BEING COMPASSIONATE

Chattrapati Shivaji Maharaj was a warrior king and widely respected for his military might and bravado. He was very devoted to his mother Jijabai and she instilled the values of kindness and compassion in him. Once, Shivaji was going through a jungle on his horse. Just as he was passing under a mango tree, a stone came out of nowhere and hit him on the head. Hurt and annoyed, Shivaji halted his horse. He looked around but could not see anybody who might have hit him. He ordered his soldiers to find and present the culprit before him. The soldiers went running and came back with an elderly lady in a short while. The old lady was scared and looked at Shivaji with fearful eyes. Shivaji asked her why she hit him with the stone. The old lady apologised profusely and said, “Oh mighty king, I wanted to get the mangoes from the tree but unfortunately I hit you instead.” Shivaji looked at that woman with his big fierce eyes. Slowly, anger vanished from Shivaji’s eyes and they were filled with compassion. He asked the soldiers to free the old lady and also give her a handful of gold coins.

The soldiers were very surprised and asked Shivaji about the reason for this sudden change of heart. Shivaji said, “The tree is an inanimate being but still it has so much compassion to give fruits to anyone who hits it; being a king it is my duty to be more caring and merciful to my people.”

The soldiers were touched by the compassion and generosity of their king.

While we may not all be kings like Shivaji, we can understand the value of compassion in this increasingly intolerant world too.

My dear readers, compassion is a virtue as per all major religions of the world, but it is not easy to practice. However, I recommend a simple way to bring compassion to your life. Just do to others what you would have them do to you. Follow this and see how your heart fills with love and compassion.