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DISCOURSE 8
flowers. He was decking the Paramatma with fragrant flowers. There was a man sitting near Pethad Shah, with a tray containing flowers. He was putting together the flowers, in a proper order; and Pethad Shah took them to deck the idol. The eyes of Pethad Shah were fixed on the holy idol of the Paramatma. Auspicious wicks of pure ghee were burning. The whole temple was permeated with the fragrance of holy incense-sticks that were burning. The atmosphere was so delightful and holy that the king was greatly elated; and exhilarated. The king approached Pethad Shah without making the slightest noise. By making a sign, he sent away the man; and he himself sat near Pethad Shah arranging flowers for him. The king tried to put together the flowers but he could not. When Pethad Shah felt in his hand wrongly arranged flowers, he looked aside. He noticed that the king was sitting in the place of the man who had been arranging flowers. He saw the king only for a moment. The king asked the man to sit there to arrange flowers for Pethad Shah and returned to his palace. Many thoughts arose in the mind of the king.
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"Can such a great devotee of the Paramatma prove false to the trust reposed in him? Never. A treacherous person can never attain such deep absorption and concentration in worshipping the Paramatma because a sinful man's mind is changeful and unstable. If the Chief Minister is really desiring the Kingdom, he would not have been able to attain such mental firmness and concentration; and so much serenity and sanctity would not have been in his face. I am really fortunate in having such a virtuous man as my Chief Minister."
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JEALOUSY IS A GREAT WEAKNESS OF MAN
The worship of the Paramatma performed by Pethad Shah greatly influenced the King Jayasimha. The King's respect for Pethad Shah increased. He dismissed those jealous state-officials from service. Pethad Shah did not hate those officials too. He knew that such a weakness was natural for men; and that jealousy was a natural weakness of human beings. In this world, there are very few people who feel happy when they see the happiness of others. That too, it was political life. In the
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