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DISCOURSE 40
231
Unusually tasty! How is it? The dishes are extraordinarily delicious !"
ANAND MADE SODAS A MEAT-EATER
The friend, Anand and the cooks began to laugh. The priest's son was at that time eating food in the company of Sodas. Sodas asked him, "Anand, why are you laughing ? Both of you are laughing, why ?" Anand said, "I will tell you later”. Anand took from Sodas a promise of safety and then said, "Meat is mixed with the food”. Of course, Sodas was displeased but Anand spoke to him in an affectionate manner and persuaded him to believe that meat was sweet to taste. Sodas cooled down and also gave his consent to eat meat.
From the time of the first Tirtankar Rishabhdev, the kings of Ayodhya and the royal families had been following the tradition of non-violence. Consequently, the kings of Ayodhya ate only vegetarian food. Even the people of the country considered meat as improper and prohibited food, fit to be discarded. In such an atmosphere, it was not easy for the king to eat meat openly. Even the kings had to adhere to cultural traditions. They had to respect the religious feelings of their people.
Sodas became a meat-eater. Now, his friend, Anand began to get cows and other animals to be slaughtered for meat. One day, when the cooks could not get meat anywhere, they secured the dead body of a child; cut it and prepared food out of it for the king and king Sodas ate human flesh. He became a cannibal. The king began to like human Aesh greatly. He ordered that every day food should be prepared out of human flesh. From then onwards, in the city, every day, a child used to be stolen or abducted. The people and the ministers were worried greatly over this phenomenon. The spies and the secret police officials caught hold of the abductors of children; and the secret about the sinful phenomenon came to light.
The ministers dethroned Sodas and crowned Prince Simharatha, king of the country. Sodas went away into a forest. His friend had already run away into the forest. The cannibal, Sodas carried a sword in his hand, and began wandering through
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