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Ch. 16: Anathi – The Orphan
I was taken aback by his remark. I said, “Muniraj, perhaps you do not know who I am. I am Emperor Shrenik of Magadh. I have the fortunes and riches of the world. How dare you call me an orphan?"
The monk was calm and composed. He said, “I am sorry my dear Emperor, but you misunderstood me. Perhaps my understanding of the two terms-orphan' and guardian' is different than yours.”
Of course I knew the traditional meaning of both the terms. However, I thought that the Muniraj perhaps had a philosophical interpretation. I asked him to explain what he meant.
Muniraj readily responded. “Maharaja, I was born into a very wealthy family. I was married to a beautiful woman who also came from a noble wealthy family. My wife and I lived happily with my parents.
One day, I suddenly developed excruciating pain in my eyes. Everyone tried to sooth my pain. Well-known medical experts were summoned from far away places but were unable to stop my pain. We tried many options but nothing worked. My parents, my wife, and my brothers and sisters could not really guard me against my misery. At that point, I realized that I was truly an orphan. A true guardian would have guarded and shielded me under all circumstances from such pain!"
Muniraj continued, "Then I remembered a sermon by Bhagwan Mahavir in which he explained the spiritual meaning of the terms, 'orphan', and 'guardian'. In that sermon Bhagwan said, 'Our body and soul are two different entities. The body reacts to external events by generating responses such as pain and pleasure. However, the soul wants, and can be trained, to be aloof to these responses. A free soul is a
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