Jungle is the lungs of the world
as fertility is the heart of the earth. Nature creates beauty, grace, symmetry
and also chaos in artistic fashion to
display the variety and plenty of life
forms. But the Jungle is the primal creation containing her entire assets of
insects, reptiles, canine, bovine and human to celebrate Nature's grace in a razzmatazz - as if the creation of vegetation and movable
life is in a ceremonial dance and song
of celebration. Nature has created the jungle for oxygen, food for all and also
space to grow and expand. Trees stand like "greenrobed senators" to
cogitate hermit like how to maintain harmony out of a plethora of voices,
noises and sounds. The wild beasts too are a part of the jungle. The tiniest
insects, the bulkiest animal - elephant- the strongest- lion, tiger- the
wiliest fox and the most intelligent man- all are in the jungle living together
with fear, joy hunger and alertness. Each
species has different taste, habit and way of life. The birds sing and soar,
the monkeys sit on the branches, tigers are on the prowl, the deer and other fourleggeds steer clear of
the wild and get domesticated by men
who use them to get more out of life.
Each creature irrespective of size, shape and intelligence fends for life in
its own way. But man being more comfort loving and capable of group strength
tried to harness the beasts for his own use.
No creature except man cuts the jungle to burn wood or to build
shelters. He watches the dance of the
peacock in the morning while the birds sing the morning prayer to the maker,
the other animals watch with gleeful eyes. But man greeds for the plumes and devises weapons. The dark night
in the jungle is eerie, made more mystical by the cricket while the lovelorn
chataks whine. But man is awake to kill
the mighty beasts for his bonfire.
Jungle has its own life. Like a
rustic maiden decked with wild flowers
and leaves it sways in the lapping wind of spring in rhythm with the
tuneful choir. In the rains the trees stand mute like waiting lovers looking at
all sides and in winter like standing corpses wait for funeral , for the June
sun. The animals follow the mood of the jungle and run, pause and stay still.
At times like the town crier they announce the oncoming of danger, running away
to temporary lairs. But man ignores all those moods of the trees and animals
and plans and plots for his security, comfort and the luxury of the fruitioning
trees, denying a share to others. Nature has no meaning for him. He tries to learn
the language of the birds and beasts, sun, moon
and stars and thinks of conquering them all. He eats his jungle mates,
entraps them to submission, nets the birds and drives away the others from
their rightful habitation. He clears Khandab Forest for agriculture, for the
Maya palace and for villages and cities.
Man became powerful by trading
the jungle kingdom. He ate and sold the meat of other animals to the other
jungle eaters everywhere. He built houses- not wooden cabins only, large
Buckinghams. He also killed and exploited men who were less intelligent and
weak. He invaded kingdoms for cows, for water, for nature's womb resources- gems, oil, gas and
fossils. He multiplied, grew, reached the top of the Everest, crossed the Atlantic.
The dinosaur became extinct, the tiger,
lions, rhino are all now endangered species. It's man who is now the master. Jungles
are now gone - almost. The Oxygen forest near Brazil, the lungs of the
civilized world was burnt. The Australian Bushfire alarmed man but undaunted he
moved on. His knowledge of the world was used as the engine of destruction. He can now destroy the
planet in three minutes- the time it took to create the earth after the Big
Bang. He has poisoned the air. New York, Beijing, Delhi all are now chocked. In
winter and rain his concrete jungles are buried under snow, drown under water.
Ebola, Zika and now Corona sink his heart. He ignores the warnings of fellow
men who are Scientists; calls conferences to rescue the jungle which he has
replaced by steel and concrete. Big guns don't agree. Some leader says forests are
our only resources; we will make furniture, paper, rubber and anything that our
fancy takes on. Man has already made holes in the Ozone layer. But how does he
care? He blames the others of destroying nature. He argues what if the rose is
gone, see our paper roses. What if the air is poisoned, we have our air-
purifiers. Our masks can protect us. Our medicines are like ambrosia, we will
attain immortality. Our roof gardens give us beautiful flowers and oxygen. We
can eat artificial meat, milk and pills
for hunger. We can. We will and shall go on.
He is now prepared for the new choir
of the jungles which he has created . When unseasonal rains come he will dance
in the bunkers. When snowflakes fly in the air and tower tops disappear he can
sing with oboes in sealed AC halls. His frozen food will outlast the long
untimely winters. If the temperature touches 80 degree centigrade he can fly on
the mooncrafts to Uncle's craters. The new Jungle Jamboree is about to start.
The ahs wohs will now come to deafening
pitch, he will listen to taped music
which will make the cadavers take capers
in the air. No no , no deluge, the new Jungle Paradise without
breath, taste, smell - only a grand jamboree of eerie silence.
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