Hi everyone, I hope you are all fine and happy today and everyday, Amen =) I want you to read this story © Once upon a time, there was a bird in a cage who sang for her merchant owner. He took delight in her song day and night, and was so fond of her that he served her water in a golden dish. Before he left for a business trip, he asked the bird if she had a wish: "I will go through the forest where you were born, past the birds of your old neighborhood. What message should I take for them?" The bird said, "Tell them I sit full of sorrow in a cage singing my captive song. Day and night, my heart is full of grief. I hope it will not be long before I see my friends again and fly freely through the trees. Bring me a message from the lovely forest, that will set my heart at ease. Oh, I yearn for my Beloved, to fly with Him, and spread my wings. Until then there is no joy for me, and I am cut off from all of life's sweet things." The merchant travelled on his donkey through the dense forest. He listened to the melodies of many birds. When the merchant reached the forest where his bird came from, he stopped, pushed his hood back, and said, "O you birds! Greetings to you all from my pretty bird locked in her cage. She sends tidings of her love to you and wants to tell of her plight. She asks for a reply that will ease her heart. My love for her keeps her captive with bars all around her. She wants to join her Beloved and sing her songs through the air with a free heart, but I would miss her beautiful songs and cannot let her go." All the birds listened to the merchant's words. Suddenly one bird shrieked and fell from a tree brunch to the ground. The merchant froze to the spot where he stood. Nothing could astound him more than this did. One bird had fallen down dead! The merchant continued on to the city and traded his goods. At last he returned to his home. He did not know what to tell his bird when she asked what message he had brought. He stood before her cage and said, "Oh, nothing to speak of "no, no," The bird cried, "I must know at once" I do not know what happened," said the merchant. "I told them your message. Then, one of them fell down dead." Suddenly the merchant's bird let out a terrible shriek and fell on her head to the bottom of the cage. The merchant was horrified. He wept in despair, "Oh, what have I done?" He cried, "What Have I done? Now my life means nothing. My moon has gone and so has my sun. Now my own bird is dead." He opened the cage door, reached in, and took her into his hands gently and carefully. "I will have to bury her now," he said; "poor thing is dead." Suddenly, the moment he had lifted the bird out of the cage, she swooped up, flew out of the window and landed on the nearest roof slope. She turned to him and said, gratefully, "Thank you, merchant master, for delivering my message. That bird's reply instructed me how to win my freedom. All I had to do was to be dead. I gained my freedom when I chose to die." "So now I fly to my Beloved who waits for me. Good-bye, good-bye, my master no longer." "My bird was wise; she taught me secret," the merchant reflected. If you truly love your bird, please free it, right now, free it in a place where it can find other birds and trees, free it at dawn or very early in the morning, don't think even about it, put yourself in their shoes! Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeease, I beg your kind heart to respond my beloveds' demand, go, come on, do not delay, please, it is easy, you love them right, then what are you waiting for? This is their wish, and yeah let me tell you something, maybe it looks happy with you, even if it is free in your home or in a wide room [many people own birds but leaving them free with complete wings inside their homes], but believe me if you will give it a chance to experience the nature and world the place where it supposes to be, it will be the best gift ever, so give it this gift, please try to understand If you truly love them then you should give them the gift which emphasizes your real love it is freedom, why did Allah/God create wings for them then? Let them expand their wings and fly for long distance as much as they love, let them decorate our planet, let them sing the freedom songs, let all of us listen to their songs, let them experience how to find the other partner, how to make their nest, please, please, pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeease understand. YOU DON'T HAVE THE RIGHT TO JAIL THEM, WHAT ARE THEIR CRIMES! Will you free your bird? Please say, YES. Peace and love Yours Sincerely, Cat Stevens Note: Silly, Irrelevant, and the like, responses, posts, comments will be ignored (it depends on my mood and time if I won't ignore them), taking off the topic is losers' style, ask yourself: will you write such response if the writer wasn't a Muslim!
I remeber reading this story as a child.. lovely thought. I don't see how i can reasonably protest about it though ?. My mum and dad keep birds.. i fear if i freed them.. the cats next door would have them within a few hours.
matthew Nice one, it is really so sad that you have to make yourself dead just to have your right (freedom). I was thinking of that for a long time, I wish Peta will support this, people should think about it seriously, they should put themselves in their shoes, it is really a CRIME, THERE MUST BE A LAW TO STOP THIS! NOBODY HAS THE RGHT TO GAIL A HUMANBEING FOR NO REASON, WHY ANIMALS DON'T HAVE SUCH A RIGHT! To protest about it just like how others protest about wars, why not, birds deserve it. They are my God's creatures. Please matthew, try to talk to them, to explain to them, please. It is a big deal. Can't they fly well! Try to free them in a small safe room, let them be free for one hour, after two days they will become super birds, and again: it is better to free them in a place where they can find trees, other birds etc. and please at dawn, or very early in the morning, think about it matthew. Peace and love Yours Sincerely, Cat Stevens Note: Silly, Irrelevant, and the like, responses, posts, comments will be ignored (it depends on my mood and time if I won't ignore them), taking off the topic is losers' style, ask yourself: will you write such response if the writer wasn't a Muslim!
Lets NOT get Peta involved.. thay are a bunch of crackpots... It is WRONG that birds are kept as pets and it almost seems hypocritical that some birds are bred to be released as a 'peace' symbol.. I don't mind certain falcons and such birds being kept .. because thay have the chance to be free.. but MOST birds are just kept for no reason at all..sad but true. I understand... and agree.. but it would be counter productive to release my parents birds . Yes they can fly They are bred to be pets.. yes that sounds horrible.. and i agree it is horrible.. but thats what my parents like. It would be more cruel to ask them to release the birds than keep them 'locked up'.. They ARE released indoors to fly about quite often.. NO they will never reach the heights of the mountains [they would not get that high but thats not the point].. with there kin.. NO they will never do that.. But my parents do care for them very well. Honest.
matthew ….. Of course you have to take their agreement to do so? What!! I think it's more cruel to don't try (not once of course =) try several times)! I understand this very very well, but……try man! Come on matthew, you can do it. Matthew try at least twice Best wishes Peace and love Yours Sincerely, Cat Stevens Note: Silly, Irrelevant, and the like, responses, posts, comments will be ignored (it depends on my mood and time if I won't ignore them), taking off the topic is losers' style, ask yourself: will you write such response if the writer wasn't a Muslim!
I phoned them up..and asked them 3 times.. they responded how i did.. in the first place ''Sorry they will die .. the cats will eventually get them'' They are just NOT able to survive .. sorry.. i did try.
My kids and I got that story from the library before. Nice story. I don't really think the point was that people should set their pet birds free in strange habitats, though. That's not what we got out of it. Just so you know, the whole releasing pets thing definitely doesn't work with mice. My little brother got two supposedly male mice when he was a kid, and one of them got pregnant. In no time, my brother had lots of mice, and had to let some go. Well, we tried to keep the cats away from them and let them go in a place out in the country where they could be free, but these mice were foolish and soon perished. Oh well. Don't bother to call PETA, though. It happened about 10 years ago.
No when i heard it.. thats not what i got out of it either.. something about ''if you love something let it free''.. i was only about 10 at the time. I just went with CS.. did not wanna get all deep and meaningful. I would not say 'foolish' merely 'ill equiped to survive in a differing environment'.. that sounds SO much nicer.
I think he is getting that off a few people.. i said something along the same lines.. I admire his confidence to say such things in his sig... though. I think i might write.... ''Don't respond to my posts please ugly men or women..just good looking big busted young females.. not much inteligence please''
Matthew Thank you very much matthew I thank you again deeply, but Man! It depends on your style, how did you ask them to do so? When did you tell them that? Did you tell them about their feelings and things which I wrote in my threads, likeè give it a chance to experience the nature and world the place where it supposes to be, it will be the best gift ever, so give it this gift,… If you truly love them then you should give them the gift which emphasizes your real love it is freedom, why did Allah/God create wings for them then? Let them expand their wings and fly for long distance as much as they love, let them decorate our planet, let them sing the freedom songs, let all of us listen to their songs, let them experience how to find the other partner, how to make their nest etc, take your time in thinking of the best idea to make them satisfied, or write a letter (long one and explained everything to them), help the birds to be free, if you were that bird you will wish that someone is doing his best to free you, Come on matthew, you can do it =), pick the best time to do so, OK. How is that dear Mum! I will free them in a place where they'll find other birds, foods, trees, etc, like HydePark, or wherever there are birds and trees, =) and I will do that early in the morning so they will have lots of time to acclimatize blah, blah, blah, you come with me Mum to see the happiest moment in their life, we can take our video camera if you want to, blah, blah, blah, let's do it dear Mum =), and yeah, they will watch the other birds and will learn many things from them, so don't worry Mum, etc Have a nice day =) Best wishes Peace and love Yours Sincerely, Cat Stevens Note: Silly, Irrelevant, and the like, responses, posts, comments will be ignored (it depends on my mood and time if I won't ignore them), taking off the topic is losers' style, ask yourself: will you write such response if the writer wasn't a Muslim!
Levi That's up to you, I didn't feel that, what do you think of such a behavior? However, Yup, super nice =) Yes, I know this, but I want the members to look at it in other side =) I.e. even if you provide them with the best food, wide cage, etc they still want their freedom, you don't know which kind of warbling or song they are singing =( I am talking about birds. Matthew May God bless you =) Even if you're kidding what if an ugly man or woman read this! The way they think, their deep and soul is the point, not how they look like. Many people make jokes about cross-eyed, fat people and the like; what if one of them heard the joke? You have to put yourself in their shoes. Yeah, maybe they will ignore it but it hurts their feelings dear. What's the wrong or difficulty in respecting each other. Levi Matthew Have a nice day =) Best wishes Peace and love Yours Sincerely, Cat Stevens Note: Silly, Irrelevant, and the like, responses, posts, comments will be ignored (it depends on my mood and time if I won't ignore them), taking off the topic is losers' style, ask yourself: will you write such response if the writer wasn't a Muslim!
Sorry i asked because you asked me... i knew the answer.. They are NOT bred to live in the wild. It may have been a little half hearted.. but i DID ask them.. They know my sentiment though : ''what are you keeping those birds for..its so cruel'' So they knew i was being serious and not flippant. I did not add any religous overtones because A. i am not religous B. They are not religous.. As i have said..they look after them very well.. if they happened to find a hurt WILD bird.. they would do the right thing and either take it to the RSPCA or take care of it and release it..depending on its injury.. They ARE bird lovers hence having them in the first place. You/Me may not agree with them keeping them.. but their motivation is pretty pure. P.S I live in Leicester [no where near London ] http://www.loughborough.co.uk/images/ukmap2.gif underneath Loughborough... I was just kidding.. i have no idea what most people look like on these forums.. It would NOT make a blind bit of difference.. mmmm maybe i might flirt a bit with a poster who i liked the look of.. but thats about all. and you
matthew Thank you very much, I really do appreciate it Miracles, wonders, surprises happen. Are not bred and created to live in the cages, I'm sure they prefer to don't come to this life than to live in is such a situation, how poor Thank you Matthew, I won't forget this, may Allah bless you, Amen. As I told you dear brother, it depends on your style Actually, you don't need to do so; it is about freedom and a very natural right. I understand this dear Matthew, but…it won't justify it…I don't have the right to prevent my son or daughter from marrying because I will look after her very well because I'm afraid that her husband will deceive her or doesn't deserve her, or to prevent my son from driving a car because I don't want him to have an accident! I understand this … *sigh* They can take their time to look for and choose the best place to release them… After releasing them, we may have no idea of what is going on with them, how they would die! When, etc let them learn, discover, this is their life I do understand them…but I don't have the right to prevent my child from going to the kindergarten, because there are bad and violent kids! I know dear brother Matthew, thank you again for trying and for your time, I appreciate strongly and deeply, at least you disagree it and tried. They can release them in any near park, any place which is full of trees and birds! It isn't necessary to be full of them, England is such a paradisiacal concerning its nature, however, whenever they decided to release them in Hyde park, they can drive to London, have nice few days there, and at the same time, releasing the birds, the birds deserve it, and London is a wonderful, you know this, they won't lose anything if they'll go there =) Yup, but some people know that they are so, or you may remind them, once people described them ''you are ugly'' they forgot it, but someone is reminding them again with no need to do so…many people have such a problem, they can't forget it, they are trying to forget it maybe, they want to hide, but they like to talk with people, so they use the internet, even the people behind the screen are doing the same!!!! Thank you Matthew 'again' =), may Allah bless you Have a nice day =) Best wishes Peace and love Yours Sincerely, Cat Stevens Note: Silly, Irrelevant, and the like, responses, posts, comments will be ignored (it depends on my mood and time if I won't ignore them), taking off the topic is losers' style, ask yourself: will you write such response if the writer wasn't a Muslim!
