Gods had neutralized my good action
By my killing of a few ants
What they did admire, however
And found no fault with, was my intention.
Dr. Jernail S Aanand, a renowned poet and writer from India, shares his poem
Dr. Jernail Singh Anand, based in Chandigarh, is an Indian poet and scholar credited with 170 plus books of English literature, philosophy and spirituality. He won great Serbian Award Charter of Morava and his name adorns the Poets’ Rock in Serbia. He was honored with Seneca Award LAUDIS CHARTA by Academy of Arts & Philosophical Sciences, Bari, Italy 2024. He is Founder President of the International Academy of Ethics and conferred Doctor of Philosophy (Honoris Causa) by University of Engineering & Management, (UEM) Jaipur. Email anandjs55@yahoo.com
OF INTENTIONS AND HUMAN ACTION
OF INTENTIONS AND HUMAN ACTION While on my morning walk,
I often carry a small bowl of sugar
To place it on an anthill
Thinking
We must give back
Something to the earth
And this act and this intention
Appear to be entirely in sync
But today when I lowered
The disk of sugar
I realized the ants were moving about
When I looked carefully
I saw they were spreading around
And some of them were
Crawling near my feet too.
Oh. I jumped back with a sudden shrug
And looked keenly at the earth
I was not wrong
I had trodden over a few
And they were no more
Perhaps in a second
They had made for heaven.
I sat down to reflect
On the fate of my intention
And my action
Gods had neutralized my good action
By my killing of a few ants
What they did admire, however
And found no fault with, was my intention.
The divine policemen descended
On the scene with forensics
And held me
Guilty of the murder
But Gods acquitted me
As I could not be accused
Of willful destruction of life.
They looked at me
And left without saying anything
But a few days hence,
I received a letter from Divine HQ
A note from God which said
While doing good,
Look at where you tread.
__________________
