Epics in Imprints-1.pdf - Vivekananda Kendra Prakashan

VIVEKANANDA KENDRA PATRIKA
and efficiency of Dharma. The
Mahabharatha contains a story about a
butcher, Dharmavyadha who carried on
his duties without any attachment and
who dutifully served this parents. As a
result of this, he was recognized as a great
follower of Dharma.
A certain celibate (Brahmachari) by virtue
of his penance, acquired some
supernatural powers. A bird innocently
put its droppings on his head. The celibate
looked up enraged and the bird was
reduced to ashes. Later he went to a house
begging for food. The lady of the house
asked him to wait as she was serving her
husband. The infuriated celibate started
shouting at the lady. But the lady calmly
replied, “I am no bird to be burnt up by
you”. The Brahmachari was very much
surprised that the lady knew about the
incident. Humbled, he sought her
guidance. The lady directed him to the
butcher. The latter gave detailed
instructions about service to parents,
which was particularly pertinent to the
celibate, who had completely ignored his
obligations to his parents. The butcher
was blessed by the Lord. It therefore
follows that a strict and meticulous
observer of Dharma (his duty) need not be
afraid of anybody (or even death). For
treading the path of devotion and Dharma
no specific qualifications are needed
except faith in the word of the scriptures.
The Puranas are very ancient, yet very
much modern. In this sense, they are said
to have a perennial significance. As Sri
Aurobindo shows, ‘You meet yourself and
your own personality factors over and over
again in the Puranas as it happened in the
Vedas. It is this personal encounter with
oneself that makes the Puranas eternally
new’. When we understand the deeper
meaning of the Puranas, we find that it is
pure Vedanta.
2
The Philosophical Interpretation
In Kenopanishad, the third chapter
contains a story which is a symbolic
representation of the Upanishadic Truth.
It attempts to objectify the philosophical
and subjective narrations.
The gods (Devas) once won a victory over
the demons (Asuras), but blinded by their
success they started gloating over their
achievements. In order to teach them a
lesson, the Absolute Truth, gave a vision
to the Gods in the form of an enchanting
Yaksha. The gods requested Lord Agni
and asked him to ascertain the identity of
the spirit. Lord Agni hastened towards the
spirit boastfully declaring that he is the
Lord of Fire. The spirit placed a piece of
grass in front of Agni and asked him to
reduce it to ashes if he could. Lord Agni
could not even warm the blade of grass
and thus complete accepted his complete
failure. Then for the second time, Lord
Vayu was chosen to enquire and ascertain
the identity of the strange vision. As before,
the Yaksha ascertained the identity of
Vayu and placed the same grass in front
of Vayu and said, ‘Please move this a bit if
you can’, and Vayu returned defeated and
disappointed. Then Indra, was deputed to
investigate the grand vision. But the
tantalizing vision disappeared and Indra
never turned back from his quest. At the
very from where the Supreme had
disappeared, Goddess Uma, appeared to
bless the honest seeker. From her, on
enquiry, Indra learnt that the Yaksha was
none other than the Eternal Truth who
assumed this vision and came to warn the
gods against their stupidity in believing
that they had won a victory over the
demons on their own. For the victory and