Rang

To Whom Does It Belong To?

The cry of  the distant cuckoo, the quaver of the canaries, the drone of the beetles, the chirp of the sparrows and robins  pleased not just the ears but the soul too. While the  breeze carried the cool and fragrant evidence of the wild flowers in bloom and the morning fog, the grass and leaves glistened with the morning dew.

The hills and the valleys were
covered with a lush green blanket embedded with flowers that glittered like emeralds and rubies, topazes and sapphires in the early morning Sun that was peaking from beyond the snow capped mountains.

Yesterday's down pour had created temporary lakes and ponds out of the craters and the rest flowed off like small waterfalls and rivulets.  One could get lost in this vision for this felt like God's best creation ever.

This was definitely Paradise.

They say that all things, good and bad, have to run their due course. If all things had a definite time frame, was there a one for this paradise on earth too?

What's  happening here?

Well, the King took a  liking for this view and wanted to build a palace here. 

Soon, they were going to cut the trees, carve out the mountains, dig the earth.  This was probably the last time you could see the forest in its virgin state for 'development' was surely going to violate this fragile beauty.

Sadly, man has never realised that the world has enough for everyone's need it only can't manage everyone's greed. And the King was greedy of this that was a feast not just for the senses but the soul too.

The birds and animals were agitated, because the King's men would lay claim to their forest and all its resources.  Man, a very selfish social animal, would drive away the 'lesser' beings from their home stead.

Something must be done! But what to do? The old tree finally spoke, "once upon a time a sage meditated in this forest, though he lived here, he didn't harm us, maybe we could ask him to help us".

The Lion roared "He is a human after all".

At the same time numerous voices erupted "But we can't do anything by ourselves", "we are nothing but game". "We would end up as wall mounts by day break", "or in kitchens".

The King of the 'beasts' couldn't take anymore.  Why was this doom coming about in his time, not that he will ever want it, but this was definitely not done. 

It was then concluded to seek help of the Seer. The Seer heard their plea and looked skyward. Seeing him contemplate, the animals started to fidget. Seeing this the seer only smiled and said, "Don't worry!  I was wondering how to convince the King". The owl hooted a cheer.

The sage went to an artist in City and asked him to draw a very detailed picture of  a  shabby place. He wanted the artist to show uprooted trees, construction debris, and such.

Naturally, the artist thought that this old man was a mad man and trying to shoo him away said "I paint not for money, but if you can give me something different, something unique maybe I'd consider to draw what you want".

The seer was expecting a demand for money and had borrowed some from one of the villagers citing his cause.  This was something unexpected. The seer silently took in everything and walked away.  A bee who was hovering nearby followed the sage to his resting place and asked him what the clatter was all about. The sage gave him an overview.

The bee left only to return with his Queen. The Queen bowed to the sage before she spoke
"O great one!  We know how much you are trying to help us. "

"He wants something different and unique, I do not know what to give him."

"How about the best honey we have?"