Nothing to Drop?

J P VASWANI





Once, a great king decided to renounce his power and possessions and seek initiation from the Buddha as a monk. The bhikkus gathered around the hermitage to witness the ceremony . The king arrived, dressed in an ochre robe. His head was shaven, and he had dispensed with all his ornaments.He walked bare feet through the assembly of monks and in his right hand, he carried a priceless diamond, as an offering to the Master. In his left hand, he carried a rare white lotus -in case the Buddha refused to accept the ostentatious offering of the diamond. Buddha, seated with closed eyes, told the king, “Drop it!“ The king immediately dropped the diamond. Buddha's voice commanded again, “Drop it!“ The king now dropped the lotus.
Again, the voice commanded, “Drop it!“ The king was baffled, for he had nothing to drop now. He continued to walk towards the Master. But Buddha said once again, “I say to you, drop it!“ In one of Buddha's discourses, he had heard the Master say , “Yena tyajasi tat tyaja“ -leave that (the ego, or the `i' thought) through which you have left everything! He realised that he was still in the grip of the ego -that he had dropped the diamond and lotus at the Master's command.
He lacked the true humility that is the mark of a seeker. At that moment, he surrendered himself totally to the Buddha and dropped his ego. The Master opened his eyes and acknowledged him with approval -for, at that moment, the king had surrendered himself to the Master in all humility .