Darwin considered we are descendants of Monkeys. Going by the following story, we will strongly believe and accept that we are true descendants of Monkeys.
I used to be feeling great about scientists who virtually live in forests under hostile living conditions researching various animal species.
When I read the following story, I realized that the motive behind these scientists need not be the love of the species. To study them to enslave them.
Here is a true story involving monkeys. There are different types of monkeys living happily and enjoy their freedom in the jungles of Africa. These are in great demand in the countries world over.
They are caught and transported to variousZoo-parks, kept in cages for its life.
Like other animals, they lose their freedom and are deprived of good food and are put to hostile weather alien to these animals.
In early times, mechanical devices called traps were deployed to capture moneys. The spring loaded mechanical gadget invariably cause injuries of varying degrees to the trapped animals. Often these injuries are not properly treated.
It was transported over long distances involving several days.
Significant number of injured animals dies
before reaching its destination.
Scientists researching on animals, worldwide conduct various experiments to study their behavior.
One of their important finding among them is
that monkey Cling on to what ever it took.
The experiments consisted of a specially designed bottles filled with peanuts. The bottles were designed with narrow neck sufficient for a monkey’s hand can freely enter. But, when it closes its fist, the hand cannot come out.
These bottles were placed in the forest where monkeys frequented. Peanuts, which are the favorite food of the monkeys, were placed inside the narrow neck of the bottles.
The monkeys would not let go the bottle after taking the peanuts in its hand. For hours on end, the monkeys will be stationary with the large bottle. They are caught, without any injury and exported.
We understand that all that the monkeys needed for its freedom just to give up the peanuts they like so much.
Even among educated affluent people refuse to climb down a small public office which they climb.
The evil traders around the globe made full use of this quality of monkeys in human and
exploited to their advantage.
Most of us are enslaved to Coffee, Tea and Cigarette was given to our ancestors for free. They caught it and were enslaved.
In a way, I consider monkeys are better specie than us. The reason being, unlike a single monkey being enslaved by its clinging, we human beings are enslaved generation after generation.
What ever is a peanut for monkeys, freebie
is for us humans.
We will discuss the Freebie in a later page.
Theme: Freebie enslaves.
Know this:
(1) what is Peanuts to monkeys, freebie are to humans.
(2)Freebie is traps that enslave us.
(3)Those who seek freebie are people who lack in basic knowledge / awareness that a human should possess. If they do not, they are no better than animals.
(4)Multinationals gave away Cigarettes and Tea for free. After people got addicted to its use, there was a price for it. With time, generations are getting addicted to these products. Now the manufacturers make a killing.
(5)Internet is becoming an indispensable part of our life. More and more people get sucked into it. It is because, the services are offered for free. There will soon be a day when a heft monthly bill will trouble us.
(6) Many fall a victim for the marketing gimmicks like, for each product you buy, one more given for free. If you buy product X, product Y is given for free.
We never think how some thing can be given
for free! Remember they are traps.
Theme: Freebie enslaves us.
Short story 15.
Receive Millions for free.
The story is based on a real life incident. It took place, a decade ago.
I knew some one, back in Delhi. An engineer by profession, an engineering entrepreneur. He wanted to share some information and asked me if I can spare some time for him.
We met in a coffee shop.
The acquaintance looked here and there to ensure no one is watching him. Slowly opened his briefcase and pulled out a letter which he had kept it like a treasure.
He took a promise that I will not disclose his fortune to anyone else and handed a printout of a mail he received.
The mail is purported to have been sent by a millionaire from Africa. He wanted some one in India to convert his black money to white. He would part with one fourth of that money. The money offered as commission runs to several Crore.
The introduction says that he is retired from his country’s Army. (Don’t remember which country, ft was). The mail sought his bank particulars.
I enquired if this person who sent him the email is known through any prior business contact. He replied in negative. He said. He found that email in his mail box.
I told him that I felt fishy about this mail and there is nothing to verify the genuineness of the offer.
Asked what you would answer to IT department about the source of such huge transactions.
He thought for a while and said that they guys can always be managed.
I briefly gave my advice. Never give in to greed. Seeking wealth without effort will only bring misery. Perhaps, he expected me to give him a go ahead. He looked disappointed.
A week passed. A news paper report appeared explained the plight of another person who received this mail.
The report says the victim, a businessman who received the email, established contact with the sender. Soon after some one, apparently an African called-in. They exchanged greetings and talked about their life and family for a while. They decided to meet in a start hotel in Mumbai.
The victim was ushered into to a typical two bed room accommodation. For the first time, the victim had a doubt, for he expected him to stay in a more expensive suite.
The things lying here and there doesn’t show the gentleman staying there as a rich person as he described, The age and physical condition lead him to estimate he could not have been a top ranking Army officer.
While thought ran through his mind, his guests were on their job. They demanded his Credit cards at gun point. They relieved him of every thing which was worth a price.
Finally, they threatened him with a dire consequence if they approached police. Since we have every detail of you and your family, our men would kidnap your children, kill your family members, the list was quite long.
When the saddened victim was about to leave one other African joined to give punches that left him bruised and swollen.
The two men took the victim carefully through the rear passage and left him on to the street.
I sent my acquaintance the news paper clipping. He thanked me profusely.
Three email received by many which would eventually arrive at the SPAM folder, are
reproduced here. The reader may examine and figure out, why these emails are fraudulent ones.
Be careful and remain warned about such communications...
Typical emails received from fraudsters, is given towards the end.
Theme: Punishments are indispensable in life.
Know this:
(1) Youngsters gets thrill in breaking the law of the land. Breaking speed limits while driving.Consuming banned substances.
(2) There are instances when quite a few escape punishment, That encourages others to commit crimes.
(3) If one doesn’t receive punishments, he would commit more and more crimes when he will have no way to escape more severe punishments.
(4) It is the duty of the Parents, teachers and government agencies to enforce rules without any leniency. More often than not, rich and powerful among the society escape punishments.
We will see the stories of a Good Father and
a Bad father in the following pages.
Theme: Punishments are indispensable in life.
Short story 16
Good father.
The following story is adopted from a Zen short story.
The good father had one son. When the son attained the age of 18, the father inquired his son as to what kid of profession he would like to pursue. The son had no doubts in his mind. He said he would do whatever his father did.
The father lived by stealing other’s property and lived by that,
the son reasoned, “only in your profession, we can get so much money for them to lead a happy life. “No other profession”, the son observed, fetches as much money quickly.
It is also a fact that he had no idea about any other trade to choose from.
The father demanded to know from the son, if he had considered all the pros and cons.
the boy said, “yes, I did:
The selected a most auspicious night, the darkest night of the month, the new moon day.
The father led him to a house which was locked. Demanded his son to break the door open without drawing the attention of people around. The son accomplished it successfully
then, the father instructed the boy to get in collect all the valuables and come out quickly.
The son followed the father’s instruction and disappeared inside the dark rooms of the house they are burgling.
The father, locked the door from outside and shouted, “Thief, thief”. The people in the area woke from their sleep. They bet the boy, black and blue and handed over to police.
After a brief jail term, the boy was released. The typical Zen story ends like this, abruptly.
The reader IS expected to figure out, all by
himself, why the father did this to his son.
Was the father a cruel person? Or he did not want his son to pursue the profession he did?
My deduction is that the father knew that his son knew one only one side of the profession, namely the easy money. Father wanted the son to know the other side, the risk involved in living as a thief. His son can then decide if he can take thieving as his profession.
Theme: Punishments are indispensable in life.
Know this:
1. Many hardened criminals of today were petty thieves some day who did not receive the punishments, in time.
2. Punishments are coarse correction mechanisms, which set the people acting in acceptable ways in the society.
3. Punishments should be both corrective deterrent for both the individuals and the society, as a whole.
(4) Our society’s riches have no time for their children are brought up as good citizens. You see them involved in Drunken driving, drug abuse, white collar crimes, shoot-outs in public places - a few as a sample.
(5) Poor in the society, especially from economically and socially backward, do not know what is good and bad so that they can educate their children.
(6) Economic middle class, in general, have the environment and knowledge for bringing up their children as good citizens.
They achieve this through a combination of educating and punishing the children when they go astray.
Theme: Delayed Punishments are dangerous.
Short story 17.
Bad father.
Today is a judgment day of the month in the kingdom where Raja lived. People await judgment the king’s court would hand down to Raja.
Typically, every offender goes through the grilling and confronted with proof and witnesses in the normal course. On the judgment, the king, his ministers and nobles in the king’s court formally give a final hearing and accordingly the punishment was announced in the presence of general public.
So the palace will be surrounded by anxious public to hear the verdict.
The parents and close relatives of the accused are allowed to remain in the king’s court, when the judgment is pronounced. Their views are also listened to.
Today, the public gathered to hear the verdict was largest in the recent times. The people who were victims anted to know what punished Rasa has received.
Rasa as people call him earned the name Rowdy Rasa in this area. In today’s society, there is a lot of demand for rowdies over whom police have no control. The politicians favor them. When they break the law, the law breaks easily because it is born weak. The criminals hire lawyers to break the laws to ensure their perpetual freedom.
Rasa began his career by stealing small things from fellow children. At that time, his name was “Thief Rasa”. His father was the chief of security in the king’s court.
When his son was on the verge of getting caught, he used his influence among the authorities and saved him. As Rasa grew, so too were his crimes.
Now he was a fully grown criminal. He doesn’t need his father’s help any more.
He found ways of escape from the long arms of law. He committed more serious crimes and got away with it.
Finally, his crime records reached the king. People thought he would get a big punishment for all the crimes he had committed.
The court suddenly became very active. The ministers and officials arrived one by one and occupied their seats. The king followed.
The criminals were bound by chains and seated in a corner of the court. The names of the criminals were read out and the crimes they had committed. They were sentenced accordingly.
IT was Rasa’s term now. Rasa was brought to the middle of the king’s court. His crimes were listed and he was given the death sentence.
Rasa showed no emotions. In the coming days, he would be beheaded in front of the crowd in the large open area.
People will now never get frightened of
Rasa. One last request of convict in a death row was granted, if it was genuine. This is followed from ages, till today.
The minister announced this to Rasa. Rasa wanted to talk to his father, which the minister readily obliged.
With hands tied, Rasa was allowed to talk to his father. When his father came near him, Rasa bit his father’s ear and spat it out. Blood flowing from his face, his father was screaming in pain.
Those assembled were shocked and stunned at the act of Rasa.
Rasa looked at the assembly and justified his action. “When I was young and committed crimes, my father did not punish me. Instead he protected me from being punished.
Then, I grew up to a thief and even committed murders without fear. Today, I am facing death sentence.
My father misused his official position, influence and contacts in a wrong way. He did not correct me at the right time.
This act of his has brought me to the present situation. He never taught me the right path.
Therefore, my father is responsible for the crimes I had committed. But there is no provision in the law to punish him. Therefore, I have punished him.
In future, this should be a lesson and a warning for fathers like him,” spoke Rasa.
Theme: Taking credit for someone’s effort.
Know this:
(1) Very often people claim credit for some good work done.
(2) Motive for such wrong doing is profit.
(3) This takes place systematically in work places and research establishment.
(4) Some times, circumstances might bring you the credit of some one’s effort. You should resist the temptations to own it up.
(5) Like the lies would, some time, this habit will bring upon a disaster.
Theme: Taking credit for someone’s effort. Short Story 18.
The saint.
This story, like many others in this book is based on a real life incident.
It was a small village in the southern part of Tamilnadu, in India. This part of the country had seen several saints. Some of them had powers called SIDHDHI. With these powers the saints, it is believed, can perform supernatural feats.
Majority of these saints hail from among the
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common people. But yet, no one understands as how these few get such powers.
Many believe that they have not only supernatural and super human powers but also the science of converting one object to another.
A simple peasant had a quarrel with his wife and he left his home and then village. The drifted from one place to another.
Some day, in a distant village, people found this man lying near a, semiconscious state near a small temple. Some took pity and fed him. Some other person put him in a shelter near the temple.
Some one gave him a bath and covered him with a better cloth.
People started enquiring who was that person receiving a lot of public attention. There was speculation about his origin, his nature and mission that sent him to their village.
Ultimately, the news which crosses the boundaries of the village described him as a saint who hardly speaks. He has spiritual powers. He cures any ill health.
The news reached the same village. Some more villagers joined to take care of this saintly person and his name and fame spread all over the region. Some day suddenly, the saint was found dead in a pool of blood.