Tiger! Tiger! burning bright,
In the forests of the night,
What immortal hand or eye
Could frame thy fearful symmetry?
- William Blake(1757–1827)
Tigers,one of the most charismatic,most magnificent animals to walk this earth.
Since my childhood,there were several associations with the great animal,albeit only virtually and in my thoughts. In school,The tiger was the emblem of the house,that i was in for 12 years. The flag had the yellow background,and the tiger painted over it in black strokes. The competition among the houses increased my bonding with the symbol,as early as primary school,and with the animal itself,eventually. It became a sort of an identity,and we used to argue naively over the superiority of the tiger over other animals,and how it reflected on the students belonging to the house of the tiger.
Today,it numbers a mere 1411 in the wild in India - Tigers are shot at and killed; snared; poisoned. Poachers roam free, while Tigers are boxed down. Irony.
Could there be anybody who could hate the animal,and gleefully say,"Your days are numbered",and not care about what happens to such splendid animals ?
Seems to be the case.
(Picture is taken from : http://www.saberfire.com/gallery/Tigers/abt.jpg.html)
