MAHABHARATA SERIES BOOK#1: The Forest of Stories (Mba) Read online

  ||Two||

  Around the same time, there was a rishi named Ayoda-Dhaumya who had three shishyas named Upamanyu, Aruni and Veda. One day, the seer called upon his disciple Aruni, who hailed from the region of Panchala. ‘Aruni,’ said the sage, ‘there is a breach in the levee. Go and stop the flow of water.’

  The pupil did as his teacher bid and went to the levee. He found the hole in the embankment but could not find a way to stop the breach. After exhausting all other methods, he finally lay down and used his own body to block the flow of water. Time passed but as nobody else was aware of his plight, nor could he find any other way to keep the water from escaping, Aruni remained there in the levee, using his own body to keep the hole closed.

  Days passed.

  One afternoon, Rishi Ayoda-Dhaumya wondered at Aruni’s absence. ‘Where is Aruni of Panchala?’ he asked his other shishyas. ‘Bhagavan, you sent him to repair the hole in the levee,’ they replied. ‘He has not yet returned.’

  Rishi Ayoda-Dhaumya, accompanied by his other two disciples, then proceeded to the embankment. Unable to see Aruni anywhere, the rishi called out, ‘Aruni, where are you? Show yourself, my son.’ At the sound of his guru’s voice, Aruni rose and presented himself.

  He explained his absence by showing his guru the hole and demonstrating how he had lain down to block it himself, to prevent the water escaping. With the aid of the other pupils, he was now able to repair the breach and made no complaint of the time he had spent lying in the muddy embankment, alone in the cold and dark, without food or respite. Rishi Ayoda-Dhaumya was greatly impressed by his disciple’s discipline and sense of duty.

  ‘Aruni of Panchala,’ he said, showing his pleasure, ‘since you blocked the breach with your own self and therefore acted as a stopper to halt the flow of water, you shall henceforth be known as Uddalaka!’ The guru smiled at his own wit, as did his pupils. ‘And since you obeyed your guru’s instructions so well, you shall attain all that you desire in life. All the wisdom of the Vedas shall be known to you and all the dharmashastras as well. Go forth and prosper. Your education is done.’ Overjoyed, Uddalaka who was formerly Aruni, departed the kul of his guru and set out into the world.

  One day, Ayoda-Dhaumya said to his second pupil Upamanyu, ‘My son, go and take care of my cows.’ Upamanyu did as his guru said. Each day, after caring for the cows, he returned to the guru’s ashram at sundown and respectfully greeted him. One evening, the rishi observed him, then frowned and remarked, ‘Upamanyu, you appear to be quite fat. How do you derive nourishment?’ To which the student replied, ‘Guru, I support myself by begging for alms.’ Rishi Ayoda-Dhaumya said disapprovingly, ‘You are not to use alms you receive by begging without first sharing them with me.’ Thereafter, the disciple surrendered all his alms to his guru each day.

  Some days later, Rishi Ayoda-Dhaumya again observed Upamanyu looking as fat as before. ‘Upamanyu, I take all your alms away from you. How then do you continue to sustain yourself so well?’ Upamanyu bowed his head and answered, ‘O Bhagavan, after handing over the alms for the day to you, I go out and beg for more. Those alms I use to feed myself.’ Rishi Ayoda-Dhaumya was upset at his pupil: ‘This is not the way to obey your elders! You are circumventing the letter of my instructions. I commanded you to give all your alms to me, yet you keep some for yourself. When you act thus, you deprive others of their sustenance. You are a glutton, Upamanyu!’

  Ashamed of his lapse, Upamanyu continued to care for the cows but now surrendered everything he received as alms to his guru without keeping anything for himself. But again Rishi Ayoda- Dhaumya observed him and asked, ‘Upamanyu, you give all your alms to me, and do not collect more for yourself as I forbade it. Then why do you still appear so fat?’ The pupil quailed at his preceptor’s disapproval and hesitantly admitted, ‘I drink the milk of the cows.’ Rishi Ayoda-Dhaumya waxed angrily again. ‘These cows belong to me, Upamanyu. It is wrong for you to drink their milk without asking for my permission. I forbid you to do so henceforth.’

  Upamanyu promised he would no longer drink the milk and continued herding the cows. Days later, his guru looked at him again and still found him as fat as before. ‘Upamanyu, how is this possible? You do not eat alms or beg a second time for more alms for yourself. You do not drink the milk from my cows. Yet you appear as fat. What do you survive on?’ The shishya replied, ‘Bhagavan, your cows are suckled by their calves. Even after they finish suckling, they spit out generous quantities of froth. I drink the froth they spit out and thus I am fed.’ Rishi Ayoda-Dhaumya shook his head in despair and said, ‘Upamanyu, you do not understand. The calves throw out more froth than usual because they pity you. But by consuming their froth you deprive them of their rightful sustenance. Henceforth, I forbid you from drinking the froth.’

  Once again Upamanyu left his guru’s ashram and took care of his cows. But acting under his guru’s instructions, he no longer kept any part of the alms he received, nor did he beg a second time for more alms for himself, nor did he drink the milk from the cows, nor even the froth spat out by the calves after they suckled at the udders of the cows. He began to suffer the pangs of hunger. Starving and desperate, he saw a bush in the forest and found its leaves desirable. He ate the leaves, not knowing that the bush was a sun-plant named arka. The acrid raw juice from the leaves caused him to lose his eye sight. Blinded, he wandered through the forest until he stumbled and fell into a well. At day’s end, the cows found their way home by instinct without Upamanyu. When Upamanyu failed to return, his guru said to his other pupils, ‘I forbade Upamanyu every form of sustenance or nourishment. He must be starving and angry. That must be why he has stayed in the forest rather than return home with the cows.’ Concerned for his shishya’s well-being, Rishi Ayoda-Dhaumya went into the woods to search for Upamanyu. He cried out his name loudly as he went, searching for hours. ‘Upamanyu, where are you, my son? Come to me!’ Upamanyu heard his guru’s voice and called out weakly, ‘Master, I am here. I have fallen into a well.’ The rishi found the mouth of the well and leaned over it, peering into the dark pit. ‘How did you happen to fall into this well?’ he asked. Upamanyu sobbed in shame. ‘I could not bear the hunger any longer, my guru. I ate some leaves and went blind. I know now that they must have been leaves from the arka sun-plant. I cannot see a thing now. I have lost my eyesight forever and cannot climb up from this well.’

  The guru heard his pupil and advised him gently, ‘Upamanyu, my son, you must pray to the Ashwins. Pray long and hard, sing their praises sincerely and with all your heart. Those divine healers will restore your eyesight.’

  Upamanyu took his guru’s words to heart. He knew that it was through his repeated flaunting of his guru’s instructions that he had come by this sorry pass. Had he heeded his guru and done exactly as bidden at the very outset, none of this would have happened. He wished with all his heart for an opportunity to prove that he was a good shishya and worthy of the guru’s faith in him. Praying to the Ashwins—or to any god for that matter—was no easy task. The fact that Rishi Ayoda-Dhaumya believed that he, Upamanyu, could summon the Divine Twins through the power of his prayers alone was a great show of faith.

  Summoning up his reserves of strength, Upamanyu began to sing the praises of the Ashwins. He recalled the appropriate shlokas from the Rig Veda which served exactly this purpose and chanted them from memory, with perfect inflection, rhythm and cadence.

  Upamanyu’s voice sang out from the pit of the well shaft, through the forest, and rose to the heavens, until, finally, it reached the ears of the divine Ashwins themselves.

  Those celestial Twins manifested themselves before Upamanyu, appearing in physical form at the bottom of the well. He sensed their presence and greeted them with appropriate reverence and adulation. They spoke with a single voice that was doubled in sound and intensity.

  The Ashwins said to Upamanyu: ‘We are pleased with your recitation. Take this cake and eat it. It is yours to enjoy.’ And so saying, they handed him a delicious c
ake.

  The cake smelled wonderfully aromatic and enticing to starving, blind Upamanyu. He reached out eagerly, desiring to take it and consume it at once. Yet he paused.

  ‘Nay,’ he said to the divine Twins. ‘I cannot accept anything without first offering it to my guru. I thank you kindly for your gift but you must allow me to present it to my guru. He will decide whether or not to share it with me.’

  The Ashwins said: ‘Many years ago, your guru prayed to us just as sincerely and we gifted him a similar cake as well. He ate it all himself without offering it to his preceptor. You would only be doing exactly as he did.’

  Upamanyu shook his head. ‘Forgive me, great ones. I know you only speak the truth therefore everything you say must have happened exactly as you say. Even so, I cannot eat this cake without first offering it to my preceptor. Perhaps he will permit me to partake of a piece.’

  The Ashwins were impressed by Upamanyu’s fortitude and said to him, ‘Your devotion to your guru is unassailable. We are pleased by your choice. Your guru has teeth of black iron. Your teeth shall be golden. Your sight will be restored in full and you shall be granted good fortune as well.’

  The instant they pronounced these words, Upamanyu found himself able to see again perfectly, with no trace of the pain or discomfort caused by the eating of the arka leaves. He was blessed with a brief glimpse of the shining Ashwins before they faded away, departing for their heavenly realm. He bowed and joined hands to thank them as they vanished. Feeling refreshed and strengthened, he was then able to climb out of the well easily.

  Standing before his guru, he touched his preceptor’s feet and told him all that had transpired within the well. Rishi Ayoda- Dhaumya nodded, smiling happily, and said to him, ‘It shall be as the Ashwins said to you. You will have perfect knowledge of the Vedas. And you shall attain whatever you desire in life. This was your test, and you have passed it successfully. You are now free to go on your way.’

  Rishi Ayoda-Dhaumya’s third pupil was named Veda. One day, the guru instructed him, ‘Veda, my son, stay here in my house. I am leaving on a long journey. Consider this house to be your own and reside here until I return. You will be forever blessed for doing this.’

  Veda did exactly as his guru bade him. He lived in his guru’s house and took care of all the daily chores without respite. Like a bullock yoked to a heavy plough, he pulled his load of responsibilities without complaint, enduring the extremities of cold, heat, hunger and thirst, and never leaving that house for any reason. After a much longer absence than anticipated, Rishi Ayoda-Dhaumya returned and relieved Veda. Pleased with his pupil’s rigorous sense of responsibility and strict adherence to his every instruction, the guru praised him, blessed him and sent him on his way, having obtained perfect knowledge and great good fortune. This was the trial of the third pupil, Veda.

  ||Three||

  Veda then went forth and in time, embarked upon the grihastha- ashrama stage of existence, which is to say, he became a married man and a householder. In time, attracted by his reputation for being a man of great learning, three students came to study with him as well. But because of the deprivations and austerities he and his fellow shishyas had suffered in Rishi Ayoda-Dhaumya’s ashram, Veda resolved never to test his students as cruelly. Not once did he order them to observe rites rigorously, nor mete out punishments for non-compliance, nor did he expect perfect obedience from them. In time, two kshatriyas named Paushya and Janamajaya—a quite different person from King Janamajaya of the Kurus— came to Veda’s house and asked him to be their preceptor. He accepted.

  One day, Veda had to leave home to officiate at a ceremony for one of his patrons. He requested one of his disciples named Uttanka to look after his house. He told Uttanka: ‘Do whatever needs to be done to take care of the household. Ensure that nothing is lacking.’ With these simple instructions, Veda left. As it transpired, his journey took him to a faraway foreign nation and his absence from home was far longer than expected. Uttanka obeyed his guru’s request dutifully. Some months later, the women of the household gathered together to speak to him. They told him that Rishi Veda and his wife had been desirous of having offspring for a long time. Now, the preceptor’s wife was in the ideal period for conception, based on her biological factors as well as the astrological signs and other omens. If this time passed, who knew when she might conceive again. As the man of the house, it fell to him to impregnate her and ensure that her period of fertility did not go to waste. Uttanka was troubled by the request of the women. He said to them, ‘I hear your demand but it is not proper that I should do this on your word alone. I take my instructions only from my guru and he has not asked me to do any such thing.’ They urged him, saying that the preceptor had after all told him to do whatever needed to be done and to ensure that nothing was lacking, therefore he would only be performing his duty to the guru by filling his wife’s barren womb. But Uttanka held firm and refused to do as they said.

  In time, the guru returned home from his long journey. He heard all that had transpired in his absence, and was pleased with Uttanka’s decision for he would not have approved of another man inseminating his wife. He said to Uttanka, ‘My son, you have fulfilled your dharma admirably while using your own judgement wisely. This is a great service you have done for me and I am deeply grateful to you. In return, name anything you desire and I shall do everything in my power to return the favour. Do you wish to leave my service and pursue your own fortune? If so, then I grant you leave to go and bless you with a certainty of success in any endeavour you choose.’

  Uttanka considered his guru’s words and replied, ‘Gurudev, it is well known that when a shishya completes his education he must give his guru a dakshina, otherwise if one person asks for something without offering anything in return and the other person gives without rightfully receiving anything in exchange, there shall be enmity between those two, and one shall inevitably die. You have already granted me the greatest gift any guru can give his shishya: you have given me leave to go forth into the world, declaring my education complete. In exchange, I wish to give you your guru- dakshina as it is only fair that I repay you for your gift of learning to me.’

  Rishi Veda was impressed by his pupil’s answer and said, ‘In that case, Uttanka, give me some time to consider what guru-dakshina to ask.’ Uttanka was sanguine and continued to stay peacefully at his guru’s ashram.

  Some time later, Uttanka came before his preceptor and asked him once again, ‘My guru, command me what guru-dakshina you desire that I may give it you.’ Rishi Veda said, ‘Uttanka, my son. So many times have you asked me already what guru-dakshina I desire. I am still unable to think of anything. Yet you deserve an answer, therefore go to my wife and ask her if she desires anything. Give her whatever she demands and I shall consider it as my guru- dakshina.’ So Uttanka went to the guru’s wife and joined his hands before her. ‘Shrimati, my guru says I have completed my education and may go home. But I must give him guru-dakshina before I take my leave. He has sent me to you. Command me what you wish and I shall bring it to you as a guru-dakshina.’ The preceptor’s wife thought briefly and replied: ‘Go then to King Paushya, your guru’s patron. His queen possesses a certain set of earrings that she wears often. Ask him to give you those earrings and fetch them to me. In four days, there shall be an important ceremony and I wish to appear most radiant before the brahmins who will attend. Bring me the queen’s earrings and you shall have the blessings of your guru as well as my own good wishes!’

  Happy to finally have a task to perform, Uttanka set out at once for Raja Paushya’s palace.

  ||Four||

  It was a long distance to the palace and while he was walking, Uttanka saw upon the road the largest bull he had ever seen in his life. Seated atop the bull was the largest man he had ever seen! Intrigued by this extraordinary sight, Uttanka slowed to stare at the enormous bull and the giant seated atop it. As he was staring at them curiously, the man called out to him. ‘Uttanka!’ He was star
tled to hear his name shouted by a stranger. The man called out to him, ‘Uttanka, eat the dung of this bull!’ Uttanka recoiled in disgust at the very thought. Naturally he did not comply with the giant’s request. Once again the giant called out, ‘Uttanka, eat it without hesitation. Your guru himself has eaten it in his time.’

  Despite his disgust, Uttanka felt a powerful urge to do as the stranger said. Somehow, he overcame his repulsion and ate the bull’s fetid dung and even drank its urine.

  Soon afterward, Uttanka reached the palace of Raja Paushya and went before the king. He introduced himself and announced, ‘Raje, I am the disciple of your guru Rishi Veda.’ King Paushya replied warmly, ‘Then you are as a god to me. Speak. What can I do for you?’ Uttanka told him about the earrings his queen possessed, which were desired by Rishi Veda’s wife, to wear for the ceremony before the brahmins. ‘I beg you to give me the earrings that I may present them to my guru’s wife as my guru-dakshina.’ Paushya answered without hesitation: ‘Of course. Go directly into the queen’s palace and ask for my wife. Tell her I sent you and you shall have what you desire.’

  Pleased to hear this, Uttanka went into the inner apartments of the palace of the queen. He searched everywhere but could not find the queen. Returning to the king, he said with some irritation: ‘Raje, you ought not to have lied to me. You said the queen was in her palace but I looked everywhere and could find no trace of her.’ Paushya was taken aback at first, then thought for a moment. Finally he said, ‘There can be only one explanation. You must be somehow impure or polluted. Since she is a faithful wife to me, she cannot be seen by anyone who is not immaculately clean. Somehow, you must have consumed stale food or in some way rendered yourself unclean. Think and try to remember.’ Uttanka thought back and realized the king spoke the truth. ‘Indeed, it is as you say. As I was in a hurry to come here and reach back to the guru’s house before the ceremony, I performed my ablutions on the road, while walking.’ Paushya nodded. ‘That would explain why you did not see the queen. Ablutions must always be performed while sitting, never while standing or walking.’ Uttanka saw the wisdom of the kshatriya’s words and performed his ablutions again. He sat facing the east, then first washed his hands, face and feet thoroughly and without making haste. Then, maintaining absolute silence, he sipped just enough clean water, ensuring it was completely free of scum or froth, in precisely the right amount that was required to reach his heart. Then he washed twice and cleansed his orifices with water. Only when he had duly completed these ablutions to perfection did he rise once more and enter the queen’s inner apartments. At once, he saw the queen, seated where she had always been, now made visible to his senses.