Story 9 - The Law of Karma

An Indian coin out of circulation

There was a Mohammedan poet in India, a very good man, rather a very clever and witty man. He was living at the court of one of the native princes, who was highly interested in him. One night the native prince kept him long in his company, and this poet amused the prince with all sorts of poems, witty stories, and most amusing tales. The prince went to bed very late. He was amused by the witty poet to such a degree that he forgot all about his sleep. The queen asked the prince what was the cause of his delay, of his unusual delay in retiring to his room. The prince replied "Oh, we had a wonderful man with us this evening; he was so good, so splendid, so witty and amusing." Then the queen enquired more about him, and her curiosity made the king expatiate upon the capability and attainment of the poet to such a degree that they had to sit until a late hour, so that it was near dawn when they retired. Now the curiosity of the queen being excited to the highest pitch, she asked the prince to bring this witty poet before her some day. Well, the next day this witty poet was brought before the queen.

This poet was brought by the king into the harem2, the private apartments of the ladies. There he sang his poems and recited his stories; the ladies were highly amused. Then the poet gave out that he was blind, he was suffering from a disease of the eyes; but he was not blind in reality. Now the wicked intention of this poet was to be allowed to live in the private apartments of the ladies, so that they might not mistrust him, and the ladies thinking him to be blind might be free in their walks, and talks, in going from room to room and might not keep any veils on their countenances when passing by him. Now believing him to be blind, the prince allowed him to remain in the apartments of the ladies. But truth cannot be concealed. It will be out one day.

"Truth crushed to earth shall rise again. The eternal years of God are hers."

One day this poet asked one of the maid servants to bring something to him.

In India females live in separate apartments, the harem, and do not mix much with males, with gentlemen. They live apart: especially Mohammedan women, not Hindus, wear heavy veils and they do not let anybody see them excepting their husbands or those who are very pure, noble and pious.

This poet, when he got an honourable position in the house of the prince, thought it beneath his dignity to leave his seat and bring a chair to where he wanted it. So he ordered one of the maid-servants to do it, -but she replied harshly, bluntly that she was very busy, she had no leisure, she could not spare the time. After that there appeared another servant, and he beckoned to her to come forward to him and asked her to move the chair, but she said that there was no chair in the room. He said "Bring that basin of water to me" She said, "There is none this in room; I will go into the other room and bring it to you." He said "Bring it, there is one in the room, do you not see it? There it is." In his anxiety to get the thing done, he forgot himself. That is what happens. This is how Truth plays a joke with liars. This is the Law of Nature. When this poet said, "Here it is, do you not see it?" the maid at once, instead of doing that job for him, ran straight to the queen and divulged the secret, and said, "Lo, the man is not blind, he is a wicked man, he ought to be turned out of the house."

He was turned out of the house; but about three days after he was turned out of the house of the prince, he became actually blind. How is that? Why?

The Law of Karma comes and tells you that the man becomes blind by his own will. He is the master of his own destiny. Blindness is brought on himself by his own self, nobody else makes him blind: his own desires, his own cravings make him blind. Afterwards when blindness comes he begins to weep and cry, he begins to gnash his teeth and bite his lips and beat his breast.

MORAL: Everybody reaps the fruit of his own desires. This is the Law of Karma.

Vol. 3 (67-68)