Man was born different. Unlike other living forms, survival was not his sole purpose. He believed in pleasure. He believed in living life and not just trotting along with it. He had a mind which allowed him to think. Gradually he progressed, became more successful than the others animals. He became powerful. New inventions helped him achieve his dreams. But all this came with a cost. Success seldom comes alone. Pride follows. Man too became proud. As George Orwell puts it, he believed in ‘All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others’. This was when he started bullying the others. He took their life in his hands. Dictatorship dawned. Man started capturing others and then used them as he pleased. The story today is not about how man became wicked, indifferent, ignorant and greedy but about the small things which could have stopped all this. The story is about the parrot and the monkey who were captured by this very species- man!
It was a bright sunny day!! The sky was painted bright blue and the shiny green grass glistened in the sun. It was a perfect day for the chase. Man, let’s give him a name, say Arsen, was all ready. He was strong, virile and extremely intelligent. Arsen had to catch a parrot. Parrot games had become popular in recent times. Arsen had decided; he would be catching a parrot and then selling him off for huge sum. That would take care of his tummy for at least a week.
Capturing a parrot was not easy. It would take hours of hard and patient work. But as genius as he was, Arsen had it all planned. He had a strategy. He would be tying a rope across two trees and to it firmly attached would be a rod in an upright position. The rod would be free to move at all angles. He would then place a bowl full of different seeds and fruits beneath, to entice parrots into the trap. As planned, Arsen executed his plan. He searched for a spot in the middle of the forest which was famous for shouldering a pandemonium of parrots. He was now ready hiding behind one of the bushes waiting for his prey. After four long hours of waiting, he was successful in luring one of them. Silly parrot!! The parrot saw the food and placed himself atop the rod. But owing to his weight, the rod got tilted about 180°. The parrot was scared. He clenched tightly to the rod by his legs. He was so afraid of falling down that he forgot he could fly. Fear took over him completely. He stood there hopelessly clenching tightly to the rod for dear life. That was the first time Arsen saw a parrot hanging upside down like a bat. He was happy. He came out of hiding, walked swiftly towards the parrot and caught him. That was clean. Arsen was successful.
His next job was to capture a monkey. Eating a monkey was considered to be a delicacy back then. No one dared to catch a monkey. Monkeys were known to put up a fight. They would slap, punch, scratch, bite and even kick the opponent. Only the brave ones would manage to capture one, but would succumb to injuries. Arsen knew he was brave, but he also knew that he was witty. He had decided to catch a monkey, not by strength but by using his brains. He had plotted a plan for this hunt as well! The plan was simple. He had cracked open a coconut and had filled it with peanuts, just so that the monkey would have to put in his hand in order to devour them. Arsen placed the peanut filled coconut beneath a tree, which hosted a cartload of monkeys. As expected one of them came down, peeped into the coconut and grabbed a handful of them. But alas!! He was facing a bigger problem now. His hand was not coming out at all!! Little did the monkey realise that if he would have let go off a few peanuts he would have been able to draw his hand out. But in vain. He kept trying and nudging at the coconut with all his might. His hand ached. He became restless. Arsen was enjoying the scene. He walked towards the monkey who now on seeing Arsen tried to flee. He tried climbing, but he could no more. He was a handicap. Arsen caught hold of him instantly and stabbed him to death with his dagger. That was the end of him. Arsen had succeeded again!! Two victorious hunts in one day!! He was a proud man!!! Not only had he taken care of his tummy but also had managed to drive in some fame along with. He would be the first man who caught a monkey with no injuries!! He would be a hero!!
The parrot was sold. He was deprived of freedom. The monkey was killed. He was resting on the dining table nicely cooked. Arsen was confident that nothing could stop him. The parrots and monkeys were now afraid of man. Even the slightest hint of his presence would make a chill run down their spine. That’s how man conquered the world. He was the king. A new ruler, for whom rest all were mere pawns. It was he who made the rules. Only he had the liberty to break them. But what if the parrot would not have been so scared? What if he would have let go off the pipe? Why was he so scared of falling down when he could always fly? The answer was fear, the menace that lurks in the path of our life. Never visible to the eye but strongly felt in the heart!! It is the father of anguish, the brother of procrastination, the enemy of progress and the tool of tyranny.
Fear is born of ignorance and is nursed by misguided thoughts. Fear darkens hopes, curbs ambitions and shatters ideals. It prevents accomplishments which otherwise would have been glorified in history!! It is a big obstacle on the path of success!! The only thing that can master fear is ‘understanding’. It is the mind that empowers fear. But fear vanishes when understanding reveals the facts as they really are. If one gains courage to acknowledge one’s fears, then it will be us controlling our fear and not the other way round. If only had the parrot surpassed his fear, he could have easily realised that he could fly. He would have been free today, and as for man, I mean Arsen, he would have learnt to respect fellow life forms instead of humiliating them.
Well, the monkey was no different. He too could have easily survived if only he would not have been greedy. Greed cost him his life. If he would have let go off a few peanuts he would have been able to withdraw his hand. He would have been alive. As Mahatma Gandhi has rightly said, ‘Earth provides enough to satisfy every man's needs, but not every man's greed’; one should learn to be satisfied with what one possesses. If he is not content with what he has today, then he will never be content with what he will have tomorrow. This is the truth. Fear and greed curb one’s desires of reaching high. One should not be afraid of failures nor should be greedy for quick success. Life is about learning how to become better every day. I was neither the parrot nor the monkey.