THE STORY OF GADHI.
Summary In this story it is sought to show the nature of Maya through the cognition and avoidance of which Atma can be cognized.It is indeed impossible to describe the grandeur and in finite potency of Maya which is but a synonym for birth and death. The mastery of the terrible Manas leads to its des truction but not otherwise. Now listen with an attentive mind to the story I am going to relate to you of the marvellous potency of this powerful Maya of the universe. So began Vasishta addressing himself to R&ma, the prince of the solar dynasty. An excellent Brahmin, by name Gadhi lived on earth in the country of Kosala. With some object in view, he abandoned his relatives for the forest. There whilst he was performing a goodly Tapas for about eight months by stand ing throat-deep in the midst of the waters of a tank, the gracious Vishnu deigned to pay a personal visit to the Brahmin and asked him to state the object of his Tapas.
Thereupon the latter quitted the waters and having reached the bank, fell prostrate at the feet of Vishnu and praised him thus “ Oh Parabrahm that is inseparable from the lotus heart of all souls, Oh Achyuta (the indestructible), Oh Ananta (the endless), I wish to merge in the immaculate Brahman. Therefore be pleased to enable me to visit (or know) directly the true nature of Maya which thou hast created and which has wrought the miracle of these universes full of birth and death.” To this request Vishnu acceded in the follow ing words “ Thou shalt.be able to see Maya. Thou shalt, after personally seeing it, be able to free thyself from its yoke.” With these words, Vishnu disappeared at once like a Gandharva city.
Thereupon the Brahmin was filled with a perennial bliss at having come in contact with the incar nation of the divine grace and spent some days in Tapas in that forest when there recurred to his memory the blessed sentences of Vishnu on his way to the lotus-filled tank to bathe. Dipping his head into the water, he forgot to per form the recitation of the Vedic Mantras and Dhyana (meditation) which it was his wont to do, while in the process of bathing. And lo ! he saw himself dead of a disease in his own house with his relatives gathered together, weeping by the side of his body, whilst his wife cried bitterly at his feet ; and his mother prompted by sheer maternal love was embracing her son, as if she was again suckling him and writhing with pains, drooped senseless like one who had trodden the fire.
In this state of affairs, the weeping relatives by began and finished the subsequent post mortem rites and kindled the funeral pyre for cremation. The body was dis posed of in the burning ground by being soon reduced to ashes. Thus did Gadhi, in the midst of the waters in the tank, see through his mind the illusory actions that were per formed by himself through himself.
Now Rama, listen to what subsequently transpired. Then Vasishta continued thus “ This life being over, Ga”dhi found himself reincarnating in the womb of a lady like a jet-black picture who belonged to the degraded caste of dog-eaters. With great travail, she brought him out into this world as a male child. After being fondled as a baby, he grew up to man hood with a body quite sable like a cooled charcoal. With none to equal him in the degraded caste he was in, he married a girl of the same caste and with her lived in great union and joy. Whilst they were living harmoniously like life and mind, over hills, forests, and other fine places, their union blossom ed forth in the birth of issues.
Some time elapsing, dotage and excessive grayness set in upon the husband who constructed a house of leaves at a distance from his place and there dwelt in it as a great Tapaswin. The children too advanced in life and became old. Whilst they were afflicted at dotage having laid its hands upon them all, Kala (Death) stepped in to re lieve all of them except the husband.
Being tired of incessant wailing and solitude, the sur vivor s mind became dizzy ; he became sick with desires and began to rove through different climes. At last he reached the country called Keera where justice was administered duly and was passing through one of the golden streets of that city where its king had died. As he left no heir, the people in ac cordance with the immemorial custom of the choice of a king, bedecked the state elephant with gold and precious gems and let it loose to go its own way and select a king. The tusker in search of a person to rule the kingdom, found opposite to it this Neecha, its kindred in color and raised him upon its temples with its long proboscis like Udyagiri (hills) at the dawn of the sun amidst the din of many musical instruments and the exclamations from all the eight quarters (vis.} “ Vic tory be to thee, Victory be to thee.” Thereupon all the fair ladies of the palace lavished all their skill in adorning their newly-made king.
The old courtiers and the conimander-in- chief began to obey his behests. Gavala was the name as sumed by the king befitting his position as the wise and just protector of the earth. He reigned over his earth, seated on the splendid bejewelled throne loved by all the court ladies shining with their scarlet lips.
After 8 years elapsed thus, the king one day doffed all his ornaments from his person and alone was perambulating on foot the street beside his palace with all the appearance of a true Neecha, when he saw before him a group of out- castes of the caste of dog-eaters of sable complexion travelling along and playing upon their stringed Vina(musical instru ment).
The oldest of the throng of blood-shot eyes and black colour, having observed the present king of Keera and recog nised him, approached him with true love and addressed him with the old familiar name thus Oh Katanja, where art thou in, my old relative r In what place dost thou now dwell ? It is only through good Karma that J have been able to see thee here. So saying, he clearly traced his whole genea logy, (many degrees back) and gave out other particulars. At this, the king slighted his words, since his low status was being brought to publicity and having loudly scorned him off his presence, he at once withdrew into his palace.
Meanwhile the ladies of the harem were observing from the balcony all that had passed between the king and the low caste men ; quite surprised, they apprised the minister who was then staying in the palace, of the occurrences thus “ This lord of earth, our king, belongs to the lowest class of Chanda*las. How shall we act now ?” Unable to find any way out of the scrape, they were stunned, perplexed, and morose. Where as the king, nothing daunted by all these, seated himself on the throne as before, as if nothing fresh had transpired. But the ladies, courtiers and others who had before approached him, stood immoveably at a distance from him like a carcase unfit to be touched by the hands.
The sad present plight of the king who was alone, even in the presence of innumerable subjects, can only be likened to a forlorn traveller left in a for eign country without knowledge, wealth or any other means. Then all the subjects held a solemn conclave in which they came tothefollowingconclusion “We have contaminated ourselves with gravesins through association with this Neecha, our king. No amount of penances will expiate this stain of ours.
Therefore we shall all purify ourselves by entering into fire.” With this resolution, all the subjects from the eldest down to babies flocked together, and fell into a large fire-pit reared up for the occasion, like swarms of flies buzzing in a Champaka flower. Thereupon the king became afflicted in heart and with a collected mind soliloquised within himself thus Through contact with me an outcaste, all my country men became degraded and therefore perished in the flames. It is perfectly useless on my part to outlive them. I shall follow the same course. With this purpose of giving up his life, he allowed himself to be devoured by the flames.
While the body of Katanja was being burnt by fire, like tender leaf exposed to the flames, the body of Gadhi that had taken its plunge into the waters of the tank began to palpitate and quiver. In four Ghatikas, Gadhi s mind became cleared up of all obscurations of Maya and began to rumi nate upon who he was, and what he saw and did in that state. Then came he from the waters to the bank of the tank ; and then after having meditated upon the similar manner in which all Jivas in this world run about greatly agitated in their mind, like an angry tiger ever chafing in a forest, was (temporarily) relieved at heart, (in spite of his lingering doubts).
With these thoughts in his mind, he passed some days in his hermitage, when there came upon the spot a guest who was heartily regaled with honey and fruit. At the time of Sandhya when the sun set in, they both performed their daily Karmas and returned to their respective seats of rest, where they were engaged in Atma-Jnana stories. At this time, Muni Gadhi enquired of the stranger the cause of the extreme emaciation of his body.
