Freedom for the Slaves

The king had a number of slaves in his palace. Their parents and their parents’ parents were also slaves. They had no freedom and could not discontinue their work in the royal household.

“My lord, let these slaves be granted freedom. They can choose to continue their jobs if they wish or leave if they please,” the minister urged the king repeatedly.

“What is wrong with the children of slaves remaining as slaves?” the king asked dismissively. “Slaves are slaves, and they must remain so,” he added.

One day, the minister approached the king again, saying, “Look here, my lord, every royal family has a cremation or burial ground of its own. However, members of your dynasty are cremated alongside commoners. That is not proper. Allow us to demarcate an area specifically for the cremation of the royal family.”

The happy king followed the minister to the cremation ground. At the minister’s direction, the servants had gathered the bones scattered across the area.

“My lord,” said the minister, pointing to the heap of bones, “we must separate the bones of royal family members from those of the commoners, particularly the slaves. You alone understand that slaves are slaves; you can certainly distinguish their bones from those of others.”

The king fell silent, pondering the implications of the statement. Back in the palace, he issued an order granting freedom to his slaves.