What Makes Some People Cruel and Others Compassionate?
Why would a Saint help the very people who mutilated him? A remarkable story reveals the contrast between cruelty and compassion.
A man is robbed, mutilated, and abandoned in a forest to die. Years later, he encounters the very men who attacked him.
Instead of seeking revenge, he tries to help them.
Why would anyone behave this way?
The story of Saint Jaidev, Raja Lakshman Sen, and four robbers reveals the extraordinary difference between cruelty and compassion—and what gives rise to such different conduct.
Saint Jaidev and the Four Robbers
Saint Jaidev was a God-realized Saint and a great devotee of Shri Radha Krishna. He composed many devotional songs describing the bliss of Madhurya Bhav.
Once, while traveling through a forest, Jaidev was captured by four robbers. He willingly placed all his possessions before them.
The robbers took everything he had, but they did not stop there. They cut off his arms and legs and abandoned him in the forest to die.
However, his destined time of death had not yet arrived, and Jaidev survived.
Several years later, Raja Lakshman Sen, the king of Bengal, was passing through the forest when he saw Jaidev.
The king immediately recognized Jaidev's divine stature. He accepted him as his Guru and requested him to come and live in his kingdom.
As his Guru, Jaidev instructed the king to serve Saints and offer them food every day.
The king faithfully followed his instructions and began feeding Sadhus and Saints.
An Extraordinary Act of Compassion
One day, the same four robbers who had mutilated Jaidev arrived at the king's feast, disguised as holy men.
Jaidev recognized them immediately.
But instead of exposing their identity or seeking punishment, he instructed the king to treat them with special care and send them away with generous gifts of gold.
Jaidev knew that the robbers were motivated by greed. He wanted to give them enough wealth that they would no longer need to rob anyone.
Everyone was surprised by the extraordinary attention Jaidev showed these four visitors.
When asked why he wished to give them so much gold, Jaidev did not reveal who they were or what they had done to him.
The Robbers Commit a Grave Offense
When the robbers were asked whether they knew anything about Jaidev, they invented a terrible accusation.
They claimed that Jaidev had once been caught stealing precious jewels from a king's palace and had been sentenced to death.
According to their fabricated account, they had pleaded for mercy on his behalf, asking that he be spared execution and instead be abandoned after having his arms and legs amputated.
Thus, the very people who had committed such cruelty against Jaidev now portrayed themselves as his benefactors.
Jaidev had shown them extraordinary compassion. Yet they responded by slandering him.
As soon as the robbers made these accusations, the ground split open and swallowed all four of them.
Why Were the Robbers Punished?
The king was astonished by what had happened.
He humbly approached his Guru and asked why the four men had met such a terrible fate.
Jaidev then explained the reason.
True Saints are naturally loving and compassionate. Even when someone causes them terrible suffering, they do not abandon their nature.
Jaidev had treated the robbers with love and compassion. Yet their intellect was so corrupted by sinful tendencies that they could not recognize his goodness.
Instead, they committed Namaparadh (नामापराध | nāmāparādha) by slandering a God-realized Saint.
God holds His Saints dearer than Himself. An offense against such a Saint is intolerable to Him.
Jaidev had neither sought revenge nor asked for the robbers to be punished. Nevertheless, Kaal, the servant of God, punished them for their grave offense against the Saint.
Why Did These Three Respond So Differently?
Consider the striking contrast between the three.
The robbers were driven by greed and cruelty. Even when Jaidev offered them an opportunity to abandon robbery, they responded by slandering him.
The king, despite possessing wealth and power, immediately recognized Jaidev's spiritual greatness, accepted him as Guru, obeyed his instructions, and humbly sought his guidance.
Saint Jaidev, despite suffering unimaginable cruelty, did not seek revenge. He wished for the welfare of the very people who had mutilated him.
What accounts for such different conduct?
The Shrimad Bhagavatam (5.18.12) declares:
यस्यास्ति भक्तिर्भगवत्यकिञ्चना
सर्वैर्गुणैस्तत्र समासते सुराः ।
When one possesses exclusive devotion to God, divine virtues develop within that person.
Bhakti is the root of spiritual virtues.
As devotion increases, the mind becomes purified. Humility, faith, forbearance, and compassion develop, while sinful tendencies weaken.
Without that purification, greed, anger, and other worldly tendencies continue to influence one's conduct.
The king's humility and reverence reflected the fruits of bhakti and the spiritual impressions (sanskars) of devotion performed in previous lives.
The robbers' cruelty revealed the influence of sinful tendencies.
Jaidev, being God-realized, possessed divine compassion that did not depend on how others treated him.
This explains why bhakti is essential. We cannot simply command ourselves to develop the extraordinary compassion of a God-realized Saint. Through bhakti, the mind is gradually transformed, and the virtues needed for spiritual progress develop.
The Rare Opportunity We Must Not Squander
There is another important lesson in the contrast between the king and the robbers.
Both encountered the same God-realized Saint.
The king recognized Jaidev, accepted his guidance, and benefited from the encounter.
The robbers received the Saint's compassion, yet failed to recognize his goodness and committed a grave offense against him.
Even obtaining a human birth is extraordinarily rare. Tulsidas Ji says in the Ramcharitmanas:
बड़े भाग मानुष तनु पावा।
सुर दुर्लभ सब ग्रंथन्हि गावा॥
Human birth is obtained through great fortune. Even celestial beings find it difficult to attain, as the scriptures declare.
Meeting a God-realized Saint is an even more extraordinary blessing.
Tulsidas Ji explains:
बिनु सतसंग विवेक न होई।
राम कृपा बिनु सुलभ न सोई॥
Without Satsang, spiritual discernment does not arise. And Satsang itself is not easily obtained without God's grace.
The king not only encountered Jaidev but immediately recognized him as God-realized. His humility, faith, and surrender reflected the spiritual preparation of previous lives.
The robbers, however, squandered the opportunity before them.
The Kena Upanishad (2.5) declares:
इह चेदवेदीदथ सत्यमस्ति ।
न चेदिहावेदीन्महती विनष्टिः ।
iha cēdavēdīdatha satyamasti ।
na cēdihāvēdīnmahatī vinaṣṭiḥ ।
If one realizes the Supreme God in this very life, one's life is fulfilled. If one fails to do so, the loss is immense.
We have received the precious human birth. Through bhakti, we can purify our minds, cultivate spiritual virtues, and progress toward God-realization.
The greatest loss would be to receive this rare opportunity and fail to fulfill its ultimate purpose—God-realization.
Go Deeper
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Why doesn't the wickedness of others change a Saint's compassionate nature?
JKP Literature
Why does offending a God-realized Saint carry such grave consequences?
JKP Literature
Why do some people benefit immensely from meeting a Saint while others do not?
