In this article, I’m going to share a little story from a page from my past, which has turned yellow.
I was a kid when someone gifted us a little lord Ganpati’s idol made with clay. My Dad decided to hang that little Idol above our room’s gate. The Logic behind that was, Lord Ganesha (Ganpati) got a boon from his father, Lord Shiva that it is mandatory to offer prayers to Lord Ganesha first before praying to any other deity. He is also prayed before commencing any task. So, whenever we enter our home, we used to look at that little idol before entering our house before entering inside. We also feel protected from the negative and evil energies. That was a strong belief in our whole family.
One fine Sunday morning, I came out of my room and I listened to some chirps of birds from somewhere. After a couple of hours, I came to know that some little sparrows had made a nest behind Lord Ganpati’s idol.
I was happy that I got new friends. I used to watch the Mumma sparrow feeding her younger ones almost every day. She used to fly somewhere every day and brought food for her children and feed them lovingly. I was just awed while watching their everyday actions. I saw the little ones growing up. I saw them learning how to fly from their mother. Unfortunately, one of them entered our home and died while exploring a running fan.
A few days later, they left the warm protection of Lord Ganesha’s back and went to explore the world.
They never came back.
After a year or two, the sparrows were hard to see anywhere around. Reason? I really don’t know. I explained to myself that they had become one of those angels whom we call Extinct Species in our daily language, Ummm like Dodo birds.
Why some species become extinct? The major reason behind this is human greed and negligence. Or we can say that we humans have developed an ego, which is bigger than any other emotion.
At that age, I satisfied myself with the self-explanation that those species feel unsafe between us so they choose to live peacefully in heaven.
People talk about love, compassion, affection, peace, and whatnot. What they don’t talk about is one of those crucial things which should come before all those things. And that is safety.
How many times have you seen stray dogs afraid of you? How many times you have seen squirrels running away from you? You think that that’s their nature. But my friend, this is untrue. They also demand your love, your attention, your affection. But before that, they want to feel safe in your company. They have this constant impression in their minds that humans are cruel and their company is unsafe and no less than a brutal injury or maybe death.
And my friend, this is the failure of Humans as a species, as a being.
Now my dear readers and friends, to heal the planet, we must not consider monetary or financial success as actual success. Yes, they are important, but to heal the planet, the first and the primary step must be providing safety to other beings around us. Whenever you lift a dog or a cat in your arms, you should see safety in their eyes. That, my friend, is a true virtue of success as a human being. This is how we can help to heal the planet.
I’m writing this because I saw a few little sparrows on the wire beside my home. Though we humans failed to provide them safety, in our absence they undoubtedly felt safe.
Covid-19 and lockdown have some amazing benefits also.
Love, Laughter, and Peace
Himanshu R Nagpal
Picture credits - http://www.cartoonaday.com/
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