ONCE a discussion was going on in Lord Indra’s court where one of the demi-Gods mentioned that there are still some brave and merciful kings on the Earth who would not think even twice in laying down their lives to give shelter to the needy. But, another demi-God, who did not agree with this contention, said, “I do not believe you. How can any living person give up his life just to protect those who approach him for shelter?”
The two demi-Gods began to argue with each other till Lord Indra decided to intervene. He suggested to them, “Why don’t you both go to the Earth and check things for yourself?”
The two demi-Gods agreed and chalked out their plan of action. One of them took the form of a pigeon while the other became a hawk. When they reached the Earth, they found King Megharath holding the court surrounded by his courtiers. The pigeon flew into the court through an open window and perched itself on the king’s lap, after circling the large hall of the palace. The king was surprised to see the fear on its face and tried to protect it with his hands. Just then a hawk flew into the court and demanded from the king, “Your Majesty, this pigeon is my prey. Kindly hand it over to me.”
The king looked at the quivering pigeon and replied, “I agree the pigeon is your prey but since it came to me to seek protection, I will not give it to you. But if you are hungry, I’ll arrange food for you.” So saying, he ordered his courtiers to bring a basket full of sweets for the hawk.
At this the hawk said angrily, “I am not a human being that I will feed on sweets. I need meat for my food.”
The king thought over it for a moment and as he did not want to kill another bird to offer it to the hawk, he said, “Okay, you can eat my flesh instead of the pigeon’s.”
At this, one of the courtiers said alarmingly, “Why should Your Majesty give your flesh? I’ll go and get meat from a butcher’s shop.”
The king replied, “No, don’t go. A butcher’s shop thrives by selling meat. If you get meat from him, he will kill some other animal to stock his shop. Since this pigeon has sought refuge from me, I must protect it. At the same time I cannot bear to see another animal being slaughtered. It is better to give my own flesh instead.”
With this, the king took out his dagger and cut-off a piece of flesh from his thigh and offered it to the hawk. The court looked on in stunned silence. But the hawk replied, “Oh king, what you have given is only a very small piece. I want the same amount of flesh as the pigeon has.”
A weighing balance was brought and the pigeon was made to sit in one pan. Meanwhile the king kept on slicing his flesh from one point or another and placing it on the other pan. Still his flesh did not equal the weight of the pigeon. Finally, the king went and sat down on the other pan of the weighing scale. He started to meditate with his eyes closed.
On seeing his devotion, the pigeon and the hawk retuned to their original form as demi-Gods and blessed the king, “Oh great king, we bless you and we are convinced that you are a brave and merciful king.”
With these words they left the court while the courtiers began to cheer King Megharath. It is said that when the king died, his soul became the sixteenth Tirthankar or Lord Shantinath.
