Death of a Cockroach

It didn’t occur to me at first, but after killing a creature, suddenly it struck me that I have done something that is bad! The uninvited guest crawled into my room stealthily, and I was not quite prepared to invite him; the insecticide was there at my table, with the nozzle to spray the poison on anyone who would invade my room. It did not even take me one minute to finish off the cockroach which was emerging out of a corner of my room. Probably the innocent creature did not know that I would be so very violent with him/her, and that I had a very strong weapon to kill him/her through a violent death. After killing the creature, I had a guilt feeling for indulging in such cold-blooded murder.

But this is not the first time that I had indulged in such a violent, brutal killing of a creature, which has the same kind of right to live on earth, as myself. It was terrible to see the poor creature wiggle and die, and it took just a few seconds; the poison should have crippled it within seconds, just as cyanide might do to a human person. It was after letting the entire episode to subside that I was asking myself, from where did the human beings get the audacity to wipe out all the other creatures from the face of the earth? The numerous species of animals and plants which have been wiped out of the universe may never ever see the light of day; they are gone forever, and we still have no regret for killing them.

Human life is centered on utilitarianism; everything which is useful to humanity is considered good, and anything which does not benefit humanity is considered bad; but can there be anything bad under God’s divine plan? Are not all creatures, great and small, have a specific role and function in this vast universe? Who are human beings to sit on the seats of judgment and decide which is good and which is bad? What would happen if some other superior creature on the universe were to sit on judgment seat and condemn the human race, and kill them at will, as if we were just perishable insects and pests? It is good for us to realize that we are not the masters of the universe, but merely custodians.

Every time when a creature departs from the face of the earth, the life of the earth is also considerably reduced, even if we say that that is not true. The universe is enriched and ennobled by the countless number of creatures on its face, and whenever any of them bid farewell to the world, then their place is left vacant, and no wonder the world is slowly becoming deserted and it may not be too late before we witness the empty plains and valleys, which are barren and deserted. Even the most poisonous of snakes and animals have their specific role to play in the universe, and it would be wrong for the human persons to decide what that role would be.

I am here at this hour not so much to mourn the death of the cockroach, which it is said, is the only creature which can withstand the worst kind of natural calamity; they may have the physical and mental makeup which may be far superior to the human beings, and we may not be in a position to accept and acknowledge it, but that is a fact. Today as I bring the poor creature before my eyes, I would like to promise that next time when it is my turn to take the life of yet another creature from the earth, I will think twice. Just as I have the right to live on earth peacefully, the others too have the same right, and I would not go outright to endanger their lives.