Once there was an Indian trader who went to Africa to acquire some local products and animals. In the jungle, he saw many colorful talking parrots. He decided to capture a talking parrot and take him back as a pet.
At home in India, he kept his parrot in a cage, he fed him honey and seeds and treated him very well. When it was time for the man to return to Africa two years later, he asked his parrot if there was any message he could deliver to his friends in the jungle. The parrot told him to convey to his friends that he was very happy in his cage and that he was enjoying every day, and asked him to pass on his love.
When he arrived back in Africa, he delivered the message to the other
parrots in the jungle. Just as he finished his story, a parrot with
tears welling in his eyes fell over dead. The man was very alarmed but
he thought the parrot must have been very close to the parrot in the
cage and this was probably the reason for his sadness and his death.
When the traveller reached home, back in India, he told his pet parrot what happened. As he finished his story, the pet parrot’s eyes welled up with tears and he kneeled over dead in his cage. The man was astounded but he figured that his pet died from the grief of hearing the death of his close friend in the jungle.
The trader opened up the cage and tossed the dead bird onto the trash heap. Immediately, the pet parrot flew up to a branch on the tree outside. The trader said to him: “So you are not dead after all, why did you do that? You tricked me.“ And the parrot responded: “The bird back in Africa sent me a very important message.“ “What was the message,“ the trader wanted to know. He told me that “IF YOU WANT TO ESCAPE FROM YOUR CAGE, YOU MUST DIE WHILE YOU ARE STILL ALIVE"
This story is told to illustrate the fact we are like the parrot in the cage of the body and the mind. and so long as we do not die to the world of the senses, we cannot become free. The parrot had asked the parrots of India how it could become free, and they responded by one of them dropping dead. When you are dead to the world, the world has no use for you.
We must indeed die while we are alive in order to look back at our waking consciousness and see ourselves trapped in our cage (in our case that of our EGO).
When the traveller reached home, back in India, he told his pet parrot what happened. As he finished his story, the pet parrot’s eyes welled up with tears and he kneeled over dead in his cage. The man was astounded but he figured that his pet died from the grief of hearing the death of his close friend in the jungle.
The trader opened up the cage and tossed the dead bird onto the trash heap. Immediately, the pet parrot flew up to a branch on the tree outside. The trader said to him: “So you are not dead after all, why did you do that? You tricked me.“ And the parrot responded: “The bird back in Africa sent me a very important message.“ “What was the message,“ the trader wanted to know. He told me that “IF YOU WANT TO ESCAPE FROM YOUR CAGE, YOU MUST DIE WHILE YOU ARE STILL ALIVE"
This story is told to illustrate the fact we are like the parrot in the cage of the body and the mind. and so long as we do not die to the world of the senses, we cannot become free. The parrot had asked the parrots of India how it could become free, and they responded by one of them dropping dead. When you are dead to the world, the world has no use for you.
We must indeed die while we are alive in order to look back at our waking consciousness and see ourselves trapped in our cage (in our case that of our EGO).
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