As children we have read and heard many ancient stories. There are stories in every tradition, every culture – be it Aesop's fables, Panchathantra stories or Zen stories. These stories convey morals in ways that can be remembered. Today I would like to share with you my observations on these ancient stories and their importance in our lives.
All of us may have heard of the story of the man, his son and the donkey. For the benefit of recollection, let me tell you the story.
A Man and his son were once going with their Donkey to market. As they were walking along by its side a countryman passed them and said: "You fools, what is a Donkey for but to ride upon?"
So the Man put the Boy on the Donkey and they went on their way. But soon they passed a group of men, one of whom said: "See that lazy youngster, he lets his father walk while he rides."
So the Man ordered his Boy to get off, and got on himself. But they hadn't gone far when they passed two women, one of whom said to the other: "Shame on that lazy lout to let his poor little son trudge along."
Well, the Man didn't know what to do, but at last he took his Boy up before him on the Donkey. By this time they had come to the town, and the passers-by began to jeer and point at them. The Man stopped and asked what they were scoffing at. The men said: "Aren't you ashamed of yourself for overloading that poor donkey of yours and your hulking son?"
The Man and Boy got off and tried to think what to do. They thought and they thought, till at last they cut down a pole, tied the donkey's feet to it, and raised the pole and the donkey to their shoulders.
They went along amid the laughter of all who met them till they came to Market Bridge, when the Donkey, getting one of his feet loose, kicked out and caused the Boy to drop his end of the pole. In the struggle the Donkey fell over the bridge, and his fore-feet being tied together he was drowned.
"That will teach you," said an old man who had followed them:
"Please all, and you will please none.
I heard and read this story in primary school. At that time, it was amusing – the image of a man and son carrying the donkey on a pole is hilarious. However, at that age, the moral of the story was not easily digestible. Later, one of the teachers in my high school recited this story and spoke about its morals. That was when I started to understand the moral of the story. Now, as an adult, I fully appreciate the moral and its great importance in our lives.
There is another story of an old saint who was renowned for solving the problems of everyone who comes to meet him. An intelligent boy wanted to test this saint and so he went to meet him with a small bird in his hands.
He approached the saint with the bird hidden in his hands behind him and said – Oh renowned master, I am having a bird with me. You have answers for everything, so tell me if it is alive or dead.
If the saint says that it is alive, the boy would kill the bird, and if he says it is dead, the boy would let the bird fly away. Either way the boy would be able to prove to the world that this saint is a hoax.
The old saint looked at the boy and said – I will tell you just the same answer that I have been giving to everyone who comes to me with their problems. And that is “the solution to your problem is in your own hands”.
The story will help us to retain this profound wisdom in ways none of the big volumes of literature can do. For example, when I think of honesty, the story of the woodcutter who lost his axe in the river comes to mind, when I think of all the impossible ideas being thrown about in our meetings, the story of belling the cat comes to my mind.
We do get a chance to rediscover and get enlightened by these stories again in our lives – by reading them for our kids. But then, there is no age for these stories. You read them at any age, and you will find new meanings jumping out of these stories. And there are no better gifts than these to pass on to the new generations.
PS: I happened to watch the youtube video of Devdutt Pattanaik, the Chief Belief Officer, extolling the virtues of mythology and its relevance today. This reminded me of this speech and I decided to post it.
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