The true treasure

Mother Nature is always speaking. She speaks in a language understood within the peaceful mind of the sincere observer. Leopards, cobras, monkeys, rivers and trees, they all served as my teachers when I lived as a wanderer in the Himalayan foothills. The lessons they shared elevate the spirit.

One such illuminating lesson comes in the form of the Himalayan musk deer. The musk deer is referenced in Sanskrit poetry and philosophy owing to its peculiar behaviour. Prized for its exceptional aroma, musk is one of the world’s most expensive natural products, fetching more than three times its weight in gold.

When stag’s sensitive nose catches wind of the alluring aroma of musk, he roams the forest day and night in pursuit of its source. Exhausted, he never realises the bitter irony: the sweet fragrance he was chasing resided within himself. Musk is produced by a gland in the stag’s own navel: it was searching without for what was lying within.


The sages of India found in the musk deer an apt description of the human condition. We are all pleasure-seeking creatures wandering a forest of some sort —replete with pleasures and perils alike. Moreover, we are prone to the same kind of folly as the deer: we seek happiness externally.

The true treasure lies within. It’s love. Love is the nature of the Divine. It lies hidden beneath the covering of the false ego. The purpose of human life is to uncover that divine love. The fulfilment that we’re all seeking is found in the sharing of this love.