The Tirthankaras
King Meghrath and His Justice
राजा मेघरथ का न्याय · રાજા મેઘરથનો ન્યાય
The pigeon, the hawk and the weighing scale
- 4 min full story
- 3 min children's telling
- Best shared with a grown-up
A frightened pigeon lands in a king's lap, a hungry hawk demands it back, and the king must find a way to be fair to both.
What it teaches Compassion Protection Self-sacrifice
The opening of the children's telling
Long ago, in a land called Mahavideha, there was a kind king named Meghrath. His father had taught him that a king must protect every life, whether it walks, swims, crawls or flies.
Up in the heavens, the gods were talking about him. One god said, King Meghrath would protect anyone who comes to him for help. Another god laughed. No one would do that for a little bird, he said. So the two gods came down to earth to see. One became a small grey pigeon. The other became a hawk.
Read the whole story See plans
To carry into the day
To protect the one who trusts us is a duty larger than our comfort.
To talk about together
King Meghrath would not let another animal be killed even to save the pigeon. What does that tell us about the kind of compassion he had?
Retold for JainStory from the traditional narrative and checked against published Jain sources. Details vary between tellings.