Yadhu Gita - 1

Gurus 1 to 8

Introduction

The teachings of Krishna to Udddhava, spread over 23 chapters-from the 7th to 29th - of the 11th Skandha (Canto) of Srimad Bhagavatam is known as the Uddhava Gita.  As part of this teachings Lord Krishna narrates the tale of king Yadhu’s encounter with a freely roaming Avadhuta.  The Avaduta, a realized Jnani, is none other than Lord Dattatreya and king Yadhu is an ancestor of Lord Krishna.  Seeing the young Avadhuta sanyasi going about in the forest without any care or fear, radiating peace and happiness, the king approached him with humbleness and asked the Avadhuta about the secret of his happiness and the name of his Guru.  Avadhuta replied that he has not one but many gurus and listed them all with the lessons he learnt from each one of them.   The gurus he listed are 24 in number and they are listed in 105 verses spread over three chapters of Uddava Gita i.e. 2,3 & 4.  This entire dialogue between king Yadhu and Avadhuta is called as Yadhu Gita.  Most of the gurus are achetana gurus by observing whom the Avadhuta has extracted the teaching and gained wisdom.  With this brief introduction we shall see the gurus, one by one, with the lessons he learnt from each one of them.

Guru 1

The Avadhuta names the first guru in verses 37 and 38 of second chapter and the guru is the earth, prithvi, with the mountains and trees.

From Prithvi he learnt patience, forgiveness, endurance and tolerance. From mountains and trees, he learnt the virtue of paropakara and that one should devotedly dedicate oneself to the welfare of other living beings.

Guru 2

The second guru mentioned in verses 39 to 41 is Air, Vayu.

From Vayu, that moves freely among all objects and yet remains pure and odourless he learnt the value of staying clear of material world’s disturbances and attachments. Further when Air blows out of control, the atmosphere becomes agitated and similarly when the mind is constantly attracted and repelled by material objects, it will be next to impossible to concentrate on the Absolute Truth.  So a spiritual sadhaka should steer clear of associations and activities that do not contribute to his spiritual growth.

Guru 3

The third guru mentioned in verses 42 and 43 is Akasa, space. 

Avadhuta sees the similarity of Athma and Akasa and employs Akasa as a medium for Athma dhyanam.  Like Akasa, Athma is omnipresent, all-pervading, infinite in nature, asangha and purna.  Sometime clouds cover Akasa but yet Akasa remains unaffected.  In the same way, Athma is never affected, by the material body contamination.  The inner emptiness of Akasa i.e. space, teaches the sage should keep his inner self free of disturbing emotions born of likes and dislikes.

Guru 4

Water is the fourth guru mentioned in the verse 44.

Water quenches the thirst of every creature and without feeling any pride, water serves all living beings. The sage too should likewise bestow health, peace and joy to every creature that comes to him. The Sage should ever live as the humblest of God’s creation.  Water teaches the quality of purity. Just as the pure water cleanses others, so also the sage, who is pure and free from selfishness, lust, egoism, anger, greed, etc., purifies all who come in contact with him.

Guru 5

Agni, the fifth guru is mentioned in four verses 45 to 47 and 49

Avadhuta sees the similarity between fire and Paramathma.   As heat principle fire is unmanifest and as flame it is manifest.   Paramathma is a formless one and manifests in individuals as Jivathma.  Fire burns bright, cannot be suppressed by others. It has no extra storage place, it keeps all inside itself and it can eat anything and yet not get dirty when comes in to contact of other dirty things. The sage should be like the fire, shining through his austerities, his knowledge and tapas and having no vessel other than his stomach.  Although having no shape of its own, the fire assumes the shape of the firewood through which it reveals itself. Similarly, having entered a particular body, Athma appears to assume the qualities of the body.   So a yogi should see in beings not the external traits that differentiate them but only the Athma which is the essence.  

Guru 6

Moon is the sixth guru and is mentioned in verse 48

The moon waxes and wanes and despite this continuous change taking place with the moon, it remains unaffected by this process. Similarly the sage should not be affected by the continual change of body from birth to death including diseases and old age.

Guru 7

Surya, the sun, is the seventh guru mentioned in verses 50 and 51

Though the sun we see in our daily life is one, it appears as many when reflected by water in different vessels.  This teaches that the one real Self manifests itself as many selves of living creatures when reflected in their physical structures.  As Sun illuminates the many forms in nature to our vision, the sage too illuminates the true nature of all things to his devotees.  From the sun, that takes water from the ocean by evaporating it and returning it as life-giving rain water, Avadhuta learnt that whatever material things received through senses should not be stored but shed back without getting attached to material things.

Guru 8

Pigeon is the eighth guru and the story of pigeon is narrated in verses 52 to 74. With this story and the lesson learnt, Chapter 2 ends

A devoted pigeon couple along with their babies lived happily in jungle. The couple were deeply attached to each other and also to their infant babies. One day when the couple were out to find food for their children, a hunter came by and snared the young ones in his net. When the couple returned back, they saw their dear children were caught in net. Unable to live without their children, the couple also jumped into that trap of net. The bird-catcher returned home with the complete catch. This story sounds a note of warning against developing obsessive love or attachments in the transient material world.  It teaches that although pleasure is found in this world, it is transient and ends in pain. So a spiritual seeker desirous of Liberation (mumukshu) should be mentally detached from worldly attachments.

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