THE TWIN BROTHERS
-1. Education Under Sage Anantu

Sage Suryananda took his seat beneath a banyan tree and looked at his students who were eagerly awaiting his recital of a new story that evening.  All of his stories taught the children to follow good principles and be virtuous in life. Suryananda smiled at his students benignly and addressed everyone in a crisp voice, “Dear students, apart from anger and greed, jealousy is another immoral quality, which we must try to get rid of.  My story for today is based on this premise which will tell you about the harmful effects of being jealous. Listen!”

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As the sun rose from the Saruyu river and graced the earth with it’s radiant rays, Sage Anantu and his disciples bowed low before it and offered prayers, as was the daily custom.  Thereafter, the students practiced yoga where they did some simple exercises, which would keep them fresh and agile throughout the day.  Then, after a short rest, as all of them were having a light breakfast which comprised of fruits that grew in the beautiful garden of the sage, one of his disciples came and informed him that the ruler of the land, King Salya, sought an audience with him.  Anantu hurried to meet the King and welcomed him to his cottage.

After both of them were seated comfortably in a mat, the sage looked at the king endearingly and queried, “O Rajan!  Pray tell me as to what brings you here.”

“O Sage!” spoke the King with reverence, “You may be knowing that I have twin sons.”  As Anantu nodded his head in the affirmative, Salya continued, “They have now come of age to get education under a sage.  I can think of no one except you who could be their guru!”

Anantu was immensely pleased to hear these words of the King.  “Maharaj!  That would be my privilege!  I feel honoured!” 

“Thank you, O Sage!  I am now relieved!” 

It was decided that the education of the young Princes would begin from next week on an auspicious day.  Before leaving, Salya apprised the sage of his fears, “O revered one!  My elder son, Suryakanth, is very rude and always jealous of the younger one, Chandrakanth, who is a darling of all due to his noble character.  I am worried to see these disturbing qualities in Suryakanth from such a tender age.  I want him to become like Chandrakanth.” 

Anantu smiled at the King. “I will try my best, Maharaj!  Please bring them along next week.” 

Salya agreed, took the blessings of the sage and took his leave.  He appeared very delighted at the fact that his sons would get education under a renowned sage like Anantu.

On the appointed day, King Salya and his Queen, Janaki, came to the ashram alongwith their twins.  The sage promptly accepted them as his pupils and assured their parents that he would try to do full justice to his duty.  He also informed them that after the Princes completed their education, he would himself bring them along to the palace. 

Both Suryakanth and Chandrakanth were so strikingly similar that made their identification virtually impossible.  They had a round face with lovely eyes, thin eyebrows, little lips and curly hairs which appeared as if the moon had descended upon the earth in two human forms!  However, as days passed by, the sage and his students saw that although the duo looked alike there was a vast difference in their characters. Chandrakanth was liked by one and all due to his generous character.  He also became one of the favourite pupils of his guru by his sincerity, obedience, dedication and commitment. 

On the contrary, just like the King had pointed out, the elder brother, Suryakanth, was very rude in his behaviour and often misbehaved with his younger brother.  Suryakanth felt very envious about the fact that he was not as popular as Chandrakanth in the ashram.  This jealousy made him look at his brother with contempt.  Since Chandrakanth was dear to many students in the ashram, he also hated them and stayed in isolation.

One day, all the students in the ashram were practicing archery.  Anantu had kept some small balls hanging from the trunks of different trees and the students had to pierce through the object with their arrows.  Some of them succeeded in this test including Chandrakanth much to the dismay of Suryakanth.  He was furious that he could not succeed in hitting his target while his brother had done it.  Finally, he flung his bow to the ground in frustration.  Chandrakanth decided to speak with his brother and make him regain his normal composure. 

“Can I tell you something, brother?”  he asked Suryakanth softly. 

“What is it?”  responded the elder brother dejected. 

“Do you remember what Guruji told us?  He asked us to concentrate on our target and never get depressed.  Even I did not succeed initially.  However, I was determined to hit the target and finally did it.  I see no reason as to why you, too, can’t succeed in hitting your target.” 

Suryakanth glared at his brother, “Don’t advice me, Chandrakanth.  You are younger to me and I want you to always bear that in mind.  Go away from here!”  Chandrakanth was hurt to hear these cruel words of his brother and walked off silently.  Their guru, Sage Anantu, was seeing all these developments from a distance.  He called Suryakanth to his cottage and made him sit beside him.