There was a forest. Though far away from human dwellings, it was a vibrant place with multitude of parrots cavorting around and enjoying the sweet fruits that the trees had in abundance.
Once a bird catcher happened to pass through the forest. He was thrilled at the sight of so many parrots and all at the same place – “What an opportunity”, he thought. “Just think of the money I will make by selling the parrots.”
So he laid a trap– a net with some food grains strewn around. In no time his net was full of trapped parrots. He went to the village and sold them all. He was happy. He had never made so much money before.
Now the bird catcher would come to the forest every now and then, trap as many parrots as his net could hold, and sell them off at different villages.
Seeing the bird catcher trapping so many parrots every now and then, a noble man of a village was somewhat perturbed. The poor free birds are being forced to live in captivity, devoid of their natural freedom, fun and frolic. Sincerely wishing to find a way to stop the parrots from getting trapped, he went to the forest and started to ponder, sitting under a tree, hundreds of the parrots chirruping aloud on the trees around him. He noticed that many of the sounds that the parrots made resembled the words spoken by human beings. “It may help if I teach them some words of wisdom.”
Trying to firm up the words he would teach, he spoke aloud.
“The bird catcher will come”!
Before he could speak the next line, many Parrots shouted back,
“The bird catcher will come”!
The man was surprised, happy and encouraged at the same time. The job seemed easier than what he had thought it to be.
“He will set a trap”
“He will set a trap”, chorused the parrots
“He will throw some grains”
“He will throw some grains”, repeated the parrots, more of them joining in this time.
“We vow not to get trapped”
“We vow not to get trapped”, came the echo, still more parrots joining the chorus now.
The man was very happy. “Now that they have understood what I wanted to tell them, they should mug up these lines so that they do not forget them.” So he started coming to the forest every day. He would shout the four lines every day with parrots repeating them after him. Within a few days, the parrots mugged up the message fully, so much so that now as the man reached the forest, the parrots would start reciting the lines on their own, without waiting for him to speak.
On his part the man was satisfied. Now they will not get trapped, since they know, that the grains are thrown around by the bird- catcher only to trap them.
After a few days, the bird catcher came to the forest to catch some more parrots. He was shocked when he entered the forest.
All the parrots were reciting their freshly learnt lines.
“The bird catcher will come”
“He will set a trap”
“He will throw some grains”
“We vow not to get trapped”
The bird catcher was a worried man. “These parrots have become wise. Now it will not be possible any more to trap them. I will have to go elsewhere.” Thinking so, he went a little further into the forest. But things were the same there too. Here also the parrots were shouting.
“The bird catcher will come”
“He will set a trap”
“He will throw some grains”
“We vow not to get trapped:”
The disappointed bird catcher decided to return. “But let us make a final try before leaving.”
So, he laid the trap and strew some grains, although with no hope at all.
But the parrots surprised him again, this time pleasantly.
One of the parrots walked towards the trap, still reciting, “We vow not to get trapped”. He got caught into the trap. The Bird catcher, who was preparing to take a nap, sprung to his feet. “Thank god, at least one parrot has been trapped.”
He was in for a bigger surprise.
The first parrot was followed by many others reciting “We vow not to get trapped.”
The trap was full again, the vows of the parrots not withstanding. He lifted the net trap, swung it on his back and proceeded home. The trapped parrots were still shouting, “We vow not to get trapped:”
The parrots had mugged up the lesson taught by the noble man, but remained ordinary gullible parrots only.
Have you heard of ‘human parrots’? There are many amongst us. Such ‘human parrots’ are better than the normal parrots in as much as that their mugging ability is much higher. They can mug up books, inspiring sentences, scriptural quotes etc., but they themselves remain unchanged, unaffected – Body conscious slaves of senses, selfish and stupid- like our parrots of the forest.
Vedantas, the essence of Shastras, now seem to have turned into a tradition of parrots only. The shastra knowing kind hearted men have now probably been lost behind a pall of dark. However, they seem to have been replaced, in abundance, with some Human parrots, who –having gone through some Upnishads, Panchdashi etc.- are busy arranging huge congregations, to make other parrots, especially female ones, mug up the vow – ‘We vow not to get trapped’ because we are a manifestation of Brahm.
Though the bird catcher –Kaal – may come;
though the transactions of joys and sorrows may continue;
though Raga –Dvesha may persist;
though the being may never have a glimpse of freedom from the cage of this mortal body;
though there may knots of diseases galore
though we may remain entangled in the mesh of the kaal
(‘all these are only the games played by destiny’- is the convenient refrain)
YET…
I vow that am aatma brahma – ever free.
The real parrots are poor simple birds who fall into the trap even reciting the mugged up vows. However in case of the ‘human parrots’, the reasoning power of humans combined with the stupidity of parrots, produces a weird mixture –‘Kutil Gyana- the ‘wicked wisdom’. On seeing others in distress, such people assume indifference under the garb of stoicism, saying ‘”All this is the play of Maya”. However they forget all stoicism and the talk of ‘the game of May’a when some adversity confronts them. Even on a slight prick of a thorn, assuming themselves to be established in the brahm bhav (state of oneness with universe)they expect the entire creation to come to their service.
The addicts vow to eschew their addiction, even while carrying with them the object of their addiction (Alcohol, cigarette, drugs etc.) Their will power is stuck in the quicksand of their addiction. The vows arising out of such an enslaved will are nothing more than the meaningless chirpings of parrots.
At the satsangs, or at the time of amritpaan, Naamdaan etc., people vow- to shun raag-Dvesha, to meditate regularly for two hours a day, to leave this or that habit etc. However, such vows are kept very rarely and are hence nothing more than the meaningless chirpings of parrots.
In the courts, people swear, upon the scriptures of their respective religions, to tell only the truth. However such ‘human parrots’ rarely tell anything but lies, entangled as they are in the vicious meshes of deceit.
The ‘human parrots’ take false vows, with an objective of deceiving others, but in the process they themselves face deception. While they are aware that such false vows are meant only to allure others, they are not conscious of the fact that they are entangled too deep in the self created mesh, to free themselves from it.
Atma, the manifestation of the true bliss, ever remains unconscious, captivated in the cage made of their vows. The tribe of ‘human parrots’ is spreading fast- through out the fabric of the society. The society is getting entangled, more and more in to the mesh of false vows and of deceit. In fact simply taking a vow is not important. Vows taken by parrots will always be deficient always leading to entangling and bonding traps.
What is important is, Who is taking a vow. To fuel and empower our vows, we will have to rise- above the ‘human-parrotness’- to the levels of Bhishma, Arjuna. We will have to sow the seed of thought-revolution to shake our mind out of its inherent inertness .
The human brain is akin to barren land. It is fertile only to the extent of 7-10 percent. Even in this small fertile portion we grow limited crops of thoughts- those of selfishness, sensory pleasures etc. If we are able to make 100% of the brain fertile, and sow the seeds of thought revolution, then we shall be able to generate thought-vibrations replete with the flowers and fruits of blissful joy and peace.
The essence of thought-revolution is not to consider ourselves as dependant parrots. The seed of “I am the manifestation of indestructible all pervading bliss”, -will have to be sown in our mind. The crop rising out of this seed is to be spread throughout our being. Then, we will not have to seek support of the false vows. Even The ordinary words uttered by us, will then be filled with energy to the fullest.
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