When humankind attained wisdom and knew all that is good and bad. There was born the teller of tales; a small tribe of people (men and women), who watched and observed what no one saw. Creative, imaginative, highly skilled and having a perfect understanding of the human psyche, these people have the ability to touch the human heart with their words alone. To weave tales, by laying the selective warp and weft of time and space. Piece by piece, word by word, they build up perfect universes out of nothingness. Like a conjuring artist. They transpose the partakers in a time and place removed from the present. This ability gives them immense power, for unknown even to themselves they can mould and shape the thoughts of an entire generation. Call them influencers if you will.
Like all things there are the teller of good tales and of bad ones. Peace in the universe rests on the shoulders of the tellers of good tales, the tellers of tales that give hope. They are the hope whisperers.
These people have a calling to answer, unknown even to themselves. They pursue various careers in a quest to find their true calling. Some find their calling earlier than others, but once they have found it, everything they have previously done or been through, aligns itself.
Peace in the universe rests on the shoulders of the tellers of good tales, the tellers of tales that give hope. They are the hope whisperers.
Are you one of them? Are YOU a hope whisperer?
I find myself blessed to have realized and answered to this calling. I call myself the Kathanika: the teller of tales.
Through my work I try to bring hope to people, to bring a smile on the faces of those that have forgotten how to smile, to remind people where they came from and where they will go. To me the tribe of hope whisperers are those that were left at the bottom of Pandora ’s Box. Here is how I do it, nay let me demonstrate…let me tell you a story, for what is the point of a storyteller writing an article without a story in it .
Have you seen the Gulmohar tree? Have you really, really seen it? Have you observed it? Do you know where it came from? It is not a native to our country. Do you know what birds and insects make their homes in it? Do you know what kind of fruit it bears? How does pollination take place among the Gulmohar flowers? Who are the agents? Have you stood under the Gulmohar tree and been showered by the petals? Do you know why it has red flowers? Come, I’ll tell you.
Have you stood under the Gulmohar tree and been showered by the petals? Do you know why it has red flowers? Come, I’ll tell you.
Once upon a time, the blossoms of the Gulmohar were a pristine white. In fact, they were so white, that the Gods used to use say, “As white as the Gulmohar flowers!”. This was at a time when there was just a single season. The sun was at a distance from the earth and it was pleasant and cool all over. Water would rise as vapour and go to meet her friend the Sun, in the blue skies, there she got transformed into clouds and came back to earth a light rain.
Water and the Sun were good friends and enjoyed each other’s company. One day Water said to her friend, “Oh mighty Sun, you are brilliant indeed and I see you in your splendour, but it is I who come to visit you. Why don’t you come down to the Earth and see me sometime? I am quite magnificent on earth, I have so many forms. On Earth, I twinkle and glitter as icebergs, I rise and fall like waves in the oceans, I sway in the sparkling sea, I run through mountains and plains as rivers, I cast rainbows as I fall gracefully through hills, I hide below the Earth in wells, I rest calmly in ponds, I sing gurgling in brooks. Please, do come to visit me on Earth.”
The Sun had never seen Water in forms other than vapour and so one day she decided to visit Earth to take a closer look.
The Sun rolled and rolled and rolled and came closer to Earth. As the Sun rolled closer to Earth, it got hotter and hotter and hotter.
Everyone on Earth was alarmed, the Sun had never come so close. It began to get really hot, all the animals and creatures of the Earth began getting uncomfortable. The trees went brown and were scared. The Gulmohar tree stood calmly and was noticing all the changes that were happening around. She was concerned about the fate of the creatures on Earth, finally she could stand it no more. She opened up her branches wide and tried to shield all she could under her. All the creatures ran to her and huddled below her. The Sun had by now rolled quite close, the Gulmohar stood her ground and soon the white blossoms burst into flames one by one due to the intense heat.
The Gulmohar tree stood calmly and was noticing all the changes that were happening around. She was concerned about the fate of the creatures on Earth, finally she could stand it no more. She opened up her branches wide and tried to shield all she could under her.
Everywhere the lovely Gulmohar flowers began burning; bright red, scarlet, orange, yellow the flames rose.
The Sun was taken aback, she did not mean to harm the beings on Earth.
“Fire Fire!” screamed the little animal.
“Oh No!” exclaimed the Sun.
“Oh dear!” exclaimed the Water.
When the Sun saw the lovely white flowers on fire, she stopped. The fire had to be put off!
Quickly Water leapt from the seas and rivers and ponds and brooks, transformed herself into vapour and rose high, high up into the sky. Down she came as little droplets, tip-tapping away the fire.
The flames were put out, the Gulmohar tree and all the creatures on earth were saved!
After they had all settled down the Sun exclaimed, “Water! How beautiful indeed you look on earth! How beautifully you shine and sparkle. I must come close to the earth to admire your beauty!”
“You are most welcome,” said the creatures on earth, “but not too close!”
“Don’t worry”, said the Gulmohar smiling, “I will put out red flowers for you as a warning. When you see the bright red flowers, you know you have come too close. Then you must stop and roll back!
“That’s a good idea!” exclaimed Sun happily.
“As soon as I see a lot of red flowers, I will quickly come down as rain!” promised Water.
From then on the flowers of the Gulmohar took on the colours of burning fire and when they blossom we know the sun is closer to earth. As promised after the summer season, come the rains to put out the fire!
Thus began the cycle of seasons and the blossoming of the scarlet Gulmohar heralds the coming of the summer.
The next summer, when the Gulmohar blossoms, I want you to go and examine the flowers. Look at the petals closely, if you look hard, you will find that on the Gulmohar flower there is one petal that has a little bit of the tell-tale colour white that it once was. Go and see it for yourself.
