True Devotion

About thousand years ago, Raja Raja Chola was ruling Tamil Nadu. He planned to build a grand temple for Lord Shiva at Thanjavur which was his capital. Thousands of labourers were engaged for this task.
In the same city there was an old woman called Azhagi. She felt that when the whole city was engaged in the temple construction she was poor and old and so unable to do anything.
As she was musing thus her grandson came running to her and asked her for some buttermilk to quench his thirst.
This gave her an idea and she decided that she could distribute buttermilk to the labourers working in the hot sun. That could be her service to the Lord.
Accordingly she started distributing buttermilk to the thirsty people.
This went on for a while.
After sometime the work was coming to an end. Only one stone was needed to keep on the top of the tower. She had a small desire. She asked the chief architect, “ I have a small desire. Just in front of my house there lies a big stone belonging to me. Can you use that for the tower?” The chief inspected the stone and agreed. The stone was brought and the temple construction was completed.
That night the king had a dream. Lord Shiva appeared to him and said, “I am very happy to be resting under the stone of Azhagi” he said.
The king wondered, “Who is this Azhagi? I have built such a big temple for the Lord and the Lord says that he is happy to be resting under Azhagi’s stone?”
He made enquiries and he himself went to meet the lady. He told her, “You are blessed mother. The Lord came in my dream and said that he was happy to be resting under your stone. What did you do?” he asked.
The lady said, “ King! I did nothing. I only served buttermilk to the laborers who were working there. I also asked them to use a stone that was lying near my hut to complete the tower.”

The king was dumbfounded at her devotion.