कहानी : अपनी तुलना दूसरों से न करें

एक बार की बात है, किसी जंगल में एक कौवा रहता था, वो बहुत ही खुश था, क्योंकि उसकी ज्यादा इच्छाएं नहीं थीं। वह अपनी जिंदगी से संतुष्ट था, लेकिन एक बार उसने जंगल में किसी हंस को देख लिया और उसे देखते ही सोचने लगा कि ये प्राणी कितना सुन्दर है, ऐसा प्राणी तो मैंने पहले कभी नहीं देखा! इतना साफ और सफेद। यह तो इस जंगल में औरों से बहुत सफेद और सुंदर है, इसलिए यह तो बहुत खुश रहता होगा।

 

कोवा हंस के पास गया और पूछा, भाई तुम इतने सुंदर हो, इसलिए तुम बहुत खुश होगे?

 

इस पर हंस ने जवाब दिया, हां मैं पहले बहुत खुश रहता था, जब तक मैंने तोते को नहीं देखा था। उसे देखने के बाद से लगता है कि तोता धरती का सबसे सुंदर प्राणी है। हम दोनों के शरीर का तो एक ही रंग है लेकिन तोते के शरीर पर दो-दो रंग है, उसके गले में लाल रंग का घेरा और वो सूर्ख हरे रंग का था, सच में वो बेहद खूबसूरत था। 

 

अब कौवे ने सोचा कि हंस तो तोते को सबसे सुंदर बता रहा है, तो फिर उसे देखना होगा।

 

कौवा तोते के पास गया और पूछा, भाई तुम दो-दो रंग पाकर बड़े खुश होगे?

 

इस पर तोते ने कहा, हां मैं तब तक खुश था जब तक मैंने मोर को नहीं देखा था। मेरे पास तो दो ही रंग हैं लेकिन मोर के शरीर पर तो कई तरह के रंग हैं।

 

अब कौवे ने सोचा सबसे ज्यादा खुश कौन है, यह तो मैं पता करके ही रहूंगा। इसलिए अब मोर से मिलना ही पड़ेगा। कौए ने मोर को जंगल में ढूंढा लेकिन उसे पूरे जंगल में एक भी मोर नहीं मिला और मोर को ढूंढते-ढूंढते वह चिड़ियाघर में पहुंच गया, तो देखा मोर को देखने बहुत से लोग आए हुए हैं और उसके आसपास अच्छी खासी भीड़ है।

 

सब लोगों के जाने के बाद कौवे ने मोर से पूछा, भाई तुम दुनिया के सबसे सुंदर जीव हो और रंगबिरंगे हो, तुम्हारे साथ लोग फोटो खिंचवा रहे थे। तुम्हें तो बहुत अच्छा लगता होगा और तुम तो दुनिया के सबसे खुश जीव होगे?

 

इस पर मोर ने दुखी होते हुए कहा, भाई अगर सुंदर हूं तो भी क्या फर्क पड़ता है! मुझे लोग इस चिड़ियाघर में कैद करके रखते हैं, लेकिन तुम्हें तो कोई चिड़ियाघर में कैद करके नहीं रखता और तुम जहां चाहो अपनी मर्जी से घूम-फिर सकते हो। इसलिए दुनिया के सबसे संतुष्ट और खुश जीव तो तुम्हें होना चाहिए, क्योंकि तुम आज़ाद रहते हो। कौवा हैरान रह गया, क्‍योंकि उसके जीवन की अहमियत कोई दूसरा बता गया।

 

दोस्तों, ऐसा ही हम लोग भी करते हैं। हम अपनी खुशियों और गुणों की तुलना दूसरों से करते हैं, ऐसे लोगों से जिनका रहन-सहन का माहौल हमसे बिलकुल अलग होता है। हमारी जिंदगी में बहुत सारी ऐसी चीज़ें होती हैं, जो केवल हमारे पास हैं, लेकिन हम उसकी अहमियत समझकर खुश नहीं होते। लेकिन दूसरों की छोटी ख़ुशी भी हमें बड़ी लगती है, जबकि हम अपनी बड़ी खुशियों को इग्नोर कर देते हैं।

 Italian Folk Tale

2️⃣

ENDLESS DESIRES

              Once upon a time, a king went on a tour of a neighbouring country. There, he found that the land was fertile and rich crops stood in the fields. He wished to own that beautiful and fertile country.

There was a rich man in the same country. He used to be too busy to go out for a walk or joyride. He had a vast business, scores of servants and a big house to live in. He also set out on that day for sight seeing and saw a very beautiful palace.

The rich man thought, "What a beautiful palace! Its pillars are works of some great artist. I wish I were the owner of this palace too!"

A beautiful princess lived in that very palace. On that day she was standing at her window. Down below, a handsome youngman riding his horse passed by. The princess saw him and she wished to marry that youngman.

A dog also lived in that palace. It used to see other dogs run freely around on the road. It also wished for freedom to roam and run around outside like other dogs.

A cat sat in the verandah basking in the winter sun. She was enjoying the warmth. Just then, she saw a mouse run by. The cat ran after it. But the rat dodged it and dashed into its hole. Cat sighed, "I wish I had caught the rat to eat it lazily under the warm sun!"

The rat ran into the kitchen and saw loads of colorful sweetmeats behind the glass panels of the shelves. It drooled and wished to eat those lovely treats. 

On that day a very kind fairy was passing through the sky of that place. She heard all those six wishes. She thought, "let us grant all these creatures their wishes. She thought," let us grant all these creatures their wishes and make them happy." And so she did .

After granting wishes, the fairy went back to her fairyland. Sometime later the fairy happened to pass over the same place. She was shocked to find the creatures she had granted wishes no happier than before. Infact they were troubled by more desires.

The king wanted to own more kingdoms. The rich man desired more money and palaces. The princess desired many things for the future of her husband and child. The dog wanted to return to the palace. The cat wanted more rats to eat. Only the rat did not suffer from more desires after eating the sweatments. Because as the result of the cat's wish it had gone into cat's belly. The death had ended all its desires.

The fairy now realised that a living creature keeps giving birth to new desires all the time. It never ends till its death. She gave up the idea of granting any more wishes to anyone. And the fairy flew away on her journey.

Russian Folk Tale

1️⃣

THE PUNISHMENT FOR STEALING

An old farmer lived in a village with his wife. He had a small piece of land in which he grew vegetables. The farmer and his wife made a living by selling those vegetables. 

Once the farmer thoughat of growing turnips He asked his wife, "I am thinking of growing turnips this year. What do you say? "

The wife said ,"If we get good harvest we shall be comfortable."

"I will water the field and take good care of the crop. The harvest should be fine as a result," the farmer spoke.

The farmer was lucky. His field grew a bumper crop of turnips. One day, he went to the field to look over his crop. The old farmer was shocked to look over his crop. The old farmer was shocked to find bits and pieces of turnips lying all over the field.

The old man was puzzled. A thief would have take away the whole turnips. The bits and the pieces meant that some enemy was trying to ruin his crop. At home, he spoke to his wife, "I don't understand who is our enemy." The wife enquired, "Enemy! What happened?" The farmer informed, " There are small bits of turnips all over the field. Some enemy is at work. Who can be our enemy?"

The wife remarked, "No one is our enemy. Your old head is imagining crazy things. Some animal is eating away our crop certainly."

The old farmer felt that his wife was talking sense. So, he went to the field at night to guard the crop. He hid himself with an axe in his hand in the tall grass that grew around the field. At midnight, a big bear entered into the field and started pulling the turnips out of the ground. It ate the fleshy parts and threw down the bits and pieces.

The farmer got angry. He threw his axe aimed at the bear. The axe hit the bear's hind leg which got cut off The bear ran away to the jungle groaning in pain leaving behind the cut off leg. The farmer picked up the leg and went home. 

His old woman was pleased to see the leg She washed it and skinned it She spun a yarn with the hair of the leg and put the leg in a pot on the stove to cook The old farmer and his wife enjoyed the meat of the bear leg. 

Meanwhile, the bear painfully walked around on three legs and began thinking of ways to settle the score with the farmer. It found a tree branch right enough to serve as its leg. The bear tied the stump with its half remaining leg. Now, it walked about making tap-tap-tap sound. 

One morning, the bear went to the house of the farmer. From outside it began singing :

"I have a leg of wood,

Know me, you should,

you made me lame,

To settle score I came,

Come out, let me thrash you good."

The bear's call frightened the farmer and his wife. They trembled. Before they could close the door the bear had come in. Both of them rushed to the almirah and hid inside.

The bear sang and walked around the rooms with its wooden leg sounding tap-tap-tap. Suddenly the stump leg loosened and it fell off unbalancing the bear.

The bear fell through the trap door that was there by the side of the staircase to drop down into the cellar. The thud of the staircase to drop down into the cellar. The thud of the bear's fall brought to farmer out of the almirah. He quickly shut the trap door.

The wife of the farmer ran outside and screamed for help. The neighbours rushed in with spears, sticks and axes. They killed the bear. The farmer lived without fear ever after.