How to Release Her Empty-handed?
Once, when Maharaja Ranjit Singh was going somewhere, a stone came from the front and hit him. His companion soldiers looked around and saw an old woman as the culprit. She was arrested and presented before the Maharaja.
Seeing Maharaja sitting in front, the woman began to tremble with fear. She said: ‘Your Highness, my child is hungry since yesterday. There was nothing to eat at home. In my effort to get some berries from the tree, I was throwing stones at it, so that I may be able to give him something to eat; but by mistake, one of those stones struck you. Sir, it was unintentional, please forgive me.’
Maharaja thought for a while and said: ‘Give a thousand rupees to the old lady and release her with respect.’
Hearing this, Maharaja’s attendants were shocked. Finally, one of them dared to ask him: ‘Your Majesty, how is it that the person who is worthy of punishment is being rewarded instead!’
Ranjit Singh said: ‘When stoned, if an ordinary tree can give sweet fruits, then how can the Maharaja of Punjab release her empty-handed?’
True Love
This story is from the December 2022 edition of Prabuddha Bharata.
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This story is from the December 2022 edition of Prabuddha Bharata.
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