Ram and Bharat

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Ram and Bharat

Source:panchaamritam

 

Shri Ram, accompanied by Lakshman and Sita, approached the

Chitrakoot hills, trudging through a path strewn with thorns. A thorn

hurt Shri Ram'sfoot. At once Shri Ram started beseeching Mother

Earth with folded hands, " Mother, I pray to you to become soft when

my brother Bharat comes this way looking for me. For the time being,

hide these thorns and stones in your anchal. They have hurt my foot.

Alright. But let them not hurt my Bharat " . Mother Earth was

astonished. She asked Shri Ram, " Lord, is Bharat so weak that he

cannot bear the pain caused by a thorn, while you could bear the

pain? I hear that Bharat is a saintly person. Can he not look upon

pain and pleasure with equanimity? " Shri Ram replied, " Mother, the

thorn will hurt, not his foot, but his heart. " " Why so? " the Mother

queried. Shri Ram explained: " The hurt will not bother him. Rather,

he would be worried, thinking, `my elder brother would have traveled

this way. His feet would have been hurt by these thorns and stones'.

That very thought would give him intense misery. Therefore, Mother,

become soft as lotus petal, whenever Bharat walks this way " .

 

An anecdote contributed by Shri Ranjit Rawat

in PATHIK SANDESH,

Hindi monthly (Jullundhar – 144 001).

Gokulmuthu Narayanaswamy <gokulmuthu