Gurus 17 to 24
Guru 18
A bird of prey is the 18th guru described in
verses 1 & 2 of chapter
4
One day Avadhuta
watched a small bird of prey flying with a piece of flesh in its beak. It was being chased and attacked by a number
of birds who tried to get at its food.
The pestered bird dropped the piece of flesh to get rid of the attack.
As the other birds pounced on the dropped flesh, this bird was flying freely in
peace. From this, he learned that one
who runs after worldly pleasures will soon come into clash with one’s
fellow-beings who too run for the same and has to face
much miseries and strife. Happiness and peace
come to one who lives abandoning the sensual pleasures, seeking only spiritual
goals.
Guru 19
The child is the 19th
guru described in verses 3 & 4.
A child has no feeling
of respect and disrespect, ego and arrogance and lives from moment to moment with
no anxiety for the future or worry of the past.
A sage should be like the child, free from worries and anxieties, living
in the present, innocent at heart and free of the dushta chathushtayam
of ahamkara, mamakara, raga and dwesha. While the child is happy and enjoying due to
ignorance, the sage should be happy being free from all worldly desires and
attachments and full of Supreme Joy.
Guru 20
A young unmarried maiden is
described as the 20th guru in verses 5 to 10.
During his travels
Avadhuta came across a family.
There was an unmarried young girl in the family. One day the parents of a suitor visited the
house unexpectedly when the parents were not at home. She received them
respectfully, seated them and went into the kitchen to prepare food for
them. While pounding the rice for food her
bangles made a noise knocking against each other. She did not like that noise as it would
disturb the guests and she removed all the bangles except two in each hand. But
still they made noise. So she took one more off and was able to
complete her task quietly. From this incident Avadhuta
learned that wherever there are lots of people there will be unnecessary talk
and gossip which will be a disturbance to spiritual sadhanas. Even with only two also it will be the same. So spiritual sadhanas for Liberation should
be performed in isolation in a secluded place.
Guru 21
Verses 11 to 13 describe the 21st guru, the
arrow-maker.
A certain arrow-maker
supplied weapons for the army of a king. Avadhuta saw him one day so absorbed in
chiselling the tip of an arrow that he did not take notice of even the king’s
procession passing by. This reminded the
Avadhuta the importance of the undisturbed chitha ekagratha
for the seeker. The mind is like an arrow and meditation makes the mind sharp
freeing it of three types of thoughts, namely vasana-based thoughts,
world-based thoughts and will-based thoughts. Such an alert mind with one-point
focus is necessary to achieve Self-Realization.
Guru 22
Verses 14 & 15 describe the 22nd guru, the
snake.
A snake lives a
solitary life, it does not remain in one place, it is silent in movement, it
does not build any kind of residence but finds shelter in whatever cave or hole
that is available. From the snake Avadhuta learnt the code of conduct
for a sage i,e. to live alone, wander from place to place, not to engage with
other people but pass silently, and to find shelter in any place. The snake casts off its old skin to be
replaced by a new one at regular intervals which should remind a sage of the
phenomenon of death and not to be frightened of death as it is only changing
the body to a new one based on his karma.
Guru 23
Verses 16 to 21 describe the 23rd guru, the
spider
The spider spins a web
secreting a fluid from its belly and plays in it day and night. After a time
when he no longer feels a need for it, the spider swallows the entire web and
becomes free again. This reminds Avadhuta
of Brahman, the Supreme Self, who
projects this world out of Himself, through His power of Maya, maintains
it and later one day dissolves everything into Himself. He expands His personal potency from within
Himself, displays the network of cosmic manifestation, utilizes it according to
His purpose and eventually withdraws it completely within Himself. The Supreme Self has no desires and is beyond the
reach of cause and effect and the cycle of creation and dissolution is only a
play, Leela, for Him.
Guru 24
Wasp is the 24th
guru described in verses 22 & 23.
The wasp catches hold of a
worm, puts it in its nest, gives it a sting and goes on buzzing about it. The worm is so frightened by this whole
ongoing process of buzzing, that it cannot think of anything else apart from
wasp. The constant thinking of worm about
wasp eventually turns the worm into a wasp itself. From this Avadhuta learnt
that as a man thinks, so he becomes. If
one gives up all attachment to the body and constantly, devotedly without any
sort of deviation mediates upon the Supreme Brahman, one will attain Liberation.
Conclusion
After describing the
24 external gurus, Avadhuta talked about the internal guru, his own
physical body. Avadhuta told the
king that his body was the primary guru that taught him viveka and detachment
and went on to explain it. Out of all
living beings only human being is capable of pursuing all the four purushathas
i.e. Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha, while the rest of living
beings can pursue only Artha and Kama. And this human body is attained after many,
many births in different other bodies.
In this human birth one should wisely use one’s intelligence and will to
pursue Moksha purushartha without succumbing to the the pull of
different sense-organs towards material acquisitions and worldly pleasures. Human
birth is rare and human life is short.
So while in this body one should without post phoning and
procrastinating acquire viveka to discriminate between the fleeting material
pleasures and permanent spiritual bliss and practice detachment towards
material pleasures while pursuing single-mindedly spiritual goal. With humble and full devotion, he said, he looked
upon the whole of God’s creation including the ones described as his various gurus,
trying to gather wisdom from them and realize his goal of Spiritual
Enlightenment. Then he concluded saying that his bliss and
contentment commented upon by the king are the fruits of self-realization. Upon hearing all this King Yadhu felt
enlightened and paid homage to his new-found guru, Avadhuta, who
blessing the king continued his wanderings.
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