Real Renunciation

The fespst was over. The king had dismissed his
royal guests and sought his chamber. Through
the halls of crystal and jasper he walked, look-
ing neither to the right nor left, noting not the
beauty which surrounded him on all sides, nor the
train of men that awaited the slightest nod of his
head or wave of his hand, as a command. Straight
to his chambers he made his way and passed into
the inner richness, wherein it seemed all the
beauty and luxury of a whole world had been
stored.

But at the side of his bed he paused amazed,
indignant and angered beyond expression, for
resting in its silken folds, her hair disheveled, her
toil-stained hands outstretched in languorous ease,
lay a dark-browed maid. She, a slave girl, one of
the meanest and lowliest of his household, wrapt
in deep sleep upon the couch that had never held
on its lap of down anybody save his royal self.

Quick he called his servants. ''Take her and
give her fifty lashes upon her bare back,'' was his
stem command.

The slave girl sprang from sleep and stood be-
fore the king, trembling and speechless. XTnpar-
donable her sin had been, she knew. But, oh, the
work had been hard, and, tired beyond words she
had been. On entering the apartment of the king
to perform some menial duty, she had spied the
luxurious comfort of that bed of gold and jewels,
with its downy softness and richness, and a wild
desire had come into her head to know just for
once how it felt to recline thereon. So she had
thrown herself upon it, and in that heaven of joy
and rest that had come to her, and the seconds that
followed, the girl had dropped off into an entranc-
ing slumber, out of which she was now so harshly
and roughly awakened by the anger of the king's
voice and the brutal hands of the servants as they
sought to lead her to her punishment.

For a second she turned at the door of the apart-
ment as the servants were leading her away, then
burst forth into a wild, shrill, yet silvery laugh.
Peal after peal rang through the palace, waking
the sleeping echoes of corridor and hall. 3till
more amazed, the king looked after the girl.
"What!" thought he. "This girl pleadeth not for
mercy, but laughs as if a rare sport confronted
her and not punishment. What means it?" And
turning to her, he said: "Why laughest thou,
slave? Thy merriment soon shall become a daace
of pain. Speak— why laughest thou thus?"

"Oh, your majesty!" she replied, "I was just
thinking, if five minutes' sleep upon your bed of
down and ease brings to my back fifty stripes,
what would be the punishment to him who lieth
upon it twelve hours out of each twenty-four, for
years!"

Thoughtful the king became in an instant and,
sending away his servants, said to the maid, who
now stood before him pale and affrighted because
of the boldness of her words: ''0 little maiden,
slave thou art and lowliest of all my servants, thou
hast taught me a lesson, and a teacher of great
wisdom hast thou been unto me. Depart in peace,
thou hast made me a wiser man this day!"

So all day and all night the king sat in silence,
meditating on the words of the little slave girl.
For the mistake of resting five minutes upon his
bed, he would have commanded fifty stripes of
pain to be given on the back of this poor child.
Yet he, quite covered with blunders and mistakes,
with sins and crimes, rested thereon one-half of
his life ! Was he worthy to enjoy all that his pal-
ace offered? Had he deserved all the blessings
that had been showered upon him? Had he
thought of others and been to them all that his
position intended him to be? Protector of the
people ! Or had he lived only for himself, being
shrouded in self, and thereby turned life into a
curse for others and himself?

Thus he thought, and in the morning of the next
day he threw aside his robes of state, his garments
of wondrous richness, his jewels and trappings^;
and, robing himself even as the lowliest of his
people, went forth into the jungle to sit and medi-
tate, even as did the holy men and hermits.

A day and night passed and he had eaten noth-
ing. Yet, though he felt hungry, he cared not for
food, for so weary with self and overburdened
with his sin had he become, that he cared only to
be shorn from them. But in the noon hour of the
second day, a man appeared with rich food and
placed it before the king and begged him to par-
take thereof. Just then the king spied the figure
of a hermit coming slowly toward him ; and, point-
ing to the viands that stood beside him, he said:
''Brother, wilt not thou too take of the food
which this good man hath brought unto me, the
unworthiest of all among men?"

The hermit replied: ''Strange it seemeth to me
that thou, who hath sat in meditation but for
twenty-four hours, wouldst be honored thus!
What is thy merit that the good things of life come
to thee even y^thout the asking, while I, who
have lived in the jungle these twelve years, receive
but the coarsest of food, and for that I must beg?
I see but the greatest injustice and partiality in
this, which in the world of the hermits should be
entirely omitted."

Then he who brought the food, looked at the
angry hermit, who in the bitterness of his jealousy
had turned to go without even touching the food,
and said : "0 sir, this man but twenty-four hours
ago reigned as king in a king's palace, with a
king's power over millions of beings; but by the
inner promptings of holiness he has resigned all
hm worldly power to sit here and meditate upon
the power of the Most High ! A life of luxury and
ease and pleasure has he foregone, to live hence-
forth on the crumbs that fall from the table of a
poor man. To a man of greatness and holiness
have I brought food, begging him to eat thereof,
that I might be blessed for the giving. And thou,
sir, what art thou? Ever a poor man thou
wert, a grass cutter. Never hadst thou known
aught but abject poverty and discomfort. May-
hap thou didst give up this meager life because of
its material wants, to dwell here and meditate,
thus receiving more of the blessings of life in flesh
and spirit. But he, this pampered king of enormous
wealth and power, hath given up a kingdom to
become even the lowliest among men, while thou,
a famished grass cutter, hath given up but a
scythe, to become honored as a saint.''