THE STORY OF PRUTHU

THE STORY OF PRUTHU

Our mother Earth has a number of names in Sanskrit. A few of them are “ Dharini, Dhatri, Medini, Vasundhara, Vasudha, Ratnagarbha, Kshiti and many others. A few of them are based on the minerals, diamonds and various other raw materials that are extracted from mother earth. From time immemorial mother earth has been satisfying all the needs of human beings and animals and other creatures. One of the names of mother Earth is “Prithvi”. How did earth get this name? There is an interesting story behind this narrated in the Bhagavata Purana. King Anga belonged to the clan of Dhruva the great devotee of Lord Vishnu. After performing a yagna he  had a son by name Venu. But unfortunately he was very bad and tormented people and the sages. Unable to tolerate his atrocities King Anga left his kingdom never to return! Venu, as a king became so arrogant that he wanted all to worship him like Lord Vishnu! The advice of the sages went in vain and in great anger they wished for his death and he died.

The sages could not endure the lawlessness and sufferings of people in the absence of the king. They brought the dead body of Venu and rubbed  its shoulders when out of them emerged  a man and woman! They called him PRUTHU and the woman ARCHIS. They were the avatars of Lord Vishnu and Lakshmi! When Pruthu came of age, he was crowned as the  king of the country. Entire Nature rejoiced at his coronation and mountains, rivers, animals, and birds brought him presents. Among the Devas, Brahma gave him armour, Saraswathi pearl garland, Chandra white horses, Agni a bow and Surya sharp arrows! Earth offered sandals to carry him to any place and the other Devas granted him power to be invisible at will! Despite these gifts Pruthu remained very humble and said he was not worth of these gifts till he removed the sufferings of the people.

King Pruthu desired to save his people from insatiable hunger and thirst. They were clamouring for food. He knew that mother earth had withdrawn all her resources into herself. That was the reason for the pangs of the people. He became furious with anger and shot a sharp arrow into the earth! Terrified at his anger and the arrow,mother Earth took the shape of a cow and ran for life. But King Pruthu chased her over mountains and dense jungles when she fell at his feet and prayed not to harm her as she was a woman. But king Pruthu said that she deserved to be killed as she had done maximum disservice to humanity by withdrawing all her resources. She said that she had done so as she was ruled by very bad and unrighteous kings. She couldn't bear her resources being misused and wasted! She was now ready to deliver all her resources and hidden materials to humanity as the ruler was king Pruthu. She wanted a calf, a milkman,and a proper vessel so that she could start giving milk! King Pruthu was pleased to the extreme at the words of mother Earth. He lost no time and mother Earth started giving out all things she had withdrawn into herself.

Thus Manu became the calf and king Pruthu became the milkman! Jnanis got jnana or knowledge; Brihaspati was the calf when the Vedas were milked and collected in the vessels of speech, hearing and manas! With Indra as calf Somarasa or Amrita, tejas, and strength were obtained! With Prahlada as calf the asuras got 'Sura’. The Gandharvas made Viswavasu as calf and obtained music or Sangita in a lotus vessel! Later sage Kapila was made the calf and the eight Siddhis like ‘anima, mahima, garima, laghima, prapti, prakamya, isatwam and vasitwam were obtained. Everyone got what all they wanted!

King Pruthu was extremely delighted with mother Earth for the way in which she yielded every material she had withdrawn into herself. There was nothing that she had not given up including the medicinal herbs or aushadhis! King Pruthu smashed the mountain tops and filled all the openings on earth so that it could be a plain surface. In his ecstasy and appreciation of what mother Earth has done, he adopted her as his darling daughter. From that day onwards mother Earth was called “PRITHVI”. Pruthu is said to be the first king of this earth!

MAHALAYA PAKSHA

MAHALAYA PAKSHA

The fifteen days of the waning moon in the month of Bhadrapada as per the lunar calendar is called “ Mahalaya Paksha”. This period is also called as “Pitru Paksha”. It is in this period that all our ancestors and forefathers are remembered and offered ‘tharpanam’ to satisfy their souls. The ‘ amavasya’ or the new moon of the period is  as considered very sacred and called as 'Sarva Pitru amavasya’ when you can offer tharpanam to all our forefathers and ancestors. The autumnal equinox falls in this period as the Sun transits from the northern to the southern

hemisphere.

According to the legend, souls of the three preceding generations reside in ‘Pitru Loka’- the land of the disembodied souls of ancestors, between heaven and earth. Yama,the God of death and the ruler of that place takes the soul of the dying person from earth to 'pitru loka’. Only three generations of Pitrus are offered ‘ Sraddha’ rites. This period coincides with the entry of Sun into the 'Thula’ sign of the zodiac. It is believed that the Pitrus leave their abode in ‘Pitru Loka' and come down to reside in their descendants’ home for a month until the Sun enters the next sign of the zodiac Scorpio. All Hindus are expected to propitiate their ancestors and Pitrus during this Mahalaya Paksha without fail. Times have changed and today people have lost faith in performing funeral rites to their own parents and kith and kin.They have also forgotten to offer tharpanam to the three generations of forefathers every month on the New moon day! All such people can and should perform tharpanam during this special period to absolve themselves of the sin they have committed!

It is strongly believed among the Hindus that the souls of ancestors can never get salvation till their descendants offer the funeral rites and tharpanam. The eldest son of the family is the one authorized to perform funeral rites and tharpanam. A person without a son has no salvation say the Sasthras. “aputrasya gatir nasti”! The Garuda Purana and the Markandeya Purana affirm that if the Pitrus are satisfied, they bestow health, wealth and prosperity to their descendants and salvation to the performer! Most of the maladies that families suffer from can be traced to the nonperformance of these funeral rites and tharpanam! But these can be compensated during the fortnight of the Mahalaya Paksha. This period emphasizes the fact that ancestors,current generation and future generations are connected through blood! Our debt to them and parents and gurus is of utmost importance and has to be repaid properly with faith and devotion!

In the Bhagavad-Gita Lord Krishna points out to Arjuna the importance of Karma Yoga. Man cannot live even for a second without karma or action. He has to offer his gratitude through sacrifices. One of those sacrifices is ‘Pitru Yagna’ where he satisfies his parents and ancestors by offering tharpanam to them! We are indebted to the Devas, Pitrus, human beings,and even to the other creatures like animals, birds and insects. So we must clear our debt to them in one way or other. Our indebtedness to mother,however,can never be cleared!

There is an interesting story about the great warrior Karna of the Mahabharatha emphasizing the significance of offering tarpanam to  forefathers. When Karna’s soul was in heaven, he was offered gold and jewels for food. Surprised at this strange offering, Karna asked Indra why he was not given real food. Indra replied that Karna gave gold and jewels only for gifts and charity but no real food! Karna told Indra in reply that he had no information about his ancestors at that time. It is said that Karna was asked to come down to earth for fifteen days and perform  ‘Sraddha’. He came back to earth and offered tharpanams to his ancestors! This period coincides with  Mahalaya Paksha at the end of the month Bhadrapada! During this Paksha one can offer tharpanam to any deceased kith and kin like brother, sister, uncle, aunt, father in law, mother in law, cousin and even friend!  Let us not forget our parents and ancestors and invite their ire! Let us pay our deep debt of gratitude to them for the grace and prosperity bestowed on us!

SRI DATTATREYA

SRI DATTATREYA

Sri DATTATREYA is considered as the oldest deity references to whom are found in the epics the Mahabharatha and the Ramayana. According to Dattatreya Upanishad of Adharvaveda he can appear as a child,and madman to help his devotees to attain moksha. He is considered as a ‘yoga purusha’ and is believed to have sixteen avatars or incarnations according to “Sri Dattatreya Shodasavatara Charitani” of Vasudevananda Saraswathi. Anasuya,daughter of Kardma Prajapati and wife of sage Atri fondly desired a son and the sage performed severe penance for a hundred years! Pleased with his faith and concentration all the three deities, Brahma, Vishnu and Maheswara presented themselves before the sage. Wondering at the appearance of the Trinity at the same time, sage Atri wanted to know the purpose of their arrival. He wanted a son equal to God in all respects from the greatest of Gods! With a smile on their faces the Gods replied that they are equal and represent the Absolute Brahman. Each God blessed the sage with a son and thus Brahma granted the Moon or Chandra while Vishnu gave  Datta and Siva granted sage Durvasa as Atri,s sons!

Datta means 'given’. Atreya means ‘the son of Atri’. Though a combination of the Trinity, Dattatreya is considered as the avatar of Vishnu. His siblings are the Moon and the sage Durvasa. In the Nath traditions he is considered as the avatar of Siva. He is also revered as ‘Adi Guru’ -- ‘Lord of Yoga’ exhibiting tantric traits. Dattatreya is also believed to be the author of “ “Tripura Rahasya”, a treatise on Advaita vedanta, given to the great sage Parasurama. Sri Dattatreya’s birthplace is in Tamilnadu near Tirumurthy Malai, Udumalapet, Coimbatore District. Sri Amanalingeswarar Temple at Dhali is said to be his place of birth. A few people dispute it and say that he was born in the jungles of Kashmir near the Amarnath cave. He traveled over Karnataka, Andhra,Maharashtra and Gujarat. He is considered as an Avadhuta and had realized himself at Gangapura in Karnataka. It is said that he performed severe tapas for twelve thousand years on Mount Girnar!! Swami Vivekananda points out that the Mount is sacred because of this penance!

There is an interesting story regarding the birth of Sri Dattatreya. Having heard of the  renowned chastity of Anasuya,wife of sage Atri, Brahma, Vishnu,and Siva wanted to test her! They came to Atri’s ashram in disguise as sadhus.They were received with due respect and offered hospitality. They agreed to have food in the ashram on condition that Anasuya should serve food without clothes! Sensing the trick being played by the gods, chaste Anasuya agreed to the condition!! She prayed to her husband Atri that her chastity should not be outraged on account of the condition laid down by the sadhus! The fake sadhus came after bath and sat for food. Anasuya brought some holy water and sprinkled it on the three sadhus when lo! behold! the three sadhus were transformed into three crying babies!!!  She then took them up, fed the babies, put them in cradles and looked after them. This went on for a while. Not finding their husbands in Brahma Loka, Vakunta and Kailash respectively, goddesses Saraswathi, Lakshmi and Parvati were much worried.They knew what had happened and arrived at the ashram of sage Atri. They felt sorry for what their husbands had done and requested Anasuya to restore their spouses! Taking a lenient view on the great gods, Anasuya again sprinkled  some holy water on the three babies when the three Gods regained their original form!They wondered at the purity and chastity of Anasuya and granted her request for a son! All the Gods combined into one form with three heads representing Brahma, Vishnu and Siva! The Devis were very happy to get back their husbands and returned to their places!

There are a number of traditions in the worship of  Sri Dattatreya. A few of them are 1 Puranic 2 Mahanubhav, 3 Sri Gurucharitra, 4 Sakalamat Sampradaya, 5, Avadhuta Panth and others. In the Puranic tradition we find Kartaviryarjuna, king Yadu and even sage Parasurama as the disciples of Sri Dattatreya. In the Mahanubhava tradition, started by Chakradar Swamy we find references to the Bhagavata. Gurucharitra follows from Sripadavallabha and Narasimha Swamy. Sakalamat, started by Manic Prabhu is for all faiths irrespective of  caste, creed, color and community. Avadhut Panth was started by Panth Maharaj Bale Kundrikar.

Sri Dattatreya is represented with six hands with the lowest two having mala or garland and kamandalu( vessel for water). The middle pair hold ‘ damaru’(sound producing) and the trisula or the trident. The top two hands wield the holy Sankh or conch and the Chakra or disc. Sometimes Gada or mace is also shown.Sri Dattatreya is shown always with a cow in the background and four dogs near his feet. The dogs, many say, represent the four Vedas! But that is disputed by Ramakrishna Saraswathi,disciple of Narasimha Saraswathi. He says that the dogs should not be interpreted as the Vedas! They are similar to beings attracted to God Dattatreya! There are a number of Temples and Shrines built and dedicated to Lord Dattatreya all over India  and devotees throng to offer worship to him. The Datta Peetam in Mysore with Sri Ganapathi Sachidananda Swami as its head is famous in South India. May Lord Sri Dattatreya shower his blessings on all of us!

FOR. VEGETARIANISM

For Vegetarianism

Vegetarians are called grass eaters sarcastically. But many do not understand that whatever meat supplies to the human body is effectively available in plenty in vegetable food! There is a saying in Sanskrit, -”mamsam mamsena vardhate”-eating meat or flesh increases flesh only. Our ethical principle of nonviolence necessitates the intake of vegetarian food. Manu Samhita forbids humanity from taking to nonvegetarian food as it entails violent killing of animals for human consumption. According to UNFAO, globally, the number of animals slaughtered for food in 2003 alone is a staggering 52.7 billion. Since we cannot create we have no right to kill any living entity. According to  laws of God killing an animal is as punishable as killing a man. Genesis(9:4-5) also directly forbids meat eating. “ But flesh with the life there of,shall ye not eat” The Ten Commandments reinforces the same: “ Thou shall not kill”.

From ancient days people have realized the efficacy in taking vegetarian food. Pythagoras, the famous mathematician laments, “ O my fellowmen, do not defile your bodies with sinful foods. The earth affords a lavish supply of riches, of innocent foods and offers you banquets that involve no bloodshed or slaughter.” According to Leonardo da Vinci “ He who does not value life does not deserve it.” Bodies of meat eaters are ‘ burial places’, graveyards for the animals they  eat. Rousseau, the French philosopher says that vegetarian diet would produce a more compassionate person. According to Benjamin Franklin flesh eating is 'unprovoked murder’. Shelley the later Romantic poet in his poem “Queen Mab” describes an Utopian world where men do not kill animals for food!

Why should man eat animal food? It is because of his insensitivity to the suffering of the voiceless innocent creatures.  While he reacts with pain to the minutest injury he suffers, he doesn't care for the torture and decapitation of the animal and it's harrowing cries! We are all the children of God including animals and other creatures. Are we justified in killing our own animal brothers for the sake of our food? There is the same atma or Spirit in every being created by God. The Gita advocates eating ‘satwik’ food which is vegetarian. Man eats the dead food of the animal which is ‘rajasic or tamasic.’ Man’s conduct and character depends on the food he takes. Thus meat eaters are prone to be rude and violent in behavior in general! Animals too have emotions and love for their young ones like human beings! Man, as a social animal has to remember these aspects before taking to animal foods!

From times immemorial to the modern times illustrious writers, philosophers and scientists have decried the habit of consuming animal food or nonvegetarianism! Tolstoy calls it “simply immoral. Man suppresses in himself,unnecessarily, the highest spiritual capaciy--that of sympathy and pity towards living creatures like himself and by violating his own feelings becomes cruel.’’ Thoreau questions, “ Is it not a reproach that man is a carnivorous animal?” Why should this rational animal become a carnivorous animal like the wild beasts when God has provided him with wonderful natural fare? In our own days the Father of the Nation,Mahatma Gandhi advocated healthy vegetarian food.

“ I do not regard flesh food as necessary at any stage. I hold flesh food to be unsuited to our species. We err in copying the lower animal world if we are superior to it” says the Mahatma in his writings.With a contempt for the meat eater George Bernard Shaw says, “ What can you expect from people who eat corpses? Famous authors, philosophers, scientists and many others like Sir Isaac Newton,  Albert Einstein, St Francis of Assisi, George Bernard Shaw, Mark Twain and many others were vegetarians. Many film stars like Brad Pitt, Models and Sports persons recognized the merits of vegetarian food and followed it in their lives. More and more people all over the world are impressed with the advantages of vegetarian food and have converted themselves to its regimen! Can we not do the same and save the animals from being slaughtered mercilessly just to satisfy our never dying hunger

DRAUPADI 'S COMPASSION

Draupadi’s Compassion

The great Mahabharatha war ended with the annihilation of the Kaurava clan. The survivors were Krupacharya, Krutha varma and Aswatthama. He wanted to wreak vengeance on the Pandavas and went to their Camp at night. But they were not present there. He saw Draupadi’s five children and her brother whom he killed mercilessly. Not satisfied with this dark deed, he set fire to the camp. Draupadi and the Pandavas were shocked and petrified at this ghastly murder of the five children at one stroke. Draupadi’s sorrow knew no bounds. Arjuna vowed to kill Aswatthama and bring him to fall on her feet. Meanwhile Aswatthama ran for his life but Arjuna pursued and captured him.

Still in his frenzy to root out the Pandavas, Aswatthama invoked the terrible astra' Brahmasirsha’ and released it. The entire sky reddened under the effect of the astra. Arjuna felt it's unbearable heat all over his body and asked Krishna for guidance. The Lord suggested that Arjuna should send the same astra to attack the one sent by Aswatthama as there was no other alternative. Arjuna did as he was bid. It appeared that the whole world  would be destroyed by the clash of the two deadly weapons. Alarmed at this sudden development, renowned sages came down from their abodes and asked both the warriors to withdraw their astraslest there may be the deluge or Prajaya dissolving the entire universe. They said that the two astras should never clash against each other. Arjuna, heeding the words of the rishis withdrew his weapon but Aswatthama could not do so. Instead he directed the astra towards the child in the womb of Uttara, the wife of Abhimanyu!

Having captured Aswatthama, Arjuna bound him hand and foot and dragged him along to Krishna. Krishna directed Arjuna to to kill Aswatthama without any conscientious scruple in the same way as he killed the five children mercilessly. But Arjuna hesitated. Aswatthama was his friend and the son of his mentor Dronacharya. He took him to Draupadi and the other Pandavas and asked her to decide the punishment and fate of the merciless murderer Aswatthama. Draupadi had not yet recovered from the terrible tragedy that had befallen her. She did not know what to do when confronted with this sudden situation. Bheema was very angry and the others too were highly emotional. They wanted drastic punishment for the perpetrator of this heinous crime.

In spite of her indescribable sorrow, Draupadi managed to control herself. She was sorry to see Aswatthama bound hand and foot and in a pathetic condition. She thought about his mother who would lose her only son if he is killed. As a mother she realized the pangs of another mother at the loss of her son! She did not like to see Aswatthama bound hand and foot. She asked Arjuna to set him free. With a heart full of compassion she asked him to go away to any  distant place he liked. Arjuna was amazed at the tolerance and mercy of Draupadi. Though surprised at the verdict of Draupadi, Yudhishtira and others appreciated her decision. But Bheema was seething with anger.

Aswatthama remained with his head bent down. He was crestfallen and humiliated! He had already lost his radiance due to his unholy acts.  Arjuna plucked out the precious stone from the head of Aswatthama which was equal to beheading him! This disgrace was to him worse than death itself. Arjuna freed him and let him go. Thus Draupadi returned love and compassion to the most cruel and heartless Aswatthama and set an example to others! It is compassion and love that elevates man to Divinity. Even the inveterate enemy has to be shown mercy and love!