The Saint and the Rat

That is, on the wishes of the Creator and even after working hard, one can never get more than one's fortune.

In the region of South India, there was an abbey of Bhagwan Shankar outside the city Mahilaropya, where a monk named Tamrachud used to earn his living by asking for alms from the city. He used to fill his hunger by eating half of the collected alms and tied the other half in a bundle and hung it on a hook. He used to give that saved alms to the people who cleaned the monastery as their salary. In this way, the maintenance of that monastery was done well.

One day, rats living around the monastery said to a mouse named Hiranyaka who lived in the monastery, “We wander here and there to satisfy our hunger, while delicious food is tied in a bundle hanging on a hook. We are not able to reach that hook even after trying. Why don't you help us with something?"

Hearing the words of his companions, Hiranyaka reached the monastery with them. He took a high jump. He himself ate the food kept in the bundle and also fed it to his companions. Now this started to happen every day. Due to this, the sanitation workers stopped working as they were not getting their salary and the saint got upset. The sage tried his best to stop Hiranyaka, but as soon as he slept, Hiranyaka used to engage in this work. Suddenly, Tamrachud brought a torn bamboo and started banging that bamboo on the ground before sleeping to keep Hiranyaka away from the begging bowl. Fearing the attack of bamboo, Hiranyaka used to run away without eating any food. In this way, the whole night the sage and Hiranyaka spent evading each other. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Release date

Lydbog: 8. december 2022