Fishes were merrily swimming along. One day a strange fish happened to be with them. This fish was for a long time an inmate of the aquarium of the local marine museum, and was, without its own knowing, thoroughly indoctrinated in the methods of science. It also imbibed the wisdom of religious discourses delivered in the same hall which used to be lent out to a local Guru by the Director of the museum who was also a great devotee seeking his true self.
This educated fish, after watching the fishes promiscuously swimming about, asked them what it was they thought they were doing. 'Why, just swimming,’ they answered.
'You fools, that is not swimming. You have not gone to a proper school to realise your full potentialities. People laugh at you and call you silly fish. Better join my institute for Aquatic Locomotion. First of all you had better give up this unseemly rolling about and leaping and diving till you learn the ABC of the affair, unless you want to die as common fish. Also remember that you don't swim on Friday afternoons and don't eat worms on Sunday. Moreover, do not chase a female fish the whole of the fortnight when at the institute. You call it swimming, this unseemly racket you are making!'
Quite a large number of fish got thoroughly ashamed of themselves and gave up swimming in order to learn aquatic locomotion; these were just a few; quite a large number secretly indulged in swimming, publicly went into hysterics over their lapses, and joined societies, and formed governments to prohibit uncontrolled and unsanctified swimming. Soon a majority of fishes lost the capacity for natural swimming: they only knew the Australian Crawl and Indian Dive. One or two fishes who were discovered to exhibit traits of swimming were considered abnormal, made to feel ashamed of themselves, were drowned in the beginning but with further civilisation, these were counted, measured as to the degree of this awful abnormality of swimming - naked habit, and all the fishes worked themselves to death raising funds, and donations for an increasing number of institutions of rehabilitation.
Once it was discovered by a very able young fish, with a Ph.D in Aquatic Locomotion and Dyskinesis, and Akinesis, its treatment, management and prevention that accidental exposure of the abnormal fish to contact with an electric eel produced dramatic results - the affected fish could now stand still in shallow water without being a nuisance to anybody. Soon electric eels were in great demand.
As the counting and measuring proceded it was becoming alarmingly clear that all the fish were abnormal.
At this stage it was considered an urgent measure to increase the number of Aquatic Locomotion experts to serve each fish, and the number of abnormalities being inumerable, it was decided that every expert in one abnormality should treat another expert with a different abnormality.
The last I heard on the seashore is that the fishes are having a raging argument as to who is a normal fish.
The aged fish who started the whole affair told them that the time has come for the fishes to ask themselves who they really were. It was felt that this could not be understood in the customary milieu of water and that they should spend at least six months in an year in a Tibetan Monastery far from water. When some of these adventuring fish trying to find who they were died, it was said that they all became Golden Fish invisible to ordinary fishes and could only be seen in vision or by special Grace.
In the midst of this great to do about discovering their real identity, there were a few coral mausoleums where large number of fishes gathered every evening for prayers and meditations. It is believed that one mausoleum was in honour of a great fish who not only swam without going to school, but, audaciously enough proclaimed his philosophy which was 'You are a fish. You just swim!' what a great fish! What simple things he says! It is easy for Him to say all this! But how difficult it really is! I am trying for years, thousands have been trying for years! Only last year my grandfather dies on land dedicating his whole life to know who he is! Such penance! Such austerities! What can I do, a poor ordinary fish! Only thing I can do is to pray to this great Fish to have mercy on me, and at least appear to me in a dream, and that at least in next life I can be a great fish like Him, knowing how to simply swim! But, right now, I am in the midst of this complex world, and how can I just swim, when I have to go to the special classes in swimming wading through knee-deep water, and tomorrow I have to go through one long mile of muddy water to eat worms sold at that place on Sundays, for here you don't sell worms on Sunday. What a horrible life muddling year after year through endless miles of water and I have not learnt the ABC of aquatic locomotion. It is ok for these God-Fishes to swim merrily along. Just fates. Also right now I am having sinful thoughts about that fish in blue fins. This is fate. What Hell we have to go through to reach Heaven!
One or two fishes who thought that being a live fish was good enough have been sent to the centre for juvenile delinquents.
The matter is still under multidisciplinary research. I am glad to tell you that the fishes are having a jolly good time trying to find out who they really are!
This educated fish, after watching the fishes promiscuously swimming about, asked them what it was they thought they were doing. 'Why, just swimming,’ they answered.
'You fools, that is not swimming. You have not gone to a proper school to realise your full potentialities. People laugh at you and call you silly fish. Better join my institute for Aquatic Locomotion. First of all you had better give up this unseemly rolling about and leaping and diving till you learn the ABC of the affair, unless you want to die as common fish. Also remember that you don't swim on Friday afternoons and don't eat worms on Sunday. Moreover, do not chase a female fish the whole of the fortnight when at the institute. You call it swimming, this unseemly racket you are making!'
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| Moofushi Kandu, Maldives - Bruno de Giusti. Wikimedia Commons |
Once it was discovered by a very able young fish, with a Ph.D in Aquatic Locomotion and Dyskinesis, and Akinesis, its treatment, management and prevention that accidental exposure of the abnormal fish to contact with an electric eel produced dramatic results - the affected fish could now stand still in shallow water without being a nuisance to anybody. Soon electric eels were in great demand.
As the counting and measuring proceded it was becoming alarmingly clear that all the fish were abnormal.
At this stage it was considered an urgent measure to increase the number of Aquatic Locomotion experts to serve each fish, and the number of abnormalities being inumerable, it was decided that every expert in one abnormality should treat another expert with a different abnormality.
The last I heard on the seashore is that the fishes are having a raging argument as to who is a normal fish.
The aged fish who started the whole affair told them that the time has come for the fishes to ask themselves who they really were. It was felt that this could not be understood in the customary milieu of water and that they should spend at least six months in an year in a Tibetan Monastery far from water. When some of these adventuring fish trying to find who they were died, it was said that they all became Golden Fish invisible to ordinary fishes and could only be seen in vision or by special Grace.
In the midst of this great to do about discovering their real identity, there were a few coral mausoleums where large number of fishes gathered every evening for prayers and meditations. It is believed that one mausoleum was in honour of a great fish who not only swam without going to school, but, audaciously enough proclaimed his philosophy which was 'You are a fish. You just swim!' what a great fish! What simple things he says! It is easy for Him to say all this! But how difficult it really is! I am trying for years, thousands have been trying for years! Only last year my grandfather dies on land dedicating his whole life to know who he is! Such penance! Such austerities! What can I do, a poor ordinary fish! Only thing I can do is to pray to this great Fish to have mercy on me, and at least appear to me in a dream, and that at least in next life I can be a great fish like Him, knowing how to simply swim! But, right now, I am in the midst of this complex world, and how can I just swim, when I have to go to the special classes in swimming wading through knee-deep water, and tomorrow I have to go through one long mile of muddy water to eat worms sold at that place on Sundays, for here you don't sell worms on Sunday. What a horrible life muddling year after year through endless miles of water and I have not learnt the ABC of aquatic locomotion. It is ok for these God-Fishes to swim merrily along. Just fates. Also right now I am having sinful thoughts about that fish in blue fins. This is fate. What Hell we have to go through to reach Heaven!
One or two fishes who thought that being a live fish was good enough have been sent to the centre for juvenile delinquents.
The matter is still under multidisciplinary research. I am glad to tell you that the fishes are having a jolly good time trying to find out who they really are!
***
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