Copyright@shravancharitymission
By Kamlesh Tripathi
By Kamlesh Tripathi
Once upon a time there lived a
rich person who had built a huge temple in his hometown. He had kept one poojari
there (Hindu temple priest) to perform, the daily puja of God. And,
to meet the expenses of the temple, he had transferred his assets, such as,
land, farms and even his orchards in its name. He had done some meticulous
planning and organized the whole thing in such a manner. That, for all the devotees
coming to the temple; those who were hungry or in pain, or any other person who
was poor or even a sadhu (sage). Could have, stayed there for a couple
of days. He could have eaten the prasad (devotional offering of food
made to God) from the temple as his meal. And after putting all these wonderful
ideas in place, he was now on the lookout for a manager. Who could well handle
the temple property along with its systems and procedures in an efficient
manner.
Many candidates came to the
rich man for the job. They all knew. That if they are selected as the manager
of the temple. They will get a good salary. But the rich man rejected everyone.
He told them—he required only a good man. And, that, he’ll be able to find one himself.
On this unbecoming behavior of
the rich person, people starting abusing him discreetly. Some even started
calling him simpleton and mad. But, the rich man did not pay any heed to what
anyone said. When the temple used to open in the morning and people used to line
up for darshan (auspicious sight). He used to climb up to his terrace. From
where, he used to quietly watch all the devotees who came for darshan. One
day a quintessential person came to the temple. His clothes were torn and
dirty. He didn’t appear to be well educated. He had his darshan after
which he was about to leave. When the rich man called him to his house and asked—‘Sir!
would you like to work as the manager of this temple?’
The man was rather surprised.
He said—‘I’m not very educated. So, I, really don’t know, how I’ll be able to
handle the management of this huge temple?’
Rich man said—‘I don’t want a very educated
manager either. I’m just looking for a good man. Who could become the manager
of this temple.’
The man politely replied—‘My
dear brother. In this sea of human beings around the temple, what made you feel.
That I am the sole good man around?’
Rich man mildly elucidated—‘I
know you are a good man, because this pathway to the temple had a pointed edge
of a stone jutting out. And for many a days now, I was watching it. Many people
had hurt themselves because of it. People used to fall because of it. Then they
used to get up and just go away. But you were different. You were not hurt with
that stone. Yet, considering, someone else might get hurt. You decided to pull
it out. I was watching you, when you called for the shovel from my labour. Only
to take the trouble of digging that stone out. Thereafter, you leveled the area
for others comfort and safety.
The
man responded—‘that is nothing. In fact, it is every man’s duty to remove
thorns, pebbles and even stones, stuck in the ground that might hurt someone.’
To which the Rich man confided—‘people
who are clear about their duties and who believe in performing it alone are
good men.’
The man was appointed the
manager of the temple. Where, the rich man was not wrong, because the man administered
the temple in a very efficient manner.
*****
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