Glimpses of The Devi Bhagavatam: 22. REFUGE IN ASHRAM

 

INDIAN MYTHOLOGY

Glimpses of The Devi Bhagavatam:

22. REFUGE IN ASHRAM

Because the king had no desire to wage a war against anybody, the commander of his army did not find it necessary to keep the army in fine fettle. He neglected his duty. No new soldier was recruited; those who had grown old were not sent away.

There were ambitious kings who took note of the weak state of King Surath’s army. Their spies spent a long time in King Surath’s capital. The movement of the spies attracted the attention of some of the noblemen. One or two of them told the king, “It is time we re- organised our army. Otherwise our kingdom may be attacked.”

Such warnings only made the king laugh. “What makes you think so ill of the other kings? Have they not been always friendly towards us?”

King Surath’s faith in the other kings suddenly received a jolt when his kingdom was attacked by an ambitious neighbour. He fought as valiantly as he could, but he could not stop the enemy from advancing.

At last his town was surrounded by the enemy army. King Surath was not in his palace, but in a camp outside.

“My lord, the enemies are anxious to lay their hands on you. I entreat you to escape immediately,” said a spy.

King Surath understood that the enemy was planning to kill him instantly. There was no chance for him to collect the members of his family who were inside the palace. The palace was already under siege.

The king galloped away under the cover of darkness. He rode on for two days and two nights. It was morning when he entered a forest. He saw a river flowing by sweetly. Animals were moving about freely. Soon he could hear the chanting of Vedic hymns.

He advanced in the direction of the chanting. He saw a hermitage. The serene atmosphere charmed him. He got off his horse and wandered in the place. Before long he saw the sage who lived there with his disciples.

Surath prostrated before the sage. When the smiling sage wanted to know who he was, Surath said, “O Great Soul, I am King Surath, deprived of my kingdom because of an unexpected attack from another king. My palace, along with my family, has fallen into the hands of the enemy. I am at my wit’s end. I take refuge in your hermitage. Kindly show me the way out of my predicament.”

The sage placed his hand on the king’s head and said, “Do not lose hope. Remain calm and fearless. Also, do not think of vengeance. The situation will change.”

Surath got back some peace of mind. He continued to live there like the other inmates of the Ashram.

One day Surath sat under a tree brooding over his misfortune. He saw a traveller looking depressed and tired.

“Who are you? What brought you into this forest?” asked the king.

“I am a merchant. I was rich and pious, too. I did my best to bring comfort and happiness to all the members of my family. But such is my lot that I was betrayed by everybody. Even my wife and my son conspired against me and made it difficult for me to live in my own home. That is why I am here. But who are you?”

“I’m King Surath. You might have heard of my defeat. I was roaming as a destitute. A compassionate sage who lives here took pity on me and gave me shelter,” said the king. “You, too, can be here in peace,” he added.

“No, O good King, I cannot be in peace. I am haunted by the thoughts of my home. My unworthy son will squander away all my hard-earned wealth. Then he, too, will become a destitute like me!” the merchant said.

“You are a strange fellow. What does it matter to you if your son, who proved so ungrateful and cruel to you, becomes a destitute? Let us go to the sage. He alone can show us some light,” said the king and he led the merchant to the sage.

“O Sage, here is yet another unfortunate fellow. Taking advantage of his simplicity, his wife and son drove him out of his home. But he is missing them despite their cruelty towards him. Kindly tell us how we can get over such crises,” the king said to the sage.

“My son, who does not suffer pain when engrossed in ignorance? You are only ordinary mortals. Even the great Gods lose their balance when they submit themselves to the force of ignorance,” said the sage. He then recounted an instance:

This hapened ages ago. Once Brahma and Vishnu simulataneously wondered what becomes of one when one is totally given to ignorance?

Ignorance descended on both of them as a result of this thought of theirs. Soon they met, but they hardly recognised each other.

“I am the Creator of this universe,” said Brahma by way of introducing himself.

“It would have been wiser on your part not to be so boastful of your function. Who sustains this universe? Myself. Have you forgotten the fact that once two demons named Madhu and Kaitabha terrorised you and I came to your rescue? Had not similar situations arisen so many times?” asked Vishnu.

“How do you forget your own predicaments? I remember how you were once saved by the Divine Mother!” retorted Brahma.

Shiva saw how Brahma and Vishnu, in order to have a taste of ignorance, were quarrelling. He spoke out: “Listen, stop disputing each other’s greatness. Can you measure my greatness? One who can do it first will prove himself greater.