Krishna and Sudama

 

Sri Krishna and His elder brother, Balarama, were living with another student named Sudama, in the ashram of their Guru, Sandipani.

 Once Krishna and Balarama were sent to the forest for bringing wood. Their gurumata, the wife of Rishi Sandipani also sent Sudama with them and gave some quantity of grams for all three of them. 

Meanwhile it started to rain and they took shelter under a tree. Krishna wanted some water as he was thirsty. Sudama replied that mo water should be drunk on an empty stomach, so it was better to rest a while.

He did not say that he had got grams with him and that Krishna should take some. As Krishna was tired, he lay down for rest on the lap of Sudama.

 Seeing this, Sudama took out the grams and began to eat. Then Krishna suddenly asked him that what was he eating and what was this sound that was coming.

 Sudama replied that there was nothing to eat and as he was shivering with cold ,so his teeth were chattering. 

He could not even repeat distinctly the Vishnu-Sahastra-Nama. Hearing this, the Omniscient Krishna said that he just dreamt a dream, in which he saw a man, eating things of another, and when asked about this, he said what earth (dust) should he eat meaning thereby that he had nothing to eat.

 Then Krishna said that this was only a dream. He knew that Sudama would not eat anything without him.

 If Sudama had known even a little bit of the Omniscient Shri Krishna and His Leelas, he would not have acted, as he did. 

Therefore, he had to suffer for what he did. Though he was a chum of Shri Krishna he had to pass his later life in utter poverty. But when he afterward offered Sri Krishna a handful of parched rice, earned by his wife with her own labour, Sri Krishna was pleased and gave him a golden city to enjoy.

This story should be remembered by those who have the habit of eating things alone without partaking them with others.

The moral of this story is that we should first offer things to God and then enjoy them after they are renounced by Him. Also we should not take other's things.