Leela:
Once a Ramdasi (devotee of Lord Rama) came to Shirdi and stayed for some time. The routine he followed daily was as follows: he got up early in the morning, washed his face, bathed and, after wearing saffron-coloured clothes and besmearing himself with sacred ashes, read the Vishnu Sahasranam (a book listing a thousand names in praise of Lord Vishnu and very important to His devotees) and the Adhyatma Ramayana (a version of Ramayana emphasizing its spiritualism and philosophically reconciling Bhakti with Shakti and Advaita Vedanta) with faith.
He read these books often. Once Baba called the Ramdasi over and said to him that He was suffering from intense stomach pain, and unless He took some sona mukhi (senna powder, a mild purgative), the pain would not stop. He asked the Ramdasi to please go to the bazaar to get some of this medicine.
The Ramadasi closed his reading and left for the bazaar. Then Baba descended from His seat, came to the Ramadasi's place of reading, took out the copy of Vishnu Sahasranam, and returning to His seat said to Shyama, "Oh Shyama, this book is very valuable and efficacious, so I present it to you to read. Once I suffered intensely, My heart began to palpitate and My life was in danger. At that critical time, I hugged this book to My heart and then, Shyama, what a relief it gave me! I thought that Allah Himself came down and saved Me. So I give this to you. Read it slowly, little by little. Read at least one name daily and it will do you good."
Shyama replied that he did
not want it, and that the owner, the Ramdasi, who was hot-tempered and
irritable, would certainly pick a quarrel with him. Besides, having unrefined
speech himself, he could not easily pronounce the difficult compound Sanskrit
letters in the book. Though Shyama kept saying no, Baba slipped the book into
his pocket.
The Ramadasi returned soon with the medicine. Anna Chinchanikar, who was then
present and who wanted to play the part of Narada (the celestial rishi who was well-known for causing quarrels
between Gods and demons), informed him of what had happened.
The Ramdasi was furious. He accused Shyama of getting Baba to send him away under the pretext of a stomach ache so that he could take the book. He began to scold and abuse Shyama and exclaimed that if the book was not returned, he would dash his own head before him.
Shyama tried to pacify him, but in vain.
Then Baba spoke kindly to the
Ramdasi as follows. "Oh Ramdasi, what is the matter with you? Why are you making
an exhibition of your anger to the whole world? Is not Shyama our boy? Why do
you scold him unnecessarily? How is it that you are so quarrelsome? Can you not
speak soft and sweet words? You read these sacred books daily and still your
mind is impure and your passions uncontrolled. What sort of a Ramdasi are you!
You ought to be indifferent to all things. Is it not strange that you should
covet this book so strongly? A true Ramdasi should have no 'mamata'
(attachment) but have 'samata' (equality) towards all. You are now quarrelling
with the boy Shyama for a mere book. Go, take your seat. Books can be had in
plenty for money, but not people. Think well and be considerate. What worth is
your book? Shyama had no concern with it. I took it up Myself and gave it to
him. You know it by heart. I thought Shyama might read it and gain from it, and
so I gave to it him."
How sweet were these words of Baba, soft, tender and nectar-like! Their effect
was wonderful. The Ramadasi calmed down and said to Shyama that he would take a
copy of Panchratni
Gita in
return.
Shyama was very pleased and
said, "Why one, I shall give ten copies in return".
Based on Shri Sai Satcharita, The wonderful life and teachings of Shri Sai Baba, Translated by Nagesh Vasudev Gunaji (Mumbai: Shri Sai Baba Sansthan, Shirdi, 20th Edition 2002), p141
Based on Shri Sai Satcharita, The Life and Teachings of Shirdi Sai Baba, G. R. Dhalbokar, Translated by Indira Kher (Slovenia: Bird Publisher, 2009), p227
Teachings from Leela:
In this leela, Baba sought to help two of his devotees, Shyama and the Ramdasi, at the same time.
1) When your Guru gives you a task under unusual and memorable circumstances consider it to be very important
Baba could have easily asked the Ramdasi, or anyone else for that matter, to give a copy of the Vishnu Sahasranam to Shyama, and chances are they would have done so immediately. So the question is why did Baba create this unusual circumstance?
By sending the Ramdasi away on the pretext of a stomach ache, Baba orchestrated this leela to establish the importance of Vishnu Sahasranam not only to Shyama, but to the rest of His devotees.
Shyama was reluctant to learn it as he did not know advanced pronunciation in Sanskrit.
Is it important to use the correct Sanskrit pronunciation? (note 1)
Some might feel that they do not know the correct Sanskrit pronunciation, & do not want to chant incorrectly. There is an analogy of a mother to whom a child goes and asks for an orange. The child does not know how to pronounce the word "orange" and so asks for "ange". The mother does not turn away the child & does not refuse to give the child the orange just because the child does not know how to pronounce the word.
It is the bhaava (spirit) that matters, & so as long as one chants the name of God with sincerity, considerations such as not knowing the meaning, not knowing the pronunciation, etc, do not matter, & God will confer His blessings on us, there is no way a devotee of Vishnu can meet with any dishonor or disgrace of any kind.
This leela teaches us an important lesson, that when your Sadguru gives you a task to do, by going out of His way to create this unusual and highly memorable circumstance, consider it to be very important for your spiritual progress and work hard towards it.
Baba is also making an important point regarding the significance of the Vishnu Sahasranam. Throughout the Satcharitra, there are many instances where Baba introduced spiritual books to His devotees. In this leela, He has pointed out the significance of Vishnu Sahasranam.
Each of the one thousand names in the Vishnu Sahasranam describes a different attribute of God. By learning the meaning of these names, you begin to appreciate the immensity and complexity of God. By reciting these names, you create a sense of bonding with God and cannot avoid contemplating upon Him. Your mind begins to adopt and retain the qualities of the object being contemplated. With long practice, the quality of your mind becomes identical with the quality of the meditated object.
2) Mere reading of spiritual books is not a goal in itself; you must contemplate upon the content of what you are reading, which will purify your mind, eradicating anger and attachment
Via this leela, Baba proved to the Ramdasi that a trivial incidence could trigger an anger reaction in him, a person who read deeply significant spiritual books every day without fail. He wanted to uplift the Ramdasi spiritually, removing him from the rut he was in, and moving him forward in his spiritual journey.
Baba pointed out to the Ramdasi that he was attached to the physical form of his copy of the Vishnu Sahasranam. Even after finding out that Baba Himself had given the book to Shyama, the Ramdasi was reluctant to let it go without something replacing it, so he asked another in exchange. The Ramdasi’s physical attachments were clearly an obstacle to his spiritual progress.
In my previous blog, Chapter 24, Leela 2: Anna Chinchanikar vs. Mavsibai I have discussed Krodha (anger) in more detail. Anger is almost always triggered due to one of the following reasons:
a. People or worldly objects to which you have strong attachment are threatened or attacked.
b. Your Ahamkara (ego) is threatened or attacked.
Some of the most basic advice in our tradition offers is that, to make spiritual progress, you must free yourself of (1) your attachments, and (2) your ego.
Putting into Practice
Here are some suggestions on how we could use this leela in our daily lives.
1) When your Guru gives you a task under unusual and memorable
circumstances consider it to be very important
When
you find yourself in an unusual and memorable situation, where an new spiritual
task or learning opportunity is presented to you, consider it particularly
important to pursue.
Your Sadguru is constantly monitoring your spiritual progress, and when
required, makes opportunities available to you which you require to make
further progress.
2)
Mere reading of spiritual books is not a goal
in itself; you must contemplate upon the content of what you are reading, which
will purify your mind, eradicating anger and attachment
Reading
of spiritual knowledge simply as a ritual is not going to gain you much
spiritually. You must try to understand what you’re reading, contemplate upon
it, clarify your doubts, and once all your doubts are satisfactorily answered,
you must internalize it.
Once you start down this path of knowledge, your Sadguru will make resources
and teachers available to you, to help you understand, and to clarify your
doubts.
|
Listen
to the stories with reverence; Reflect upon them deeply. Shirdi Sai Baba Shri Sai Satcharita, The Life and Teachings of Shirdi Sai Baba, Chapter 3, verse 18 |
Mantra:
Om, Sarve bhavantu sukhinaḥ
Sarve santu nirāmayāḥ
Sarve bhadrāṇi paśyantu
Mā kashchit duḥkha bhāgbhavet
Oṁ Shāntiḥ, Shāntiḥ, Shāntiḥ
Meaning:
May all be prosperous and happy
May all be free from illness
May all see what is spiritually uplifting
May no one suffer
Om peace, peace, peace
This above mantra is from the Brihadaaranyaka Upanishad
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/seekingshanti/2015/09/hinduprayerforeveryone_globalgoals/
I would encourage all of you to please share your interpretations, learnings and experiences on how you have put this leela into practice.
Om Sai Ram.
Notes:
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