The Value of a Brother

This story was told by the Master while at Jetavana,
about a certain country-woman.

For it fell out once in Kosala that three men were
ploughing on the outskirts of a certain forest, and that
robbers plundered folk in that forest and made their
escape. The victims came, in the course of a fruitless
search for the rascals, to where the three men were
ploughing. " Here are the forest robbers, disguised as
husbandmen," they cried, and hauled the trio oif as
prisoners to the King of Kosala. Now time after time
there came to the king's palace a woman who with loud
lamentations begged for "wherewith to be covered."
Hearing her cry, the king ordered a shift to be given her ;
but she refused it, saying this was not what she meant.
So the king's servants came back to his majesty and said
that what the woman wanted was not clothes but a husband.
Then the king had the woman brought into his presence
and asked her whether she really did mean a husband.

" Yes, sire," she answered ; " for a husband is a woman's
real covering, and she that lacks a husband even though
she be clad in garments costing a thousand pieces goes
bare and naked indeed."

(And to enforce this truth, the following Sutta should
be recited here :

Like king-less kingdoms, like a stream run dry,

So bare and naked is a woman seen,

Who, having 1 brothers ten, yet lacks a mate.)

Pleased with the woman's answer, the king asked what
relation the three prisoners were to her. And she said
that one was her husband, one her brother, and one her
son. "Well, to mark my favour," said the king, "I give
you one of the three. Which will you take ?" " Sire," was
her answer, "if I live, I can get another husband and
another son ; but as my parents are dead, I can never get
another brother. So give me my brother, Sire." Pleased
with the woman, the king set all three men at liberty ; and
thus this one woman was the means of saving three persons
from peril.

When the matter came to the knowledge of the Brother-
hood, they were lauding the woman in the Hall of Truth,
when the Master entered. Learning on enquiry what was
the subject of their talk, he said, "This is not the first
time, Brethren, that this woman has saved those three
from peril ; she did the same in days gone by." And, so
saying, he told a story of the past.

Lakshmana is apparently killed, his brother Rama says, almost in the words of the
gatha :

Somewhere for me a wife may be,

A son, or even other kin ;
But the country I do not see

In which a brother I might win.

He turned him right and round again,

Said, scorn na at my mither ;
Light loves I may get mony a ane,

But minnie [i.e. mother] ne'er anither.