It was study time for the children and both Adu and Ajju were learning new words. Grandpa had bought new erasers for them and the children were fighting over the same eraser for both liked its colour. Grandpa tried to bring in some semblance of order but the siblings were not in good mood to listen. Hence grandpa dangled the carrot in the form of a story and the children who were waiting to evade studies settled near their grandpa for the story.
Grandpa began thus: This story happened many thousands of years back. It's about great grandfather of SriRama. His name was Raghu , and he was a great king ruling over a vast region. Raghu was highly respected and loved by his citizens. He was also very virtuous and simple. He adhered to all the rules laid down in the dharma Shastras and ruled for a long period. Rama is also called Raghavan after his great grandfather Raghu. Raghu's fame lived that long and that is the reason Rama's rule was compared to that of his great Grandfather's.
A poor brahmin in Raghu's kingdom wanted to perform a vedic ritual called Soma Yagyam. It was a fire sacrifice ritual which demanded lots of money. The Brahmin approached a Rishi (so called since they possessed special powers) for help and the Rishi advised him to meet Raghu, since only a king is wealthy enough to spend on such rituals. The Brahmin had heard about Raghu - his mightiness and his benevolent nature. He set forth to the capital city of Raghu's kingdom. After reaching the capital the Brahmin went to the palace and sought audience with the king. The guards standing outside the palace directed the brahmin to the edge of the city. The brahmin was taken by surprise for he did'nt expect a king of that stature to be living outside the city.
After reaching the outskirts of the city he found a lone hut and a man standing outside filling a mud pot with water. The Brahmin went near and inquired the man about the whereabouts of the king. The man with the mud pot queried the brahmin as to why he was looking for the king. When the brahmin told him about the reason of his visit the man revealed that he was indeed the king and that he would help the brahmin. On hearing this the Brahmin was sceptical about the king's claim. The king had just performed a huge sacrificial ritual called Rajasuya Yagam in which he had given away all his wealth to the citizens of his kingdom and was now living in the hut. He asked the Brahmin to hold out his hand , poured water from the pot, and said, "I hereby sacrifice all the credits I've earned by doing good deeds. Please God accept my sacrifice and bless this Brahmin with money". The next instant gold coins rained down. The King requested the Brahmin to take all the gold. The speechless Brahmin with tears in his eyes prayed to the king, " Oh Raghu great king! Not knowing what a great soul you are I suspected your ability to help me. Please forgive me. I have no use for so much gold. I need only hundred coins for the ritual". The king said, "Neither have I any use for this money. I anyway requested money to help you and so please take all the gold".
Grandpa said, " See, children, how honest and simple were people of those bygone days. A king used to kingly lifestyle sacrificed all his comforts and lived a life of a commoner and a poor man refused to accept money beyond his need. So stop fighting , next time before buying anything for you I'll find out your preferences, okay?" and the children said, " It's alright Gramps we are happy with what ever you got and we'll exchange stuff whenever we wanted a particular thing."
