It was a Saturday morning in Las Vegas. My family and I decided to venture into town to have breakfast at the Cosmopolitan. After our meal we went for a walk. It’s Vegas, so it was crowded and slightly chaotic. Tourists, shoppers and sightseers where all swarming around us. As we crossed the bridge from the Cosmopolitan to the Aria hotel, we were approached by what appeared to be a Buddhist monk. He had a shaved head and was wearing monk-like attire.
He was holding a book that had a sentence saying he was collecting donations for a temple. In the book had many different names and the amount that was donated by each person.
He handed me a golden card that read:
Work Smoothly, Lifetime Peace
The man had very broken English. Before any money was handed over, he placed prayer beads around my wrist. I looked to my husband Sean to give a small donation. All he had was a $100 bill.
“This is your lucky day!”
He said as he handed over the cash.
Oh, my big-hearted husband. My heart always melts at his generosity.
The monk then placed a string of mala beads around Lulu’s neck (she’s 3), one around mine, and then one around Sean’s neck. Sean wrote down in the book the donation of $100 – even though I already did that and the monk started to aggressively gesture for a second hundred dollars because it was listed.
Sean explained the donation was from both of us and he would correct it with the pen and the monk started to appear agitated. At first he was grateful, and then when he realized there was no more money, his hand gestures became super weird.
We walked away quickly to get to our next location. We didn’t speak. After about five minutes I told Sean that the malas felt weird. My intuition was telling me to take them off. They didn’t feel right. Even Lulu was willing to part with it. Sometimes I get strange vibes from things and the mala necklace was giving me the creeps.
“You know Sean, I think that’s a scam.” I said.
After doing a quick Google search, sure enough it revealed that the panhandling, hustling monk scam was a thing. It’s not just in Vegas, but in many cities around the world.
“He needs the money more than I do.” Sean said.
I felt a little mad at first, and then decided to let it go. After all, nothing that is truly yours can ever be lost. I teach this to my manifesting students, so it was an opportunity to walk the talk.
Here’s what we actually received for handing over the $100:
- Strengthening our intuition to feel the energy of a situation.
- To remember to pay attention to our environment and not get swept up with the hustle and bustle of others around us.
- To always ASK what the money is for.
- To not be so naive to believe that someone dressed in spiritual attire is actually spiritual.
When we pondered this interaction is was a valuable lesson in awareness. This is worth way more than just $100. In fact, this lesson could have saved us thousands of dollars.
Has this ever happened to you? I would love to hear from you in the comments area below!
Are You Ready To Start Clearing Away Your Energetic Resistance and Manifesting Abundance In Every Area of Your Life?
If you’re wanting to manifest your desires but your physical or spiritual space is cluttered, you’re going to sabotage yourself. Fortunately, I’ve recently released a brand new manifesting lesson called The Life-Changing Miracle of Decluttering, and it’s incredibly affordable.
In a moment, you will discover the proven decluttering secret that will guide you to spark joy in the present, let go of the past, and start manifesting your desires faster than you ever imagined possible…
