When the golden rays of dawn touch the skin, the heart feels serene. Morning sunlight feels gentle and desirable—just like gold, which humans cherish. With gold comes the fulfillment of worldly desires: clothes, cars, homes. And if there's enough gold, even a world beauty may grace the bungalow as a wife.
Long ago, an ignorant man found a gold coin on the road. Without thinking, he picked it up and pocketed it. Later, another man saw the same coin, looked around to ensure no one was watching, and took it. Then came a learned thinker. He saw the coin and pondered—whose might it be? Is it right to take it? After much inner debate, the thoughtful man made his decision: this is a sign of divine grace, and accepting the coin as a blessing from the Lord is perfectly justified. He picked up the coin and slipped it into his pocket.
By fate, all three died on the same day. Brought before the god of justice, the first was sentenced to one year in hell for enjoying unearned wealth. The second received five years for deliberate theft. Dharmaraja sentenced the thinker to a hundred years in hell. The man said, "I accepted the coin as a divine blessing from the Lord. I am innocent. You are handing out arbitrary punishments. I will file a complaint; I will go on a hunger strike."
Dharmaraja grew furious. "This is not India, where anyone can sit on a hunger strike at will. This is the court of Dharmaraja. You are an educated man—you understand what is right and wrong. Yet you committed theft, and worse, you dragged the divine into your wrongdoing. Your crime is grave. You cannot be forgiven. It is precisely because of the nature of your offense that your punishment has been made severe."
Thus, Dharmaraja delivered judgment upon all three.
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