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Garma
Garam More
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Faith & Religion |
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Life of Swami Dayanada
There are many stories that reveal the greatness of Swami
Dayanada. One such
story of his greatest is retold below: Swami Dayananda was a tiger of Truth--he was never one to cower before the insolent might. That doesn't mean that he would recklessly put himself in harm's way, but neither would he hesitate to speak the truth to save others from harming themselves (through ignorance or manipulation). At the behest of his Guru (Swami Virjananda) he traveled all over India, sharing his wisdom with all, and guiding those who would listen to him. In the end, he was poisoned by a cook who had been misguided (through creed) by those whose special selfish interests were threatened by Swamiji's clarity and candor. The story goes like this. . . . . India under the British Raj had degenerated into a hodgepodge of small empires , all too often ruled by selfish Maharajas who had acquiesced to British rule (as a result of bribery or other manipulation). Even the Rajputs (who were known for their fierce patriotism) had fallen into self-degradation. Swamiji wanted to awaken these Maharajas to enlist their support and influence in freeing India from foreign rule and self-deception. Swamiji was invited by the Maharaja of Jodhpur, Rajasthan, to stay in his palace as an honored guest. The Maharaja respected Swamiji very much and was eager to receive his counsel. But, unfortunately, it seems the Maharaja did not respect himself--he had endeared himself to a low-character woman who entertained the Maharaja with her lewd dancing and female wiles. Swamiji happened upon them one day as they were selfishly engrossed in each other, and boldly reprimanded the Maharaja as thus:
The Maharaja realized his folly and felt much ashamed, and broke off all contact with this woman. As the saying goes, "There is no fury like a woman spurned." This vile person (who was a well-known high-class prostitute of the day) was extremely vexed. It is said that the British rulers of that area got word of this and used it to their advantage: they plotted with her to murder Swami Dayanada by giving her money to bribe the Maharaja's cook to poison Swamiji. The cook, persuaded by greed and manipulation, carried out the wicked task entrusted upon him. One evening, just before Swamiji was retiring, the cook brought Swamiji warm milk containing poison and ground glass. After drinking the concoction, Swamiji retired for the evening, later to awaken in extreme pain. He realized immediately that he had been poisoned and attempted to purge his digestive system of the poisonous substance, but alas, it had already made its way into his blood stream. Swamiji became bedridden and suffered excruciating pain. Over the course of the next several weeks, highly qualified doctors were called to help, but none could stop the effects of the poison. In the end, Swamiji's body was covered all over with large bleeding sores caused by the shredded glass and poison. Just before Swamiji's last days, the cook, overcome with unbearable guilt and remorse, approached Swamiji in tears and confessed his crime. Swamiji (who knew all along the identity of his assassin) listened to the confession of the anguished cook. Forgiving that tormented soul, Swamiji gave the cook a bag of money and told him to flee the country lest he be found out and executed by the Maharaja's men. Such was the compassion and mercy of Swami Dayananda. On Deepawali day, Swamiji's spirit was released from its mortal frame with the words,
Cohesive Force of ConsciousnessWhat is that which holds a society together? What is that which holds a community together? What is that which binds a family together into one cohesive unit? What is that which enables an individual to 'keep it together', i.e., to remain balanced and focused? The answer is WISDOM--knowledge of one's Self, the Supreme Self, and the nature of this world. Wisdom is the fabric of a nation, a culture, an organization, a family and an individual. Without wisdom, a nation is divided. Without wisdom, a culture is lost, without wisdom a family is pulled apart, without wisdom an individual becomes insane. Clarification :This is not to imply that the small empires were the invention of the British--but the British certainly left no stone unturned to keep the various kingdoms divided amongst themselves. The British were not solely responsible for the ills of India--in fact, Indians themselves were mostly to blame, as the Indian society had degenerated over the past 5000 years due to many various influences (many of which came from within the society itself). If you are interested in knowing about this, you are advised to read the eleventh (11th) chapter of Satyarth Prakash (Light of Truth), written by Maharishi Dayananda over 100 years ago. A wise human being does not get carried away by the stories of the past. It is okay to remember the stories, but it more important to focus on the lessons to be learned. Focus on the lessonsFinger pointing and name calling are useless. We need to see where we have gone wrong, so that we do not make the same mistakes again. We need to arm ourselves with wisdom to ward off all negative influences--whether they be from our past, from our environment, or from those with whom we come in contact.
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