Story of Ekaksh Pradesh - By Dr.B.S.Patil

Image courtsey: deviantart.com 

In a deep forest somewhere in the middle of India lived a monster Ekaksha (Ek-one Aksh-eye). He was young and inexperienced. He needed guidance from his mother at all times. His mother was weary of him due to his uncanny ability to attract trouble.

One day, the trouble created by Ekaksh was too big for his mother to handle. He had challenged the group leader for a fight. This fight would decide the future leader of the pack. But the problem was for the loser. The loser had to quit the group. It was supposed to be the punishment for challenging and losing.

The Mother was dismayed with the development. Before she could react, the combat began.

Ekaksh was a powerful young monster. His power and agility posed a serious threat to the leader. But his inexperience overturned all his advantages and the leader won the bout.

So was excommunicated. The one eyed monster had nowhere to go. He wandered for days. Hunted and feasted on stray animals as well as fruits.

Whenever he came across other predators, he was warned not to encroach upon their territories. He was smarter with the earlier bad experience and so he bowed out of their territories without inviting any trouble.

After wandering for a few months, he came across a human settlement adjacent to the jungle. The one eyed monster attacked the cattle grazing near the jungle and killed two of them. He ate one and wasted the other.

News of the presence of the one eyed monster spread panic among the settlers. All of them approached a monk, who lived in the nearby area.

The Monk heard them intently and said, “It’s a real problem. The Monster will gain confidence day by day and from attacking cattle, he may end up attacking humans”.

The statement sent shiver down the spines of the visitors.

The Monk continued, “What can I do? I am not a warrior to counter him.” This depressed all of them.

One among them requested him to help in any way possible. 

The Monk gave a long thought and said; “I will talk to the monster and try to find some way out of this situation. But you all have to allow me to make any promise to the monster if necessary. ”

Obtaining blanket permission from humans, the Monk went straight into the jungle.

Ekaksh saw the Monk from his hideout. He was scared at once looking at the assertiveness of the Monk. It was visible in his walk, in his look and in his leisure body stance.

The Monk stopped on his way and looked up straight into the eyes of the Monster and said “Come down, I want to talk to you”. This was first offer to talk, after he left his pack and his mother.

The Monster jumped down from his hideout and stood before the Monk.

In a tone of inquiry, the Monk asked, “Why did you kill the cattle?”

The Monster answered in a puzzled tone, “To eat”.

“But you killed two and ate one” the Monk retorted.

The puzzled monster turned into scared monster and said, “Just to show my strength to those humans, so that I am not threatened”.

Monk in a conciliatory tone said, “All you want is food. I will provide it. But I want a promise from you”

The monster was happy to listen to the word ‘food’. A big smile came on his face. He said in an inquiry tone, “I eat, meat as well as fruits.”

The Monk smiled and said, “All your taste will be taken care of.”

The Monk continued, “There will be a herd of sheep reared exclusively for your consumption. A garden of fruit bearing trees will be grown and dedicated to you. Not only that, you will be served with new variety of food, as humans have learnt the art of cooking. To do that, we will dedicate a piece of land and all the grains grown on it will be cooked and given to you.”

The Monster looked pleased and said, “Ok, if you do that, I will promise I will not eat humans and harm them in any manner.”

The Monk continued as if he did not hear the statement, “But I have one condition” and said, “You will not be the only monster coming here. So I want you to stand as our protector against others”

The Monster agreed………..

Today after passage of time immemorial, the humans remained indebted to the monster for his help. The place where the incident happened is now known as “Ekaksh Pradesh.”

The principle of Negotiation:

“Present is always pregnant with future” - Voltaire

Therefore, the mediation should ensure the ‘birth of future’ in a hale and healthy condition.