Mahatma Gandhi 4 – The Story Of Harishchandra

If the play ‘Shravana’
Melted the heart,
With tears pouring down
The tender cheeks of young Mohandas Gandhi
Then the play – ‘Harishchandra’,
Left an indelible impression
That evoked strong resolutions,
A firm belief,
To embrace a life
Of truth and only truth!

Never tired of watching the actors
Enacting ‘Harishchandra’ over and over again;
Every opportunity grabbed
To see the play once more!
Back home Mohandas
Enacted the scene himself,
The ideal role of the truthful
King Harishchandra -innumerable times!
A question repeatedly asked:
‘Why should I not be like Harishchandra? ‘

The wise Sage Vasishta
On a chance encounter
With the haughty Sage Vishvamitra;
Praised his disciple King Harishchandra
As the most truthful man on this earth!
Disturbed by this proclamation,
Vishvamitra retorted back,
Questioning the credibility,
Refusing to accept this verdict
Unless proved.

To test King Harishchandra
Of his adherence to truth;
The shrewd Visvamitra appeared
In the guise of a poor Brahmin
Requesting him for two boons!
The generous king Harishchandra
Agreed to his demand
Never imagining that he had to give up
The whole kingdom,
And his entire wealth!

A man of his word,
Harishchandra sacrificed everything,
Left for the forest
With his faithful wife and young son!
The greedy Brahmin following the king
Demanded his second boon –
One and half bushels of gold coins!
What a monstrous test -so terrible!
Though the king was penniless,
Promised to get him his gold too!

In search of work,
King Harischandra traveled to Kashi,
Exhausted,
Poverty stricken,
Alas!
Forced to sell himself,
His wife and child as slaves,
Toiling hard – day in and day out,
As bonded labourers
Under the watchful eye of a wicked merchant

The days went from bad to worse
As Harischandra was appointed
To manage a crematorium! .
On an ill-fated day,
Harischandra was devastated
To see his heart-broken wife,
Entering the burial ground,
Carrying in her tender hands
The dead body of their beloved son!
Can life play such an atrocious game?

The son bitten by a poisonous snake
Lay dead,
While the desperate parents
Grieved no end,
Of their bitter life,
And a punishment so severe!
Shocked and shattered beyond endurance,
The royal couple decided
To end their lives
In the funeral pyre of their son!

Just as they lighted the pyre
The Gods who watched the heart-rending scene
Rushed down to earth to douse the fire,
And showered their blessings
On this virtuous family!
Tears of joy poured down the eyes
Of Harishchandra and his wife when their dead son –
The little prince – was brought back to life!
Gods sang in praise of Harishchandra
As the most honest and truthful man ever!

Sage Vishvamitra, fully convinced,
Endorsed King Harishchandra
As an epitome of truth!
Harishchandra got back all that he lost,
His wife, his child,
His kingdom and wealth
And lived happily ever after!
In spite of extreme suffering
And intense pain,
The King held on to truth and nothing but the truth!

For Mohandas Gandhi,
The character of Harishchandra,
Strongly etched in his memory,
A great inspiraton,
Never to be erased,
Ever fresh,
Not just a legend or a play
But a living reality
To look up to
As a role model.