Sudama ki Mitrata

Bahut pehle do baalak rishi Sandipani ke aashram mein saath padhte the. Ek the Krishna — Yaadavon ke raajkumar, Dwarka ke swaami banne waale. Doosre the Sudama — nirmal hriday aur kushaagra buddhi waale nirdhan brahman baalak. Ve ghanishth mitra the. Ve saath lakdiyaan been-te, saath shaastra padhte, aur bhookh bhi baant lete. Ek baar jab toofaan mein unhe lakdiyaan laane bheja gaya, to ve raat bhar ped ke neeche dubke rahe, aur guru-patni ne apne haathon se unhe khilaaya. Saral mitrata ke ve din dono ke hridayon mein sada rahe. Varsh beete. Krishna Dwarka ke raja bane — swarn nagri ke shaasak, laakhon dwara poojit. Sudama gaanv ki jhonpdi mein nirdhan brahman rahe — bhiksha par jeete, vivaahit, bachchon waale — nirdhanta ke dabaav mein har varsh duble hote gaye. Unhone kabhi shikaayat na ki, kyunki bhakti mein santusht the, lekin unki patni bachchon ko bhookha dekhtin aur unka hriday toot-ta. Ant mein unhone praarthna ki: tum apne bachpan ke mitra Krishna ki itni charcha karte ho, jo ab mahaan raja hain. Unke paas jaao. Ve avashya sahaayata karenge. Sudama hichke. Bhikhaari bankar raja ke paas jaane mein lajja aati thi, aur mitra ke paas zaroorat lekar jaane mein bhi. Lekin patni ne hath kiya, aur ant mein ve maan gaye. Yaatra ke liye unke paas dene ko kuchh na tha, isliye unhone mutthi bhar chiuda udhaar liya — bhuna aur saadhaaran — apne phate vastra ke kone mein baandha, aur unhe vida kiya. Nirdhan ki patni raja ko yahi uphaar de sakti thi. Sudama dinbhar chale jab tak swarn nagri Dwarka na pahunche. Mahal ke dwaar ke pehredaar phatehaal brahman par hanse, lekin jab unhone kaha ki ve Krishna ke bachpan ke mitra hain, to muskuraate hue jaane diya. Ve vishaal sabhaagaar mein ghuse, chiude ki nanhi potli thaame, har kadam par chhote hote hue. Tabhi Krishna ne unhe dekha. Brahmaand ke swaami sinhaasan se uthe, nange pair sabhaagaar paar daude, aur aansu bahaate hue Sudama ko gale laga liya. Raaniyaan aur darbaari aashcharya se dekhte rahe jab raja ne phatehaal mitra ko apne sinhaasan par baithaaya, apne haathon se unke pair dhoye, aur swayam un par raajsi pankha dulaaya. Mere mitra, Krishna roye, itne varshon baad tum aaye. Unhone guru, paathshaala ke dinon, puraane mitron ke baare mein poochha — baari-baari hanste aur rote hue. Phir unki drishti nanhi potli par padi. Mere liye kya laaye ho? Unhone utsukta se poochha. Sudama lajja se jalte hue saadhaaran chiuda chhipaane lage. Lekin Krishna ne khel-khel mein chheen liya aur ek mutthi aanand se khaayi — kaha ki yeh ab tak ka sabse meetha bhojan hai. Unhone doosri mutthi khaayi, aur Rukmini ne muskuraate hue komalta se unka haath rok diya — kaha ki ek mutthi saare aashirvaad dene ke liye bahut hai, kyunki ve jaanti thin ki har mutthi ke saath Krishna Sudama ko poore lok de rahe the. Ve raat bhar baatein karte rahe — jaise ve baalak the. Subah Sudama jaane ko taiyaar hue. Unke abhimaan ne kuchh maangne na diya tha, aur Krishna ne mitra ki garima ka sammaan karte hue kuchh prastaavit na kiya tha. Sudama ghar chale — hriday prem se bhara lekin potli abhi halki — sochte hue ki kya mitra unki nirdhanta bhool gaye. Lekin gaanv pahunchate hi ve aashcharya se thithak gaye. Jahaan unki tooti jhonpdi thi, wahaan ab surya-sa chamakta bhavya mahal khada tha. Unki patni resham pehne bachchon ke saath daudi aayin — sab deeptimaan aur tript. Bheetar swapn se pare aishvarya tha: swarn, ratna, sevak, udyaan. Sudama samajh gaye. Mitra ne bina maange diya tha — unki zaroorat aur abhimaan dono ka sammaan karte hue. Ve kritagyata se roye, aur unki pehle se nirmal bhakti poorn ho gayi. Ve shesh jeevan samriddhi mein jiye lekin anaasakt hriday se — hamesha us mitra ko yaad karte hue jisne unke pair dhoye the. Yeh katha sikhaati hai ki sachcha mitra bina maange deta hai — maun ke peechhe hriday ki zaroorat padh leta hai. Aur yeh sikhaati hai ki abhimaan ko zaroorat ko kabhi chup nahi karaana chahiye: Sudama lagbhag lajja ko us mitra se door rakhne dete jo unse prem karta tha. Katha kehti hai, prem maangne se ghat-ta nahi, dene se bhi nahi. Woh keval badhta hai.