even a blade of grass

There was an almond tree opposite the hall. A servant had been instructed by the management to chop off the dry branches but he was hacking the green ones also. Bhagavan pulled him up, 'Why are you hurting the tree? Does it not have life? Get away. Must you keep hurting something or the other?'

One night Bhagavan caught someone plucking some fruits from a tree and chided the culprit, 'Won't you let the tree sleep in peace? Can you not pluck the fruits during the day time? Have a heart. Merely because the tree cannot express its woe should you be so cruel?'

To our eyes there are differences in attitudes towards fellow human beings, animals, insects and trees. For him there is only one yardstick, that no harm should befall even a blade of grass.

~ Krishna Bikshu, Unforgettable Years, Translated and Edited by A. R. Natarajan