A person had an extremely devoted servant. One day, a pen accidentally slipped from the hand of the servant. It fell to the ground and broke. The man got very upset and said, "See what you have done? This pen was presented to me by a dear friend."

The servant did not say anything. He went out and started to clean the hallway. He was extremely saddened about what had happened.

A little later, the man called the servant in. He held his servant's hand and said, "You serve me well with all your ability. I could not live without your help. Today, for a small mistake, I became so angry. Please forgive me."

The servant was dumbfounded. What was his 'master' saying! He was surprised and said, "Babu, I made a mistake. You were right in getting angry at me."

The master's eyes were filled with tears. With great difficulty, he said, "I will not let go of you unless you forgive me."

Hearing his master's words made the servant's heart heavy, and he started to weep like a child. He wiped the tears from his master's eyes and said, "Babu, please do not be sorry. I forgive you."

The 'master' was the first President of India, Dr. Rajendra Prasad, and the servant was Sita Ram. Needless to say, the relation between them was like a father and son.

By Shri Yash Pal Jain