In a town, there lived a merchant who had a young son. One day, the son bought a book for a large amount of money. Inside the book, there was only one verse:
‘You always get what’s coming to you. Even the gods can’t oppose the laws of destiny. What destiny gives me, no one can take away.’
When the merchant saw his son’s book, he asked him how much he had paid for it. The son named the amount and the father was horrified. “That much for one verse?” He called his son a failure and drove him out of the house.
The young man went away and settled in another city.
Wherever he went, whenever he was asked “What is your name and where do you come from?” he would reply, “You will get what is there for you.”
Seeing that the young man would not say anything else, the people in the city began calling him: “Get What Is Coming To You.”
One day, a beautiful princess went to a festival in the city. While she was there, by chance, her eyes fell on a very handsome prince. She asked her maid to help her find a way to meet the prince. The maid went. The prince wanted to know how he could sneak into the palace.
The maid said there would be a rope hanging from a window and the prince could climb up using it.
The prince said he would come.
When the prince returned home, he thought it was not correct to meet someone like this and he decided not to go.
In the meanwhile, the merchant’s son saw the rope hanging from the window. Wondering what it was, he climbed up and entered the palace.
It was dark. The princess thought the prince had come. She welcomed him and gave him food.
She said she had fallen in love with him just by seeing him. The merchant’s son said, “You always get what is coming to you.”
The princess had a closer look. This was a total stranger. She was furious and she drove him away, making him climb down the same way he had come.
The merchant’s son went and took shelter in an old temple.
A watchman had made an appointment with a prostitute in that old temple. He saw the merchant’s son and asked who he was. The young man said, “You always get what’s coming to you.”
To cover himself, the watchman asked the young man to take shelter in his house and pointed out the house.
The merchant’s son went to the watchman’s house.
Now, the young man, instead of entering through the main door, climbed in through an open window. Inside, the watchman’s daughter was waiting in the dark, with a garland in her hand. As soon as the young man climbed in, she put the garland around his neck. She then asked him to say something, and the young man said, “You always get what’s coming to you.”
Furious, she threw the young man out of the house.
When he came out, he saw a marriage procession on the way. A groom was going to marry someone. The young man joined the group.
The bride’s father had erected a platform on which the bride was seated.
Suddenly, a mad elephant appeared there. Everyone ran away, but the bride was too scared to move.
When the young man saw this, he said he would save her. He pulled a large nail from the platform and jabbed the elephant. The elephant got scared and ran away.
Seeing the elephant run away, everyone returned.
They saw the bride with the young man. The groom wanted to know what happened. The bride said she would not marry someone who had left her, and would marry only this person.
Arguments broke out related to this amongst all.
The news reached the king. He came to see what was happening, along with his daughter.
He asked what was happening. The young man said, “You always get what’s coming to you.”
When the princess heard this, she understood what was destined would happen.
The watchman’s daughter also heard this and remembered what had happened to her.
When the king heard the princess, the watchman’s daughter, and the bride, he wanted to know the truth. The girls told him what had happened.
The king then gave his daughter in marriage to the young man, and gave him lots of gifts and ornaments. As he had no sons, he proclaimed the young man the heir apparent.
The young man then married the bride and got a lot of dowry.
The watchman also then gave his daughter to the young man.
The young man then settled down in the palace. He then had his parents also brought there and lived happily.
Ending his story, the mouse said, “This is why I said, what is destined for you, will happen.” He said given what he had suffered in the temple, he had decided to leave with the crow.
The turtle said that crows were the natural enemies of mice, but here they were, good friends.
He asked the crow and the mouse to stay there as long as they wanted to. A wise man is one who earns money but enjoys it, as the weaver learnt.
The others asked about the story, and the turtle began telling the story.
Key Takeaways
One always gets what’s coming to you: The young man’s repetition of the verse serves as a mechanism for his identity and fulfillment of his fortune.
The young man’s seemingly negative experiences are not deterrents but necessary steps that set the stage for his eventual success.
The young man’s success comes from a series of accidents and misinterpretations which are all framed as his destiny unfolding.
Despite being initially called a “failure” by his father, the young man ends the story wealthy, married to three women (including a princess), and named the heir to the kingdom. His initial, costly “investment” in the book is validated.
No comments:
Post a Comment