AMMA SAYS - STORIES & JOKES

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OM AMRITESWARYAI NAMAH

 

AMMA SAYS - STORY

 

Learning

 

A long time ago there was an Emperor who conquered India. The

Emperor also had another intention: he wanted to take all the four

Vedas in their pure, original form back to his country. The Emperor

sent his messenger to several part of India to find out where he

could get a genuine copy of the Vedas. Eventually he received the

information that one such copy was preserved by a Brahmin family in

northern India. He immediately set off to that part of the country

with a whole battalion of soldiers.

 

"The Brahmin, who was the head of the family, was a poor man who

lived with his wife and four sons in a small hut on the banks of the

river Ganges. The Emperor commanded his forces to surround the hut,

whereupon he entered the dwelling and ordered the Brahmin to

surrender the Vedas to him. The Brahmin was very calm. He

replied, "Your Highness, surely there is no need to make such a

fuss. I will happily hand them over to you! But give me one day -

just one day. I have a special ceremony to perform before I can give

them to you." When he saw the suspicious look on the Emperor's face,

the Brahmin continued, "Do not worry, let your army remain here if

you wish. Let them keep an eye on me. I'm not going to run away. Be

kind enough to come back tomorrow morning for I must do this ritual

before I can hand the Vedas over to you."

 

The Emperor left, having given his troops the necessary

instructions. But what did he see when he returned the next morning

and entered the hut! He saw the Brahmin offering the last page of

teh fourth Veda in to a sactificial fire, as he loudly chanted the

mantras of the page. His four sons were seated on either side of the

fire, with the Brahmin at its head. The Emperor was furious. He

shouted at the Brahmin, "You have betrayed me! I will have you

beheaded for this!" The Brahmin remained very calm and

replied, "Your Highness, there is no need to be angry. Please look

at my four sons. They have been sitting by my side the whole night,

listening as I chanted all the Veda, one by one. As you saw, I have

just finished the fourth and last Veda. Do not think that I have

cheated you by destroying the Vedas, or that I have broken my

promise. Believe me or not, my sons have memorized all the four

Vedas, word for word. They have listened to me. They can repeat the

entire scripture without missing a single word. Take my sons with

you to your country. They are capable of imparting the knowledge in

all its original purity."

 

The Emperor couldn't believe it. He said, "This is unthinkable! I

don't trust you." The Brahmin then asked his sons to chant the

Vedas, and to the astonishment of the Emperor, they chanted all four

of them beautifully, without making a single mistake. Rememer, they

had studied it all in a single night. They simply listened intently

and with great love to their father as he chanted, and it went

straight to their hearts. Thus they could memorize everything so

spontaneously.

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AMMA SHARANAM