In the November of 2005 I wrote this on my now non existent blog. Here is the reprint on this one.
November 13, 2005 on 10:55 pm.
We are alone, absolutely alone on this chance planet: and, amid all the forms of life that surround us, not one, excepting the dog, has made an alliance with us.
– Maurice Maeterlinck
Sometime when you read a quote you think wow what a brilliant thought. Sometime they sum up the life; sometimes they show you the paths in life but sometime they have hidden message, I felt the same reading the above quotes from Maurice Maeterlinck.
More I tried to forget this quote more it haunted me. So I decided to think about it, of course with respect to my intelligence.
Read it and look closely. Every word is cleverly placed and carries the beautiful message. “We are alone, absolutely alone on this chance planet.” Now first of all, are we in a chance planet? At least all that we can understand from our current astronomical knowledge, almighty has left us so lonely and so insecure in this dangerous universe that a smallest error in “his” universe may jeopardize our journey over this chance planet.
And are we alone? oh sure look around your space, and you will find that there is not a single creature has befriended with us other that DOG. Even the cruelest of all creatures try to avoid confrontation with us at almost all occasions. The probability of you being killed by tigers, leopards, snakes, or any wild animal or any creature in Jungle is far less than you being killed on road.
But hey there is an exception to it. Do you know the most dangerous animal in Jungle is Wild Dog and not tiger or leopard? They can eliminate entire Jungle fauna in just few decades? Their ability to hunt down the wildest creature by working together in groups, tirelessly, is similar to Jungle beats that Kings of 19th and 20th century used to almost eliminate Lion and Tiger from this country and elsewhere. (Read Kenneth Anderson, south Indian equivalent of Jim Corbett for more on wild Dogs).
So, is our friendship with Dog is a friendship between two cruel and shrewd creatures? May be our civilized activity is centered towards ourselves and that too superficially. And seem we are on a mission to clear all other creatures from this chance planet which makes us natural enemy to all others except the Dog. And “others” knew it for ages, I hope we realize and reconcile.
(For those who think that wild and domestic dogs are two different creatures, just as we show great interest and love to our ancestors (Read Monkey) similarly wild dog too show kindness to domestic dogs only.
All I can say is “Humanity by chance may not get more chances in this chance Planet”