A Simple Parable with a Profound Meaning
By: Vikram Rajola
Tags: Learning, Vision, Dreams, Panchatantra, Reading

As in all cultures across the world, in India too, the ancients have handed down wisdom of the ages through stories, fairy tales, adages, proverbs, riddles, couplets and the like. One of these is a simple parable that I have been hugely impressed with ever since I first heard it as a teenager in school.

It goes like this:

Q.

कितना योजन आकाश है?

क्या है धरती का तोल?

क्या फकीर की जाति है?

क्या पारस का मोल?

Ans.

नज़र योजन आकाश है।

धर्म है धरती का तोल।

संयत फकीर की जाति है।

शब्द पारस का मोल।

Four questions are posed by the writer and the narrator expects you to come up with answers to these. Once you venture your answers, which are more often than not incorrect and unsatisfactory, the second half of it providing the answers is recited to you. As you are left to ponder the meaning, the narrators moves on to other stories and the session continues.

The literal meaning is as follows:

Questions:

How would you measure the sky?

(Yojan is a measure of distance used in ancient India)

How much does the earth weigh or rather what is it balanced on, what keeps it in its place?

How do you identify a saint, which sect does he belong to?

How would you assess the value of Paras?

(Paras is a mythical substance that turns anything touched to it into gold, like Midas’s touch)

Answers:

The sky is as distant and large as your vision

Righteousness is the base on which the earth is balanced and kept in position

Moderation is the virtue that helps identify a saint

The spoken and written word is worth as much as the value of Paras

The literal meaning too has a touch of the philosophical, but the deeper meaning is something on the next level entirely. Anyone who contemplates and comprehends would surely be wiser and better off.

The first answer that the sky is only as distant and large as your vision means that the only real limits are the ones you set for yourself. If you dream big and strive hard to achieve your goals then probably you will be able to realize your dreams. On the other hand, if you think you are not cut out for great things, you would still be right. Your achievements will be within the boundaries you envision. In other words, set your sights high, give it all you have got and you shall reach as close as possible to the target, possibly even meeting and exceeding it.

The second answer that Dharma is what the earth rests on emphasizes the utility of right conduct, integrity, nobility in thought and deed. Dharma is a concept and a way of life rather than a particular action; as such no English translation can do justice to the word in its entirety. Stability is lent to the earth, not the planet as such which is governed by physical laws, but the representative home, our mother earth where life has been brought into existence, is balanced when people lead lives according to prescribed standards and principles, following the moral code of conduct of that particular age. In Indian philosophy, all life is sacred and we are incredibly lucky to be born as humans, since one has to go through innumerable cycles of birth and death to take attain this privilege. Given this background, once we take birth as men and women, aware of ethics and values to be practiced in our time, we ought to do that without straying from the path, as that is what keeps the earth in its place, ensuring our safety and security. Therefore, this is an injunction to leading virtuous lives for our own sakes and for that of the planet.

The third reply that mentions moderation as the identifying mark of sainthood, takes a leaf out of Buddhist teachings of the middle path being the best one. As the Buddha advises, nothing is to be done in extreme, not indulgence nor penance. A holy man is one who practices moderation in everything he does — in speech, food, attire, and even emotional states like love. He doesn’t expect too much happiness and is not perturbed by pain, misery and suffering. An individual who attains this level of equanimity and poise can be said to be a holy man. Most significantly in a caste ridden society like India, this simple parable taught the layman that upright action is more important than the accident of birth. That no one is born a saint, but anyone can attain sainthood by practicing moderation. Further, a holy man does not belong to any manmade sect and ceases to be defined or limited by the artificial categories created by us to divide one man from another.

I find the last and final response to be the most relatable. I love to read, but it was not always so. The habit was kind of forced into me by my father. As a school student, I was averse to reading anything, curriculum books especially; with not much interest in novels, storybooks or non-fiction. During holidays, I was given books and ordered to finish them within a specific time. I am thankful to my father for introducing me to the pleasure of reading. But I would rather have younger people develop the taste on their own. Once you start, there’s no stopping you. It’s like a wonder drug, one keeps hankering for more.

Coming back to the parable, it proposes that knowledge in the form of the spoken and written word is equal in value to the Paras, that is to say it is of such an incalculably high price that it is worth its weight in gold. This is a fact, all information known to man, everything of significance was until very recently (before the web came into being) stored safely in books. Data, facts and knowledge accumulated over centuries was collected, coded in languages and either verbally or in writing passed on from one generation to the next for learning. That collected wisdom of words is a veritable treasure trove.

There is a very interesting episode that lends further credence to this assertion. An incident mentioned in the Persian book of kings — Shahnameh by the great poet Firdausi, tells us the story of Burzoy, and his visits to India in the sixth century AD searching for the elixir of life. A physician during the reign of King Khusro I, he was asked by his emperor to procure the magical potion that would make the mighty emperor immortal. It was rumoured that in the lands of India to the east of the Persian kingdom, there lived holy men who had discovered a secret potion that when consumed could make one ever youthful defying death. Burzoy travelled to India looking for this herb. What he found instead was the Panchatantra, animal fables that teach important moral lessons. He also understood that knowledge was the ultimate nectar that gave us enlightenment. He took back the Persian translation of the Panchatantra to his emperor, from there it was translated into Arabic and thence to several European languages. Both Burzoy and Khusro are remembered even today for this prudent action of theirs. Indeed, their names were rendered immortal and shall remain for eternity.

Knowledge is everlasting, it is our best friends in good times and bad. The more one reads and draws from this cup of infinite wisdom, the more refined and discerning one becomes. Reading gives us pleasure and education. That we can access and learn from the experiences and teachings of the greatest gurus of all ages is a revelation. We ought to seize the chance while we can.

Go ahead; grab a book of any genre. Start reading today.