Reforming the Robbers – Biography Saint Kanwarram

Reforming the Robbers – Biography Sain Kanwarram

DR. S. K. PUNSHI

As Gandhiji believed ‘don’t hate a person, hate evil in the person’ so Saint Kanwarram loved all irrespective of once good and bad deeds. He believed under the influence of bad company and adverse circumstances the man does evil, commits bad deeds under the spell of five enemies of man viz. the sex lust, anger, avarice, greed, ego etc. The man goes on making mistakes. Therefore, it is the duty of holy men to reform the society by their holy preachings and love and forgiveness. In the modern times, Jai Prakash Narayan and Vinoba Bhave applied the same formula of love and forgiveness to reform the Chambal Valley dacoits and other criminals. Once the village of Saint Kanwarram attached by the robbers. All the villagers got frightened and buried and hidden themselves within the four walls of their houses. This great Soul entered each house and procured keys of the safes and boxes within. He then went to the ‘Sardar’ or head of the robbers and invited all the robbers to dinner and for rest in his house promising to hand over to them the keys of all houses, safes and boxes in the village from which they could conveniently take whatever they liked. The sweet words and invitation captured the hearts of robbers. They came to the Kanwarram’s house; they took the meals and prayed Kanwarram for singing a devotional song in the praise of Allah the Almighty. After the song, Kanwarram handed over the keys to the head of the robbers. The very humanitarian and brotherly approach of Saint Kanwarram impressed the robbers so much that they fell on the feet of Saint Kanwarram and apologized and they not only desisted from committing robbery but also promised Kanwarram that they will never enter in his village. Not only they would abandon this profession of robbery altogether. It is known fact that when the grace of God descents through a Saint it is easy to reform the people from Ratnakar robber into Rishi Valmiki, the author of the Ramayana. Lord Budha changed angelical. History reveals that some criminals and unsocial elements have been transformed into good citizens and even they have become Saints.
‘For slaking egoism, power, pride, lust, wrath and property, freed from the notion of ‘mine’ and tranquil – he is fit for becoming Brahman’.
– Gita XVIII-53