Long Long Ago

అనగా అనగా ..........

There was a Sanskrit Scholar cum Poet in Bhoja Raja’s court. He had big family. Unfortunately, he could not impress the king to get sufficient income, so that suffering from deficiency of money. He thought to theft from king’s palace. One night he could enter into the palace of king, with a big bag, to steal some valuables and hide them in the bag.

First he located a gold idol. He tried to keep it in the bag. But he could remember the slokam from his learnt books, which stated those 7 years of punishment in hell by God Yama against the crime of gold theft. With this memory he dropped that idea. Again, he provoked to steal diamond necklace due to his poverty. This time he recalled another slokam which stated that 12 years prolonged punishments in hell. Helplessly he dropped it where he found it. Like this picking up some valuable things, recalling the concern slokam, so that keeping it where he picked it up, he spent all the night. Early bells were ringed in the palace. With frightfulness, he had hidden himself under the bed of king. With morning praising from his subordinates, the king felt proud about his wealth, handsomeness, and greatness.

By observing that proud posture in the body language of king, the hidden poet recalled another slokam which stated that the life, beauty, wealth and health etc. every thing is temporary in this world, after death every thing depart from us. Only good and evil whatever we done in this world follow us, nothing else. The poet said this slokam with a loud and clear voice from the bottom of king’s bed.

Being scholar the king immediately caught the idealistic views of that slokam and realized his proud & ego. So that he could get rid of ego. After driving out the ego, naturally the king felt the joy of morning, the warmth of sunrise and the cool breeze of nature.

Then he felt wonder about the presence of poet in that odd time at that odd place i.e. under his bed. When he enquired into the matter, he felt sorry towards the scholar, fulfilled his needs and expressed his gratefulness towards the poet as the poet helped the king to drive out his ego in the early hours of the day itself. Such that this story leads us that education i.e. knowledgeous education [but not certified education] guide us in faithful way to live and it warn us to prevent evil thoughts and activities.

This is the story!

Note: To read the application of this story to our life, click here: Mother’s Lap