Vikram Betal - Prince Jimutavahanas Sacrifice

Dadi: "Guddu, let me tell you about a prince who gave up his flesh to a bird, piece by piece, never crying out in pain."

Guddu: "That sounds terrible! Why would anyone do that?"

Dadi: "To save someone else's child from being eaten. This is the story of Prince Jimutavahana - so noble that even Lord Vishnu incarnated as him."

Guddu: "What was happening? Whose children were being eaten?"

Dadi: "The Nagas - the serpent people - had an ancient enemy: Garuda, the great eagle, vehicle of Lord Vishnu. For generations, Garuda demanded that the Nagas send one of their own each day to be devoured."

Guddu: "Like a sacrifice?"

Dadi: "A terrible one. Every day, a Naga family lost someone they loved. The system ran on fear - if they refused, Garuda would destroy them all."

Guddu: "Where does the prince come in?"

Dadi: "Jimutavahana was a prince who had given up his kingdom rather than fight his greedy relatives. He lived simply in a forest ashram with his family. One day, he heard the heartbreaking cries of a Naga mother."

Guddu: "Why was she crying?"

Dadi: "Her only son, Shankhachuda, had been chosen as that day's sacrifice. "My boy must go to Garuda today," she wept. "I will never see him again.""

Guddu: "Did the prince help her?"

Dadi: "He did something extraordinary. He took off Shankhachuda's red robe - the marker of a sacrifice - and put it on himself. Then he went to the altar and waited."

Guddu: "He pretended to be the Naga boy?"

Dadi: "Exactly. When Garuda swooped down, he saw only a figure in red robes. Without stopping to look closely, the great eagle began tearing into what he thought was his meal."

Guddu: "That must have been so painful!"

Dadi: "Beyond imagination, beta. Garuda's talons and beak ripped through flesh, pulled at muscle, cracked at bone. And yet... Jimutavahana showed no signs of distress. He remained peaceful, even happy, as his body was destroyed."

Guddu: "How is that possible?"

Dadi: "When your sacrifice is truly selfless, when you've completely surrendered yourself for others, physical pain loses its power. Your spirit is already somewhere beyond the body."

Guddu: "Did Garuda notice something was wrong?"

Dadi: "Eventually yes! He was confused - his usual victims screamed and struggled. But this one smiled. "Who are you?" Garuda demanded. "You are not a Naga!""

Guddu: "What did the prince say?"

Dadi: "He told his whole story calmly, even as blood flowed from his wounds. When Garuda realized he had been devouring a holy incarnation of his own master Vishnu, he was devastated with shame."

Guddu: "What did Garuda do?"

Dadi: "He flew to heaven and brought back Amrita - the nectar of immortality. He sprinkled it on Jimutavahana's torn body, healing every wound. But he didn't stop there."

Guddu: "What else?"

Dadi: "Garuda sprinkled Amrita on the bones of all the Nagas he had eaten over the years. Thousands of victims returned to life!"

Guddu: "All of them came back?"

Dadi: "And Garuda made a promise that day - never again would he demand Naga sacrifices. The ancient terror was ended, not through war or revenge, but through one prince's willingness to suffer."

Guddu: "Dadi, would you do something like that?"

Dadi: "I pray I would have that courage, beta. Most of us will never face such dramatic choices. But every day offers small chances to choose others over ourselves - to share when we want to keep, to help when it's inconvenient, to speak up when it's easier to be quiet."

Guddu: "So Jimutavahana didn't just save one boy - he changed everything."

Dadi: "One act of pure sacrifice changed a system of cruelty that had lasted for generations. That's the power of someone willing to pay any price for what's right. The oppressor himself was transformed by witnessing such love."

Guddu: "The prince didn't even ask to be healed, did he?"

Dadi: "No, beta. True sacrifice doesn't bargain. It gives freely. That's why it has such power to change hearts - because it expects nothing in return. Garuda's transformation came from witnessing selflessness so complete that it shamed all his centuries of violence."

Guddu: "I want to be brave like that someday."

Dadi: "Start with small braveries, beta. Courage, like anything else, grows with practice."