Where ego could rule in golden bubbles

Poem 34 from #Fruit-gathering by #RandranathTagore:

"Sire," announced the servant to the King, "the saint Narottam has never deigned to enter your royal temple.

"He is singing God's praise under the trees by the open road. The temple is empty of worshippers.

"They flock round him like bees round the white lotus, leaving the golden jar of honey unheeded."

The King, vexed at heart, went to the spot where Narottam sat on the grass.

He asked him, "Father, why leave my temple of the golden dome and sit on the dust outside to preach God's love?"

"Because God is not there in your temple," said Narottam.

The King frowned and said, "Do you know, twenty millions of gold went to the making of that marvel of art, and it was consecrated to God with costly rites?"

"Yes, I know it," answered Narottam. "It was in that year when thousands of your people whose houses had been burned stood vainly asking for help at your door.

"And God said, 'The poor creature who can give no shelter to his brothers would build my house!'

"And he took his place with the shelterless under the trees by the road.

"And that golden bubble is empty of all but hot vapour of pride."

The King cried in anger, "Leave my land."

Calmly said the saint, "Yes, banish me where you have banished my God."

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     When I first read this poem several years ago, I thought the inspiration or object behind this heart wrenching poem would have been #TheTajMahal.

     It is generally circulated that after completion of #TheTajMahal, #Shajahan had got the hands of the workers cut off and the chief architect killed. This is stated more as folk lore but no historical evidences have been adduced. Yet the grandeur of the structure made people believe in the story. So I had felt that the pain in the above poem was perhaps drawn from that instance.

     But later I came across another instance in the book #VandharkalVendrargal (Tamil) by #Madhan.

     He narrates the episode where # GhiasuddinTughlaq planned to build the #Thuklakabadfort. The Sultan had a feud with a #SufiMystic. The Mystic had cursed the project of new #Thuglakabadfort by saying that it will be deserted. The Sultan however had decided to kill the Mystic on his return from a campaign of Bengal. After the Sultan succeeded in his campaign, while he was coming back to Delhi, some one tells the Mystic that the Sultan is coming back and he may kill him on his return. The Mystic says, ‘Delhi is far away from Sultan’. As predicted by the Mystic, the Sultan got killed before entry into Delhi, at a reception arranged for him for his victorious expedition.

     On reading the above episode, I felt that Tagore had written the above poem perhaps only keeping in mind this incident. That the Sultan was returning from a campaign of Bengal, made me feel the probability, even more.

     Whatever was the inspiration, the pain exhibited in the poem is hard to overcome. It shows how the misplaced priorities of rulers and their egoistic approach to have a stamp of their name in the annals of history becomes tragic, not only to mankind, but even to themselves.

     Any project undertaken by anyone, any time, anywhere has to be, keeping this in mind.