SRI GURU CHARITRA - DAILY PARAYANA

[Kavitaparna]

OM SRI SAI RAM

SHREE GURU CHARITRA

Chapter 4.
Continuation...

It is said that deer are very fond of music and that poachers employ it to lure them before hunting them. From this I learned that a spiritual aspirant who has a weakness for merely secular music will soon get bogged down by passions and sensual desires, till he ultimately loses whatever spiritual progress he has achieved earlier. Such indeed, is the story of sage Rishyashringa. The deer that taught me this truth is my eighteenth guru.

A bird of prey is my nineteenth Teacher. One day, I saw one such carrying away a dead rat. Many other birds like crows and eagles attacked it, on its sides in their endeavor to knock off the prey. The poor bird was thus very much pestered. At last, it wisely let its prey fall and all the other birds rushed after it. Thus freeing itself from so much botheration, the first bird quietly perched on a treetop and sighed in relief. From this, I learned that a man who runs after worldly pleasures will soon come into clash with his fellow-beings who too run for the same, and has to face much strife and antagonism. If he learns to conquer his craving for worldly things, he can spare himself much unhappiness. I realized that this is the only way to peace in this world.

Once I observed a family visit a maiden's house, seeking her hand in marriage for their son. At that time, her mother was away from home. So the maiden herself had to entertain the guests with refreshments. So she at once, started pounding food grains with a pestle. The bangles on her hand started knocking against one another, producing sound. She was afraid that the guests might hear the sound and be unhappy for having caused her so much trouble. As a Hindu maiden, she is not expected to remove all the bangles on her hands at any time. So she kept two on each hand and removed all the rest. Even then they were knocking against each other and were making noise. So she kept only one bangle on each hand his time and she could finish her task in quiet.

Reflecting on this I realized that when a number of spiritual seekers live together, a lot of unwanted gossip ensues and no spiritual practice can be pursued with a single-minded effort. Even when two seekers stay together, it is no better. Only in solitude can he assiduously carry on his task. Knowing this, I henceforth resorted to solitude. Thus, a maiden happened to be my twentieth guru.

JAI SAI RAM

[Kavitaparna]

OM SRI SAI RAM

SHREE GURU CHARITRA

Chapter 4.
Continuation...

I observed that the serpent never builds a dwelling for itself. When white ants have raised an anthill for themselves, the serpent eventually comes to inhabit it. Similarly worldly people have to endure many hardships in raising houses for themselves, while a recluse monk does no such thing. On the other hand, he makes such muth his temporary abode. The monasteries are raised by worldly men and the monk lives in them; or, he lives in old dilapidated temples, or underneath shady trees. Thereby, he avoids the snares of possessiveness. Again, the serpent's way of living remain a mystery hidden from the practice and even his existence hidden from the curious gaze of worldly men. Only then can he carry on his yogic practices undisturbed. Yet again, the serpent molts, leaving off its old skin. So too, at the end of his life, the yogi leaves his body deliberately and in full awareness of his owns true Self and is not frightened by the phenomenon of death. On the other hand, he casts off his old body as happily as he does his worn out clothes and dons new ones. Thus has my twenty first guru taught me.

JAI SAI RAM

[Kavitaparna]

OM SRI SAI RAM

SHREE GURU CHARITRA

Chapter 4.
Continuation...

The spider is my next Teacher. It weaves its web from the thread, which it vomits in the form of a fluid. After sometime, it gathers up the web into itself. Such was the ancient belief. In a similar way, the Supreme projects the whole creation out of Itself and after sometime withdraws it into Itself at the tie of disillusion. The individual souls too, bears the senses and the mind within itself and, at its birth as a human being or any other living creature, it projects them out as the sense organs, organs of action and the while body. In accordance with its latent tendencies, the creature thus born gathers up all the means and objects needed for its living. At the end of its life's duration, the soul once again withdraws the senses, mind and acquired tendencies at the hour of death. Thus have I learned from the spider.

JAI SAI RAM

[Kavitaparna]

OM SRI SAI RAM

SHREE GURU CHARITRA

Chapter 4.
Continuation...

The caterpillar is also one of my Teachers of wisdom. The wasp carries its caterpillar to a safe corner and closes it up in its nest and goes on buzzing about it. The young caterpillar is so frightened by the incessant buzzing, that it cannot think of anything else than the buzzing wasp. Through such, un-intermittent contemplation of its mother, the caterpillar too soon grows up into a wasp! In a like fashion, a true disciple is so charmed and over-awed by the spiritual eminence of his own guru that he cannot think of anything or anyone other than him. Through such contemplation he soon blossoms into a great spiritual Master himself. The caterpillar is thus my twenty third guru.

Water is my twenty fourth guru. I observed that it quenches the thirst of every creature, serves to wash it and affords it health and cool. It sustains innumerable trees and plants. While it thus serves all living beings, it is never proud of itself. On the other hand, it humbly seeks the lowliest of places. The sage too should likewise bestow health, peace and joy to every creature that resorts to him. Yet he should ever live as the humblest of God's creation.
With such humility and devotion, I looked upon the whole of God's creation as my teacher, gathered up wisdom and, through patient effort, I realized my goal of spiritual enlightenment".

JAI SAI RAM

[Kavitaparna]

OM SRI SAI RAM

SHREE GURU CHARITRA

Chapter 5

Namadharaka Sarma asked Siddha, 'Oh great soul, you have said that the Lord incarnated twice during the age of Kali. I long to hear all about these avatars.' Siddha was very happy to notice the humility and faith of Namadharaka. He said, 'It is good you have asked me of these. For it purifies the one who recounts it as much as it does the listener. So listen attentively. The Lord ever incarnates on earth in order to check evil ways and strengthen the righteous forces in man. In this age of Kali, he first manifested himself as Sreepada Sreevallabha for the same end.

To the east of where we are, there is a village named Pithapuram (East Godavari District in Andhra Pradesh). There lived a brahmin couple, Appala Raju Sharma and Sumathi, who were devotees of Lord Datta. They had many children, of whom only two survived. These too were sons, but as misfortune would have it, one was lame and the other was blind. Like orthodox Hindus, they believed that unless they had a son could efficiently discharge all the religious rites and duties, their souls had no hope of entering the portals of heaven. They worshipped Lord Datta for the fulfillment of their hearts' wish and never failed to offer food to mendicants and monks. They look upon all such as the very forms of Lord Datta. One day, they were performing the annual ceremony in their house and many brahmins were invited as guests for the feast. Tradition holds that none should eat on that day before these guests partake their food.

But Lord Datta appeared at their threshold in the form of a renunciate sadhu, bearing the staff and the water-vessel (kamandalu) and asked for food. The head of the family was not aware of it. The housewife, with immense faith that the visitor was none other the Lord to whom the whole annual ceremony was being offered, gave him food even before the brahmin guests were fed! Her faith touched the Lord's heart and He at once granted her a vision of his true form. The divine form, which Sumathi witnessed, was such that neither a thousand eyes can fully comprehend it, nor a thousand tongues describe it. In his six divine arms, he held the conch (Shankh), the disc (Chakra), the trident of Shiva (Trishula), the drum (Damaru), the water-vessel (Kamandalu) and the rosary (Japa mala). His glorious form had three heads. Clad in a tiger's skin and his body besmeared with sacred ash (Vibhuthi), he looked like a silver mountain in moonlight. His matted hair hung down like ropes as though, in order to help his devotees climb out of the mire of phenomenal existence.

Contd...
Jai Sai Ram

[Kavitaparna]

OM SRI SAI RAM

SHREE GURU CHARITRA

Chapter 5
Continuation.....

The blessed housewife drank the divine glory of the Lord's form and felt that the highest object of her was fulfilled. The Lord said, "Mother, I am pleased with your devotion. Even before you fed the brahmin guests, you have given me food with the full faith that this is the Lord in the guise of a holy sannyasi. Now, ask me for anything you wish and it shall be granted." The nectarine words of the Lord seemed to penetrate every cell in her being. Her eyes were sweet words. 'Lord', she said, 'You, whose vision is not attained even by great yogis, have blessed my sight with it spontaneously, out of sheer compassion for me! You have even accepted food from me, on this day. And thereby, the spirits of our ancestors, for whose welfare we are performing the annual ceremony, are all blessed. You are, indeed, the wish-fulfiller of your devotees. You have already addressed me as mother. So I have no need to ask of you anything further. Make me worthy of being addressed by you as such (i.e.), bless me with a child as divine as you are and keep your word!'

Contd...
Jai Sai Ram

[Kavitaparna]

OM SRI SAI RAM

SHREE GURU CHARITRA

Chapter 5
Continuation.....

Hearing her words, the Lord thought, 'She's asking me for the same favor as did Anasuya of yore'. Then he said, 'you shall have a son as great as I am, but then you must remember one thing: You will have to implicitly as do as he tells you. Do not forget this in your attachment to the idea that he is, after all, your son!' So saying, the Lord disappeared.

Still rapt in the spell of her divine experience, blessed Sumathi at once went to her husband and said, 'Sir, I have transgressed the divine law: the brahmin guests are not yet fed. Lord Dattatreya came to our house in the form of a sannyasi for offerings of food. Believing that he is the Lord of this annual ceremony and the Lord of all religious sacrifices, I gave him food'. Raju said, 'My virtuous one, we offer food to the brahmins on this occasion and consecrate the whole ceremony to the Lord Vishnu. If, then, that very Lord had personally received your offering, it is all the noble fruit of your deep faith in him.

This noble act of yours has blessed all of us. Lord Dattatreya, in order to bless his devotees and the righteous ones, wanders about in the guise of a random guest at the lunch hour. That's why it is said that a random guest has to be treated as the very embodiment of Lord Dattatreya. If, owing to our inadvertence, the guest goes away unappeased, it means that the Lord himself is displeased with us'.

Then Sumathi told him of the divine vision the Lord had bestowed on her and of his granting her wish for a divine son, along with the caution he gave. Raju Sharma was overjoyed to learn all that and congratulated her saying, 'You have indeed sought a blessing that would purify our very lineage and the whole world'. He then completed the ceremony scrupulously.

Not long after, Sumathi conceived and delivered a male child at the proper time. She gave birth to one who is indeed birth-less. Astrologers and priests had all prophesied that Lord Datta himself was born as her son and praised her fortune. Indeed, He kept word to Sumathi and, as he can have no equal, he had to take birth as her son. As the child had all the divine features besides celestial radiance, it was fittingly named as Sripada. This was the first incarnation of Lord Datta in the age of Kali.

As days and months passed, the child Sripada grew ever more glorious, like the waxing moon and attained the age of eight. As per the tradition, he was invested with the sacred thread ceremony a boy has to be trained by a guru for a 8 years before he can memorize the the Vedas completely. But this boy, Sripada, started imparting vedic knowledge to his pupils right from the moment of his upanayana (sacred thread ceremony). It was all a purely divine miracle. In him was demonstrated the truth of the dictum that all the knowledge acquired in one's previous lives springs up spontaneously in the present life, like things recollected.

Meanwhile, his father Raju Sharma wished to get his son married and even started looking for a suitable girl. When he heard of it, one day, Sripada said, 'Father, you need not search for a bride anew. The perfect and divine bride is awaiting me. She is the treasure of yoga. Hence, I shall renounce all. As I am Sripada Srivallabha (meaning the consort of Sri or goddess Lakshmi), I shall gain liberation even without the need of begetting a son'. The determined aim of his son to forego marriage pained the father. With tears in their eyes, the parents said to Sripada, 'If you were to leave us, as a wandering sannyasi, we shall be like fish out of water. Even though you are the Lord incarnate, you have taken birth as our son. Is it proper for you, then, to leave us to perish in the ocean of grief of separation? How can you, the protector of righteousness, not fulfill the duty enjoined upon every son?'

Then, pointing at their two sons, they said, 'Indeed, even by contemplating on you (i.e., when you leave us), one can cut asunder the self-perpetuating rounds of birth and death. But when we look at these blind and lame sons, our minds are again caught up in the whirl-pool of worldly concerns.'
His heart melting with compassion at the sight of tears in their eyes, Sripada touched his brothers and made them whole in a trice! What is impossible for the almighty and the Lord of the universe?

The miracle dispelled the veil of delusion that blinded their understanding. As the realization that He is all pervading had dispelled the illusory grief of being parted from him, it even seemed a sin to them to confine him at home and keep him off from all creatures who are, indeed his children. Then his mother said, 'Lord, your maya has deluded me into looking upon you as chiefly my son. In fact, the whole cosmic egg is within your being. That you are my son is but a convention. You should keep my understanding clear of this delusion.’

Contd...
Jai Sai Ram

[Kavitaparna]

OM SRI SAI RAM

SHREE GURU CHARITRA

Chapter 5
Continuation.....

Then the Lord granted her the vision of his real, divine, form. The handsome, tender lad at once appeared radiant like a million suns and pleasing as a myriad moon. His blissful nature seemed to enliven every atom of existence. 'Mother, you ever contemplate this form you now see. You shall soon transcend the ocean of this illusory, phenomenal existence and attain eternal unity with me. These two sons of yours shall live to their full span of life and serve you with devotion. They shall be learned and wealthy and you shall be blessed with grand children and great grand children. They too shall win fair renown', he said.
As the brothers praised his glory, Sripada said to them, 'Look upon your parents as the embodiments of the divine parents and serve them well. And I shall renounce all'. Then he circumambulated thrice around them in reverence. With their permission, he renounced all worldly ties and trekked to several holy places like Dwaraka, Brindavan, Mathura, and Badrinath. After wandering there for sometime, he marched down to the holy Gokarna in order to bless the spiritual seekers there. There, Lord Shiva manifested himself in the form of the Mahabaleswara Linga, which was installed by Lord Ganesha. Hence the place came to be the spiritual resort of innumerable seekers after the Spirit, down the ages'.

Contd...
Jai Sai Ram

[Kavitaparna]

OM SRI SAI RAM

SHREE GURU CHARITRA

Chapter 6

Namadharaka asked, not surprised a little, “While Kasi, Badrinath, And Kedarnath have been esteemed since hoary times for their holiness, we can understand why Sreepada visited them. But what is great about Gokarna that he should go all the way to visit it? Please enlighten me on this point!”

Siddha replied, “Once the mother of Ravana, wished to attain Kailasa and with this object, she started worshipping an earthen Shiva Linga. Ravana who was proud of his might wished to remove the whole of Kailasa to his mother’s presence. Using all his might, he lifted up the whole mount of Kailasa on to his head. This caused a great commotion in all celestial realms of existence and the whole of our earth shook, as though the very end of creation was at hand.

Goddess Parvati prayed to Lord Shiva to duly protect the worlds from so untimely an end. Then the latter pressed down the mount Kailasa under his foot till the mighty Ravana was almost crushed beneath the pressure. In great fear of death, the demon king Ravana humbly prayed to the Lord in desperation. The Lord’s heart was at last touched with compassion and he uplifted Ravana. Lord Shiva was pleased with his song and offered to grant him a boon.

Ravana submitted, “My capital of Lanka is all built of gold and is beyond the reach of anyone. The Goddess of wealth is my maid servant. Brahma, the creator is my court astrologer. All the gods including, Lord of Death are my attendants. So there is nothing which I cannot secure. Now, my mother wished to live forever in Kailasa and serve you, and so I came to take it home. O Lord, if at all you wish to grant me a boon, grant me that I could take Kailasa along with you to my city of Lanka!” The Lord of Kailasa replied, “Ravana, what will you or your mother do with this mount Kailasa? I shall bestow on you my Atma Linga which is incomparably superior to Kailasa. By worshipping it, you will attain to my own state of being”. Ravana gratefully accepted the same and very happily returned to Lanka with it.

Contd...
JAI SAI RAM

[Kavitaparna]

OM SRI SAI RAM

SHREE GURU CHARITRA

Chapter 6
Continuation...

Sage Narada, the messenger of the gods, witnessed the whole incident and reported the matter to them. In great anxiety Brahma, Vishnu and Narada approached Shiva and asked him why he granted such a potent Atma Linga to a demon king like Ravana. They said, ‘Is it proper that he who is a thorn in the flesh of all beings attain to your power and glory?’ ‘I was too captivated by his charming song to consider the unwisdom of my spontaneous gesture and so bestowed it on him without a second thought. By now he could not have reached Lanka yet and something can be done at once to retrieve it.’, said Shiva and prompted Narada and Ganesha to contrive a way to somehow deprive the demon King of the Linga.

Accordingly Narada at once approached Ravana with the speed of thought and addressed him, ‘Oh! Ravana, whence are you coming and withered are you bound?’ Ravana replied, ‘Having won the heart of Lord Shiva, I have gained this Atma Linga which I am taking to Lanka’ and showed it to him. Narada said, ‘Oh! Ravana, once a terrible beast started killing all the wild buffaloes near a forest. At last, the Holy Trinity hunted it down and made each one a Shiva Linga from its horns. They transformed them into their selves and henceforth treated them as their Atma Lingas. This is one of those three and can bestow the eternal proximity of Lord Shiva and hence immortality and infinite power. As he went on elaborating its glory, Ravana interrupted him and said, ‘Oh! Sage, I do not have time to hear its glory’. ‘But oh Ravana it is time for your evening prayer! How can you go away without attending to it?’ said Narada and sat there elated that he could find so potent a reason for delaying the demon king’s progress to his homeland.

Meanwhile, Lord Ganesha came there in the guise of a young celebate. Ravana accosted him in a stern voice, ‘who are you? Where are you going?’ the boy celebate replied, ‘I am the son of one Uma and Shankara, I am frightened by your demeanor, let go my hand!’ ‘Hold this Linga just for a short while. I shall show you my golden city Lanka and you can happily live there’, insisted Ravana. ‘I cannot hold this heavy Linga. Besides, I will not come to Lanka which is the city of terrible demons’ said the celebate.

However, Ravana pleaded with him again and again, thrust the Linga in the hands of Ganesha and made for the nearby sea to attend to his evening prayers. ‘O Ravana! When I can no longer hold this, I shall call out to you thrice and if, by that time, you do not turn up, I shall place the Linga down here itself!”  said Ganesha. No sooner did Ravana leave the spot than Ganesha called out to him thrice and when he could not turn up, the celebate meditated on Lord Vishnu and kept the Shiva Linga on earth! The gods above witnessed the successful accomplishment of that plan. Later, Ravana returned and at the sight of the Linga kept on earth, was much depressed. He beat the young lad Ganesha and, with all his might, tried to lift up the Linga.

The whole earth shook under the force but the Linga came to be called ‘Mahabaleshwara Linga,’ i.e., the Linga of the Almighty Lord. As the Linga is in the shape of the ear of cow, the place of where it is located came to be known as the Holy Gokarna (Go meaning Cow). The place is as sacred as Kailasa. There Lord Shiva dwells with all his retinue of gods. Hence, the place came to be a resort of earnest seekers after Spiritual perfection. Gods, demons, mortals and even human beings have got their wishes fulfilled in this place by the grace of Lord Shankara. Thus it is one of the most sacred places. An ancient legend testifies to its great sanctity.

Contd...
JAI SAI RAM

[Kavitaparna]

OM SRI SAI RAM

SHREE GURU CHARITRA

Chapter 6
Continuation...

A king by name Kalmashapada became a fierce demon through the curse of Sage Vasishta. Once the demon king killed and devoured a pious Brahmin. The Brahmin’s wife then cursed him thus: “even after you regain your earlier human form, on the expiry of the curse of Sage Vasishta, you shall perish the moment you unite with your wife; for you have cruelly deprived me of my life’s companion!’ In course of time, the curse of the sage expired and the king returned to his capital city.

When his queen received him with the utmost joy he recounted to her the curse the Brahmin’s wife! She was shocked beyond measure to know that the joy of their reunion after such a long separation was embittered by the curse. Both the king and queen went on pilgrimage in the hope of finding redemption from sin and the consequent curse. In the course of their wanderings, they met the sage Gouthama and confided to him their plight. The sage replied in compassion: ‘Do not fear, Oh King! When we have such holy and wish fulfilling places as Gokarna, what can sin of killing a Brahmin do to you? All the water in that place is as holy as Ganga and all the stones there are potent as Shiva Lingas. There is nothing which cannot be achieved in that place which is wholly filled with such holy water and innumerable Shiva Lingas. I shall recount an incident which I had witnessed there.


When a woman of Chandala clan died at Gokarna, the attendants of Shiva came to take her soul to Kailasa! When I asked them about it, they said: ’This woman was a Brahmin’s daughter in her previous life. When her husband died in her childhood, in that life, under the influence of lust, she lived as the concubine of a wealthy businessman. When her kinsfolk came to know it, they forsook her and performed the religious rites of retribution. Henceforth, she cast all sense of shame to the winds and started living a detestable life openly.

She got addicted to liquor. One day she was drunk she mistook the calf of a cow for a goat and ate its flesh, keeping its head for the next day. When her lover arrived the next morning, she saw the calf’s head and started bemoaning that a tiger had killed the calf. She committed several such sins and, in consequence, she suffered much in hell and was reborn as a woman of the Chandala clan in this life. She was born blind and suffered from leprosy. After sometime, her parents who cared for her had died, Having no one to care for her, she arrived at Gokarna. She starved for several days and begged for food, on a holy Shivaratri.

As it was customary for devotees to fast on that day, they had nothing to giver her except a handful of Bel leaves which were used for the worship of Lord Shiva. As they were not fit for eating, she dropped them down. One of them fell on a Shiva Linga. Thus, even without her knowing it, she happened to fast on the Shivaratri day and worship the Shiva Linga with a Bel leaf. Thereby, all the sins of her previous life were burnt out. And so we, the attendants of Shiva, have now come to take her soul to His abode in Heaven.’ So saying, they besprinkled her body with ambrosia (Amrutha) and took her to the higher world in divine vehicle.

If the righteous act which she had unknowingly performed was so efficacious, you can imagine how much more so could continuous worship be. So, Oh king, you proceed to Gokarna and serve the Lord there. You shall be free from the sin’. In accordance with the counsel of the sage Gouthama, the king and the queen went to that holy place and freed themselves from the curse through austerity. In such a holy place as this, Sreepada lived for three years. Having uplifted several seekers there Spiritually, the Lord went to Kuruvupura and disappeared there.”

Contd...
Jai Sai Ram

[Kavitaparna]

OM SRI SAI RAM

SHREE GURU CHARTIRA

Chapter 7

Namadharaka Sharma asked Siddha, “Divine Master, please explain to me why the Lord who sported in a human form for the uplift of sadhus disappeared at Kuruvupura.”
Siddha replied, “The Guru wanted to assume another mortal form and hence had left the old one. Now listen to that story:
In a village on the banks of river Krishna, the wife of a Vedic Brahmin by name Ambika gave birth to a son. As ill-luck would have it, the boy happened to be a dullard and idiot. When he grew to the age of eight, his father performed his sacred thread ceremony and initiated him with the Gayathri mantra. As he was unable to utter the mantra properly, his father used to grow desperate and beat him. Then the Brahmin’s wife used to intercede on her son’s behalf, saying, ’Oh Sir! He is a congenital idiot. We have nothing to gain by punishing him except regrets. If you beat him again, I shall jump into a well and end my life’. The Brahmin realized his folly and kept quiet.
In course of time, he passed away, leaving his wife and son to live by begging. All the villagers used to heckle the son saying, ‘Oh, son of a learned man, you live in vain. You are not fit to live by sacred alms. It is better that you drown yourself in the river’. Unable to stand the ridicule any longer, one day, he made for the river to commit suicide. And his mother followed him with same intent. Then Lord Sreepada who was, at the moment, bathing in the river, stopped him saying, ‘Oh Brahmin, do not be hasty; otherwise you would incur the sin of committing suicide, as well as the sin of killing a Brahmin. No one can help you out of it. It is better for you to live on, facing any amount of suffering.’ The Brahmin lady then said, ‘Oh holy one, people are humiliating me for being cursed with the birth of a stupid son. They consider it a sin even to see my face. What could I gain by continuing to live?’

The Lord was moved by compassion at her words and said, ‘Mother, by committing suicide, you only add to your former sins and you will have to suffer more in the next life’. She said, ‘Sir, I shall do as you say. But tell me whether anyone has really benefited in the past by doing so’.

Contd...
Jai Sai Ram

[Kavitaparna]

OM SRI SAI RAM

SHREE GURU CHARITRA

Chapter 7
Continuation...

Lord Sreepada said, ‘once a king by name Chandrasena ruled the country with Ujjain as his capital. His friend, one Manibhadra, obtained the Chintamani or the wish fulfilling gem by the grace of Lord Shiva. Knowing how invaluable the gem was, several kings planned to grab it and invaded the country. Then king Chandrasena and his friend Manibhadra meditated on Lord Shiva at the proper hour. Seeing their Saturday worship, several urchins of the village gathered in front of their housed and commenced worshipping the Shiva Lingas with Bel leaves and flowers that their mothers had to drag them into their houses for lunch.

One such cowherd boy opened his eyes in the middle of the worship of Lord Shiva was interrupted by his mother. In order to expiate the sin of it, he was ready to commit suicide! Then the all-seeing Lord Shiva appeared in front of him and offered to grant him a boon as a reward for his intense devotion. But all that the boy asked for was that he should be pardoned for his sin. The Lord said, ‘My child, owing to your devotion, you shall attain my eternal proximity. Your mother, out of ignorance, has committed the folly. Still, as she had witnessed my worship, she shall have the good fortune of giving birth to the avatar of Lord Vishnu in her next life’. So saying, Lord Shiva disappeared.

The Shiva Linga there was shining with a divine splendor. The kings who invaded the country saw that and realized what a pious soul the ruler of the country was. They realized how unholy it was to think of waging war against such a one. Completely converted, they paid a friendly visit to his palace and all of them together proceeded to have a look at that splendid Shiva Linga. They were happy at its sight and honored the cowherd boy with plenty of wealth. The mother of the cowherd boy was later reborn as Yeshoda of puranic fame came to be known as the mother of Lord Krishna, the avatar of Lord Vishnu. You too shall obtain like merit by worshipping Lord Shiva’.

Then she asked, ‘Lord! The fruits of worshipping Lord Shiva, you say, accrue to me in the next birth. But how shall I bear the remaining part of my present life? Oh merciful one, bless me to be a happy mother’. Melting with compassion at her petition, the Lord uttered the Pranava, ‘Om’, and placed his hand on the head of her son by way of blessing. Instantly, the boy became a wise one and an eloquent speaker. The Lord then commanded him to serve his mother and said to her, “Now, mother, you are free from care. Devote the rest of your life to the worship of Lord Shiva. In your next life, you shall have a son of my stature’. She happily returned to her village and dedicated her life to the worship of Lord Shiva.

Then the Supreme Lord, Sreepada reflected thus: ‘I have assured her, by way of blessing, that she shall have a son of my spiritual stature. But there can be no one like me! Therefore I shall keep my word by taking birth as her son’. Thus the unbounded-one willed his own birth once again. Even then, as there was much left to be accomplished for human weal in his present manifestation, he has not left off his identity as Sreepada. Though unseen, he has been granting the wishes of those who serve him”.

contd...
Jai Sai Ram

[Kavitaparna]

OM SRI SAI RAM

SHREE GURU CHARITRA

Chapter 7
Continuation...

Having heard all this, Namadharaka asked, “Holy Sir, why did Lord Sreepada choose to manifest himself again before the mission of his manifestation was accomplished? How could he fulfill the wishes of his devotees while being invisible? Please substantiate this”.

Siddha replied, “Oh Namadharaka, the Lord is eternal. As He is the seed of the whole universe, his activities are infinite. So his purposes are infinite. In fact, he is ever front of his devotees, granting their prayers. Yet he is invisible to all those who are blinded by the spirit of Kali age which can be described as scum to time. Now I shall illustrate how he has been granting the wishes of his devotees, though he is invisible to them:

There was a Brahmin who lived as a businessman. Being a devotee of Sreepada Swami, he vowed to his Lord that he would feed several Brahmins if he prospered by the grace of the Lord. Accordingly, he earned a fortune. Promptly, he started for Kuruvapura to fulfill his vow. On the way, at sunset, a band of robbers joined him in the guise of pilgrims and at, night, killed him in a solitary place. Lord Sreepada appeared there and killed the robbers with his trident. One of the band of robbers humbly submitted to him and said, ‘As for myself, Oh Lord, I have not joined the Brahmin with any evil intent. Please consider this and do unto me what I deserve’. The Lord told him to keep a watch on the Brahmin’s body, joined the severed head to the trunk and sprinkled it with holy ash and water.

Then the Brahmin revived, but by the time he sat up, like one awakened from deep sleep, the Lord disappeared! He was frightened at the sight of the dead bodies of the robbers and learned of all that happened from his lone companion. He was very sorry that he was not blessed with the sight of the Lord who saved his very life. “The Lord has taken so much trouble for my sake and granted his sight to the robbers, but not to me who has been serving him for long! How unlucky am I?’ However, he gathered his belongings, proceeded to Kuruvapura, fed 4000 Brahmins and profusely honored them with gifts of money. Lord Sreepada has performed many such divine acts in his subtle form. He can even be seen by those who are pure of heart. Even though he later manifested himself as Sree Nrisimha Saraswathi, he has been manifesting his divine powers in his subtle form at Kuruvapura too. That village has become so holy by his external presence that those who live there gain the merit of performing all holy rites like the recitation of Veda, religious sacrifice, spiritual discipline and charity. Even those who live elsewhere will win his grace by contemplating his divine name, “Digambara, digambara, Sreepada vallabha digambara, Digambara digambara, Avadhutachintana digambara”.

contd...
Jai Sai Ram

[Kavitaparna]

OM SRI SAI RAM

SHREE GURU CHARITRA

Chapter 8

Namadharaka eagerly asked Siddha to recount to him all about the next manifestation of the Lord Datta. Siddha replied, “Indeed, the divine acts of the second avatar cannot be completely comprehended even by great yogis. So, remember that however much I might narrate them, my account is bound to be fragmentary and incomplete.

I have told you that earlier, Sreepada Swami told a Brahmin lady to devote her life to the worship of Lord Shiva. She did accordingly and as a result of it, she was born in North India in a pious family and was named Amba. She grew up into a handsome, chaste girl and she was married to a pious young man by name Madhava Sharma. She was devoted, heart and soul to the service of her husband. His noble company added to the noble tendencies she developed as a result of her spiritual discipline in her previous life. She now became an ardent devotee of Shiva. In course of time, she gave birth to a son. The child did not cry, as is usual, at birth. On the other hand, the only sound he uttered was ‘OM’ and everyone there was amazed at it. Astrologers assured Madhava Sharma that their child indeed was an avatar of the Lord. They also prophesied that he would renounce all worldly tied and that he would uplift fallen souls. They said that Madhava Sharma was indeed blessed by the birth of such a child.

The news that this child uttered  the sacred syllable immediately at birth spread to the neighboring cities and towns. Devout men and women came to see the child in great numbers. At the proper time, the child was named Narahari. The name signified that he was the dispeller of the sins and miseries of human beings.

Another miracle took place a little after his birth. At first, his mother did not have enough lactation. The parents were thinking of purchasing a she-goat, or arranging for a wet nurse, to feed the child. But this was not necessary. For, when the little hands of the child touched the mother’s breast, there was profuse lactation. The parents who were already worried that the extraordinary child might suffer from evil eye of the large number of visitors, decided to keep this miracle a secret.

Contd...
Jai Sai Ram