MOUNTING AN ELEPHANT
Elephants are essential elements in traditional festivals of India. They
are decorated with gold-plated caparisons and displayed with dignity in
colourful processions. During such a festival, one of the organizers of the
festival wanted to climb upon an elegant elephant as it was his long-cherished
dream. The man was old and stout and was afraid of the exercise. With the
expert advice and assistance of the mahout, and a lot of personal effort, he
managed to climb to the top of the elephant. But unfortunately, as he reached
the top with much fear and difficulty, he got seated with his face facing the
tail-end of the elephant. Noting his awkward position, his aides shouted from
the ground, "Sir, please turn yourself to face the front side of the
elephant!" But the scared dignitary could not move a bit. He sat still,
holding the animal with all his might. He told his well-wishers, "I will
sit as I please. If you want a change, you may turn the elephant to face my
front."
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827),
one of the greatest composers and musicians in human history, was born in Bonn
in Germany. He was proficient in playing a variety of musical instruments. He
could mesmerize millions by his melodious music, crowning compositions and
outstanding performance. Once, while playing his musical instruments he noticed
that they did not produce any sound. He thought that the instruments had
developed some trouble and decided to repair them. Later he could realize that the
problem was not with his instruments but with his own ears, which became deaf
suddenly. He continued to create excellent compositions ignoring his deafness.
When God confronted them
for sinning, Adam blamed his wife and Eve blamed the snake {Genesis 3: 11-13}. But God did not accept their
excuses {Genesis 3: 16-19}.
It is human nature to
assume that disorders are caused by the faults of the society and the people around us. But
often it is the discord within a person that causes disorder in his social
life. The first step in correcting the society is correcting ourselves {Matthew
7:1-5}. We can initiate social
change only by changing ourselves.
........................................................................................................................
© By:
Dr. Babu Philip, Professor, Cochin University of Science &
Technology, Fine Arts Avenue, Kochi-682016, Kerala, India, Prof. Mrs. Rajamma Babu,
Former Professor, St. Dominic's College, Kanjirappally and Leo. S.
John, Maniparambil, Ooriyakunnath, Kunnumbhagom, Kanjirappally,
Kottayam-686507, Kerala, India.
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