The eternal standard of perfect governance
Once during a court gathering under the reign of King Bhoja, a poet rose, beaming, and to the king’s delight recited a verse praising him as the equal of Lord Rama and his kingdom the equal of Rama Rajya. As the ministers applauded, a crow flew in and let its droppings fall upon the poet’s head. The poet was instantly crestfallen, and the king ordered the bird to be seized.
To everyone’s wonder, the crow began to speak: “O King, I soiled this poet because he has told a lie. You are not the equal of Rama, and your kingdom is not the equal of Rama Rajya. Let me prove it to you. Follow me.”
The king, his ministers and the poet followed the crow to the mouth of a cave, where it instructed them to dig away the earth. Beneath the soil lay thousands of gemstones.
The crow then began a story. In Sri Rama’s kingdom, there was once a wealthy man who had no children. Praying to Rama, he promised that if a child were granted to him, he would offer the Lord a pot full of gems.
Soon after, a child was born, and he brought the gems to Rama as promised. But Rama would not take them and asked the wealthy man to share the gems among the poor. Yet in Rama Rajya, there were no poor to be found.
In response, Rama said the gems might be given to anyone who desired them. But during his rule, dharma was so strong in the people’s hearts that they would not accept any wealth they had not earned by their own labour. And so the gems were left lying there, taken by no one.
“What you see before your eyes now are those very gems,” said the crow. “O King, now bid your ministers and your poet to open their hands.”
Reluctantly, each one obeyed, and in every palm gemstones were found. They had pocketed them while the story was being told. “Now do you see that your kingdom is not the equal of Rama Rajya?” said the crow.
Today, the crow’s question lingers. Rama Rajya was the model of perfect governance, and as the world faces grave challenges, many are praying for all of humanity to live in peace and plenty, guided by rulers who guard the people as parents guard their children.
With Rama as their king, the people were sincerely committed to moral values, content to leave wealth lying in the earth rather than take what they had not earned. When a ruler is firmly rooted in dharma, those ideals flourish in the hearts of the people too.
A true ruler will always put the needs of the people above the needs of his near and dear ones. His subjects are also his family, and their welfare is his single aim. To him, governance is a penance, a worship of God, an offering of himself for the sake of the world. Because Rama ruled in just this way, Rama Rajya remains for all time the measure of perfect governance.
