A Lion and a Deer - drinking water together
According to a historic story, once upon a time, King Jambu Lochan of the Dogra dynasty was on a hunting spree.
Upon crossing the Tawi River, he witnessed an extraordinary and unbelievable sight.
On the banks of the Tawi, a lion and a deer were peacefully drinking water together – without any reaction or fear.
Astonished, King Jambu Lochan called his brother Bahu and said,
“Look at this miracle.
These lion and deer are drinking water together at the same spot.
Neither the lion is trying to frighten the deer, nor is the deer afraid of the lion.”
Seeing this scene, King Jambu Lochan felt that the land here was very virtuous and peaceful.
Thinking this, the king decided to establish a city in that place where people of different cultures and ideologies could live together peacefully.
In the ninth century, King Jambu Lochan founded a city across the Tawi River, named Jambupura or Jambu Nagar, which later came to be known as Jammu.
The famous Bahu Fort, on the other side of the Tawi River, was named after King Jambu Lochan's brother Bahu.
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2 Second Account or Version
There is another version of the above historical story as well.
According to another version:
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Astonished at this unbelievable scene, King Jambu Lochan called his brother Bahu and said,
“Look at this miracle.
These lion and deer are drinking water together at the same spot.
Neither the lion is trying to frighten the deer, nor is the deer afraid of the lion.
Both are behaving as if the laws of nature do not apply to them.
The Raja sighed and said:
“This is not harmony; this is disorder.
The lion has forgotten its strength, and the deer has forgotten its instinct.
When nature’s law is violated even by animals, what can be expected of the people of this land?”
He reflected further and said,
“If the lion here cannot assert itself, and the deer has no regard for the lion, then the people born on this land will also have no respect for elders, no respect for leadership, and no respect for law. Their sense of order is broken; their moral values are confused.”
The Raja then concluded,
“A land where the law of nature is ignored becomes easy to rule.
People who cannot recognize and respect authority or honour their leaders cannot protect their own rights and freedom.
Such people can be governed without any resistance.”
Thus, the sight of a lion and a deer drinking together was not a sign of peace for the king, but an insight - a warning—that when respect, hierarchy, and natural balance disappear, society itself begins to decay.
Very deep meaning of both . Thought provoking . 🙏
ReplyDelete🙏🙏
ReplyDeleteInteresting perspective. Vivek is indeed that discriminating power that allows you to see diagonally opposite explanations.
ReplyDeleteVishnu Panjwani
ReplyDeleteVery meaningful 🤲🙏🏻
ReplyDeleteWow ! Poweful !
ReplyDeletewell explained 🎊🙏
ReplyDeleteVery Interesting version … thanks for sharing. I have a diff theory. The essence is Reality does not change … interpretation does. Systems influence people, but people ultimately define systems.
ReplyDeleteWe often interpret situations based on the environment, like political conditions, geography, or culture. But I feel it is not the land or systems that define greatness; it is people. For example, these days when we say a school is good… it is known to be good NOT because of its building or the facilities it provides, but because of its teachers and students. The same is true for societies. Remove people from artificial barriers, and values like integrity, discipline, and compassion will shine through. Change does not begin with the land or leaders.. it begins with those who walk upon it. is shaped by how one reads symbols, not just what one sees.
Thank you, Sapra ji, for your beautiful comments
DeleteYou are absolutely right, and I agree with what you said,
"Reality does not change … interpretation does..."
That's why I posted both versions of the story to show that two opposite perspectives have been drawn and presented by the different authors. Seeing a lion and a deer drinking water together- the first version sees it as harmony, and the second thinks it's disorder in the natural system.
Thanks again for your comments.