The Clever Quail and the Net of Habit
Sometimes we forget how strong we are—especially when we forget each other.
The Buddha once told a story of a flock of birds caught in a hunter’s net.
It’s one of the Jataka tales. These are stories of his past lives. Like all good Dharma tales, it is not just for birds.
It’s for us. Especially now.
A Story from Long Ago That Still Happens Every Day
Once, long ago, the Bodhisattva was born as a quail.
Yes, a small bird. No grand robes or bells or monasteries. Just feathers and forest and instinct.
He lived in a great flock in the fields. Every morning, as the sun climbed over the treetops, they would leave the ground for safer branches.
The earth was beautiful—but it was also the place of snares.
A bird-hunter came each day with a net. He would cast it across the feeding grounds, trap a handful of birds, and carry them away to sell.
It was an ordinary horror.
And each day, the birds who remained would flutter, peck, and pretend tomorrow would be different.
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How the Quails Escaped
The Bodhisattva-quail gathered his courage and said,
“We are many, and he is one. If he casts the net again, let us act together.
When he throws it down, each one of us should take a part of the net in our beak. Then, with one voice, one wingbeat, we will fly together and carry it away.”
The others listened, but—truthfully—they were tired.
Tired of plans, tired of fear, tired of feeling powerless.
Still, the next day, they tried.
The net came down. The Bodhisattva called out, “Now!”
And they all flew. Together.
The net lifted.
The bird-catcher screamed.
The birds carried it over a hill. They flew over a stream. Finally, they dropped it in the middle of a thorn bush, far from human hands.
For days after, they were safe.
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When We Forget Each Other
But the mind is like a basket with holes. Wisdom seeps out.
Quarrels began:
“You tugged too soon.”
“You didn’t pull at all.”
“Your beak slipped.”
Pride puffed up.
Blame spread like oil on water.
The next time the bird-catcher came, they did not fly together.
Each tried on their own, flapping, screeching, struggling.
The net held. The bird-catcher laughed. And many birds were taken.
Even birds forget.
Even humans.
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What the Net Is Made Of
The net was not just twine.
It was habit. Isolation.
The belief that we are alone. That our struggle is ours alone to bear.
In truth, we are never only one wing—we are a field of feathers rising together, or not at all.
We have nets too.
Old patterns.
Scrolling without waking.
Lashing out instead of listening.
Giving up instead of asking for help.
These are the traps that catch us day after day, unless we remember.
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What This Means for Us
We are the birds.
But we are also the Bodhisattva-quail.
Inside each of us is the voice that says,
“Wait. We don’t have to do this alone.”
And when we listen, when we act in concert—in sangha, in kindness—then even the tightest net can rise.
So.
Today, if you feel caught—pause.
Look around.
Call on your flock.
Or be the one who speaks first.
Together, we are stronger than any snare.
Yours in the Dharma,
Lama Chimey
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Lama Chimey 