A decade back, when team Indian Thoughts first thought of initiating a
moral lessons online sharing service, we unanimously decided to call the mission,
‘Share and Learn’. We had learned from our own experiences that sharing is the
key to complete growth. People generally believe that giving and receiving are only
optional activities in life, but the truth is that a being that is not shared
is psychologically dead. Dr Deepak Chopra, a
famous thinker, once wrote that an electric bulb cannot glow, simply because a
good number of electrons rushed into its filament. He said that the filament glows
smoothly, only if it lets out all the electrons that roll in.
We hear about two water reserves, the Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea.
They are different; one is considered living and the other is known ‘dead’. Why
the difference? Both are fed by the same river of Jordan. Unlike the Dead Sea,
the Sea of Galilee is pretty rich with marine life. They share similar
geographic and climatic conditions; still, one is dead and the other is alive.
Why? The only reason is that Galilee apparently flows out, a factor that keeps
it ever vibrant. As we all know, the Dead Sea is much below the Mean Sea Level
and it has no way out. Naturally, it grew stealthy and virtually unfit for
marine life. The Dead Sea holds what it receives. A life of receiving only ends
up being a Dead Sea.
None of us is under the Mean Level of anything. However, we see a lot
of partially dead people all around. The tragedy is that we generally choose to
remain stagnated, clinging to a list of ‘our own’. Are we consciously
misinterpreting Providence? I share the story of a farmer who lived by the side
of a forest. The farmer used to see a fox, which had lost both its front legs
in an attempt to escape from a trap, roaming by the sides. He wondered how in
this world it manages to earn its food. One day, the farmer decided to watch
the disabled fox closely. As the sun grew hot, he saw a tiger approaching the
place with a pretty big catch held in its claws. After filling its stomach, the
tiger left the place leaving the remaining portion there. It was more than enough
for a crawling fox. He saw the same thing repeated the next day too. He said to
himself, ‘If this fox is taken care of in this
mysterious way, why don't I just rest in a corner and have my daily meal
provided for me?’
He let the days pass, waiting for food. Nothing
happened. He just went on losing weight and strength until he was nearly a
skeleton. Close to losing consciousness, he heard a Voice which said: "O
you, who have mistaken the way, see now the Truth! You should have followed the
example of that tiger instead of imitating the disabled fox."
Joseph mattappally
No comments:
Post a Comment