Karma stories

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High in the reaches of Mount Kailasa is the abode of Shiva, the

Lord of destruction. One evening Vishnu, responsible

for preserving the cosmic order, came to see Shiva. He left

behind at the entrance Garuda, the half-man, half-eagle

composite, who served as his vehicle.

 

Garuda sat alone, marveling at the natural splendor of the place.

Suddenly his eyes fell on a beautiful creature, a little bird

seated on the arch crowning the entrance to Shiva's place. Garuda

wondered aloud: "How marvelous is this creation! One who has

created these lofty mountains has also made this tiny bird - and

both seem equally wonderful."

 

Just then Yama, the god of death who rides a buffalo, came

passing by with the intention of meeting Shiva. As he crossed the

arch, his eyes went over to the bird and he raised his brows in a

quizzical expression. Then he took his eyes off the bird and

disappeared inside.

 

Now, in the ancient thought of India, even a slight glance of

Yama is said to be the harbinger of death. Garuda, who had

observed Yama's action, told himself, "Yama looking intently at

the bird can mean only one thing - the bird's time is up. Perhaps

on his way back he will carry away the bird's soul with him."

Garuda's heart was filled with pity for the helpless creature.

That it was oblivious of its own impending doom further agonized

Garuda and he resolved to save the bird from the clutches of

death. He swooped it up in his mighty talons, rushed to a forest

thousands of miles away and left the bird on a rock beside a

brook. Then he returned to Kailasa and regained his position at

the entrance gate.

 

Soon after, Yama emerged from inside, and nodded to Garuda in

recognition. Garuda greeted the god of death and said: "May I put

a question to you? While going in, you saw a bird and for a

moment you became pensive, why?"

 

Yama answered him thus: "Well, when my eyes fell on the little

bird, I saw that it was to die in a few minutes, swallowed by a

python, far away from here in a forest near a brook. I wondered

how this tiny creature would traverse the thousand of miles

separating it from its destiny in such a short time. Then I

forgot. Surely it must have happened somehow."

 

Saying this, Yama smiled and went away. Did he know about Garuda'

s specific role in the matter? Nobody can know for sure. Garuda

sat perplexed, mulling over the surprising turn events had taken.

 

----

 

In medieval China there once lived an old farmer, who had a weak,

ailing horse for ploughing his field. One day, the sickly horse

ran away to the hills.

 

The farmer's neighbors offered their sympathy to him: "Such

rotten luck!" they exclaimed.

 

"Bad luck? Good luck? Who knows?" mused the farmer.

 

A week later, the old horse returned, bringing with it a herd of

wild horses from the hills. This time, the neighbors swarmed

around the farmer and congratulated him on his good luck. His

reply however was the same: "Good luck? Bad luck? Who can tell?"

 

Sometime later, while trying to tame one of the wild horses, the

farmer's only son fell off its back and broke his leg. Everyone

thought this was bad luck. "Bad luck? Good luck? I don't know,"

said the farmer.

 

A few weeks later, the king's army marched into the village and

conscripted every able-bodied young man living there. The farmer'

s son, who was laid up with a broken leg was let off, for he was

thought to be of no use to them.

 

Now what was this? Good luck or bad luck? Who can tell?

 

Things that seem adverse on the surface may actually be good in

disguise. And something that seems to be attractive and 'lucky'

may actually be harmful to our best interests. The learned ones

leave it to Lord to decide what is best for them.