________________
134
JAIN RAMAYAN
a new vigour and liveliness. Already, a large number of armed soldiers stood around the palace. Everyone who heard of this was stupefied. A sort of commotion appeared everywhere. The news that King Sodas himself had been the cause for the abduction of children in the city and that many tender children had been killed mercilessly for the gratification of his craving for human flesh spread like a wild fire. The same commotion was discernible everywhere. The people of Ayodhya despised Sodas and spoke of him with utter contempt.
Just then the people of the city heard the noise of drums.
"Here is a proclamation issued by the Chief Minister. Today at nine in the morning in the presence of all the people of the city the representatives of the city, the ministers and officials of the state, Prince Simharath will be crowned king of Ayodhya in the royal court. All are requested to attend the ceremony”.
When Sodas woke up in the morning he found that his palace had been surrounded by armed soldiers. He experienced at once a meteoric fall in his heart. He found that he could not get out of the palace. And in the present situation he did not have the mental strength to bear with what had happened. He became terribly agitated. His agitation knew no bounds. He found his predicament unbearable. The greatest cause of sorrow for him was that he had not been able to get dishes made out of human flesh. In that situation, there was no possibility of his getting human flesh. Now, he could not get such dishes in Ayodhya. He did not care for the Kingdom or for the throne. All that he wanted was human flesh!
In fact, sensual cravings can assume strange and terrible forms. The man who is attached to sensual pleasures slights noble conduct and ethical excellence. Sodas had become a slave to the sense of taste. In consequence, he had fallen very low morally and spiritually. Sodas who was once a high-born, a highly cultured prince who had been brought up by his noble mother and who ruled the vast kingdom of Ayodhya had now changed completely; had fallen to the depths of degeneration; had become the meanest of mortals....a cannibal, a devourer
Jain Education International
For Private & Personal Use Only
www.jainelibrary.org
