Mallaraj’s Mani and

His Initiation into Statecraft Mena Rani failed to convince Mallaraj. Samant made another attempt through Jarashankar. One day Jarashankar broached the issue. ‘Maharaj, Samant appears unhappy with you.’ Mallaraj:  ‘What about?’ Jarashankar:  ‘He wished to convince you for a second marriage, and it is said that you dismissed the proposal with disdain.’ Mallaraj:  ‘Just that? Whose message are you carrying?’ Jarashankar:  ‘Samant himself informed me.’ Mallaraj:  ‘Did he tell you who his messenger was?’ Jarashankar:  ‘The queen.’ Mallaraj:  ‘Does he not deserve to be treated with disdain for this stupidity?’ Jarashankar:  ‘He wished to convey that even the queen agreed to this proposal.’ Mallaraj:  ‘Does Samant want me to remarry for the sake of Ratnanagari or for my worldly pleasures? If it was the latter that motivated Samant, he deserves to be treated with utmost disdain. The rulers of Ratnanagari are not moved by worldly pleasures, and if my heir believes that I desire such pleasures, I am pained both by his thinking and his estimation of me. If I were to accept this proposal, both he and I are unfit to be rulers. By my disdain, I showed him the path to acquire the capability to be a ruler. Moreover, he used the queen for something that would have been to her disadvantage. This is the other reason for my obvious disdain.’ Jarashankar:  ‘Maharaj, he was motivated by a desire to secure Ratnanagari’s future. You appointed him as the heir apparent and used his mediation with the Bhayat. This idea probably came to him at that time.’ Mallaraj was thoughtful for a while. ‘Yes, I understand. You are probably right. This proposal is the result of his devotion to the state. But I showed disdain for his devotion. I committed an error. Jarashankar you must rectify this mistake. Please explain my reasons to Samant and thank him for it.’ Jarashankar laughed. ‘Maharaj, the king errs and the minister salvages the situation?’ Mallaraj:  ‘This happens every day in other states. For us, this is the first instance.’ Jarashankar:  ‘Maharaj, when a king takes a decision without consulting his minister, the king often repents. But if the minister is taken into confidence, even if it leads to repentance later, it is shared by the minister with his king.’ Mallaraj:  ‘Is this advocacy to expand the scope of your authority?’ Jarashankar:  ‘Yes, Maharaj!’ Mallaraj:  ‘I admire your autonomy and courage. How can I not accept my error? But tell me, was Samant not wrong in conveying the message through the queen instead of you? Was I wrong in decrying that choice? You tell me that Samant’s counsel was in the interests of the state, and yet he chose the queen as messenger instead of my minister. Did I have an option but to push him out?’ Jarashankar:  ‘Maharaj, your argument has defeated me. But let me come to the main issue. Let us examine the merits of Samant’s message. It has been held desirable that a king should marry