Rajasthan is a beautiful state in North India. Rajasthan is a known as a Home of Rajas. In this state there is a most gorgeous city of palaces, Lake Palace and temples known as Udaipur. People of Udaipur were the proud owners of large warm and generous hearts. There was no shortage of love and compassion for their family members as well as neighbors. The whole clan of people, rich and poor lived in peace and harmony. In this beautiful city lived a very warm hearted gentleman named Chandra. He was a mining engineer by profession in the diamond mines. He was stout dark man with graceful appearance, heart winning mannerism, pleasant and cordial interactions with all other living beings. Gentleness was the key to his nature.
His wife would get warm clothing stitched by dozens at the onset of winters with the cheapest material available in the market. When asked why? She explained that when coming back from work all by himself he used his freedom to the core. If he found a beggar or a destitute sitting on the pavements, shivering in the cold, he would immediately remove his woolen jacket and cover the poor shivering destitute and come back home with no woolens on himself. It never worried him that next day he would not have warm jacket to protect him from the onslaught of rest of the winter.
Chandra lived in Udaipur with his wife, little son and a black dog whom he had brought from his bosses house when the bosses dog littered. The dog was named Tiger. Tiger was an extremely intelligent in the dog world. Tiger grew up true to his name big in size, sensitive towards children, very alert in his duties and very obedient towards his mistress and master. His mistress would tell him,” Tiger I am going to sleep don’t let anyone come in.” Even Chandra could not enter the house until his wife intervened.
In a couple of years Chandra’s wife succumbed to some strange illness and within a few a days left this world leaving a little son and the loyal dog. Chandra was heartbroken. He loved his wife immensely. He wanted to go with his wife to the other world but his little boys expecting eyes could not let him take this step. He pulled up courage and decided to raise this child and give him a fair chance of life. The little boy needed a mother. He approached his wife’s sister, and asked her if she would marry him and become the little boy’s mother and his wife. She agreed but in dowry she brought her brother.
Chandra moved out of Udaipur to a small town known as Bhilwada with his new wife, the loyal dog, his brother-in-law and the little infant son. He could not live in the same city where his wife’s memories would not let him rest in peace.
Days passed Tiger grew to a handsome big dog. He did not mind little junior Chandra and his friends riding him like a horse. One day Tiger went missing. Chandra searched for him everywhere. After several days Chandra received the news from Udaipur that the dog had traveled 250 miles on foot and reached Udaipur. Tiger went straight to the old masters room where he was lying on the death bed. His old master closed his eyes for his final journey to the other world and Tiger left his body to go with his old master from the same space. Chandra was heartbroken once again.
Slowly Chandra with a lot of effort and his wife’s endearing perseverance pulled himself out of the gloom of loss of his first wife. Life started moving with much more ease. He had a few more children. Chandra did start taking his job seriously. Money started pouring into his life in leaps and bounds but it started vanishing from his life equally fast. His brother-in-law who came with his second wife was the cause. With money coming into the house in abundance and shortage of money was visible a confusion to everyone.
People started feeling bad for him. When told to confront the person responsible for this condition, he would reply cheerfully, that it was a good situation. He needed to face this to undo his past karmas.
He lived in a human form thousands of years back during the Mahabharata time. In his last life he was a pious man. He lived his life as an austere devotee of the God. He led a very simple life with strict discipline of mind and body.
The conflict between the Kuru royal family cousins had gone beyond redemption. There remained no solution for their conflict so war was inevitable. Duryodhana and his brothers and the entire army of Duryodhana lost their lives after eighteen days of battle. Thousands of people died. War was over. Five Pandava brothers had won the war. Kuruksherta was swarming with vultures and dead bodies. Widows, orphans, and old people were left behind. Those people who were alive were moving away from the scene of disaster with all their belongings. Chandra in his past life was one of them. He had to start a life all over again with nothing in the name of belongings. Lost in thoughts of what he should do, how he should run his life. Till now he had lived his life in devotion to god, his kitchen and his stomach survived with the alms donated by the generous people. Now the people giving alms were not there or those who were there were preoccupied with the sorrow of the loss of their dear ones.
Burdened with these thoughts Chandra in that life was moving with the crowds in exodus. At one spot he saw an infant sitting near his dead mother and crying. Chandra’s heart was filled with compassion for the little one. He came to him with open arms, and saw something else. The dead women were holding a bundle in one arm and the little boy in the other. Chandra realized that this was a golden opportunity to take the bundle with the Jewels in it; greed had overpowered him in a moment of weakness in character. This was enough to start a living again. Soon repentance had overwhelmed him .He lived the rest of his life asking forgiveness for his deed. Physical life ended with the determination to come back to this earth in another physical life and undo the dark deed.
In this era he was born again. The dead lady came into his life again as his wife whom he had showered with abundance of love and left him to make him realize how the loss of loved one feels. The little boy came back to repossess his rightful wealth from Chandra as his brother-in-law. Chandra was happy to have the recollection of his past life and for repaying the debt of past life. He was kind enough to let us know his story. He lived the rest of his life in complete Dharma or life of righteousness. Chandra was now ready for liberation from these karmas. Many years after he has left this world once again I put this true story in my humble attempt to understand the laws of karma.
