Thursday, January 28, 2010

Fables 1

"Fables" will be an ongoing thing which will be updated as and when I read or hear some story worth mentioning. These are not personal accounts & hence are not original work.

Gurudev Drona used to perform a Yadnya every year. Each of his disciple was supposed to get a live animal to be sacrificed in the Yadnya. When asked about this strange ritual the Guru had replied that this increased a persons courage & self - reliance. Karna at all the previous years had offered a deer, antelope, a wild boar, etc. This year he wished to take with him something different which he hadn't captured as yet & thought a tiger would make an ideal sacrificial offering. He roamed the entire length of the forest. He came across all sorts of different animals, but a tiger was nowhere in sight. Thirsty with his efforts he finally came upon the banks of the Bahuda & bent low to drink some water. Just as he was about to take a drink a massive black & white spotted cheetah pounced on him. Karna lost his balance & fell in the river. Karna fought the cheetah for a better part of an hour...& continued fighting till the cheetah was too tired to move. Pulling out a long creeper from a nearby tree Karna bound the cheetahs hind & fore legs & dragged it to the ashram alive. He tossed the thus bound but alive cheetah in the enclosure where all other sacrificial offerings were kept & went off to sleep.

The next day, while the Yadnya was in progress a student informed Gurudev Drona that someone had bought a cheetah as an offering. Gurudev rushed outside while Karna thought that today finally he will get his due credit & his efforts & valour will be recognised. But that was not to be!!! The Guru asked that the cheetah be set free. When asked the reason he replied that a Yadnya is performed for peace of mind & hence it is forbidden to sacrifice a cheetah.

Karna was disgusted with the lesson Gurudev had unknowingly taught him. He could never fathom as to why cruel & predatory animals like the cheetah are spared while harmless creatures like goats & deers are sacrificed.


Source:- Mrutyunjay by Shivaji Sawant

3 comments:

Piya said...

Fantabulous writing .... But didnt understand the lesson ... :( ... was tht worth lesson by the Guru ? ... i dont think so... Btw are you readng Mrutyunjay ? ... :O

iola said...

@ piya
Reading the english version

ulhasbhide said...

श्रुति,
ही गोष्ट प्रसिद्ध करून तू जीवनातील एक वास्तव
निदर्शनास आणल आहेस.
धन्यवाद !

या गोष्टीला समर्पक अस संस्कृत सुभाषित आहे --
"अश्वं नैव गजं नैव व्याघ्रं नैव च नैव च
अजापुत्रं बलिं दद्यात देवो दुर्बल घातक: "
अर्थ ----
घोडा हत्ती वाघ या सारख्यांना कधीच बळी
दिल जात नाही. बोकड(अजापुत्र) बळी दिला जातो.
(कदचित) देव देखील दुबळ्यांचाच घात करतो.

यासाठीच बलवान होण्याची आवश्यकता असते,
किंवा बलवानच या जगात टिकून राहतो.
अस तात्पर्य (moral) आहे या गोष्टीच.