The Stubborn Hunter

Once upon a time, there was a forest. That forest contained many animals. There lived a hunter. He loved hunting rabbits, because he loved the rabbit meat.
Many a time he was advised by his friends to give up hunting in general and hunting the rabbits in particular. “You should stop being cruel to animals," said his friends. “I know what I am doing. Please do not advise me," shouted the hunter, annoyed.
One sunny afternoon, the hunter was busy preparing to go on another hunting expedition. Just then a saint happened to pass by. Seeing the hunter holding a rope, a spear, a knife and a net, the saint said to the hunter, “It seems to me you are going to catch an animal."
“Yes, I am going to catch a rabbit in the forest," replied the hunter.
“But what will you do with the rabbit?" asked the saint.
“I will cut its throat, roast it and eat it up. Will you stop me?" asked the hunter.
The raw behavior of the hunter irritated the saint. “No, my son! I only wanted to tell you that killing innocent animals is a sin. All sinners get punished some day in their lives," said the humble saint.
The hunter yelled back at the saint, “let me see who comes to punish me." And he left in anger. The saint smiled and sat there is meditation.
After some time, the hunter was back. He was holding a rabbit by its ears. “Ha! Ha! See I have caught my prey. Now I will cut its throat and roast it right in front of you. No one will come to punish me," he said to the still meditating saint. Just as the hunter was about to raise his knife, it slipped out of his hand and landed on his foot. “Yieee!" he screamed, letting go of the rabbit. The rabbit ran away.
The hunter’s foot was badly cut. He was in pain. It was bleeding profusely. But the hunter knew that what happened was nothing but the divine justice. “I have now realized how cruel and stubborn I have been. I will give up hunting completely," said the hunter to the saint.
The hunter thanked the saint for the wise words and went on his way. The saint was happy that the hunter gave up hunting. The hunter became a civilized man and lived a righteous life.

Question Card 24

The Ugly Tree

Long, long ago, in a dense forest there were thousands of tall and beautiful trees. They were happy, but proud of themselves. Among them there also an ugly tree whose branches were badly twisted. Its roots had uneven curves. All the trees made fun of that ugly tree.

“How are you, hunchback?" the other trees always shouted and their laughter made the ugly tree feel sad. But, he never raised a voice against them. The ugly tree thought, “I wish I were as beautiful as the other trees. Why did God do this to me? Neither can I provide shade to the travelers not can the birds make their nests on me. Nobody needs me."
One day, a woodcutter came to the forest. He took a look at the trees and said, “These trees are lovely. I must cut them." As soon as he picked up his axe the trees became frightened.
‘Chop, Chop, Chop’ went the woodcutter’s axe and one by one the trees started to fall. “None of us is going to be spared," screamed one of the beautiful trees. Soon that tree too was brought to ground by the woodcutter’s axe.
By now, the woodcutter had come near to the ugly tree. He had just raised his axe when suddenly he noticed how crooked the ugly tree was. “Hmm! This crooked tree seems to be useless for me. I cannot make long straight logs of this ugly tree," he thought. And he moved towards another beautiful tree. The ugly tree heaved a huge sigh of relief. He realized that by making him ugly, God had actually given him a boon.
From that day the ugly tree never complained. He was happy with his crooked branches. He never forgot how he was spared from t he woodcutter’s axe, only because he was crooked and ugly.

Question Card 25

The Rightful Owner

One day, the cow fell ill and stopped giving milk. Thinking she would never recover, Gopal drove her out of his house. “Now my owner does not need me. I will never return to him," thought the sad cow and ran away.
On the way, the hungry cow fell unconscious. Dharma, a kind-hearted farmer noticed her and brought her to his house.
After a few days the cow recovered. Dharma thought, “I wonder who this cow belongs to." But he was unable to find the owner. Soon, the cow gave birth to a calf and started giving milk again. Dharma fed her well and looked after the calf, too. By selling the cow’s milk, Dharma became a wealthy man. Everyone wanted to buy Dharma’s cow’s milk. The cow’s fame spread everywhere.
Gopal too came to know about this event. “I wonder if that cow is the same one I had driven away," thought Gopal. When Gopal went to Dharma’s house, he found that is was indeed his cow. “That cow belongs to me," said Gopal. But Dharma refused to return the cow.
“I will take the help of the Village Administration," shouted Gopal. And next day, the Village Administrator heard this case. Immediately, the Village Administration Council assembled. Every one was eager to know what the judgment would be. “Let the cow decide for herself who she want to live with," said the Village Administrator.
So the cow was placed between Dharma and Gopal. The cow was asked by the Village Administrator to with the person whom she wanted to live with. The cow walked away from Gopal and started licking Dharma’s hand. She knew the difference between Gopal’s selfishness and Dharma’s kindness. The Village Administrator handed over the cow to the rightful owner, Dharma.

Question Card 26

Date: 2016-04-22; view: 3057