The Monkey and The Crocodile...

Ever read the Panchatantra tale of the friendship between the monkey and the crocodile? Back then it used to amuse me only on the grounds of the talking animals involved, the rose apples and of course the name of the crocodile- Ugly Mug. I remember that I and my brother used to have a good laugh at that. The reason that I write about my love for this story now is only that I have understood the moral of it. The monkey, a herbivore befriends a crocodile, its predator. Despite the obvious danger to the monkey, the friendship blossoms until one day out of his wife’s request the crocodile complies with her fancy of having a monkey's heart. The presence of mind of the monkey saves him but the moral remains- “You can’t change the inherent nature of a being” The crocodile by its very virtue is a predator. Nature had made him a flesh-eating being and the monkey one day was nothing but flesh to him. It doesn’t make the crocodile malevolent or the monkey dumb (maybe it makes the monkey a little dumb for being hopeful- I am still battling that perspective), it just transpires to what we call "Mother Nature". The analogy that I draw from this brilliant story is that you come across people who are like the crocodile and the monkey with each other. It takes a lot to accept the inherent nature of a being. To accept it as a part of him/her even though it is at conflicting ends with what you believe in, is a challenge. For instance, there are certain presumptions, and blanket statements about men and women. That could box them in preconceived notions that make them more understandable. Like men can separate sex from emotional intimacy more than women. It doesn’t make the man a predator (in negative connotations), it just brings forth the fact of how nature made him. It can also be like shopping for most women, a futile exercise as coined by most men. If you are aware of the obvious repercussions of being with someone who is at conflicting ends with not just who you are but what you are, be prepared to escape and accept. The monkey in the end doesn’t shed a tear for the crocodile (however the crocodile does) for he realizes that the crocodile only conformed to how nature made him, what he is. This post is inspired by my rendezvous with the crocodile. It made me think that each of us is a monkey and a crocodile to someone or the other. Rather than hoping (like the monkey) accept the monkeys and the crocodile as who they are, not what you want them to be…or even better watch from a distance, admire their existence and their contribution to the food chain.

And What is Love...?

Been through a plethora of romantic movies with over dramatic characters and also the movies which I think resemble my own story, been through texts and quotes and prose and poems that have made me think and reminisce some cherished times but at the end of it what is love…

Love is kind, it doesn’t envy, it doesn’t pride….I forgot the rest of the text because it’s too good to be true. I may come across as a cynic here but I have started to believe love is a mere feeling of wanting companionship. It is a manner in which you associate yourself to a purpose. The purpose could be of pursuit, achievement, coming out stronger or perhaps just a shift from the monotony that you are living through. It is obvious that everyone has his own paradigms when it comes to defining the concept, some say it is fuck up of the mental anatomy while others say love is the best medicine (I heard it was laughter)

I have heard so much about love that I can’t concoct a definition of it from all that I have. It is also region specific. For instance, when I see Indians, I see them using this word more loosely than anyone ever can. “I love you” is more of an “I have now this part of my life figured out, what a relief and let me see what else I can do”. For those of you who have a habit of taking things personally, your definition is the right one and don’t bother to read on (again this is directed to us- Indians). What I gather from the “west” is a different picture. They say it as carefully as they can and it is a big deal. The incongruity here is that in both cases there are screw ups. Is screw up a part of it? The romantics please suffice an answer that is not- it doesn’t matter, what matters is you felt it for someone.

In my experience I have never been in love. I have thought that I am though, every time to maintain the sanctity of what I am feeling. To give the other person some respect as well. But every time I have used this sentence it has pricked a part of me to say it loosely (I am as Indian as Indian can be). From pursuit to wanting a change, it has been all but never the right one.

I guess you don’t need to know what it is. You don’t need to define it anyway, I mean for whom? It is scary to some because it is so personal. Everyone I know wants to know what it is and some arrogant souls believe they know….helps them settle. But you know it is love only when you have the guts to ignore the chaos, the need to figure out things and be patient. Let it settle, and not settle with it. May love find all mankind….