Another fable of mine
Once upon a time, there was a great and terrible tiger.
Its power matched only by its insatiable appetite.
No matter how many animals fell to its fearsome claws and teeth, it remained unsated.
So hunt, it would, ceaselessly.
To the point that all of the creatures on which it preyed petitioned the Brahma, saying:
“Please, Great One(s)!
Save us!
We are destined to be obliterated should this Fate continue to befall us!”
The Brahma, in its wisdom and kindness, heard the pleas.
Thus was created a hind (a female Sika Deer) that would be eternally reborn and grow to maturity, mere moments after its demise.
It was not long before the tiger noticed its new prey.
Falling on it.
Devouring it with abandon, as the hind was a joy to hunt and delicious in its consumption.
Yet, the very next day, as the tiger’s hunger was ever-present, the hunt would resume.
The hind would be spotted.
And the cycle would continue.
Soon, the tiger would hunt no other.
As the taste and thrill were too satisfying to forgo.
One day, not long after the cycle became known to the creatures now spared, a wild boar said to the hind:
“While the Brahma has delivered to us salvation in you, we cannot help but feel sad for your lot.”
The hind, very wise itself – as the Brahma took special care in its creation, replied:
“It is the lot of some to be hunters.
It is the lot of others to be hunted.
To deny this reality is the road to suffering and disappointment.
Therefore, I choose to embrace that I feed such a powerful creature.
That my flesh, and my flesh alone, strengthens and sustains such a magnificent predator.
Yet, my role in the grand design is no less than the tiger’s.
For, without me, the tiger could not survive.
And, without the tiger, I would have a far less noble purpose.”
Though not as wise as the hind, the wild boar nodded in agreement.
Letting the world be as it is.
Ω
80-Proof Oinomancy 
September 2, 2012 at 12:01 am
[…] – The Cycle, I Like Driving Backwards In The Fog, Its Not Like You Killed Someone. . ., Another Fable Of Mine, All The Grief In The World. . […]
September 12, 2012 at 3:50 pm
This is original? It’s very good.
September 12, 2012 at 3:59 pm
Yes, it is.
And thank you.
Your comment at barefootinaclearing was excellent, as well.
September 24, 2012 at 2:48 pm
Oh! Why, thank you!
July 29, 2014 at 6:35 pm
I used to tell my boys something when it came to trash talking, particularly in sports. They play hockey, so when they were young I asked, “Who do you think is the best goalie in the NHL?” Whatever their answer, I’d then tell them to imagine they had a chance to take a penalty shot against that goalie, an NHL goalie, and they scored on him. This goalie is then taken out of the net and a bag of garbage put in his place. They were given another penalty shot and scored against the bag of garbage. “Now” I’d ask, “which goal would you be bragging about to your classmates and friends at school?”
There’s no victory in defeating something that’s garbage. Denigrating the other removes the value of your own accomplishment. The greater the competition, the greater the victory. People see this as a shitty world, but it’s the greatest arena in the Universe for creating yourself.
December 15, 2014 at 5:58 am
“People see this as a shitty world, but it’s the greatest arena in the Universe for creating yourself.”
Brilliant perspective.