All Creatures Great and Small

All Creatures Great and Small, written by Brinda Upadhyaya, Co-Founder, Upadhyaya Foundation is a quiet but powerful expression of the values that underpin the India Animal Welfare Forum. Rooted in the idea of jeevdaya—compassion for all living beings—the poem reflects a worldview where humans are not separate from nature, but deeply interconnected with it.

Moving across water, sky, and land, the verses remind us that every creature plays a role in shaping the world we inhabit. Oceans are incomplete without fish, skies without birds, and forests without the life that gives them meaning. In this interconnectedness lies both beauty and responsibility. The poem gently but firmly places this responsibility on us—asking us to recognise that the right to life is not ours alone, but belongs equally to all beings.

The poem was brought to life through illustrations by Preetham Bharadwaj from the Communications and Events team at Upadhyaya Foundation, whose work visually captures this shared world—where animals, landscapes, and human presence coexist. The imagery reflects both harmony and tension, echoing the delicate balance that sustains life on this planet.

Included in every attendee kit at IAWF, the poem served as more than a creative addition. It was a grounding moment within the forum—a reminder of why the ecosystem exists, what it seeks to protect, and the role each of us plays within it. In the midst of conversations on funding, policy, and innovation, it brought us back to something more fundamental: empathy, coexistence, and care.

As we continue to build conversations and collaborations in the animal welfare space, this poem remains a simple but enduring call—to see, to feel, and to act with compassion.

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All Creatures Great and Small

All creatures great and small

Let's live in harmony with them all

Creatures of water, sky, and land

Today raise their voices, hand in hand

O human, this duty rests on you,

The right to life belongs to all beings too

Without fish, the ocean is incomplete

Without birds, the sky lacks its beat

Life adorns the forests’ grace

All creatures give nature its face

In blue skies and waters deep,

On land and marshes where beings sleep

These homes are theirs, their rightful place

On them depends creation’s grace

Mother Earth gives us a call

All creatures great and small

Let's live in harmony with them all

- Brinda Upadhyaya

सब को जीवन का अधिकार

जल अंबर धरती के प्राणी

आज सुनाते अपनी वाणी

हे मानव तुझ पे यह भार

सब को जीवन का अधिकार

मीन बिना नहीं सागर पूरा

पक्षी बिन आकाश अधूरा

जीवों से वन का श्रृंगार

सब को जीवन का अधिकार

नील गगन और जल थल में

जंतु बसते दल दल में

इन के आश्रय इनके घर

इन पर है सृष्टि निर्भर

मिल जुल कर बनता संसार

धरती माँ की यही पुकार

सब को जीवन का अधिकार

- बृंदा उपाध्याय