2024-01AesopAndTheFerryman Ferryman as Death

Once upon a time, in ancient Greece, there lived a clever man named Aesop. He was known far and wide for his wise stories, but sometimes he found himself in tricky situations. One day, Aesop needed to cross a river, so he approached a ferryman who operated a boat to take people across the water. But instead of helping Aesop, the ferryman decided to make fun of him. "You think you're so smart with all your stories, don't you?" the ferryman sneered. Aesop remained calm and decided to teach the ferryman a lesson. He began to tell the story of Charybdis, a fearsome sea monster from Greek mythology. Charybdis had the power to suck in huge amounts of water to create a whirlpool, which cvould sink boats. . And according to legend, she would eventually gulp the sea dry, leaving no more need for ferryboats like the one the ferryman operated. The ferryman listened to Aesop's tale with a mocking grin, but deep down, he couldn't help but feel a little worried. What if there was some truth to Aesop's words? Many years later, another similar incident occurred. This time, Aesop was mocked by a group of shipbuilders. Undeterred, Aesop shared another story, this time about the gods creating the earth. In this myth, the king of the gods commanded the earth to drink up the water, leaving only dry land behind. And just like before, the third gulp would dry up the sea entirely. I am reminded of Agasthiyar (Pot-born) Muni, a Vedic scholar was born from a pot, the receptacle of the seeds of the Vedic Gods, Mitra and Varuna at the sight of Urvashi, the celestial nymph. He is the father of Tamil literature. Agasthiya Muni helped Gods to fight the demons, who disappeared in the depths of the ocean. Agasthiya drank up the entire sea water and exposed the demons for the gods to destroy them. This earned him the epithet Samudrachuluka. The shipbuilders laughed at Aesop's story, but as they continued their work, they couldn't shake the feeling that maybe, just maybe, there was some wisdom in what Aesop had said. And so, the moral of the story is this: Never underestimate the power of wisdom, for even the simplest of tales can hold great truths. And those who mock others may find themselves learning a lesson in the end.