In the prelude of the great epic Mahabharata, we come across an interesting story. There lived a sage called Dhowmya during the time when Parikshit was ruling the kingdom after the Pandavas. He was running a school in the forest. No one had ever seen him open his mouth and teach his students. Surprisingly, his students, after studying under him for a couple of decades, would become great scholars. The other sages living during that period had given the nickname ‘Ayodanta’ to Dhowmya. Ayodanta means one who has teeth of iron (to indicate that his mouth never opened).
A boy named Upamanyu came to the hermitage to study under Dhowmya. Upamanyu’s parents left after Dhowmya accepted their son as his disciple. Many days passed and still Dhowmya had not taught even a single letter to Upamanyu. After a couple of years passed by without any education, Upamanyu gathered some courage and asked his Guru “Gurudev! Will you please give me some assignment?”

“So you want to do something? Alright. From tomorrow onwards, take the cows for grazing.

Upamanyu was happy that at last there was something for him to do. Upamanyu was a chubby boy. Because he had no work to do for a couple of years, he had become even more fat. On his first day of the new assignment, when he returned to the hermitage, he was very happy. He went to the Guru and said, “Gurudev, I have done the work entrusted to me’”

The iron teethed Guru grinned and said, “Upamanyu, you look so chubby. What do you eat everyday?”
Upamanyu: I go to the neighbouring village every day and do Madhukara Vritti. (Madhukara = honey bee. Vritti = Occupation. Just as a bee collects nectar from various flowers, a student is required to beg in several houses for his food.)

Guru: Is it so? Did I tell you to do that?

Upamanyu: No Guruji. You did not tell me to do that. I assumed that I should do that and therefore I am going with other students to beg for food in the neighbouring village.

Guru: All the students offer to me whatever food they got by begging. Only if I give them a portion of it, they will eat.

Upamanyu: Forgive me Gurudev! I will also do like that from tomorrow.

The following day, Upamanyu placed at the feet of his Guru, whatever food he had procured by begging. The Guru beamed happily and said, ‘you may go now’. Upamanyu stood there for a while and left. This went on for a few days.

Upamanyu was doing his duty well.

After a few days, his Guru’s gaze fell on him once again.

Guru: Upamanyu! You are offering to me whatever you get by begging. How is it that you still you look very plump and chubby? What are you eating?

Upamanyu: Guruji, after I make the offering, I am going once again to the village for begging. Whatever I get then, I am eating.

Guru: It is a very small village. There are so many students whom the villagers have to support by way of giving food. If you go twice, will it not cause hardship to the villagers? Did you ever think about it??

Upamanyu: Forgive me Gurudev. I had never thought about it.

Guru: If you go again and again, the villagers may not have anything to offer to your fellow students. By doing so, you are depriving your fellow students of their share.

Upamanyu: Forgive me Guruji, I will never do that again.
Few more days passed. The Guru’s gaze fell on Upamanyu again.

Guru: Upamanyu, you have been offering to me whatever you bring. I am not giving you even a morsel of food. You have stopped going for a second time. Still you look fleshy and healthy. How is it that you have not lost any weight? Are you eating anything?

Upamanyu: I am not eating anything Gurudev! Whenever I am hungry, I milk the cows in the forest and drink the milk.

Guru: What did you say! Are those cows yours?

Upamanyu: No Guruji, the cows belong to you.

Guru: Have I granted you permission to consume their milk?

Upamanyu: No Guruji.

Guru: Now, does it not amount to stealing?

Upamanyu: Forgive me Gurudev! It never occurred to me. I will not do that mistake again.
After a few days, the Guru’s gaze fell on Upamanyu once again. Upamanyu was still stout and healthy.

Guru: Upamanyu, you have stopped eating food. You have stopped drinking milk. How is it that you are still so fat? What are you eating?

Upamanyu: I am not eating anything Guruji! When the calves drink milk, they a portion of the milk oozes through their mouth in the form of frothy milk. Whenever that happens, I collect it in my palm and drink it, instead of allowing it to go waste. I am able to sustain myself with the milk that spills over.

Guru: You fool! You think you are very clever? You know what? The calves are just allowing all the milk to pass through their mouth out of compassion for you. They are not drinking their mother’s milk!! You thought that it is spill over? In fact, you are depriving the calves of their mother’s milk.

Upamanyu: Guruji, I am utterly ashamed of myself. I didn’t realize that the calves were sacrificing all the time for my sake. I don’t have even minimum courtesy. The calves are far better than I am. Please forgive me. I will never repeat this mistake.

Few more days passed. This time, Upamanyu started losing weight. He became very lean and weak. He always looked fatigued. Those around him took pity on him. However, his Guru did not say a word. What was even more surprising was, even Upamanyu never said a word. He performed his duties with utmost dedication. Never did he ask for food.
Summer arrived. One day, while the cows were grazing in the forest, Upamanyu became very very hungry. He did not know what to do. He wandered here and there and saw an Arka (Calatropis) plant.

Most of the forest had become barren because the cattle had eaten away all the greenery. However the Arka plants were still there because no animal ate them. Upamanyu, who was extremely hungry, thought “this plant is not useful to any animal. Even if I eat the leaves of this plant, it wont amount to depriving any animal of its food”. So thinking, he plucked the leaves of an Arka plant and ate them. Within minutes he felt nauseating and his head started reeling. He became frightened and rubbed his eyes with his fingers. The fingers had become wet with the milk that exuded from the leaves of Arka plant. He lost his sight immediately.

When it was sunset time, the cows, out of practice, started walking back towards the Ashram. Upamanyu was vomiting repeatedly and had become very weak. He was afraid that the cows would lose their way.

Overcome by anguish, he tried to control the cowherd even though he had become blind. He collided against trees and fell on thorny bushes. But he continued.

After a while, he fell in a well. As it was summer time, there was no water in the well and he sustained severe injuries. Unable to get up, he lay there motionless.

The cows, out of practice, reached the hermitage safely. Dhowmya, who had never bothered about the cows all these days, suddenly became inquisitive. He wanted to ensure that all the cows had returned.

All the cows had returned, but the cowboy was nowhere to be seen.
The Guru was worried. He called his disciples and asked them as to where Upamanyu was.

Disciples: We saw him in the morning when he took the cows to the forest. The sun has just set. Don’t worry Guruji, he will be here any moment.

Guru: Oh my God! I had ordered him not to eat the food that he got by begging. I had forbidden him from drinking milk. He was becoming weak day by day. May be he got disgusted with me and eloped to his native place.

Disciples: If it is so, we will know as soon as he reaches his place.

Guru: What if he has collapsed out of fatigue?

Disciples: What do you want us to do now, Guruji?

Guru: Come on, let us search in the forest.
The Guru and the disciples went to the forest. There were tears in the Guru’s eyes. His voice had become choked. His legs were trembling. He could not walk any more. “Son! Upamanyu!! Where are you my boy???” he shouted.
“I am here Guruji” came a faint reply from a nearby well.
The Guru was relieved. The disciples turned their torches towards the well and peeped inside. When Dhowmya saw Upamanyu lying in the rocky well, he felt choked.

Guru: What are you doing there?

Upamanyu: Forgive me Guruji! I am not able to see you.

Guru: What do you mean! So many torches are burning. Can’t you see my face?

Upamanyu: I have lost my eyes Guruji!

Guru: Why? What happened??

Upamanyu: I disobeyed you once again. That’s why all this happened.

Guru: What did you do?

Upamanyu: Even though I had understood that you wanted me to fast, and even though I know that one should not eat Arka leaves, I ate them.

Guru: Did the milk of the plant fall in your eyes?

Upamanyu: Yes, Guruji.

Guru: Oh! What have you done!! Alright. Do what I say now. Pray to Ashwini Devatas. They are the celestial physicians. If they bless you, all your difficulties will vanish.
That was the instruction that Dhowmya gave. Nothing more.
Hymns in praise of Ashwini Devatas started flowing from Upamanyu’s mouth. His heart merged in the thought of the Ashwini Devatas. Slowly a light started burning inside him. Gradually, the light became still like a brilliant gemstone.
Within seconds, the Ashwini Devatas came in the celestial path and descended in the dilapidated well where Upamanyu had fallen. They said, “Son! We are Ashwini Devatas. We have come here because we were pleased with your prayers. Here! Take this dish. If you eat it, you will regain your eyesight. You will become a scholar and you will be endowed with special powers”. So saying, they placed a sweet smelling dish in his hands.
Upamanyu: O! Ashwini Gods! Please forgive me. I am grateful for your kind gesture. But I can’t eat anything unless my Guru permits me.

Ashwini Gods: Upamanyu, don’t act foolish. We had given such a dish to your Guru when he was a boy. He did not say that he needed his Guru’s permission to eat it. He ate it at once and became a great soul.

Upamanyu: O! Ashwini Gods! Forgive me again. I have already suffered because I did not follow my Guru’s instructions. I don’t want to commit the same mistake again. I don’t care if I become alright or not. I don’t care if I become a scholar or not. I don’t care if I get powers or not. All I want to do is follow my Guru’s instructions.

The Ashwini Gods were pleased at the firm resolve of Upamanyu. “Very well indeed. Your resolve is indeed praiseworthy. Your devotion is par excellence. You don’t need any dish. The mantra suggested by your Guru itself is enough to remove all your hardships. They will open your eyes – physical as well as spiritual. We are indeed very happy to hear what you are saying” said the Ashwini Devatas and disappeared.

Upamanyu felt as though he woke up from sleep. He opened his eyes. The Ashwini Devatas were not there. He was not in the well anymore. He was sitting next to his Guru.

The Guru, eyes full of tears, embraced Upamanyu. “What the Ashwini Gods told you just now is true! May your inner eyes open. May you be blessed with all prosperity!” he said.

Upamanyu became a scholar in no time. The four Vedas, the six Shastras and the sixty-four branches of knowledge became known to him without any effort.

That was his last day at the hermitage. He prostrated to his Guru and left.

We come across this story in Mahabharata. In this, what is it that the Guru did? What is it that the disciple got?
The Guru displayed his greatness in the end. But what about his earlier behaviour? Can anyone say it was humane?
Shall we conclude that this was how knowledge was imparted in ancient India? It may not be proper to conclude so. If it was so, the fellow sages would not have nicknamed Dhowmya as ‘Ayodanta’ (iron toothed person). It shows that not all followed that method.

Shall we conclude that Dhowmya followed the wrong path? If it was so, his fellow sages would not have respected him. But, Dhowmya commanded a lot of respect from all. He was a respected figure. Also, if he was a cruel person, why would parents send their children to him??

If his is not a wrong path and if it is not a path followed by other Gurus, what else is it?
Such questions arise whenever we read the biographies of great Sadgurus. Let us see what answer the following Sookti has to offer.

Sweekartavyam yadaa shishyaat
Naavashishyeta sadguroh
Tadaa shishyah swatantrah syaat
Shaanta roga ivaaturah

When there is nothing left for the Sadguru to accept from his disciple, he becomes free – just as a sick person becomes free from the physician once the disease is cured.

Like in the previous month’s Sookti, there is the mention of ‘accepting’ in this Sookti also. We had discussed as to how we should understand the meaning of the word ‘accepting’ in such situations. It was mentioned in the previous Sookti that ‘accepting’ means ‘to eradicate such qualities from a disciple, which are not useful to him’. Even in this Sookti, the same meaning has to be applied to the word ‘accepting’.

Sage Dhowmya did exactly this. In the same chapter of Mahabharata, many such instances where Dhowmya eradicated the evil qualities of his disciples have also been narrated.

The Gurus of the present day are generally those who impart knowledge pertaining to the worldly subjects. Some of them may even teach the external aspect of spiritual knowledge. Most of them are not capable of leading the disciples in the real spiritual path. Why complain about the present day! Even in ancient times, such Gurus were very rare. The difference is, the ordinary Gurus of ancient times knew that they were ordinary and that sages like Dhowmya were extra-ordinary. The ordinary Gurus of the present times are not aware that they are ordinary! Therefore, they and their disciples are often haunted by questions such as “was Dhowmya’s behaviour humane?” It doesn’t stop there. They go ahead and conclude that Dhowmya was inhuman. This conclusion is brought about not by their discriminative intellect, but by their question itself!

To overcome this, the episode of Dhowmya and Upamanyu should be analysed in the light of this Sookti.
Dhowmya Maharshi had full comprehension of the good qualities of Upamanyu. At the same time, he was fully aware of the one big defect in him also. What was that defect? His craving for food! Upamanyu never told a lie. He never disobeyed his Guru. He did his duty with dedication. He was a very receptive student. In spite of all this, the only defect that he had – that of over eating – was a big hindrance in his Sadhana. It was not compatible with the lifestyle of a sage. Unless this defect was rectified, Upamanyu would not become a Rishi (Rishi is one who has ‘visualised’ mantra).
To achieve this, Dhowmya decided that he should ‘accept’ the defect, namely - craving for food that was inherent in Upamanyu. He decided to eradicate that quality. Quality is something that cannot be physically reachable. It takes shelter in an object. Here, the undesirable quality had taken shelter in food articles. Therefore, the Guru had to ‘accept’ food that Upamanyu got by begging. After that, he ‘accepted’ milk and finally he accepted the frothy milk left over by the calves.

Consequently, the undesirable quality had to look for shelter. If any other bad quality was present in the boy, the earlier bad quality would have gained strength in its company and would have manifested in some other form. Since there was no other bad quality in him, it remained alone and finally made the boy blind. It made him fall into the well.

Even then the Guru’s heart did not soften.
Having regained consciousness while lying still in the well, Upamanyu’s discriminative mind started working. Analysis started in his mind. What was the analysis about? The mind wanted to find out as to what caused blindness. Soon he got the answer. He realized that it was not the Arka milk or the cruelty of the Guru that had caused the blindness. ‘It is because I disobeyed my Guru that I became blind’ he realized.

What about the Guru? What transpired in him? He was now in tears.

The Guru gave a call.
The disciple answered.
Mantras started flowing from his heart.
He became a Rishi.

There was nothing that needed to be eradicated.

He therefore became independent and capable of ‘visualizing’ the mantras.
What does independence mean here? Mere blessings of the Sadguru was enough for him. No other instruction was necessary. That itself is freedom. That itself is independence. That itself is liberation.
What is meant by blessings of the Sadguru? The firm resolve of the Guru to eradicate the evil quality rooted in his disciple itself is a blessing. Such a resolve was there in Dhowmya. It is because of that resolve that Upamanyu became liberated.

Viewed in this light, one will appreciate that the behaviour of Dhowmya was the ultimate manifestation of humanity.
Some may feel that this is an extreme way of understanding the story. The meaning of words such as ‘accepting’ and ‘independence’ might seem over-stretched. The fourth line of the Sookti clarifies the doubt. It says “shaanta roga ivaaturah” – when there is nothing left for the physician to accept from a patient, the patient becomes health and free. Even here, the word ‘accept’ is intended to mean ‘eradicate’. Thus, when a doctor eradicates the disease from a patient, the patient becomes free (from the doctor). He will not be subjected to strict therapeutic and dietetic regimen anymore. In fact, medicines and diet will become useless. He becomes free to eat what he wants.

This is how we should understand the meaning of the Sookti. When we understand in this perspective, we will realize as to what a great Guru sage Dhowmya was and what a great disciple Upamanyu was.

By the grace of Lord Dattatreya, the primordial Guru, may you all become capable of comprehending the sublime path in which the Sadguru sets us free.

Jaya Guru Datta.

Sri Swamiji