Madhwa Vijaya - 7
Sarga 4 Part 1
Full of mercy toward the noble souls, Vaasudeva with his sharp intellect and by the grace of Lakshmi-Naarayana forever residing in his mind, planned the future course of action to defeat the ones who had robbed the Vedas of their true meaning.
I am unmoved by all factors except the attributes of Hari. To be a torch-bearer to the masses and to express my true nature, embracing the sanyaasa aashrama is the way forward, thought Vaasudeva.
It reflects poorly on my capabilities if I do not punish those who propagate falsehood about Hari. Yet I do not have to bear the responsibility of this, as Durga who is Hari’s sister is to shortly descend to earth to destroy these beings.
Having thought on these lines, and deciding to renounce the world, the one whose mind was forever absorbed in Hari, then sought the permission of the omni- present Hari.
Although he himself was the teacher of the entire world, he went in search of a guru, to respect worldly protocol and to set an example for others to follow.
There existed such a guru, who had conquered his desires, wore no ornament other than detachment, who was pure of body and soul, who was, as people called him, truly “Achyuthapreksha*”.
*one who has seen Achyutha/ one who has awareness of Achyutha; referred to as “Achyuthapragnya” also
In the Dwaapara yuga, he had been purified by having eaten food cooked by Droupadi herself, in the Pandavas’ house, when he was an alms-seeking mendicant.
As an ascetic, his deep sense of remorse at having studied the false theology, was enough to protect him from incurring sin, just as Jara, the avataara of Bhrigu muni, was absolved of the crime of aiming for and shooting at Krishna’s foot.
When Achyuthapreksha’s guru felt that his end was near, he called Achyuthapreksha (who was extremely sincere in his pursuit of the truth) to his presence and revealed to him, in confidence…
“When I become God-realised, I become Bramhan, there is no difference between me and him, is the claim made by Maayavaada. Do not believe this untruth.
This concept of the oneness of jeeva and paramaatma has been propounded for spiritual pursuit, but no one has experienced this. Not my guru, nor the ones before him. Therefore, pray to Hari for true knowledge.”
When his guru fell silent and departed from this world, Achyuthapreksha pondering again and again over his guru’s parting message, fell at the feet of the lord at Udupi.
Pleased with the devotion and worship of Achyuthapreksha who was desirous of understanding the ultimate truth, the lord spoke to him through a medium, and said, “You will get an accomplished disciple in the future, seek me through him!”
Even as Achyuthapreksha lay in wait for this incident to occur, the guru of mankind, Vayu deva made his way to him.
When Vaasudeva’s parents heard that their son was in the company of Achyuthapreksha, with his mind made up to renounce the world and become a sanyaasi, they rushed to Udupi, filled with anguish.
“Oh child! We are aged and we have no one but you, you cannot be a sanyaasi while we are still alive”, thus exclaiming, they fell at his feet.
“By prostrating to me and breaking the societal rule of not prostrating to one who is younger, Hari has himself made you grant me permission* to become a sanyaasi”, said the lord of the world, in the form of a boy.
*A father prostrates to his son only when the latter is a sanyaasi
Prostrating to Achyuthapreksha, Bhattaru, who had no comeback to Vaasudeva’s words, helplessly returned home with his wife. Time stood still for the parents bemoaning their son’s absence.
Agonised over their son’s decision, they made their way across the river Netravathi, to meet him and his guru, once more.
Bhattaru always held seniors and scholars in high esteem, but his anger at the prospect of losing his son made him, uncharacteristically, speak harshly in the presence of Achyuthapreksha. He said, “If my son dons the loincloth, I will also take a rash step*…”
*end my life
In In a flash, Vaasudeva peeled off his clothes and stood there wearing a loincloth and said, “Fa “Father, let’s see you take the rash step!” Then, he added gently, “Father, one should not hinder a good deed…”
“There is no better deed than looking after one’s parents, and we have lost our first two sons. If you too go away what will become of us?” pleaded Bhattaru.
“The Vedas say that the moment one feels detached, one should become a sanyaasi. I have no interest in the affairs of the world. Yet for your sake, I will not become a sanyaasi till you have another son”, said Vaasudeva.
To be continued…