Post No. 13,750
Date uploaded in London – 5 October 2024
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Arjuna’s faith in Krishna is known to many of you. Here is the story as told by Sri Sathya Saibaba in 1996 lectures:
Krishna wanted to impart the knowledge of the Bhagavad Gita to Arjuna to instil courage and enthusiasm in him. But before imparting this knowledge, Krishna wanted to test Arjuna, to see whether he had total faith in Him.
Krishna took Arjuna to a forest. While returning, it became dark. Krishna pointed to a bird perched on a tree and said, “Arjuna, see how beautiful this peacock is!” He started this conversation to see the state of Arjuna’s mind.
Arjuna replied, “Yes, Swami, the peacock in really beautiful.” Krishna said, “Oh madcap, that is not a peacock. Don’t you see it is an eagle?” Arjuna replied, “Yes, Swami, it is an eagle.” Krishna slapped him on his back and said, “What a fool you are, Arjuna, that you are unable to make out whether it is a peacock, an eagle, or some other bird. Look carefully. It is neither a peacock nor an eagle. It is a pigeon.” Arjuna replied, “Yes, Swami, it is a pigeon.”
Pretending to be a little angry, Krishna said, “Don’t you have common sense? Don’t you have discrimination power? What are you thinking? You don’t seem to enquire whether it is a peacock or an eagle or a pigeon. You are blindly saying yes to whatever I say.”
Arjuna replied, “Oh Krishna, if I say it is not a peacock, You may change it into a peacock. Similarly, if I say it is not an eagle or a pigeon, You may turn it into any of them. You can do anything. Your word is important for me. What does it matter to me whether it is a pigeon or a peacock or an eagle?” Krishna was very happy that Arjuna had so much faith in His words. He placed His hand on Arjuna’s head and blessed him, saying, “Now you are My true devotee.” Fix your mind on Me, be devoted to Me, offer obeisance to Me and worship Me.
Chinese Story and the Proverb
To say / make that black is white
In Japanese it is same- shika wo sashite uma to iu/nasu.
Chinese proverb is similar to arjuna’s story above.
Chinese say – zhi lu wei ma – pointing to a deer as a horse.
Equivalent proverb in European languages is – To say / make that black is white
Here is the story
Zhao Gao was Prime Minister of the second emperor of the Quin Dynasty -221 to 206 BCE.
He intended to overthrow the inefficient ruler but first wanted to test the loyalty of the courtiers. He brought a stag and told them that it was a horse. Those who told the truth and said it was a stag were all considered not loyal to him and were killed one by one
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Chinese Story for
A blind man may sometimes catch the hare
Japanese say ,
Of one thousand ideas of fools there is one good one.
As a return of courtesy Duke Jing of Qi sent a thousand pieces of gold to Yan Ying, the Prime Minister of the state of Qi during 770-476 BCE period. He repeatedly refused to accept it telling,
‘A wise man weighing a matter thousand times may make a slip, while a fool, weighing the issue a thousand times , may hit upon a good idea. A careful consideration may prove that my idea is correct’.
Tamil proverb says,
2693. குருடன் கையில் விலாங்கு மீன் அகப்பட்டது போல
As an eel was caught in the hand of a blind man.
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This fellow is wise enough to play the fool,
And to do that well craves a kind of wit.– Shakespeare in Twelfth Night
In Shakespeare’s works, fools are often clever peasants or commoners who use their wits to outdo people of higher social standing. They are similar to the real fools and jesters of the time, but their characteristics are exaggerated for theatrical effect.
According to the proverb, “A wise man can play a fool, but a fool can’t play wise,” a person who is educated and knowledgeable has the capacity to act foolish or naive when they so choose, either for tactical purposes or to achieve a certain result.
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Big fish eat little fish is in many languages
“சின்ன மீனை போட்டு பெரிய மீனை பிடி
Latin- pisces minutos magnus comest
Chinese – ruo zhi rou qiang zhi shi = the meat of the weak , the meal of the strong
In Tamil literature we have
Pazhamozhi 400 verse No. 302
O’ lord of the town where blooming flowers jostle in streams!
Those who spend whatever little they have to do good deeds,
and expect to reap much more in return – are like those
who throw in small fish to catch a big fish
சிறிய பொருள் கொடுத்துச் செய்த வினையால்,
பெரிய பொருள் கருதுவாரே;-விரி பூ
விராஅம் புனல் ஊர!-வேண்டு அயிரை இட்டு,
வராஅஅல் வாங்குபவர்.
Some people spend a little money on charity in this life and expect much in return in their after life. These people are like those who throw in small fish (small fish – அயிரை) to catch big fish (வரால் – big fish).
Pazha Mozhi Naanooru ( 400 Old Sayings) is one of the 18 post Sangam anthologies. Each verse explains a proverb.
This proverb is used very often in commercial circles and share markets. Big companies always take over smaller companies.
சின்ன மீனைப் போட்டாத்தான் பெரிய மீனைப் பிடிக்கலாம் சில்லறையை விட்டாத்தான் பெருந்தொகையை எடுக்கலாம் – தாயைப் போல பிள்ளை சினிமாபாட்டு.
To be continued………………..
–subham–
Tags- Arjuna’s faith, Chinese, Proverb, black is white, small fish, big f8sh eat, blind man, fool
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