Passage 23

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In plain words

Since no one else is here, I am telling you. Among those who work in these factories there are women, men, children, elders, people of every kind. First of all, grow a good way of seeing! In many a factory, husband and wife both work. If your eye falls on that girl, he will not like it. Be careful! And besides, if someone comes and speaks bad words, and you listen to his words, the second man will set his eye on you. So do not listen to bad words, do not look with bad looks, do not think bad thoughts, do not do bad deeds, do not speak bad words! You know this well. The whole Rāmāyaṇa has been teaching this very thing. Who was Kaikeyī? The chief queen of King Daśaratha. For her, King Daśaratha gave up everything. She was the daughter of a great king. A princess of Kashmir. Families of very high standing. But a maid came along with her. She was a maidservant. Her name was Mantharā. Though she was a servant, Kaikeyī was very fond of her. One day this Mantharā was going from Kausalyā's room to Kaikeyī's room. Rāma, Lakṣmaṇa, Bharata and Śatrughna were playing a game of ball. Rāma threw. Just at that moment Mantharā came suddenly across the way. The ball struck her, poor thing! She kept that hatred in her mind. See! What a deed hatred did! She took a vow to punish this Rāma when the time came. While Bharata and Śatrughna were in Kashmir, King Daśaratha was settling on Rāma's coronation. Meanwhile Mantharā was laying a master plan. Then she went back to Kaikeyī: ‘Mother! Daśaratha has decided to crown Rāma,’ she said. Naturally, Kaikeyī, who came from a good and great family, was filled with a noble feeling. ‘Mantharā! I have been able to hear such sacred news!’ she said, and took off the great diamond necklace she was wearing just then and put it round Mantharā's neck as a gift. She flung that necklace away, and ground up resentment and ground it again and poured it into Kaikeyī.