What Is The Message Of The Cracked Pot?
The Cracked Pot story is a short parable that originates from ancient Indian folklore. It has been retold in various cultures and faiths over the centuries, often as a way to impart a moral lesson or spiritual wisdom.
The story centers around a cracked pot carried by a water bearer. Despite its flaw, the cracked pot holds significant symbolic meaning that teaches us to see our own flaws and imperfections as having value rather than viewing them negatively.
The Set-Up
The story begins by introducing a water bearer in India who carried two large pots hung on each end of a pole across his neck. One of the pots had a crack in it, while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water at the end of the long walk from the stream to the master’s house.
As the water bearer describes: “When we get home, the beautiful pot is full, and the cracked pot arrives only half full”. Despite the cracked pot’s imperfection, the water bearer continued to take both pots on the daily journey.
Source: https://www.sloww.co/cracked-pot/
The Flaw
Every day, an elderly woman used two large pots to carry water from a nearby river to her home. One of the pots was perfect, the other had a small crack on its side (Sloww). The cracked pot leaked water as the woman walked home, while the perfect pot did not lose any water (“Ancient Story, Modern Message: The Cracked Pot”). By the time the elderly woman reached her house, the cracked pot would only have half as much water left as the perfect pot
This troubled the cracked pot deeply. It felt inferior and ashamed because of its flaw. “I am ashamed of myself because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your house,” the cracked pot apologized to the elderly woman one day (Medium). While the perfect pot could deliver all its water efficiently, the cracked pot wasted half of its contents before even reaching home. This physical imperfection made the cracked pot feel useless compared to the flawless, perfect pot.
The Water Bearer’s Observation
Every day, the water bearer would fill both pots with water from the stream before carrying them back on a pole across his shoulders. When he arrived home, the water bearer noticed that the cracked pot leaked water the whole way, so by the time he reached his house, there was only half the water remaining in it. Meanwhile, the perfect pot didn’t leak at all, so it arrived back still completely full (Sloww).
This continued daily for two years, with the bearer only able to deliver one and a half pots worth of water to his master’s house because of the cracked pot’s flaw. Of course, the perfect pot felt proud that it could accomplish its task so well, while the poor cracked pot was ashamed that it could only deliver half of what it carried (Medium).
The Cracked Pot’s Apology
After many years of carrying water, the cracked pot apologized to the water bearer for its flaw that caused water to leak out during the journey. The cracked pot felt ashamed and guilty for only being able to deliver half a load of water (1). As the story goes, “after years of arriving half-empty and feeling guilty, it spilled its heart out. ‘I am so very sorry, and I want to apologize to you’” (2). The flawed pot sincerely regretted its inability to function properly, and offered an apology for failing to fully transport the water as intended.
(1) https://www.sloww.co/cracked-pot/
(2) http://www.rebmarko.com/blog/a-year-of-stories-10-the-cracked-pot
The Water Bearer’s Wisdom
As the water bearer went about his daily journey carrying the two pots, he noticed that beautiful flowers were blooming along the side of the path where the cracked pot leaked (https://bible.org/illustration/cracked-pot). The water bearer pointed out to the cracked pot that its flaw was actually bringing life and beauty to the path.
“You’ve been able to water the flowers because of your crack!” the water bearer exclaimed (https://www.sloww.co/cracked-pot/). Though the cracked pot could only accomplish half of what it was made to do, it succeeded in creating beauty in an unexpected way.
The Value in Imperfection
Imperfection has many unintended benefits, as flaws can often lead to growth. As this article discusses, being imperfect allows us to accept ourselves and others more readily. When we recognize that no one is flawless, we become more understanding of weaknesses. Imperfections also motivate self-improvement. The cracked pot’s flaw, for example, led it to re-examine its purpose and find meaning in nourishing the plants. Rather than judging ourselves harshly, we can appreciate our gifts while working to improve our shortcomings. True excellence comes not from being perfect, but from growing through imperfections.
Appreciating Strengths and Weaknesses
The key message in the story of the Cracked Pot is the need to recognize one’s usefulness despite flaws. The cracked pot felt useless because it could not carry water without leaking, focusing only on its weakness. But the water bearer helped the pot see that its flaw allowed beautiful flowers to blossom along the path, recognizing the goodness it brought to the world.
Like the cracked pot, we all have strengths and weaknesses. As the water bearer showed, the key is to appreciate our strengths while also embracing our weaknesses. When we only see flaws, we underestimate our capacity for good. But when we view weaknesses compassionately, we discover that imperfections allow for growth, connection and beauty.
Judging ourselves or others harshly ignores the value we each offer. As one source notes, “Weakness makes me someone others will join. Great leaders are joined, not followed. Weaknesses enable sincerity, humility, empathy, gratitude…” (Source). Rather than harsh criticism, compassion and appreciation empower us to contribute meaningfully.
The Cracked Pot reminds us to nurture self-acceptance. Our flaws make us who we are and enable our strengths. With wisdom and gratitude, we discover that imperfections allow goodness to flow through us, watering the seeds of human connection.
Judging Others Harshly
It is human nature to assess others and make judgments, but it becomes problematic when we do so harshly and dismissively. As Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung noted, “Although our conscious minds are avoiding our own flaws, they still want to deal with them on a deeper unconscious level. And they do this by projecting these flaws onto others and criticizing them” (The Times of India). When we judge others critically, it often says more about our own insecurities and flaws than it does about the person we are judging.
Dismissing or condemning someone quickly can lead us to underestimate their abilities, talents, and potential. As the Cracked Pot story illustrates, even someone with apparent weaknesses may have significant strengths and value to offer. Being too quick to judge can cause us to overlook the good in others. It is important to look deeper and recognize that we all have a mixture of strengths and weaknesses.
The danger in harsh judgments is that they distort our view of others, breed intolerance, and can become self-fulfilling prophecies if we treat people accordingly. With an open mind and compassion, we can accept one another despite our imperfections.
Key Message
The key message and moral of The Cracked Pot story is that everyone has flaws and imperfections, but we all still have value and can make a meaningful contribution. The story teaches us not to judge others by their outward appearance or what we perceive to be their limitations. Instead, we should appreciate the unique strengths and gifts each person offers. Though the cracked pot felt it was defective because it dripped water on the path, it came to see that its crack actually allowed beautiful flowers to bloom along the way. Our flaws can become assets when we change our perspective. Rather than focusing on what’s missing, we can ask how our imperfections might allow us to help in unexpected ways. The story encourages more compassion, less comparison to others. It reminds us that by embracing our whole self, limitations included, we gain the chance to live authentically and spread joy.
Sources:
[The Story of the Cracked Pot](https://www.integritycoaching.co.uk/blog/authentic-and-ethical-leadership/cracked-pot/)
