SATYANARAYAN 18TH FEB.-KATHA CHAPTER 3

Om Sai Ram~~~

Chapter 3~~~


Sadhuraj Narad said, "Oh Dear People!, Now let me tell you another story. There was a king named Ulkamuk. He was very wise. He would go daily to the temple & give donations to the Brahmins. His wife was a pious & beautiful lady. At the banks of Madhushala river, one day, when they were doing Lord Shri Satyanarayanji's prayer, a wealthy business-man was passing from there. He anchored his boat, & went up to the king & asked him, "Oh King, what are you doing with so much bhakti? I wish to know- please tell me all about it."


The king replied, "Oh merchant! , I am praying to the great Almigthy, the boon-giver Lord Satyanarayanji for a son. The merchant on hearing this, requested the king to tell him all about the fast & prayer as he was childless too. The king told him the full details of the prayer & fast. After hearing all the details, he decided in his mind to keep this fast. The merchant then left home-wards. On reaching home, he told his wife Leelawati all about the fast & prayer & said, "We will do this fast when we get a child."


One day, with the grace of Lord Satyanarayanji his wife became pregnant. In ten months time, she gave birth to a beautiful daughter. They named her Kalawati. Days passed by; one day, Leelawati slowly & sweetly reminded her husband about the prayer & fast & requested him to fulfil his promise. The merchant told his wife that during the time of Kalawati's wedding it would be easy to observe the same; for at the moment he was busy in his business; so saying he left for his business trip to various villages.


Kalawati grew up to be a beautiful girl. When the merchant saw that his daughter was of marriageable age; he called the match-maker & requested him to search an equal match for his daughter. Hearing the merchant's request, the match-maker reached Kanchan Nagar. From there, he brought the proposal of a young handsome boy.


The merchant liked the proposal, for the boy had all good qualities too. He then spoke to the boy's parents & fixed his daughter's marriage. The marriage was done with all the religious ceremonies & rituals. Unfortunately, the merchant forgot all about his promise to do Lord Satyanarayanji's prayer & fast. The Lord got angry at the false promise made by the merchant.The merchant liked the proposal, for the boy had all good qualities too. He then spoke to the boy's parents & fixed his daughter's marriage. The marriage was done with all the religious ceremonies & rituals. Unfortunately, the merchant forgot all about his promise to do Lord Satyanarayanji's prayer & fast. The Lord got angry at the false promise made by the merchant.


The merchant, after a few days, left for his business trip with his son-in-law. They anchored their boat in a beautiful village, named Ratanpur. In those days, King Chandraketu used to rule the village. The Lord was angry with the merchant for the false promise made by him, & so he wanted to teach him a lesson.


One day, the thieves robbed the wealth of the king & they went & stayed where the merchant was staying. Seeing the guards following them, they left all the loot over there (where the merchant was staying), & hid themselves. When the guards reached the merchant's place, they saw all the king's wealth. Thinking them to be robbers, they hand-cuffed the merchant & his son-in-law & took them to the king & told him that they wer responsible for the theft. The king, without questioning or listening to them ordered to put them in a dark cell. Due to Lord Satyanarayanji's maya, nobody heard them. Even their wealth was confiscated by the king.At the merchant's house, the thieves robbed all their wealth & his wife & daughter had to beg for their daily bread. One day, begging for food, Kalawati reached a Brahmin's house where at that time Lord Satyanarayanji's puja was going on. After listening to the prayer & taking the prasad, she left for home. By that time, it had become dark.


Leelawati was worried. She asked her daughter Kalawati, why are you so late? To which Kalawati told her mother, "Oh Mother, today in a Brahmin's house, I heard a prayer. By doing this prayer & fast, all your wishes get fulfilled." On hearing this, Leelawati started doing all the preparations for the prayer of Lord Satyanarayanji. She did the fast & prayer & asked the Lord for forgiveness & prayed that her husband & her son-in-law should return home safely.


Lord Satyanarayanji was pleased with the prayer & the fast. One day, he told King Chandraketu in his dream, "Oh King, Yoy must release the merchant & his son-in-law from the dark cell, tomorrow morning. Give them their wealth & set them free. If you do not do so, your kingdom will be destroyed." In the morning, the king called the court people & told them about the dream.


The court people after hearing about the dream, came to the conclusion to free the merchant & his son-in-law.They asked the guards to bring the prisoners from the dark cell. King Chandraketu gave them good clothes, all their wealth & plus some more & set them free. The king told them that due to their wrong-doings, they had to undergo this suffering, but now there was nothing to fear & they could go back home. They bowed down to the king & left home-wards.


This chapter of Lord Satyanarayanji is over. All chant (say) Shri Satyanarayanji ki Jai~~~

Jai Sai Ram~~~ tana:
Om Sai Ram~~~