Page 57 - Desire to Disaster

Sunanda’s beauty that he fell completely in love with her.
The burden of attachment and aversion attracted karmas to his
soul. The swan was unaware of the karmic burden that was
being added to his soul through his emotional attachment.

We humans are a strange lot. We hang on to what we should
have gotten rid of.
Inability to learn from Others

Look at moths which burn themselves on flames in order to
express their love. Fish get caught on hooks when they seek to
eat the worm. There are so many examples of people getting
trapped due to their obsession with something, their desire
for fame and recognition, or in their quest to make money.
There are so many instances of self destructive behaviour
that occur all around us. It is better to learn from others’
mistakes, rather than make the mistakes ourselves.

A Stone for the Swan
The swan was still gazing at Sunanda’s face. He was
completely lost in her beauty. The King had been sleeping
with his head in the lap of his wife. He was rudely awakened
when bird droppings fell on him. A crow had done that!
The crow, then flew to the ground and stood next to the
swan, observing how the king would react after having bird
droppings fall on him.

As soon as the king woke up, he saw the crow and guessed
what had happened. He grabbed a stone and hurled it in angrily
at the crow. Being alert, the crow flew away to safety. But
the enraptured swan was still gazing at his beloved Sunanda,
and did not see the stone being hurled his way. As a result,
he got hit by the stone and died. He had been so blinded by
the presence of Sunanda, that he had tuned out everything
else. As a result, he had to pay with his life.

Desire to Disaster 57