The Wind-deer and the Honey-grass
[The Craving for
Sweet Taste]
Once upon a time, the King of
Benares had a gardener who looked after his pleasure garden. Sometimes, animals
from the nearby forest would wander into the garden. The gardener complained
about this to the king, who in turn said: “If you see any strange animal, tell me
at once.” One day, the gardener did see something strange. He saw a weird kind
of deer at the far end of the garden. When the deer saw him, it ran like the
wind. The gardener knew he had caught a glimpse of the ‘wind-deer’. They were a
rare species and were extremely timid. They were very easily frightened by
human beings. As instructed, the gardener told the king about the wind-deer.
“Would you be able to catch this rare animal?” asked the king. “My lord, if you
give me some bee’s honey, I could even bring him into the palace!” answered the
gardener. The king ordered that the gardener could have as much bee’s honey as
he wanted.
Now in this story, our little wind-deer loved to eat the flowers and fruits that grew in the king’s pleasure garden. Not to frighten the wind-deer off, the gardener let himself be seen little by little, so that the deer would be familiar to his presence. Next, he spread honey on the grass where the wind-deer usually grazed. Sure enough, the deer began to eat the honey-coated grass. Soon, it developed a liking for the taste of this ‘honey-grass’, and come to the garden every day. Before long, the deer would eat nothing but the ‘honey-grass’!
Now in this story, our little wind-deer loved to eat the flowers and fruits that grew in the king’s pleasure garden. Not to frighten the wind-deer off, the gardener let himself be seen little by little, so that the deer would be familiar to his presence. Next, he spread honey on the grass where the wind-deer usually grazed. Sure enough, the deer began to eat the honey-coated grass. Soon, it developed a liking for the taste of this ‘honey-grass’, and come to the garden every day. Before long, the deer would eat nothing but the ‘honey-grass’!
The gardener approached the
wind-deer little by little. At first, it would run away. But slowly, the
wind-deer was accustomed to having him around. It lost its fear and thought the
man was harmless. Eventually, the gardener even got the deer to eat the
honey-grass right out of his hand. He continued doing this for some time, in
order to build up the confidence and trust of the deer. Meanwhile, the gardener
had rows of curtains set up, making a wide pathway from the far end of the
pleasure garden to the king’s palace. The curtains would prevent the wind-deer from
seeing anybody from inside the pathway that might startle it.
When all was ready, the gardener
took a bag of grass and a container of honey with him. Then he started to feed
the wind-deer by hand when it appeared. Gradually, he led the wind-deer into
the curtained-off pathway. He continued to lead him with the honey-grass slowly
until finally the deer followed him right into the palace. Once inside the
building, the palace guards closed the doors and the wind-deer was trapped.
Scared out of its wits to see so many humans around, it began to dart around,
frantically looking for a way to escape.
The king came down to the hall and saw the terrified wind-deer. “What a wind-deer! How could it have gotten into such a state? A wind-deer is an animal who will not return to a place where it has seen a human for seven full days. And generally, if it has been alarmed at a particular place, it will not return for the rest of its life! But look! Even such a shy wild creature can be trapped because of its desire for something sweet, and even be lured right into the palace at the centre of the city,” he said. “My friends, the teachers warn us not to be too attached to the place we live in, for all things are transient and pass away.
They say that being too attached to a small circle of friends is confining and restricts a broad outlook. But see how much more dangerous is the simple craving for a sweet flavour, or for any other taste sensation. Just see how my gardener ensnared this beautiful shy animal by taking advantage of its craving for honey-coated grass.”
The king came down to the hall and saw the terrified wind-deer. “What a wind-deer! How could it have gotten into such a state? A wind-deer is an animal who will not return to a place where it has seen a human for seven full days. And generally, if it has been alarmed at a particular place, it will not return for the rest of its life! But look! Even such a shy wild creature can be trapped because of its desire for something sweet, and even be lured right into the palace at the centre of the city,” he said. “My friends, the teachers warn us not to be too attached to the place we live in, for all things are transient and pass away.
They say that being too attached to a small circle of friends is confining and restricts a broad outlook. But see how much more dangerous is the simple craving for a sweet flavour, or for any other taste sensation. Just see how my gardener ensnared this beautiful shy animal by taking advantage of its craving for honey-coated grass.”
Not wishing to harm the gentle
wind-deer, the king released it back into the forest. From
that day onwards, the deer never
again returned to the royal pleasure garden.
The moral is ✏ “Cravings and
desires can be dangerous to one’s well-being.”
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