The world over, people raise a common question: “Why does God burden me alone with so much strife?” For which, I can relate a brief tale narrated by the Buddhists.
A young boy was playing at the edge of a river. A crocodile was caught in a net and begging him for help. It promised not to devour him. When the boy tried to cut the net, the crocodile grabbed his leg. Now the boy started crying for help. But the crocodile only stated: “Such is the way of life”!
The boy asked some birds for help. But they agreed with the crocodile. A rabbit said it was utter nonsense. Hearing this, the angry crocodile wanted to argue with the rabbit. The rabbit protested that it could not hear what it speaks as it was holding he boy’s leg and speaking. The crocodile fell for this and releasing the boy, continued its argument. And the boy ran away. A dog that came along spotted the rabbit and started chasing it. The boy screamed at the dog, “Hey, listen! This rabbit saved my life. Do not attack him.” But the dog had chased and killed the rabbit in a jiffy!
The young boy unable to bear the tragedy, cried and said to himself, “What the crocodile said was true. Such is the way of the world. Such is life”!
Buddhism speaks of the same great truth that the ancient sages of Hinduism revealed- we cannot fully understand the many aspects that cover our lives.Unfairness is a part and parcel of life. Such is the way of life. Acceptance of unfairness would give us the maturity to live life wisely.
Sunday, May 8, 2005
