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| From thet on, the Great Being practised the Ten Rules of Kingship. He reigned with righteousness. He supported all the hermit buddhas. Later, Queen Sivali Devi gave birth to a royal son who fulfilled all the characteristics of wealth and luck. The royal parents gave him the name of Dighavurajakumara. When Dighavurajakumara reached the appropriate age, the King invested him as Viceroy. And the reigned for seven thousand years. |
| One day, the chief Park Tender bought to the King many different Kinds of fruit of many sizes and various of flowers. Seeing all these, King Mahajanaka was very happy; he congratuated the park tender and said: "Look here, Chief Park Tender, we wish to see the Royal Park; go and prepare it" The Chief Park Tender acknowledged the royal wish, took action accordingly and informed the King. The Great Being, riding on the neck of the royal elephant, left the city with a long retinue and arrived at the Park, Near the gate, there were two mango trees with resplendent green foliage. One of these had no fruit; The other had many. The fruit was extremely sweet. Nobody could pick the fruit htom that tree because the King had not yet eaten the tasty fruit. Seated on the neck of the elephant, the Great Being picked one fruit and tasted it. As it touched of the Great Being's tounge the fruit seemed like nectar. The Great Being thought:" We shall eat our fill on the way back." and entered the Royal park. |
| The others, form the Viceroy to the elephant mahouts and the horse handles, seeing that the King had already eaten the tasty fruit, all picked some and had their fill. Still others who came in later, used sticks to break down branches; The tree was denuded of leaves; the tree was uprooted. The other mango tree still stood majestically as a mountain glistening like a gem. The KIng came out of the royal park; seeing this specacle, he asked the courtiers: "What is all this?" The courtiers said: "The people, knowing that your Majesty had already eaten the succulent fruit, fought among themselves to get a bite of that mango fruit." The King asked :"The foliage and the resplendence of this tree are all gone, but the foliage and the resplendence of that yon tree are still intact. How is it so?" All the courtiers said :"The foliage and the resplendence of the other tree are not all gone because it bears no fruit." The King, on hearing thus, felt very sad. He mused :"That tree is still beautifully green, because it has no fruit, but this tree has been cut down and uprooted because it has no fruit. This throne is like the tree with fruits; peaceful retirement is like the tree without fruits. Danger lurks around th one with worries and does not menace the one without worries. We will not be like the tree with fruits; we will be like the one without fruits." |
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