Love and Happiness: The Elephant And The Monk - A Story of Compassion

By Sudhamahi Regunathan

Once there lived a strong, young elephant named Meruprabh. One day a part of a huge forest caught fire and the fire spread rapidly, fanned by strong winds. The animals were scared.

When would the fire stop? Meruprabh along with 700 other elephants cleared one part of the forest of vegetation to prevent the fire from spreading. This clearing became a haven for animals seeking shelter from the fire and they huddled there till the fire went out. Animals who normally hunted each other now sat or stood close in amity. Fear was palpable.

Soon this clearing was so full that there was no space for even a grain of sesame. Packed it was, in both space and tension. At that time as Meruprabh also stood, he felt his knee itch. He had to scratch himself. He lifted the other leg and scratched himself. What a relief it was! Scratching, he reflected, was one of the pleasures of life.

But no sooner had he afforded himself a little pleasure he looked down to find a little rabbit scurrying into the space that had been cleared when he lifted his leg. Breathing heavily the rabbit snuggled into the space. What happens to Meruprabh's leg? As he held it above the ground, he realised that if he put it down, he would crush the rabbit. Could he nudge the rabbit to a side? Oh no, there was simply no space. Meruprabh folded his leg and decided to hold it there rather than hurt the hapless frightened creature.

One day and night passed. The forest fire was still raging. The animals did not move. Not even Meruprabh. He kept standing with one leg folded.

The second and third day too passed. Finally the flames subsided and the animals venturing out cautiously in the beginning ran out to see if it were safe to return to their homes. Only Meruprabh continued to stand. His leg had become stiff and he could not put it down now. When he tried to straighten it, he felt a shooting pain and losing his balance, he tumbled over. He lay there like that for a long time till he quietly succumbed to it.

"No being is to be harmed for all beings desire to live and no one wishes to die", Mahavira taught his followers. For his exemplary act of compassion Meruprabh earned the privilege of being born a king in his next birth and in that very same birth, he eventually became a monk. This story is related when prince Megha, ordained as a monk with permission from his parents, enters the ashram. He spends a very uncomfortable night. The floor is hard for the prince who was accustomed to velvet beds. It is cold too. Moreover, all the senior monks are up and about even in the late hours of the night. They give him room in a corridor and so he gets disturbed when each of them passes by. Night seemed endless and finally at daybreak the newly initiated monk went to his teacher. He stood there, speechless. He wanted to leave. He wanted to go home.

The minutes ticked by. The teacher, watching his discomfort, said: "Go child and get back to work. Do not give up so easily. This discomfort is nothing as compared to what you faced in your last birth when you were not even a human being. You gave up your life in compassion, today you fret about a small pain? Because you exhibited such extraordinary compassion you were able to be born as a prince and even attained monkhood. Now enjoy the fruits of your good deeds." The monk, gaining new insight and realising the gift of his birth, became one of the most sincere disciples of the sangha.

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See also: Love and Happiness, Life and Beyond, Death and Dying, Body Mind and Soul)