At that point, Âchārya looked towards me and asked “What made the king bestow the same
reward to the Brahmin who was not eligible for it?” I thought for a while. “Maybe giving the
apple as a gift made the king and queen happy”, I said. He asked me to keep thinking.
“Maybe he did not want to disappoint the poor Brahmin”, I said. “What made the king take
the decision of rewarding the Brahmin?” Âchārya asked again. And only then it struck me.
“The king was sad looking at the Brahmins condition, therefore he obliged.” I said.
Âchārya then told me “It is the compassion of the king and his queen that caused the
bestowal of the same fruit to an ineligible one. The gift of the apple was of no value to the
king or his queen. It is the abounding compassion of the king that overpowered him. So too,
the Lord and Lakshmi are supremely compassionate. Because they are easily overcome by
abounding mercy towards their devotees, Prapatti performed at their lotus feet yields the
highest good. The fruits are disproportionately large and even ineligible ones can attain
Moksha!”
Then it all occurred to me! I understood why our Âchāryas have taught the path of
Sharanāgati. I also understood one other important thing. It was the same quality of
compassion that made my Âchārya extremely favorable towards a worthless one like me. It
was Âchārya’s limitless mercy that made him take care of our welfare and protect us. I
understood that Âchārya is verily like the Lord in terms of compassion. Since then, my love
and reverence for Âchārya has only deepened.
In every incident that I have narrated above, it is to be understood that I am not any special
person to receive such privileges. Rather, such is the overwhelming benevolence of my
Âchārya that he treats even a heinous one like me as special.
Those who have known my Âchārya and have been with him will know what I say here.
Those who are yet to reap the rich reward of our Âchārya’s compassion may treat this
narration as testimony of his supreme benevolence.
I was fortunate to have been present next to my Âchārya for his seventieth Tirunakshatram. I
will sorely miss the grand occasion celebrating our Âchārya’s eightieth Tirunakshatram. But I
express my sincere thanks to all my ‘atma-bandhus’ who have given me this blessed
opportunity of being able to recount my experiences with Âchārya. Through this I am able to
feel Âchārya’s presence and closeness deep within me.
xÉ´ªÉ´ÉÉMÉҶɪÉÉäMÉÓpÆù ½þªÉɺªÉ{ÉnùºÉäÊ´ÉxÉÆ *
¥ÉÀiÉÆjɺ´ÉiÉÆjÉɪÉÈ ¦ÉVÉɨɺº´ÉÉi¨ÉºÉÆ{Énù¨É **
navyav¡g¢¿a y°g¢ndraÆ hay¡sya padas®vinaÆ .
brahmatantrasvatantr¡ryaÆ bhaj¡massv¡tma sampadam ..
“We meditate on our‘ātma-sampadam’- the wealth of our soul,
Śrimad Abhinava Vāgeesha Brahmatantra Swatantra Jîyar,
the servant of the lotus feet of Lord Lakshmî Hayagreeva!”
Âchārya tiruvadigale sharanam.
E-19