The Tearful Story of Secularism & Atheism
Many years ago, there was a beautiful
forest, the like of which is not found in the world today. It is said that if
you ever were fortunate enough to set foot in this forest, you would never
desire to leave. Huge, ancient trees providing shade to cool, clear ponds with
the mesmerizing sound of water trickling down rocks painted with moss, now and
then interrupted by the splash of a tropical fish jumping out of the water or
the croak of a frog who whips out his tongue to snatch a fly from the air. If
this wasn’t enough to dazzle a person, then there were the thousands of
different wild berries and boughs heavily laden with exotic fruit, full of
screeching monkeys scaring off colorful birds. Through the gaps between the
trees, huge herds of buck could be observed grazing peacefully, interrupted
only by a passing predator searching for its meal.
But these magical scenes were not the
most spectacular feature of this forest, this forest was enveloped in an almost
unnatural atmosphere of order, where morality persevered over the savage inner
nature of the animals. It is said that even the most ferocious creatures - like
the lion and the tiger – would not cause any more harm than necessary, and no
animal would oppress another animal. But the real reason behind the phenomenal
nature of this forest was the rulership of the elephants. Their rulership was
built upon pristine divine laws, pure principles and uncontaminated ethics, they
encouraged righteousness and implemented a divine justice system. Each elephant
ruler understood his responsibility and understood that his rulership depended
upon upholding the pure principles of his ancestors. Every dark and evil force
was too afraid to try and corrupt the forest due to the strength of the
elephants.
However, over time evil forces started
gathering, plotting and planning, desiring the downfall and end of the
elephants’ reign. The elephants themselves became complacent; spending more
time enjoying the delights and fancies of the forest, rather than implementing
the law. Then one morning as the rising sun peeked out through the clouds, the
calm and serene atmosphere of the forest was suddenly shattered by the horrific
roar of a logger’s chainsaw. Animals scrambled and ran in fear; unable to
process the foreign invasion, men in overalls on which the motto “The
cooperation of technology” was boldly written. Birds and squirrels – who didn’t
understand what was happening – watched helplessly as their ancestral homes
were torn down. At the same time, the banished clan of hyenas going by the name
“Secularism and Atheism” led by the vilest creature named Darwin spread
darkness, greed and lawlessness, ripping out the throats of the weaker animals,
snatching babies away as their parents watched helplessly. Any animal
unfortunate enough to cross the path of these savage killers would be torn to
pieces. This attack was so savage that the once green grasslands were now
stained red and littered with mangled corpses and animals that were injured and
crippled, and the once sparkling clear waters were now tainted with a deep
crimson that did not fit in what was once a haven of nature.
The elephants, however, managed to
protect an area within the deepest part of the forest where any animal that was
able to escape the attack sought refuge.
A few years passed in this manner
until one fateful day; when the most cunning and sly enemy set foot in the
forest. The loggers cleared their path of trees and all the guards and sentries
that the animals had placed were lying dead; killed by the hyenas. The circus
of western civilization tore through the forest, coaxing some animals with
drugged meat, shooting others with tranquilizer darts, the sounds of terrified
howling filled the forest. But the circus was not yet satisfied, they would
only rest once they found the elephants. They continued making their way
through to the center of the forest, maiming or killing anything that stood in
their way. The elephants stood looking at each other, deep brown eyes filled
with sadness as the reality of the situation finally set in. They could hear
the circus hunters getting closer and closer. Most of them had left within
them; they had watched everything they knew being destroyed right in front of
them.
It all happened very fast, many shots
were fired, hitting the elephants from all sides, but even in their tranquilized state, they fought, thrashing and struggling to stay conscious. A
huge specimen by the name of Al ‘Aml charged and fought, even after being hit
by three darts, his huge tasks cutting and slashing through everything that
came in his path, fire in his eyes, muscles tensed with determination. But
eight or nine shots later, the great beast eventually fell. When he hit the
ground, it was as if the whole world shook. The last sound he heard before
being dragged away was the sound of chains being dragged over to bind him and
his brothers.
***
Al ‘Aml looked around his cage for the
hundredth time. He couldn’t believe that it had been ten years since that
fateful day when he had been captured. He had still never given up, but as he
glanced up, watching his other brothers through the bars of his cage, he was
filled with sorrow. Gone were the thick chains and the tranquilizer darts.
Nowadays even a twine rope was not needed, they obediently served the circus
masters. Standing when they were told to and sitting when they were told to,
like puppets in some kind of twisted puppet show. They had forgotten who they
were, their strength and power and the kingdom they had ruled over for over a
thousand years. A sigh escaped his trunk and a warm tear dropped to the ground
as he looked at his brothers, Lahore and Oman. If only they would work
together! They had grown up to be very strong but were ignorant and lost. The
only brother he was proud of was Kabul. Although he was a younger and weaker
brother, he had caused the circus masters a lot of trouble and had finally
escaped. “Maybe Kabul will come back and help us” he thought, at least it was
a hope to hold on to. As he looked up at the thousands of stars in the sky, he
hoped with every fiber of his being that his brothers would recognize their
true strength and escape, so that they could go back to ruling the forest and
fix the abnormality that the world was facing. But as he put his head against
the old steel bars, he could still hear the screams in his head as his brothers
were tortured into submission, pushed down again and again, destroying their
spirit and convincing them that they were weak. If only they could understand
their true strength!
