King Janaka and the monk
A monk visited Mithila, the city of sage King Janaka. “Who is the best teacher around here?” he asked. Every person replied with the name of King Janaka.
“How can a king be a spiritual teacher? These people don’t know what true spirituality is,” the monk thought.
He went to the king and asked, “O King, how can you be more spiritual than the sages who have given up everything to seek the highest truth?”
“Dear one, let’s eat and rest for the day, we can discuss this tomorrow,” Janaka replied.
The king fed him delicacies and took him to rest in a spacious room. There he saw a huge sword hung just above the bed. “What is this?” asked the monk.
“Oh don’t mind it. Just have a good sleep,” said the king.
The whole night the monk couldn’t sleep, worrying that the sword might fall on him and kill him. The king met him the next day and asked, “How did you sleep?”
“How could I have slept? There was a sword hanging on my head,” the monk answered.
The king quietly replied, “When one knows death is certain, how can the pleasures of the world sway him, how can the worldly duties ever limit him from the supreme goal?”