The Elephant Speaks…

While reading “The Case of the Animals versus Man Before the King of the Jinn,” a 10th century fable in which animals launch a case against humans for their cruelty to animals, I was drawn to the words of the elephant in the allegory–since elephant poaching in Africa is currently approaching the point of no return. Even the beloved elephant Torn Ear was killed earlier this month.

Though “The Case of the Animals versus Man” was written centuries ago, the ecological problems it addresses persist today:

The elephant said, ‘Had you seen us, your Majesty, as prisoners of the sons of Adam, with chains on our feet and cables about our necks while they held iron goads in their hands to beat us about the pate and drive us left or right, powerless to defend ourselves, despite our great bulk, our mighty frames, long tusks, and immense strength, you would have pitied us and wept for us. Where then are the tenderness and compassion this human claims they feel for us?’