Ram is the giver of all

Malukdas ji was a karmayogi saint. The practical knowledge he gained through self-study, satsang, and travel is unmatched by bookish knowledge. Even a beastly man like Aurangzeb respected his satsang.
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Saint Malukdas ji was initially an atheist. A saint came to his village and settled there. The saint recited the Ramayana to the people. Every morning and evening, the villagers visited him and enjoyed his Rama Katha.

Coincidentally, one day Malukdas also attended the Ram Katha. At that time, the sage Maharaja was telling the villagers about the glory of Lord Rama, saying, “Rama is the greatest giver in the world. He gives food to the hungry, clothes to the naked, and shelter to the homeless.”

Malukdas also heard the sage’s words, but he couldn’t understand them. Expressing his protest, he argued, “Forgive me, Mahatma! If I sit quietly, chanting the name of Rama, and do nothing, will Rama still provide me with food?”

The sage said with full confidence – I will definitely give. His determination raised another question in Malukdas’s mind and he asked – what if I sit alone in the dense forest? The sage said with determination – even then will Shri Ram provide food!
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Malukdas understood the idea. Now he had to test Shri Ram’s generosity. He reached the forest and climbed a dense tree and sat on it. There were tall trees all around. There were thorny bushes. The sun, slowly moving away in the vast forest, hid behind the western hills.

Darkness spread all around, but Malukdas found no food, nor did he come down from the tree. He remained sitting there all night.

The next day, in the afternoon, in the complete silence, Malukdas heard the sound of horses’ hooves. He sat up alert. A short while later, some royal officials were seen approaching. They all dismounted their horses under the same tree. They decided to eat.

Just as an officer was taking a box of food from his bag, a lion’s thunderous roar was heard. The horses spooked at the roar and fled.

The officers first looked at each other in astonishment, then abandoned their food and fled. Malukdas watched all this from a tree. He waited for the lion. But the lion roared and went in the other direction.

Malukdas thought that Lord Rama had heard his pleas, otherwise how would food reach this dense forest? But Malukdas was Malukdas. Why would he get down and start eating himself? He was actually testing Lord Rama.

In the afternoon, a large group of bandits passed by. Seeing the food, consisting of various dishes, lying in shiny silver vessels beneath the tree, the bandits stopped.

The leader of the bandits said, “Look at the miracle of Lord Rama. We are hungry and have been praying for food. Food has been sent to this desolate forest in beautiful boxes. Once we eat it, we can move on.”

Malukdas was surprised that even the bandits had so much faith in Lord Rama that they would send food. He was thinking about this when he heard something suspicious in the bandits’ words.

Bandits are naturally suspicious. A companion warned, “Sardar, finding food in such beautifully decorated utensils in this desolate forest seems mysterious to me. Could it be poisoned?” Hearing this, the Sardar said, “Then the person who brought the food must be hiding somewhere nearby. Let’s find him first.” On the Sardar’s orders, the bandits began searching everywhere. Then one of the bandits spotted Malukdas.

He told the Sardar. When the Sardar looked up at Malukdas, his eyes turned red like embers. He snarled, “You wicked man! You’re sitting up there, poisoning the food! Come down.”

Hearing the Sardar’s stern voice, Malukdas was frightened but didn’t come down. He said from there, “Why are you blaming me unnecessarily? There’s no poison in the food.” The Sardar ordered, “First, climb the tree and feed him. The truth will be revealed right away.”

In a hurry, three or four bandits climbed a tree, carrying a box of food, and, brandishing a knife, forced Malukdas to eat. Malukdas ate the delicious meal. Then, after coming down, he recounted the entire story to the bandits.

The bandits released him. He himself was running away from the food, but God’s grace was such that he was forcibly fed. After this incident, Malukdas became a staunch devotee of God.

Lesson:
Your actions are pure. You have never intended to harm anyone, so God has the most loving feelings for you, whether you worship Him or not. If your actions are good, then even if you test Him like Malukdasji, He does not mind. Respecting your good deeds, He Himself comes to test you. God has no sense of superiority or inferiority. These vices weaken humanity.