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THE GIFT OF SIGHT
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to have had a similar experience You recapitulated your prenatal existence vividly The Vaitadhya forest-fire was there before your mind's eye
Benefitted by the experience of the past you marked a clearing on the earth and removed all vegetation from it The fires flew high in the forest All the beasts sought refuge in this clearing You also stood there with your fellows The patch was packed with animals The pyrophobia rendered all of them as friends it was a friendly camp with no remnant of enmity Tigers, deers, foxes and hares all congregated It was full to the brim You raised your foot to scratch yourself While putting it aground you saw a hare sitting there You felt compassion for the poor little thing You held your foot dangling in the air to keep the hare alive The kind act earned you the claim to be born as a man
Two days and nights passed Third day the forest fire was put out the beasts left that circle and retired to their respective regions The hare also went away Your foot was still held high You attempted to settle it again but you had suffered without food and water all these three days and above all you were old The foot had gone rigid The moment you struggled to touch the ground you had cramps and you collapsed as does a silvery mountain aground You still survived for three days and nights in excruciating pain You crossed the portals of death to be born in the house of king Shrenik and queen Dharini
'Megh I when you were born in a crude (Tiryancha) species devoid of enlightended vision you kept your foot above the ground out of pity for a hare You stood that discomfort voluntarily Non-violence took away all of your pain Now von are a man You are endowed with an enlightened vision You own the inner fountain of light How be it that you opt for ignorance and dark? Why should small discomforts exhaust your patience? Why did little obeisance peeve you? Why a bit of their indifference annoy you?'
