A RICH MAN AND LORD JAGANNATH

It is a very old story that I have read in a book titled Jagannath Mahima thirty years ago. The story is as narrated below.

Once a very rich Marwari Merchant was living in Jaipur, Rajasthan, named Hiraklal. He was well established and a billionaire during the period of British India. Generally, the Marwaris are very pious and patronize Sanatani religion with almost all the rituals and festivities. Hiraklal was somewhat showy and cherishing ego for his exorbitant wealth often. Once a year he was pilgrimaging to different holy shrines of India. Among all the places of pilgrimage, Lord Jagannath Temple, Puri, Odisha has an exceptional effulgence since the time immemorial which attracts innumerable devotees and followers each year worldwide during the Ratha Jatra ( Car Festival ).

Under the circumstances, Sri Hiraklal once desired to visit Lord Jagannath, the Lord of the Universe as well as the incarnation of the Supreme Soul. He longed for touring to Lord Jagannath Desh, Puri. He also has cherished a hope for worshipping Lord Jagannath with pomp and grandeur which would have been an exception. Then he reached at Puri and asked Badapanda ( the chief Priest ) of the Temple about what would be a most gorgeous valuable offer to Lord. Sri Badapanda advised him to pray Lord with sincerity with a strict austerity for a week in this regard and His decision would certainly be the final. He followed the advice and did the needful instantly.

Then the days moved on. On the last night of the week, Lord Jagannath appeared in the dream of Sri Hiraklal and told him, " My dear son what do you want to offer me luxuriously, tell me I will suggest you accordingly. Then the merchant Hiraklal replied, " O Lord please advise me to give your honour such a gift which must be the costliest one. I will be ever obliged to you O my Lord. " Lord Jagannath replied smilingly, " Yes my dear I only want a KHILIPAN (one side of betel leaf smeared with lime, and areca nut pieces and spices like cardamom, cloves, nutmegs, etc. and folded into a conic form which is offered to Lord Jagannath regularly after breakfast, lunch and dinner to refresh His mouth ). But mind it the lime paste used in it should be made the Elephant Pearl only. Otherwise, I can never accept your offer at any cost. " The rich merchant accepted the advice and told, " Yes Lord". Then Lord disappeared from his dreaming world.

Afterwards the rich man asked Badapanda, the Head Priest, about this particular pearl and the priest, convinced him," Elephant Pearl is a very exceptional and rare thing in the world because it can never be found inside the heads of all elephants. One can never know its presence in the brain of an elephant unless one kills it. So to collect such pearl one certainly should have to continue killing of the elephants as many as possible until one gets it. If you'll get then you have to burn it into ashes and you have to mix a little water with it for making a lime paste. Then you have to coat one side of a betel leaf which is folded after putting requisite spices on it and is offered to Lord as a KHILIPAN as per Odishan culture. "

Thereafter Sri Hiraklal jee patted his forehead with an extreme desperate mood after knowing it. His mind was severely agonized. Vanity for exorbitant wealth and status which Sri Hiraklaljee had been cherishing before long vanished within a moment by virtue of a single Khilipan, only a meagre mouth freshener, wanted by our Lord Jagannath. He broke down and began to cry as a child in front of Ratnasinghasan ( The Throne of Jagannath which is attached with the costliest jewels and gems ). He apologized, " O Lord of the Universe please pardon a mean fellow alias poor man like me who forgot the manhood with worthless ego for riches which is very transient in the world. Please excuse me O great honorable Omniscient Master of the Globe wherefore I will have scope to amend myself henceforth without fail. "

Then Sri Hiraklaljee bore all the expenditures for food and drinking of Lord Jagannath only for one day as was offered as Mahaprasad to Lord. Then he again prayed, with a tearful eye standing beside the Aruna Khamba ( the strongest pillar made of stone situated in front of the Lord inside the temple ) and started his return journey to Rajasthan. After arriving at his native place, Sri Hiraklajee made arrangements for the construction of a Jagannathjee's Temple and an orphanage on his own landed property there. Not only that much, but also he mobilised a Charitable Society to help the needy peoples of Thar desert. All the kiths and kins were amazed at the changing temperament and works of Hiraklal and began to praise him for the benevolence eventually. At the fag end of his life Hiraklal became a great concentric devotee of Lord Jagannath and after his death, his tomb was built nearby the Temple. Till today it is a legend which has been inscribed in starting from palm leaves to plain paper of the printed booklet by different authors.

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