Thousands of years ago, king Shuddhodhan ruled over the kingdom of Kapilvastu.
Siddhartha was his son and Devdutt was his nephew.
Prince Siddhartha was a kind human being; he always helped the needy people.
But Devdutt was cruel and selfish.
One day, king Shuddhodhan was busy in his court discussing policy matters.
Suddenly, Devdutt came there in anger.
“Why do you come here, Devdutt?” asked the king.
“Your Majesty,” Devdutt spoke loudly, “I want justice.”
“What happened?” the king asked surprisingly.
“Prince Siddhartha has taken my swan and is denying to return it,” he complained.
The king was surprised. He knew his son well. Siddhartha never did like this.
“Call prince Siddhartha here at once,” ordered the king.
Prince Siddhartha came to the royal court with a wounded swan in his arms.
“Is that swan yours?” the king asked Devdutt.
“Yes, it is mine,” said Devdutt, “I shot it.”
“Is that true, Siddhartha?” inquired the king.
“Yes, it’s true,” said Siddhartha, “Devdutt shot the swan and it fell wounded at my feet.”
“And what next?” the king asked again.
“I picked it up, took out the arrow and applied medicine on its wound. I saved it, so the swan is mine,” Siddhartha argued.
The king was in dilemma and thought, ‘Whom should I favour?’ The king asked his chief minister for advice.
The chief minister said, “Devdutt shot the swan and Siddhartha saved it, so the swan is Siddhartha’s. If the swan had died, it would have been Devdutt’s.”
“I agree,” said the king, “The swan is alive. Siddhartha gave it a new lease of life, so it is his.”
Everyone appreciated the king’s justice.
Moral : The life-saver is always greater than the life-taker.
