Doing One’s Bit

There was once a person who did not believe in the existence of God or that it was God who provided food to all. His friends tried their best to make him understand this fact but to no avail. At last he said, “I would like to experience this myself.” Therefore, one day early in the morning, he left home and headed towards a jungle. There he perched on the branch of a tree. He said to himself: “If God is the one who provides food then He will definitely send food to me here.”

He sat on the tree for a whole day but did not receive any food. His morning, noon and evening meals were skipped. He did not find anything to eat. Now he was convinced that the belief that God provided us with food was wrong. Then after some time, he saw a group of people. They were travelers and were looking for a tree under which they might spend their night. After looking here and there, they finally selected the same tree upon which the man was perched.

He remained totally silent so that they would be unaware of his presence. After setting up the camp, the travelers collected wood to make a fire. Then they untied their bag, took out pulses and rice, and cooked a dish from them. When it was ready, they thought of seasoning it, so they heated oil with chilies. When the strong smell of chilies reached the nostrils of the man sitting up in the tree, he could not stop himself from coughing. Hearing this, the travelers discovered that someone was sitting up on the tree, so they helped him get down and invited him to join their feast.

The man happily returned home in the morning. He said to his friends: “What you all said was 100 per cent correct. Surely it is God who provides us with food, even when we have done nothing to deserve it.”