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Lack of compassion
Dear Diary,
Monsoon rains have hit Karachi. It rained cats and dogs the other day. In fact, it rained cats and dogs and mice and chickens and donkeys here, so much so that our dry ol’ Malir River was resurrected again.
I wish to tell you about a terrible incident that I happened to witness near Malir River. I saw a young boy pulling a dog towards the mighty gushing river. He was going to throw the poor dog into it, and only because he wanted to see the dog being taken away by the river! The poor dog was giving the little mischievous boy a hard time. And in this chaos, the boy’s slipper glided into the river. While trying to retrieve it, the boy lost balance and fell into the river. We saw his head bobbing up and down in the river and so, we raised an alarm and shouted at the top of our voices for help. Luckily, there was a good swimmer around who heard our cries and came to rescue the little boy.
Even the dog (which the boy wanted to drown) tried to help! The little boy was given first aid and was fortunately saved. I believe he learnt his lesson the hard way. He wanted to see the dog being taken away by the river and consequently, he experienced what it feels like being taken away by the river. I am sure he’ll never be unkind to a living creature again. I can only hope so.
At times, I wonder why we lack compassion for other creatures. God is all knowing and great. God taught the young boy a lesson he’d never forget. Perhaps there is a lesson in it for us too. I say we should be more cautious while dealing with our fellow creatures. We could be paid back in the same coin. The boy could have died but our God is merciful. Had the boy thrown the dog into the river, the dog would have certainly died. So, the boy wasn’t exactly paid back in the same coin. He was lucky that he escaped death. One thing is clear though: God dislikes and punishes those who torment animals.
I see no reason why one should hate animals. Animals don’t hurt us emotionally like humans. Nobody has ever committed suicide because of an animal!
If we want to see change, then we will have to change ourselves. If we wish to bring a major change, then we are to find and change little things that we overlook in our lives. If we wish to do gigantic acts of kindness, then we just simply shouldn’t ignore the small ones. Let your heart ache for a puny little creature like an ant, and it will automatically learn to ache for the members of your own species. This is one thing that we all need to understand.
One day there will be an end,
To the suffering of all creatures,
Animals and humans will live
In harmony with nature.
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