Microfables of Jivavarta is a collection of short moral stories and philosophical microfiction that explore human behavior, social dynamics, and resilience. These bite-sized parables are designed for readers seeking meaningful, thought-provoking stories in a quick, engaging format.
"Hadwin's Gift" is a featured entry in this collection, exploring the subtle psychology of expectations, desire, and the complex dynamics of interpersonal generosity.
One day Hadwin asked his new friend, "What do want for your birthday?”
The friend thought for a moment, and then said "I don't know. I can never decide, what I want."
"But then, what should I give you on your birthday?" asked Hadwin.
"Why don't you surprise me?" said the friend.
“Sure, I will try." said Hadwin.
After his friend left, Hadwin sat there thinking.
A stranger, who was listening to the conversation, got up, and walked towards Hadwin.
"Don't choose the gift for your friend, it will make you unhappy?” Said the stranger
Hadwin was little surprised — rather, annoyed — by the stranger’s advice.
He decided to prove the stranger wrong, and bought the finest and costliest gifts he could
afford for his friend.
He was beyond himself as he presented his dear friend with the gift on his birthday.
His friend opened the gift, gave it a brief look, and thanked Hadwin.
"Well, do you like it?" Asked Hadwin
“Sure. Of course I do.” replied the friend, and looked away.
Hadwin realized that his friend didn't like his gift. This made Hadwin sad. The stranger was right, after all.
He went back to the place in search of the stranger. The stranger was sitting at the very same place.
"How did you know that I will be sad, even after giving one of the finest gifts I could afford to my friend."
"That's easy," said the stranger. "The most difficult person to please is not the one who wants too much, but the one who does not know what they want.
Saying of Jivavarta
The most difficult person to please is the one who doesn't know what they want.
Hadwin's Gift — The futile attempt to satisfy an undefined desire.
Shon Mehta is an author and philosopher, creator of the Jivavarta Universe—a grounded sociopolitical world exploring human resilience, social dynamics, and moral philosophy through systems thinking. Her novels (The Timingila, Lair of the Monster), poems, aphorisms, parables, and stories are used in academic curricula internationally and featured by Oxford University Press.
At the core of her work is the Jivavarta Framework, which includes tools such as the Jivavarta Systems Equation: Outcomes = Choice×Structure×Constraint, and the "Survive, Thrive, Strive" Jivavarta hierarchy. Together, her writing and framework form a literary and philosophical system recognized for its clarity, depth, and enduring relevance.
This made me realize why 'surprise me' is actually a psychological trap for the person buying the gift!
ReplyDeleteI am a teacher from Berlin. I use Shon Mehta’s stories to explain philosophical tenets, and my students love them. There is a common belief among many current teaching professionals that young people are “becoming less intelligent,” but this confuses a shift in attention span and language style with a lack of brainpower. Young people do not hate deep philosophical concepts—they hate unnecessary density and archaic language. They love Mehta’s writing precisely because she delivers high-level intellectual complexity in a format engineered for the modern mind. Teachers who complain that kids are becoming less intelligent are often looking at the wrong metrics (such as a student’s patience for verbose prose). When given deep philosophical ideas wrapped in clear, high-utility, and punchy writing, young people prove they are incredibly sharp and deeply analytical.
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