Once again, the disciples had gathered under the cool shade of the banyan tree. The Master arrived as usual at the appointed time. It was not in his nature to make others wait for him, even if they were his disciples. The story session began with a discussion over the story of Amrita–Manthan which the disciples had heard before.
Disciple: “Master, you narrated the story of Amrita-Manthan the other day and it appeared perfectly natural that the Lord distributed the nectar to the gods while denying it to the titans. But hadn’t they too laboured for it and therefore deserved it equally? Then why was the Lord partial to the gods?”
The Master seemed to be waiting for this question. He responded at once, “But the Lord was not being partial at all though it may seem so to the human eye. He was simply doing what ought to be done as the right thing.” Then after a pause, he added, “well, he was rendering Divine Justice, if you like?”
“Divine Justice,” a few disciples exclaimed as if puzzled for they had never thought that there could be several kinds of Justice.
The Master resumed, “Yes, each earthly value, whether Love, Charity, Kindness, Unity, Justice has its divine and a human counterpart. The Divine renders Justice as per the Divine vision which is a complete vision and a total knowledge. He sees not only the outer effort but also the inner motives, the hidden forces at play, the long-term results and above all the good of the earth. Even when he destroys, he destroys out of love. Man sees only the surface of things and has at most only a brief life’s vision, therefore, is he perplexed and confused at the ways of God. True, the titans laboured as fiercely and perhaps even more than the gods, but their motives were unclean. Had the nectar been given to them, that would have spelt disaster for earth and humanity on whom these beings of other dimensions cast their influence. Have you not heard what Sri Krishna has said in the Gita about the right course of action, dharma? This right, from the Divine point of view, is what helps in the evolutionary march of mankind towards the ultimate Truth and Light. Have you not heard of the Lord’s incarnations as the dwarf child, Vamana avatara?”
One of the disciples inquired, “Tell us, Master, the story of Vamana. I have heard about it as a child but couldn’t quite grasp the sense behind it.”
The disciples were all attention, expectantly waiting for another story. The Master got into the frame of telling another story, of another incarnation. As he spoke, a joy flowed from his body as if he experienced what he recounted:
“The titan king Bali had not forgotten his defeat. He performed various forms of austerities to gain rare weapons. Then, armoured with these and gathering around himself a huge army, he marched towards Amravati, the city of deathless gods where Indra resides. Seeing the huge army and the rare weapons, Indra in consultation with the guru of gods, Brihaspati, decided to abandon the city and go into a hideout with the rest of the gods. Better be free even with nothing than be a slave to the titans which seemed imminent. Brihaspati, who knows the ways of the Vast, explained to Indra, the king of gods, thus: ‘After God’s will, one must respect Time for it is through the agency of Time that the great Lord works and acts. He who acts completely ignoring the conditions set forth by Time in this huge cosmic play brings only doom to oneself. For in all things, Time works. There is a Time for victory, there is a Time also for defeat. And he who knows how to accept both, success and failure with grace and dignity, eventually masters Time itself.’”
“Brihaspati spoke, but Indra was still not fully convinced. The gods are not powerless, he thought. Why should not we fight? But Brihaspati, the wise said, ‘Look Indra, the time is not good right now for your victory. The Lord, in his mysterious way, has brought you face to face with inevitable defeat. Perhaps he wants you and the gods to learn the lesson of humility. However powerful you may be, Time over-rides and overtops all things. So concede right now to avoid destruction of this beautiful city and its many inhabitants.’”
“Indra listened, for the gods always obeyed their guru. Along with the other gods, he took refuge in devmata Aditi’s home. Aditi, the Mother of the gods, received them with Love and Compassion that is always there in her heart for all her children. The gods forgot all their pain and humiliations in Her presence as the ever kind mother carried the sorrow and anguish of the gods to the great Lord, Narayana, ‘Wherefore this ignominy, defeat and humiliation for my radiant children. Lord, you must intervene on their behalf for their kingdom has been snatched unjustly by the titans.’”
“The gracious Lord smiled and reassured Aditi, the mother of the gods: ‘What thou hast willed for them, I cannot refuse. It is granted. The kingdom of the gods will be returned to them in due course of time, for as thou knowest, my will executed by the trustee, Time. The heavens have been snatched from the gods without a fight, for the gods had to learn a lesson. It is Time and not the titan king who snatched it away. And it is Time who shall give it back to them without a fight.’”
“Thus, assured the mother of the gods who mediates between the anguish of the gods and the ecstasies of the highest Being, returned and resumed her work of nurturing and strengthening the gods, pouring her Grace and Love upon them, healing all their anguish and sorrow.”
“Time rolled by. Meanwhile, a little child with an unusual radiance was born to Aditi. He emerged out of her womb, a radiant god himself whose splendour was greater even than that of Indra, the king of gods. The earth, the moon, the sun, the fire, the mother goddess Parvati herself, Brahma and Shiva all gave something of their aspect of energies to him. His form resembled Narayana himself and Aditi knew that the Time had come for the gods to get back their due. The little boy, well versed in the Veda, remained dwarf-bodied, Vamana, but in his consciousness, he was vaster than the skies and deeper than the oceans.”
“Meanwhile, king Bali who was now commanding the three worlds, the physical material world, the subtle world built of prana and the still subtler world of mind, decided to perform a rare yajna that would make him invincible. The yajna was being presided over by the guru of the titans, Shukracharya. As a master of all the elemental forces and material energies, Shukracharya wanted the titans to become invincible. As he thus proceeded on the yajna, suddenly a dazzling radiance was seen approaching near the sacrificial fire.
“The titans were perplexed for they were not accustomed to so much light. Some even fainted unable to bear the effulgence which, as it neared, was seen to be emanating from Vamana who was approaching the Yajnasala dressed in the barest of bare clothes, he held a Kamandalu in his hands and an umbrella made of reeds over his head. His eyes were full of an unearthly joy and the countenance full of peace and radiance. A beautiful fragrance of jasmine emanated from his body that had a lotus pink hue around it. As he approached the Yajnasala, the titan king was filled with a strange joy. Indeed he thought the little boy to be the fire god himself. Offering his obeisance to the young bright Brahmin boy, the titan king asked him: ‘Who art thou, O young one? You seem to be a celestial being or perhaps the Lord himself in a miniature form. Tell me what can be offered to you as a due share of the yajna?’”
At this, the Master paused and elaborated a little about the yajna: “Yajna is not merely an external rite as some see it. In principle, it is a recognition of the fact that we are neither alone nor the only ones in the universe. Through yajna, the sacrificant offered what he had and what he could, to others, to men of wisdom and valour, to men in need, to the subjects in one’s kingdom, to the gods and denizens of other worlds. The fire is the inner fire, the eternal witness, the Divine will in man. Through that as one’s witness, one makes the offering. But this is not a one-way process, for, in return, the elements, the earth, the sun, the moon, the sea, the gods also gave to the giver something of their forces and their energies. Thus, each could grow into the All and the Whole”
The disciples were amazed at the depth and profundity of this ancient wisdom that they not only saw oneness behind all things but also provided a way to realize it through yajna, as one of the powerful means.
The Master resumed: “To come back to our story, the radiant Vamana thus spoke to the titan king, ‘O great king, you are truly generous and large-hearted, much like your father and grandfather. All that I need, however, is just three steps worth of land.’”
“Now, Vamana knew that the titans are readily carried away by praise. They are generous but their generosity is driven by the ego and displayed for the sake of self-flattery. Bali too felt flattered but was also somewhat surprised at the small measure of the gift. He asked the little dwarf to reconsider and ask for more. But Vamana, the dwarf stood his ground.”
“Meanwhile, as the two were conversing, Shukracharya had perceived that this was no ordinary being and his measure need not be our measure. He advised the titan king not to grant what Vamana had asked for as there may be some trick behind it. But the titan king would not listen. He was full of vanity and boastfulness. What trick can this little dwarf do with me, Bali, who rules the three worlds and of whom even the gods are afraid of? If I listen to my guru, I may bring shame to my family pride who were known to be generous kings. What will people speak of me, that the mighty king Bali did not keep his promise for mere three steps of land?” He thought, ‘My guru has lost his senses to thus advise me. I know better,’ and thus, with the fire as a witness and the water as the sanctifier, he promised Vamana to take three steps worth of space anywhere in the three worlds.”
“And Vamana smiled.
“He took one step and his being seemed to tower to unimaginable heights. With his first step, he measured the entire earth. His second step covered the heavens and all else in-between. The titan king was all amazed. Realizing that Vamana was none else but Narayana himself, he stood with folded hands, speechless and in wonder.”
“‘Where do I place my third step, O! great and generous king.’ He heard Vamana’s sweet and soft voice that was like celestial music to his ears.”
“Still held almost in trance, the king bowed his head and gestured that the third step may be placed thereupon his head. This gesture meant that his ego may be completely demolished and his whole being reclaimed by the Lord himself.”
“Vamana, the Lord who had assumed the stature of a dwarf smiled as he granted to Bali the highest boon possible, by taking away the burden of ego, pride and vanity that man carries on his head.”
“O! Great and noble king, the earth and the heavens were already mine. I have only reclaimed them from you who thought that they were yours. I give them now to the gods to govern and to you, I give the highest of the nether worlds, Sutala where you will reign a while as my trustee. In return for your noble gesture, I promise that I will always be by your side, even in the nether worlds, for there is nothing small or dark where I cannot reside and even in the darkest, mysterious and the fallen worlds, I am there, hidden and masked. Now that you have chosen to surrender your ego to Me, I shall quickly purify your nature and after this cycle of creation withdraws, it is you whom I shall appoint as the guardian of heaven, the king of gods, Indra, for the next cycle.”
“And Bali bowed his head in utter gratitude as the Lord placed his feet over his head and sent him to the nether worlds.”
The Master paused for a while as in deep contemplation. Then addressing his disciples, he asked, “What would you call this — Divine Justice or Divine Compassion, Retribution or Reward, taking or giving, disgrace or the greatest Grace?”
The disciples were unable to answer.
The Master resumed, “For such is the wisdom that has built the world. Justice and injustice, these are human terms, needed for us, but the Lord sees and act differently and does what is needed for our growth.”
The evening was spreading fast. The Master summarized, revealing the symbol of the story, “Vamana, the radiant portion, amsa of the Lord is man’s soul, his psychic being, dwarf in appearance but formidable in power and knowledge. So long as the ego is battling out between the ‘good’ and the ‘bad’, the ‘bright’ and the ‘dark’ side of life, Vamana remains hidden from our sight. But a time comes when we are ready through suffering and humility, when the world — mother Aditi, intercedes on our behalf and Vamana, the soul in man emerges out of Her and begins to spread its radiance and influence upon our life. He reclaims our nature for the Lord to whom everything belongs. And when we have offered our ego to him, He purifies us quickly and abides with us always wherever we are. Then sin and evil fall away from us and, whether in hell or in heaven, we become radiant
instruments of God.”
The Master fell silent but, the disciples felt a strange joy and peace invade their hearts and an urge to give themselves utterly and entirely to the Lord. Quietly, they stood up, one after another and walked for the last errands. It was night outside but inside all was light, happiness and peace.
Alok Pandey
