Freedom ! How far !

That reminds me of the famous saying  "I freed a thousand slaves. I could have freed a thousand more if only they knew they were slaves”.

There is a famous story that goes like this. A man, a great man, a fighter for freedom was traveling in the mountains. He stayed in a caravanserai for the night. He was amazed that in the caravanserai there was a beautiful parrot in a golden cage, continually repeating "Freedom! Freedom!" And it was such a place that when the parrot repeated the word "Freedom!" it would go on echoing in the valleys, in the mountains.

The man thought: "I have seen many parrots, and I have thought they must want to be free from those cages... but I have never seen such a parrot whose whole day, from the morning to the evening when he goes to sleep, is spent in calling out for freedom." He had an idea. In the middle of the night, when the owner was fast asleep, he got up and opened the door of the cage. He whispered to the parrot, "Now get out."

But he was very surprised that the parrot was clinging to the bars of the cage. He said to him again and again, "Have you forgotten about freedom? Just get out! The door is open and the owner is fast asleep; nobody will ever know. You just fly into the sky; the whole sky is yours."

But the parrot was clinging so deeply, so hard, that the man said, "What is the matter? Are you mad?" He tried to take the parrot out with his own hands, but the parrot started pecking at him, and at the same time he was shouting "Freedom! Freedom!" The valleys in the night echoed and re-echoed, but the man was also stubborn; he was a freedom fighter.

He pulled the parrot out and threw him into the sky; and he was very satisfied, although his hand was hurt. The parrot had attacked him as forcefully as he could, but the man was immensely satisfied that he had made a soul free. He went to sleep. In the morning, as the man was waking up, he heard the parrot shouting, "Freedom! Freedom!" He thought perhaps the parrot must be sitting on a tree or on a rock. But when he came out, the parrot was sitting in the cage. The door was open.

We often speak and debate about freedom. However, when the freedom is ensured, how often do we use that! Freedom may mean different to different people based on the circumstances. Since in the modern times, absolute freedom is negated, freedom often is accompanied by responsibility.

Most of the times freedom scares us due to the accountability that imposes on us. We are not free to do whatever we want in a civil society. We have freedom of thought. However, we don’t have freedom of action, expression, in its absolute sense. So, within the gamut of the freedom that we have we have to be accountable and responsible.

This could represent our journeys to being saved/trying to save others. We say we want to be saved ("free") but when opportunities are presenting themselves, we turn away. Also, it shows we cannot force people to be "free" (saved) or they will cling to their cages. They have to want it.

Irrespective of our social, financial, economic, political and religious status, everyone needs freedom. It’s said man is born free but surrounded by shackles. Even if we can come out of those shackles, one may prefer not to. One may get into the comfort of that shackles. That’s why freedom differs from one another. Freedom is precious. Though we say, everyone likes to be free, that’s questionable again. Free to what extent? For each that extent may free.

Modern days have made us pledge our freedom in bargain to security. We have let go our privacy too sometimes to the general security of the masses or to our own security. In a civil society that’s essential to lead a peaceful society. Indeed today, we have a large set of people raising their concerns against curbing of freedom and privacy in the name of national interest, since this has been used as a weapon to monitor citizens at large.

We have to be conscious of what we are bargaining to let go off our freedom. If the bargain is in our favor or to accomplish someone’s ulterior motive is the biggest determination in the negotiation of freedom.