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Hey Presto! The Lord Of The Ring, Crows And Squirrels

Discussion in 'Snippets of Life (Non-Fiction)' started by Thyagarajan, Feb 26, 2018.

  1. Thyagarajan

    Thyagarajan IL Hall of Fame

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    :hello: Hey presto! The Lord of the Ring, Crows and Squirrels :hello:

    I was watching with awe at a closer proximity, as she was offering a morsel of warm cooked-rice gently mixed in turdhall (red Gram) to crows and squirrels that nestled in the umbrageous mango and coconut trees within her precinct. She would leave it on the grey washing-stone repeatedly uttering softly caw-caw and stand earshot. Within few seconds, distant crows would land sharply on the stone and caw; and few squirrels too.

    She attributed the three white lines on the squirrel’s back to Lord Rama for latter community’s help seemingly of no consequence yet significant.
    She explained; in appreciation of their supplementing His war effort, in construction of a bridge, connecting southern tip of India to island nation Srilanka, Lord Rama fondly touched on their back with His three fingers.
    When the Lord lifted His fingers, three straight-long lines were left on squirrel’s fur.

    Lord has given the lesson that a contribution however seemingly small, yet if it results in value addition deserve accolades.

    She said, she feels absolutely relaxed in presence of row of crows and squirrel sitting at a short distance on its hind limbs with their young ones juxtaposed, jumping side by side, and letting each other to pick the food. It is stress-busting to watch, Crows turning their neck oblique, pick food particles, contemplate a while, and commence eating at a brisk pace.

    With their tiny figure, squirrels with its bushy tails and narrow eyes often would turn their head to look at her. Watching squirrels on its fore-limbs to pick and hold the rice, she would say, will dissolve one’s depression and enliven their spirits.

    According to her, these are blissful moments which sadly people in metro miss. How true!

    She narrated another incident about human’s perceived dilemma and God’s benevolence.

    Once, it was by noon she finished hand-washing and rinsing her nine yards silk saree at the back yard. During night, when her husband asked about missing topaz-studded golden ring, which was conspicuous by its absence in her finger, she thought for a while but could not think of the place where it had been lost or misplaced.

    Known for her aplomb, she responded to him that if Lord wished, He would take away and would return when He “decides” and therefore not to lose sleep over it.

    She went to the prayer-room and lighted wick-oil-lamp, placed it on wooden pedestal in front of deity; she placed a one rupee coin centrally on a thin white-wet-turmeric-smeared-cloth, rolled it and tied its corners and left it by the lighted lamp.

    With prayer and conviction at the back of her mind, that Lord would arrange the return of missing ring to her, she was back to bed.

    It was time to feed the crows and squirrels. She as usual mixed a ladle of just cooked rice and dhal and placed on wet-washing stone at the backyard and called caw-caw-caw. She was watching, a pair of crow from a distant tall tree approach in a very long arc and a baby squirrel sprinting close to the washing-stone.

    A regular robust squirrel with head down defying gravity came running on the greyish trunk of coconut tree, clutching in its mouth, something glistening. It came up to her, dropped out small metal ring from its mouth at her feet, swiftly u-turned, hopped on to a huge Mango tree.

    Hey presto! It was her missing topaz-golden ring; with her palms joined, she thanked the Lord with welled up eyes closed;:crybaby2: the squirrel sat-still on hind legs on washing stone glancing at her.

    (she - in this anecdote - is/was my beloved Mother)
     
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  2. MonikaSG

    MonikaSG Platinum IL'ite

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    Your mother was really a great lady. A lady can be a reason to improve generations is proved with this. :worship2:
     
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  3. Thyagarajan

    Thyagarajan IL Hall of Fame

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    :hello:Thank you for being the first one to post positive feed back on this crows & sqirrels.
    Regards.
    God Bless Us All Always.
     
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  4. GeetaKashyap

    GeetaKashyap IL Hall of Fame

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    @Thyagarajan Sir,

    What a wonderful anecdote said in your inimitable style! Such stories make one believe in miracles.

    5 years ago, in the rainy season we, my husband, son and me, had gone to my son's school to collect some important certificates. Due to heavy rains, the roads were badly waterlogged and holding umbrellas over our heads we walked/waded carefully along the invisible pavements buried under water wondering at each step whether it was safe to keep down the next step. In between this exercise, we had to also skillfully duck and avoid other's umbrellas. Finally, we waded into the school and then suddenly I realized that one of my gold earrings was missing. Even as I spoke to the principal, mentally I tried to retrace my way. Suddenly I recalled that while we were struggling on the pavement, one umbrella had grazed my face and I could pinpoint the exact location where it happened, to my son. He rushed back to that spot and in that ten odd minutes, the rain had stopped and water had receded. The footpath was visible and ...my son could spot my earring stuck between the paver blocks!
     
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  5. Thyagarajan

    Thyagarajan IL Hall of Fame

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    :hello:Dear GEEKAY
    Thank you for your liking that made you recall one of your own miserable yet ended in joyful moments.
    2. I think you would deem that such moments are necessary & helpful for one to handle efficiently future similar situations with aplomb.
    Regards.
    God Bless Us All Always
     
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  6. Thyagarajan

    Thyagarajan IL Hall of Fame

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    :hello:@Mistt @jskls Thank you for tapping/clicking the LIKE.
    You would with your feedback would gladen my heart more indeed.
    Regards.
    God Bless Us All Always.
     
    Last edited: Feb 27, 2018
  7. jayasala42

    jayasala42 IL Hall of Fame

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    Dear Shri Thyagarajan,
    Indian mythology has multitude of stories to make an impression about recognition of services rendered by others.I think three stripped squirrel is one among them. Three stripped squirrels are popular in South, while in Northern India squirrels have five strripes.There is no possibility that Rama ran over all his 5 fingers on the squirrel.Whether the biological features can be scientifically explained or not, the moral is very much captivating.Interestingly the reference to appreciation of Rama to the squirrels do not seem to have any reference in Valmiki,, Kamban or Tulsi Ramayan.It is mentioned in some paasurams of Aazhwars, who ,out of devotion to Rama, might have given an interesting interpretation to the marks on the back of the squirrel in a later period.

    There is another interesting remark about plantain leaves and Ramayana.
    Banana or plantain leaves have a partition through the middle.Rama, Sita, Lakshmana and Hanuman were returning from Lanka after annihilating Ravana.They decided to take rest in Sage Bharadvaj's Ashram.It is stated that in those days plantain leaves resembled large lotus leaves without any partition in between.When food was about to be served, Rama drew a line with his finger across the banana leaf to make it look like two halves.Rama wanted to have food with Hanuman on the same leaf in recognition of his affection to Hanuman thus exhibiting to the world what unwavering love can fetch.God and devotee had food from the same leaf.

    The details were quoted by Shri Thiruppur Krishnan in his lecture in Television.He quoted some verse from Apoorva Ramayanam,a very recent work written some 60 years back.
    Botany records state that Banana plants had the origin in Malaysia and slowly entered other Asian nations some 2500 years back around 600 B. C., much much later than Rama's Tretha yuga.

    There are certain regulations to serve food on plantain leaves;the narrow portion is to be to the left of the person taking food so that when he takes food with his right hand, he can partake comfortably from the broader portion.Rama's intention to take food with Hanuman goes against this very intention. Had Rama wanted he could have changed the shape of the leaf itself into a regular rectangle so that both the participants have no problem to take food with their right hand.

    It does not look scientifically reasonable to connect the shape of leaves, vein formation etc to mythological events.Formation of veins are like formation of blood vessels in human beings and it is connected to factors like genetics, environment, soil, capacity to absorb water and so on.
    May be the same thing is true of stripes on the squirrel and it may be a protective mechanism like camouflaging given by nature to protect them from snakes which normally swallow squirrel kids in particular.It is of interest to see the stripes on the squirrel more or less resembles the look of small snakes;and the snakes may not harm the squirrels considering them as small snakes.
    The moral is fine. But the mythological association does not seem to be reasonable to continue in this age, when children have access to so much of information on scientific aspects of animals and plants.
    Not to hurt the sentiments of people who have total faith in such explanations.

    Jayasala 42
     
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  8. jayasala42

    jayasala42 IL Hall of Fame

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    Losing jewels and retrieving them back is quite interesting.In 1940, at Mylapore a mami lost one of her diamond ear rings while taking bath in the bath room. There was no drainage system.Water was flowing out through the garden watering some banana and other plants. It was a common bathroom for 4 families.When she found out that her ear ring was missing , one hour had passed and so many other co residents would have taken bath.Search started at 10 A. M. Afterabout 5 hrs of intensive digging search, the diamond ear ring and the screw were separately traced among the slushy earth surface of plantain tree and kanakambaram shrub.

    There was huge rejoicing.Even while searching ,the mami prayed that she would offer 1,00,008 mothakams to the street corner Ganesha.How to prepare such a huge quantity?The inmates of 200 hundred houses in 'ondu kudiththanam' complexes expressed willingness to help in preparing mothakam. The mami and her husband, who knew the art of cooking, prepared the base flour and pooranam mix. at 4 A. M .Nearly 1000 coconuts were broken and and 300 kgs of jagory was used.It took more than 8 hrs to scrap the coconuts by about 100 mamis.The flour was distributed to nearly 200 tenements who prepared around 500 mothakam each.At about 3 P. M. the neivedyam was completed.Each family had a huge share of mathakam to the heart's content.But the shoulder pain never allowed them to enjoy Mothakams.Many started taking rest even at 6P. m. that glorious day.It took nearly 4 days for then to restore normalcy.
    But the event was not without murmur.
    "Who asked the lady to prepare 1,00,008 mothakam, a foolish proposal in itself. She should have prayed what was within her limits.Nobody longed for these mothakams " etc etc.No amount of 'thanks' could compensate the pain associated.
    Mami was very happy after spending 30% of the value of the diamond ear ring on mothakams.Whether pillayar was happy or not, the partaking mamis and their families expressed deep discontentment in the whole process.

    .My MIL used to narrate this event and advised us not to get tense when we lose something and be wise in offering prarthanas.,especially not to involve third parties in our struggle.
    One of my friends lost her ear ring( a popular blue jaguar of those days),while walking to Thirumala Hills. He found it out while coming back, while they decided to stay in Thiruththani.
    She thought that it is God's wish that she should not wear diamond ear studs. She took the other diamond stud and placed it Thiruththani Hundi,saying'One went to the uncle( Srinivasa) and let the other go to nephew Subramanya.She returned carefree, never spoke about this to anyone.Fortunately she was single and she was not answerable to anyone at home.
    Life is full of such episodes.

    jayasala42
     
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  9. Thyagarajan

    Thyagarajan IL Hall of Fame

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    :hello:Thanks for your painstaking FB REPLETE with hitherto unknown information about squirrel lines and eating on banana leaf and subtle hinting at anachronisms and or something ridiculing the commonsense or logic you call it.
    I feel and am touched with your very interesting contemplative data packed FB.
    SOUTH INDIAN Rameshwaram region squirrels are thin and having three parallel whitish lines on their fur while as u said elsewhere they are huge in size (Boston & New Jersey) with more or no lines over their fur.
    I find theories developed to disprove the previously believed ones with advancement and progress in knowledge right from Copernicus -Plato days.
    In a book on the life of Bhagwan Butta Bharthi Sai Baba citing the ISRO launched satellite images the author writes about the age of sunken bridge Ram Sethu between tip of India and SriLanka believed to be built and supervised by Lord Rama that exactly like codes with mythological time.
    I am Glad that you mentioned in the penultimate para that moral is fine.
    thanks once again.
    Regards.
    God Bless Us All.
     
  10. Thyagarajan

    Thyagarajan IL Hall of Fame

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    :hello:Thanks for your painstaking FB REPLETE with hitherto unknown information about squirrel lines and eating on banana leaf and subtle hinting at anachronisms and or something ridiculing the commonsense or logic you call it.
    I feel and am touched with your very interesting contemplative data packed FB.
    SOUTH INDIAN Rameshwaram region squirrels are thin and having three parallel whitish lines on their fur while as u said elsewhere they are huge in size (Boston & New Jersey) with more or no lines over their fur.
    I find theories developed to disprove the previously believed ones with advancement and progress in knowledge right from Copernicus -Plato days.
    In a book on the life of Bhagwan Butta Bharthi Sai Baba citing the satilight images the author writes about the age of sunken bridge Ram Sethu between tip of India and SriLanka believed to be built and supervised by Lord Rama that exactly coincide with mythological time.
    Thanks & Regards.
    God Bless Us All Always.
     

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