anything.”
The Monk looked at Tejas.
“And yet, you check your investments like a mango turns ripe every minute.”
Tejas blinked.
“I… never thought of it that way.”
⭐ THE MONK’S THREE CALM JARS
In the center of the market stood a pottery seller.
The Monk bought three large jars:
- Jar A (small and shaky)
- Jar B (medium, stable)
- Jar C (big and heavy)
He placed them on the ground.
Jar A – The Daily Checker
The Monk filled Jar A with pebbles.
Every time he dropped a pebble, the jar rattled violently.
“This,” the Monk said, “is you.”
“One small price movement shakes you.
One small dip destroys your peace.”
Tejas lowered his head.
Jar B – The Weekly Checker
He dropped pebbles into Jar B.
It shook lightly, but settled quickly.
“This is an investor who checks prices occasionally—not constantly.”
Jar C – The Long-Term Investor
He dropped pebbles into the big jar.
It didn’t shake at all.
“Long-term investors don’t panic over daily noise.
Their foundation is strong.”
Aryan smiled.
“So fear is strongest when the mind is weakest.”
“Exactly,” the Monk said.
⭐ THE MARKET’S NATURAL BEHAVIOR
They walked to a bench near the stock exchange building.
Traders rushed in and out like waves in a storm.
The Monk pointed to a display board showing a stock bouncing up and down.
“Stocks behave like the sea,” he explained.
- Waves rise
- Waves fall
- But the ocean remains
He continued:
“Prices move daily, but value grows slowly.
Checking the waves does not change the ocean.”
Tejas whispered,
“So daily volatility is normal?”
“Absolutely normal,” the Monk said.
“What is not normal is letting it control your life.”
⭐ THE TIME MACHINE LESSON
The Monk handed Tejas two imaginary “time machines.”
Time Machine A – Shows daily price movement
The screen was filled with chaos:
- +2%
- –1%
- +3%
- –4%
- +1%
- –2%
Tejas frowned. “That looks stressful.”
Time Machine B – Shows 5-year growth line
The screen showed a smooth, rising curve.
Tejas gasped.
“Same stock… yet it looks peaceful here!”
“Because daily noise disappears with time,” the Monk said.
“Only long-term direction matters.”
⭐ THE FEAR LOOP
The Monk explained the psychology:
- You check prices daily
- You see random movements
- Your brain feels danger
- You panic
- You sell too early
- You regret later
“This,” the Monk said,
“is the Fear Loop that destroys investors.”
Tejas sighed heavily.
“No wonder I can’t sleep…”
⭐ THE MONK’S SOLUTION: THE INVESTOR’S CALENDAR
The Monk handed Tejas a simple card with three rules:
✔ Check prices once a month
✔ Check company results once every quarter
✔ Check long-term trend once a year
Aryan asked,
“Master, isn’t that too little monitoring?”
The Monk replied:
“When you plant a tree,
do you pull its leaf every day to see if it grew?”
Aryan smiled.
“No, you water it and wait.”
“Exactly,” the Monk said.
“Investing is watering, not worrying.”
⭐ THE THREE QUESTIONS EVERY INVESTOR MUST ASK
The Monk asked Tejas:
- Did the company’s business weaken today?
Tejas: “No.”
- Did its product suddenly become useless?
Tejas: “No.”
- Did customers stop buying overnight?
Tejas: “No.”
The Monk smiled.
“Then why are you checking the price 50 times a day?”
Tejas was speechless.
⭐ THE TURNING POINT
The Monk instructed Tejas:
“Delete stock widgets from your home screen.
Turn off notifications.
Check your portfolio on the first Sunday of every month.”
Tejas followed the instructions sincerely.
One month later, he returned.
“Master… I feel free.
No panic. No stress.
And my portfolio looks better too.”
The Monk nodded.
“When fear leaves, wisdom enters.”
⭐ ARYAN’S FINAL LESSON
As they walked back, Aryan summarised:
“Daily checking creates fear.
Fear creates bad decisions.
But long-term thinking creates wealth.”
The Monk smiled.
“And the greatest investor is the one who can wait without worrying.”