MONKEY AND SUGARI

Sugari’s (tailor bird) is known for its very well-woven and an artistic nest. It protects from wind and rain. On one rainy day, a sugari was sitting in its nest and it was raining heavily and it was thundering with frequent flashes of lightening. At such time, a monkey troubled by the cold wind and rain took shelter under the tree. The sugari sarcastically asked, “You are so clever then why didn’t you build a nest to live in on the rainy day?” The monkey got angry and told the sugari to shut up. He kept on shivering. Sugari could not resist teasing him, she said, “Why did you waste the summer time in laziness?”

On hearing this, the monkey was enraged and verbally abused the sugari. The rain and thunder increased and the sugari once again opened its mouth. The monkey was so mad now that he said, “Keep quiet, you bad mouth. If you keep murmuring, I will make you homeless. Don’t pretend to be a pundit (a learned man).” The sugari kept quiet. But the cold monkey started to shiver again due to the bitter frost, and the sugari once again spoke the words of wisdom. At last, the monkey could not control its anger any more. He said, “Although I have no ability to make a house, I do possess the ability to break one.” Saying so, he climbed up the tree, and destroyed the sugari’s nest, making the poor sugari also homeless. Now both of them suffered from cold wind and rain.

Such occasions are very common. We should not point out the faults of others. We should remain indifferent to them. Everyone is responsible for what he or she does. We should try to learn from other people’s good and bad experiences. We should improve ourselves and get rid of our faults first. This was one of the many messages of Lord Mahavir.