A SQUIRREL was collecting nuts one by one. A crow was seeing the squirrel carry small nuts. He laughed and asked the squirrel, how many days will she take to have a considerable amount of nuts? Unaffected, the squirrel replied that nothing was impossible if efforts were continuous. And this is the essence of life and key to survival.

 

 

A drop of water doesn’t appear to have any value but zillions of drops make the ocean. Buddha says in the Dhammapad that any journey seems very long until the first step is taken. It’s the first stride that leads to a ride. This is a very meaningful proverb. We often give up thinking that the task my be too big or heavy and it may take a long time. A great deal of talent is lost in the world for want of a little courage. Remember, it’s the beginning that seems difficult. Once we begin, things start falling in their place and what appeared to be initially impossible seems possible and within reach. Perseverance and constant efforts can make things possible.

 

 

What one needs is determination to succeed. Look at ants. They’re aware of the difficulties they might face during rainy season. So they start collecting food well before the arrival of rainy season and by the time season arrives, ants are self-sufficient. Honey-bees know that during winters, many flowers produce less pollen-grains and the quality of honey also decreases. So they keep collecting pollen-grains much before winters. This is planning. This is intelligence. We can learn so many things like planning in advance, perseverance, continuity and risk-taking attitude from seemingly insignificant creatures. Life’s indeed a continuous learning process. We learn all the time. Adi Shankar says that ‘every step is a life lesson’ (pratyek padak-kshepam ivi pranidhaanyogyam asti). There’s so much to learn and so much to know from observing so seemingly little objects.

 

 

All we need is an aware pair of eyes attuned to the beautiful details that Life and Nature offer us. Each day, grow in wondrous ways. Lo and behold! You become like the banyan tree always offering selfless shade to the wayfarers. Life becomes a beautiful garland, fragrant with memories that no one can set a price on. Jab aankh khuli tabhi savera (Life starts the moment you become aware). Awareness is within all of us, but we don’t bother to bring it out of the deep crevice of our existence. We’re like that musk-deer who will run around till he dies exhausted to find the source of the fragrance of the musk that’s already hidden in its own navel! Once we all become alive to our surroundings and what’s happening around, enlightenment dawns on us. Buddha said in Pali, ‘Ritram akshyat, parmo dheeratra’ (Just try to become conscious with all your senses active and alive). To be conscious is to be aware.

 

 

Both are two sides to the same coin. Awareness is living in the given moment. No past or future should interfere. It’s the concentrated gravity of the present moment that makes us aware, alive and active. Urdu poet Nawab Shefta summed it up so succinctly, “Khuli aankhon se hi aata hai irfaan/ Bahut hai agar itna jaan le insaan” (The self-realisation or awareness comes with eyes wide open/ Suffice it to say that it’s all an individual needs to know).