A Story about our Beloved Lord Siva

[Guest guest]

A story of Shiva, highlighting the inherent deep

wisdom underlying his apparently innocent demeanour for

which he is so lovingly called Bholenaath.

 

Parvati, the consort of Shiva once got curious that among the

countless bhaktas of her lord, who was the most devoted.

 

Upon being so questioned by her, Lord Shiva smiled and

said that presently there were two who were on an

almost equal level, one very rich and other a poor

brahmin, and as it was due time to give them a visit, why

not she join him in the tour to karmabhoomi(this

earth of ours).

 

o both of them in a disguise of mendicants(Jogi and jogan) proceeded

first to the rich fella. The merchant was a very devout bhakta of

Shiva and his free time was spent in the beautiful Shiva temple in

his

courtyard, doing pooja most of the time.

 

The twosome happened to arrive at his gate just at the time of his

special pooja and called out for alms.

 

The merchant was 'too busy', but in accordance to his standing

instruction, the 'beggars' were given a couple of blankets and

some food and then shooed away when they asked for the

darshans of the benefactor as he was busy appeasing Shiva.

 

Parvati was not too happy, but Shiva "the giver beyond

compare", simply blessed his devotee with a thousandfold

increase in his wealth; Bang! Just like that.

 

Now they proceeded to the other devotee, the poor brahmin. This

brahmin was quite old and his wife had passed away,

neither did he have any progeny.

 

For his livlihood he just had an old cow whose milk he used to

consume and sell the rest; thus just managing to scrape through.

He was just biding his time till his death happily repeating Shiva's

name.

 

Upon the arrival of two athitis(unexpected guests), he fed them with

what little he had deciding to go hungry for that day. Shiva also

gracefully accepted as alms, the only tattered blanket he had.

 

The "mendicants" departed from the brahmin's door quite satisfied.

After covering some distance, Parvati was curious and asked the

Lord,

why did he not bless the poor brahmin.

 

"Ahh, I just forgot my dear", replied Shiva, "May the

brahmin's cow die".

 

Shiva has a thousand names signifying his varous

aspects; the word Shiva meaning as "the one who is

beneficial to all".

 

So, Shiva just would not do harm to anyone.

 

In the story. Shiva himself tells that the two of

his most closest bhaktas are the brahmin and the rich merchant over

and above millions of others.<period>

 

THE REST OF THE STORY IS A RUSE TO HIGHLIGHT TO THE

READER HIS EXISTENCE IN DUALITY.

 

Shiva who is equanimity incarnate does not recognize differences

created

by the mind like rich-poor, good-bad behaviour,

high-low, good-bad luck, etc.

 

SHIVA ONLY ACKNOWLEDGES THE CLOSENESS OF THE BHAKTAS TO HIMSELF.

 

As the PRIME cause of pain for any bhakta is the distance

between himself and his diety, what to say of the two

highly 'ranked' bhaktas.

 

This pain in advanced stages morphs into pleasure involved in

serving

the "IMAGE" of the diety, probably the stage of the two

bhaktas.

 

BY HIS BOONS SHIVA HAS ONLY SHOWERED HIS INFINITE GRACE ON BOTH THE

BHAKTAS BY CUTTING OUT THE SHORTEST PATH FOR THEM TOWARDS THEIR

PRIME

GOAL OF MERGING WITH SHIVA.

 

The rich man already well entrenched in the luxuries of life can

only

progress at the earliest by having his few remaining vain desires

being fulfilled.

 

If the rich man was to lose his wealth he stands to

further get enmeshed in maya.

 

Shiva in his innocent love with bhakta also wants him to come to him

as early as possible, hence the boon of a thousandfold increase in

wealth. Jai bhole baba, whose third eye(non-dualistic

view) is always open !

 

As for the poor brahmin! What would have happened if he was blessed

(cursed to be more accurate) with wealth?

 

The brahmin just on the verge of giving up everything to merge with

shiva would rediscover maya and get enmeshed!

 

The shortest path for the brahmin to Shiva was indeed by the death

of

his sole possession, "the cow".

 

Now the dualist in us will re-analyse the story like this:

 

The brahmin will indeed be the "first" one to end the painful

distance

between himself and his araadhya diety due to his "better" treatment

of the guests.

 

The merchant also blessed will take a "while".

 

But let us all rise above these comparative tendencies of the mind

and

attain the non-dual "BHOLA" eye of Shiva.

 

The whole bank of knowledge existing in this universe may be

discarded for such a piercing INNOCENCE.

 

May we all by the grace of Shiva tear asunder the dualistic viel

and open our 'third-eye'.

 

Jai BholeBaba !

 

Om namah sivaya

Om namah sivaya

Om namah sivaya

Om namah sivaya

Om namah sivaya

 

Love baba