What a Tiger is.

What is a tiger? Asking yourself this question, you probably saw a tiger flash through your mind. And now, you wonder, what's next. You've seen the tiger and say to yourself that you know what a tiger is.

But do you really? What you have seen is the skin a snake has shed, but not the snake. A lifeless container of life.

What we should see when we ask ourselves what a tiger is, is the beat of its heart and the movement of blood through its veins. Next time you run or walk swiftly, feel your heartbeat through your chest and you shall feel what a tiger is. As the tiger's blood circulates it carries nutrients and oxygen to its muscles and organs, just like your blood does for you. In the tiger's eyes we should see the strength, the lust or the serenity we long to feel. We should see and feel its breath, as if it were our own. See its teeth and wonder what it might feel like to kill a deer after a long streak of unsuccessful hunts. And as it bites through the jugular vein of its prey, we should connect to its instinct to kill so it may feed itself and possibly its cubs. We should see its whiskers as more than just an appearance. We should feel the touch of wet soil under its paws as it stalks its prey or searches for another tiger to breed. We should feel the heat coming out of its mouth as it pants under the scorching Indian sun. And as its sleeps, we ought to sleep with it, under the trees and under the stars. Walking through the jungle, we ought to walk the long walks to the hunting grounds or the river bank with it in our minds and bodies.

A tiger is all of this and more still. In essence, you are a tiger in human form and a tiger is you in tiger form. We both are living beings. Born one day only to die another. And in between we eat, we drink, we sleep, we care, we want, we need, we react, we attack, we conceive, we take and we give, we play, we grieve.

What is a Tiger ?

It is the unfolding of life, just like you are the unfolding of life. Disconnect from the disconnection. The image of a tiger your mind conjures is like a picture of you: A mere slice of a moment with infinite depth. Close your eyes, let go of your identity and feel your presence. Then you shall feel what a tiger is.