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Once upon a time, there was a king in Tibet who loved to eat fish. He couldn’t manage a meal without fish dishes. One year, however, a drought struck, and all the riverbeds within the country dried up. As such, he could not continue to have fish during his meals. Feeling uneasy, he ordered notices to be put up throughout the country stating, “Anyone who possesses a fish, even a salted one, must send it to the palace quickly.” After a period of time, not even a single salted fish was available anymore, the King proceeded to put up notices again, this time stating, “Anyone who can present the King with a fish, he would grant the person with whatever his or her heart desire”.
A Tibetan merchant happened to hear about the King’s request for fish and his numerous orders to the release notices throughout the country seeking fish. Therefore, during his journey home, he made an effort to search for several exotic fish for the King. When he was about to happily present the fishes to the King, he was stopped by the gatekeeper at the palace gate. After hearing the merchant explained the purpose of his visit, the gatekeeper thought, “If these fish were presented to the King by me, I would have made a significant contribution, and I would definitely receive a handsome reward from the King.” Hence, he went on to tell the merchant, “Leave your fish here. I will help you to present them to the King.”
The merchant explained to the gatekeeper frankly, “These fish were painstakingly sought by me from a foreign land. Therefore, I would like to present them to the King personally.” The gatekeeper was unwilling to let this opportunity of making a great contribution slip away, hence he suggested to buy those fish from the merchant. However, no matter what price the gatekeeper offered, the merchant refused to sell the fishes to the gatekeeper, he insisted to present the fishes to the King himself. Finally, the gatekeeper offered a condition to allow the merchant to pass through the palace gate: “Whatever reward the King gives you, you must share half of it with me.” Reluctantly, the merchant agreed to the condition, and the gatekeeper ultimately let him into the palace to meet the King.
The King was thrilled to see the fish and proceeded to ask the merchant on the reward he wanted. The merchant said, “I would just like to receive a punishment of a thousand strokes with a wooden plank.” The King thought he heard the merchant wrongly at first, so the merchant repeated his request earnestly. As per the merchant’s request, the King ordered his royal guards to beat the merchant gently without injuring him. The merchant laid on the floor during the process, and the royal guards took careful note to beat him gently without causing any injury. After the merchant had received 500 strokes of beating, he suddenly halted the process and announced that the remaining of the 500 strokes would be borne by the gatekeeper. The merchant explained to the King the conversation he had with the gatekeeper earlier and the condition he was offered. The King was outraged when he learned about what happened and immediately ordered his royal guards to bring in the gatekeeper. The King ordered the royal guards to pin the gatekeeper to the ground and bellowed, “The merchant had received his reward, the remaining half is yours. Royal guards, hit him forcefully!”
Even though this story sounded a little ridiculous, after pondering, it is not entirely illogical. The merchant was sincere and respectful in his attempt to present the fish to the King, which delighted the King. Therefore, even though the merchant requested a beating, the King instructed his attendants to carry it out gently, without harming him. On the other hand, the gatekeeper, who sought to reap rewards without effort, ended up with nothing and suffered severe punishment instead. This is an example of acting against Dharma, or universal law. When one attempts to gain benefits through immoral means, they risk violating the law and will likely face the bitter retribution of their karma.
Translated by Soh Wan Siew
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