You know that feeling when an old lesson suddenly makes complete sense? Back in the day, you heard/read it and nodded because you had to. There was no 'A-Ha!' moment, so it all felt boring. And then one random day, it made sense. Don't you love those happenings? These are no serendipitous occurrences; they fit perfectly into life and experience and knowledge and progress and all that cool stuff. "Observe the body, observe the sensations…" Ok, then? Dude, then nothing. Because this observation is It. It swaps things inside out, gives you such power and control, pulls you out of a dead old pattern and then you can call the shots. Want to go glug a cup of dark coffee but scared to? Want to eat a second square of dark chocolate? Yes, No. Suddenly, you gain the ability to do things simply because you want to, it feels like it… and not by way of a craving or a desperate desire. Then you begin riding with the moment and the view is so good.
Category: This-That (page 40 of 234)
Mahabharata is a tale I have read a million times. On my last reading, I wondered briefly what it meant to be a friend to Lord Krishna. Can an enlightened person have friends? What does friendship mean to one who is dispassionate, soaked in Vairaagya? I couldn’t figure it out. I stowed the question away as one to be asked to Gurudev. But I also knew that the answer would find its way to me, as all others have.
So it did. Last night, I heard a story from the Mahabharata. The war had ended and the victorious Pandavas decided to reward their loyal charioteers. When Arjuna’s turn came, he looked at Lord Krishna, expecting Him to step down from the chariot and await his reward. But Krishna stayed put, leaving Arjuna with no choice but to step down first. Then Krishna arose, stepped out of the chariot and turned around. The mighty vehicle was reduced to ashes in an instant. Arjuna was stunned. The Lord explained patiently that it was His presence inside the chariot that kept it whole. In reality, it had been destroyed a long time ago, burned as it was under the onslaught of weapons and arrows from the enemy. That was the reason the Lord stepped out of the chariot only after Arjuna, for He could not have allowed his dear friend to perish in the flames.
Such a lovely story, it almost makes me tear up.
My question was linked with Arjuna. What set him apart from everyone else that he was given the Song Divine, the Bhagavad Gita? Lord Krishna called him His friend but what does that really mean? How does one become a friend to the Lord?
It made sense today. Arjuna’s relationship with Krishna was intimate, reverential, playful, personal, no holds barred. Perhaps, that is why the Bhagavad Gita was revealed to him alone. Make the Divine your Valentine, Gurudev said. Beloved, best friend, favorite partner.
Yes, the one who patiently held your little fingers and taught you to write the alphabet. Who shaped your 'A' and 'P,' showed you how 'p' and 'q' were distinct from each other. The one who taught you to read time by waving her arm in the air, clockwise. The one who introduced you to the joy of Algebra. Then the one who taught you Sanskrit. The one who showed you the beginning steps in Kathakali, taking you through hours of sweaty practice sessions, leaving you exhausted and exhilarated. The one who sat through the boring music lessons, hearing you hit the same notes again and again, then again.
Teachers are gifts. I couldn't even begin to express my thankfulness to the ones who stepped into my life and stepped out quietly, having done their job, completely unaware of how they shaped my psyche, my intellect and my life in the most spectacular way possible.
Did I ever mention (I must have) that I landed at the shores of this country (at the airport, obviously) exactly nine years ago? As with any other Christmas Day, it was a gloomy day, the roads deserted of people and traffic, my mind bereft of all positive emotion. We drove home in silence. The home was cold, small and bare. No furniture or very little of it. Why? Because he was waiting for me to get there so we could go buy it together. Can't fault the guy for not being sensitive. I felt like my heart weighed a ton. Such heaviness, ugh. It makes me shiver, those months of cold grey loneliness.
Then the sun broke through the clouds a month later… and I was home, free!