2. Theme: Friendship & love are illusions Story: Three friends
When there are more than two identifying themselves as friends, it is referred to as friend’s circle. We may have different friends’ circles at different stages of life and also in different spheres of life .
If only you give due thought, you will discover that the members of each circle will vary in terms of their individual strengths and seek others to compliment their weakness.
We will proceed to the story.
There lived a fox in the forest, which befriended a donkey in a village adjoining the forest.A lion in the forest was also a good friend of the fox. Let us analyze how there can be friendship between the three different species.
Lion is agile, fast and powerful. It hunts its food. The lion needs no other animal for its own survival. But yet, it leaves a little for the lesser animal to feast on. Life of lion is not threatened by a fox, this is an important aspect.
Animals like fox have speed but no power to hunt their food. Fox depends on lion for its survival. In return animals like fox sing the praise of the lion and the lion is happy with it. You may call it ego satisfaction.
Fox has its ego hurt because it has to praise the lion for its survival. So it turns to the donkey in the village to get its hurt ego healed.
Donkey needs no one for its survival. It is slow, dull and hard working. But the donkey has its unique situation in that it does all work with no compensation. So it found a shoulder to cry on when the fox offered its friendship. In return the donkey praised the fox for its goodness. Fox sees no threat from the donkey, and only the need to listen to the donkey’s tale of woe, whenever they met. Otherwise the fox has no real benefit in associating itself with the donkey. It is also true that Lion has no purpose served by its association with Fox.
Friendship between the three continued for long. A situation arose when the friends needed each other for survival.
The lion was injured during a hunting expedition. A few bones broke and a few other bones were dislocated. The lion could not hunt any more. Now both the lion and the fox starved without food.
The hungry lion asked the fox, if it could some how organize some food. Fox was equally hungry. Suddenly, the fox remembered the donkey in the village. It explained to the lion, “The donkey is a useless animal. Its friendship got us nowhere. Now it is time when donkey’s friendship will come of use.”
The lion was surprised. It asked, “How come a lazy donkey can help us?” The Fox said, “I will bring it here. You knock it down in one blow. We both will eat it.”
Lion agreed to that idea but demanded to know how to bring the donkey to the forest.Fox replied, “It is quite simple. Any animal which lives in the cities and villages has inherited the weaknesses from humans”.
“Humans attach great importance to friendship, which can be exploited”, reasoned the fox. “Most importantly they will fall victims to flattery”. “These two are enough to bring them to forest.” The lion asked the fox, if it meant that animals living along side humans have no brain at all.
“You said it”, replied the fox and set itself on a journey to the village to meet the donkey.In the village, when every one had slept off, the donkey was trying to find its food in the streets. The Fox met the donkey and greeted it.
As usual, the donkey started listing the listless woes of donkeys as species. The fox, this time, was not a mute listener.
The fox assured the donkey that there was always a way to come out of misery. The fox continued, “The humans always exploit the animals for their selfish ends. So, it is better to live only among animals. You have such soft grass abundant in the forest. You can enjoy it for free. There are no people in the forest to enslave animals.”
The donkey was not that dumb, as the fox thought it to be. “I know that in forests there are several wild animals that would devour us”, observed the donkey. The fox said, “It is merely the rumor created by wicked men to ensure animals do not disappear into the forest. Am I not meeting you often? Am I not living in the forest? Which wild animal devoured me?”
Thr donkey was not fully convinced, as such.The fox, realizing that its plan A did not work with the donkey, pulled out its plan B: “There is an acute shortage of male donkeys in the forest”. The fox continued. “A handsome donkey like you will be entitled for atleast three beautiful and healthy female donkeys in the forest. As a package deal, you get free food and no hard labor. You are one of the good souls. You deserve this and much more. Make a visit once and you will know all by yourself. If you don’t like”, the fox assured that, “I will drop you back to this village.”
The fox set out on a long journey lasting several hours. It was hungry, weak and tired. The fox explained to the donkey about the beautiful life in the forest all the way.
Finally, the donkey arrived into the dark den. It could not see anything inside. It would take some time before it could see around.
The hungry lion took a giant leap on the donkey only to miss it by a few inches. The donkey realized that everything was not all right. It ran towards the entry to the den and started walking slowly.
The lion was apologetic.The fox assured the lion thus: “After all, the donkey has no other place to go. It has no brain like humans. It will come along with me even if I cheat hundred times. Okay, let us make a second attempt.”
The lion said, “You know, I have become weak without food. That is how, I missed the target. But now, I need a little while before I make another attempt on it. I know, you are clever and you would bring the brainless beast again for a feast”.
“In the intervening time, I will go to the nearby lake, drink some water and make myself fresh and strong before I come back. Wait for me till then”. Saying so, the lion vanished into the dense trees near its den towards the lake.
The fox followed the footprints of the donkey and located it. The donkey was in a very bad mental and physical state due to the long journey to the jungle followed by a shocking incident inside the den.
The fox with a surprised look, demanded to know from the donkey, as to what made it run from the den. The donkey said, “A huge object fell close to a place where I stood. I came running to save myself.”
The fox replied, “It is merely your fear and there was no danger to your life. One of the three donkeys was waiting to meet you. On seeing you, she fell in love instantly. In her anxiety she came rushing towards you. When I looked around for you, you were gone”.
The donkey looked at the fox in disbelief. Now the fox decided to play with the sentiments. The fox knew that sentiments work with humans. So it believed that sentiments should affect donkeys too.
“I have bad news for you”, said the fox. Soon after you left, all the three female donkeys felt that you do not like them at all. So they have decided to commit suicide.”
The fox said, “In the forest, we animals fear that the ghosts of such beings will haunt you and trouble you throughout your life.” “Better, you come back and get married to the three donkeys and lead a royal life”, the fox concluded.
The weak and worn out donkey found no other better solution than to follow the fox.In the den, the fox waited for a while. He saw the donkey trembling in fear. Donkeys might have strong legs and could give a mighty kick when in normal health. But it won’t need a lion to kill and eat this beast.
Slowly, the fox bit the ears of the donkey. This was enough for the donkey to fall unconscious. The fox ate up the donkey’s brain before the lion reached.
The lion which arrived in the den a little later was shocked and angry to find the donkey’s brain was not there.
The clever fox reminded the lion the fact that not only humans but every other species living in the vicinity of humans also did not have brains!
The lion found the fox was always right.
The lion gave the lion’s share to its trusted friend and adviser, the fox and enjoyed a nice feast. Epilogue:
Now, it is time you evaluate your friends in the circle of your friends. The most cunning and powerful will always feast on the weaker in their circle. Figure out the lions, foxes and donkeys in your friends’circle.