Frog

The frog is rocking his well, thinking it is rocking the world.

I posted this line on Twitter sometime back and it got me thinking. Who is this frog I keep alluding to in my thoughts whenever I come across a reincarnation of this frog as a human?

I remember reading this story in a book that had speeches and works by Swami Vivekananda. Yeah, I got all those books when I had been for a camp in the Swami Vivekananda center. Point is, this frog story has stayed with me for long. It is the simplicity of the story and the fact that you see it so often in the world around you that brings it closer to reality than most other stories.

The frog who thinks that his well is the entire universe. The frog who thinks that there is so much in this well of his that it is the best thing ever. The frog who is proud and looks down upon the other mighty sea folks who have explored the unknown ocean.

The little frog who is the king of his own world.

But would you blame the frog for that? This Chinese story ends with the frog realizing how little the well is as compared the ocean. It is mildly shocked and is upset.

Does this happen in reality? Humans are more likely to turn to their own well and be the Lord Frog of that splendid well. My well is bigger than yours. My well is shinier, damper and filled with delicious edible creatures.

Humans are also more likely to realize that their well is not the world and keep complaining about it. Yeah that is possible too. Do you know how tough it is to maintain my well? I have to do tons of things to keep it a good place. What about you big shelled turtle, the seasons take care of your uncontrollable ocean. What would you know!

I really don’t know what side should I take when I want to allude to the frog now. Maybe both, maybe some other dimension would come up.

I wish at times that I was Sigmund Freud.