Maharaja Yadu, the founder of the Yadava dynasty into which Sri Krishna Bhagavan was born, once met Avadutta Swami. Wise, intelligent and a dharma scholar that he was, Yadu noticed the man and his behavior. Noticing that he was a knower of Truth, King Yadu bowed down to him and spoke to him politely.
- Sir, when I see you, I feel great surprise and amazement. Although we have knowledge of the sastras, we make great efforts to please our senses. But it seems that you are not making any such effort. How did this extraordinary insight come to you? Even though you have so much knowledge and erudition, why sometimes you behave like a boy, a crazy person or a dullard. Your way of acting is very strange. Indeed, it appears that you are not seeking sense gratification, but it appears that you are not making any effort to achieve moksha. Despite this, you seem to always be floating in bliss. What makes this possible? The whole world is burned, like a forest, by the wild fire of lust and anger. While people like us are burning in this fire, you remain unaffected, happy and calm. Without care, like an elephant leader, you float down the Ganges. What made this state of mind possible for you? Sir, please explain to me.
Pondering the suffering and humility hidden in these words, Avadutta reassured him thus:
- O King Yadu, you are sinless and know the causes of this world. I don't think I have anything to teach you. But I look at the world carefully, and have gained some knowledge from a number of gurus. O king, I have twenty-four such gurus. Listen carefully: Earth, Air, Sky, Water, Fire, Moon, Sun, Dove, Boa Constrictor, Sea, Moth, Bee, Elephant, Honey Thief, Deer, Fish, Prostitute named Pingala, Hawk, Child, Unmarried Girl, Arrow Maker, Snake, Spider and Insect - these are my twenty-four gurus.
O king, I will also tell you what I learned from each of them. Listen:
1. Earth.
I learned two virtues from the earth: forgiveness and doing good to others. Even if people kick her and dig into her, Mother Earth neither winces nor gets angry. She always remains patient. I have learned from the Earth that a sadhu should have the quality of forgiveness in the same way. In addition, I have learned from the Earth, which sustains everything, that life should be dedicated to doing good to others.
2. Air.
I learned from the air the qualities of detachment and purity. The vital (life) atmosphere takes food, but remains without the desire for sensual pleasures. I have learned that in the same way the aspirant should eat only with the intention of gaining knowledge and should be careful not to pursue pleasure. Therefore, to obtain knowledge, the body is necessary; for the body to exist, to be vigorous, alive, vital force is necessary; and food is necessary to maintain vitality. Consequently, a limited amount of food is needed, since without food, life and the acquisition of knowledge will be impossible.
The outer atmosphere comes into contact with many things having many properties, such as heat and cold, etc. These properties also do not pollute the air. I learned that in this way I must remain detached even when I come into contact with sense objects.
Moreover, the air itself does not smell. It also seems to smell like flowers when it passes through them. I have learned that in the same way, the yogi, although he has a physical body and his existence is connected with it by various properties, must not really be contaminated by it, but only live in and for the Inner Self.
3. Sky.
Look at the heavenly space. It permeates everything like ether. Moreover, it is immeasurable and cannot be cut or divided. Seeing this and realizing that the Self, although located in countless bodies, is also unattached and indivisible, I learned to experience that the Self is everywhere and in everything.
There is another extraordinary thing about this. Clouds are formed by the combination of earth, water and fire, three of the five basic elements, and with the help of air they move across the sky. In addition, the sky does not get dirty with them. From this, I learned that the Self is not contaminated by the properties that result from the elements that form the body. This is what heaven taught me.
4. Water.
Purity, smoothness and gentleness are the natural properties of water. This is why water can clean other things. In the same way, a yogi should have a pure heart, speak sweet words and be full of love for all beings. Such people will purify others simply by a glance, a touch or a memory. I learned this dignity from the water.
5. Fire.
The mention of fire brings to mind the enormous brilliance of radiation. Fire destroys trees. It is impossible to touch him. Without exception, he destroys all kinds of things at once. Thus, even if he destroys all things without exception, he will not become vicious. In the same way, the muni must also have knowledge, he must be a tapasvin, free from others and remain unattached by what others give him. Such a person can do anything prohibited or non-forbidden, and he will not commit any sin.
Sometimes fire is worshiped in a subtle and invisible form, sometimes in a dense and visible form. When he consumes the offerings donated to him by devotees, he destroys their sins, both past and future. I have learned that yoga should be like this.
The type of fire depends on the tree. It looks big on a thick stick of wood. On a long piece of fuel, it appears long. Similarly, Ishvara enters the body created by Maya and appears himself like the body. By looking at fire, I learned to question the nature of Ishvara.
Fire always has flames, which are sometimes not visible due to the effect of time. I learned from them that although changes like birth are eternal, corresponding to the passage of time, there is no way to see them.
6. Moon.
The stay and waning of the Moon appears due to the movement of time. Even if we think about this, we will see that it is not the moon that endures and wanes, but its brightness. I learned from the moon that the six sense objects come from the body and not from the Self.
7. Sun.
The sun evaporates water from the earth with its rays. At the appropriate time, it returns the water back to the earth. Also the yogi should accept sense objects without any zeal or greed.
When deluded people see the sun reflected in water or mirrors, they think that there are many suns. But in reality there is only one sun, which appears in so many reflections.
From this I learned that although the Self is only one, it is understood by the deluded intellect to be many, due to the deceitfulness of the mind.
8. Dove.
I learned from the dove that too much affection or friendship with anyone inevitably leads to unhappiness. Here's a story that illustrates this.
There lived a very beautiful and strong pigeon in the forest. He developed a friendship with the dove, who reciprocated his feelings. Their love for each other was incomparable. It seemed that they had two bodies with one soul. Over time, the female pigeon became pregnant for the first time and laid eggs. This served to strengthen their mutual affection.
Chicks began to hatch from the eggs in a timely manner. Is not Maya Hari incomprehensible even to great pandits? How much less comprehensible is it for these pigeons? For that winged pair, their chicks alone made up the whole world. Whenever they looked at the chicks and their pranks and heard their sweet words, the winged couple felt pride and happiness.
One day, both parent birds flew into the forest to bring food to their chicks. A hunter came and laid out his net, and many birds fell into it. The poor little innocent birds, caught in the net, began to scream helplessly.
When the parent birds returned and saw the empty nest, they fainted. Soon, however, they came to their senses and flew in different directions in search of the chicks.
The mother dove saw the chicks caught in the net, and, filled with pity and love for the chicks, without weighing the pros and cons, she rushed into the net to save them. But she also fell into it and began to wail. This is the result of reckless passion.
A little later, the father pigeon flew in and saw everything that happened. Although he did not rush forward like his mother, he was overcome with grief as he looked at his own wife and children dying before his eyes. He could not control his sobs and began to moan loudly and mournfully. “Where is my happiness after losing my wife and children? For whom should I live? Oh, if only the wife or even one of the children had survived! Why live? - he wailed. Under the weight of grief, his mind became blind. As a result, he concluded that it was better to die, and so he too flew into the net and met his end at the hands of the hunter.
O Yadu, what is the lesson of this story? When one lives in duality instead of discovering the Self, he simply becomes a victim of recklessness and passion. A person who enjoys in dualities has no peace of mind and when he considers the preservation of family as his only goal in life, one day he perishes along with his loved ones.
O King, this mortal world is the open door to final liberation. There is no doubt about it. But we should not lose this chance due to the limitation of attachments.
9. Boa constrictor.
O King Yadu, surely one will experience pleasure and pain according to one's past actions. They cannot be prevented when he does not want them, nor can they be made to come when he wants them. This is also true for other worlds. So it is useless to make efforts for this or that. Food, neither tasty nor dry, nor much or little, comes to everyone with prudence, and one must be content with it. If it is not available, you just need to fast. Not only this, but the above mentioned is the same for sleep, one must always remain firmly committed to one's own Self. I learned all this from Boa.
10. Sea.
I learned several things from the sea. Even though the sea is large, it cannot allow even a small dry leaf lying on its surface to remain in one place. Instead, the sea moves him away to the middle. If the sea did not always do this, it would by now dry up like a tank.
In the same way, no matter how great a tapasvin or yogi may be, he should not allow even the slightest desire or agitation to enter his mind. If he is careless, he will not be able to avoid being destroyed by it. Therefore, I learned from the sea that you cannot allow even the slightest deviation without some kind of support. Many rivers flow into the sea, but none flow out. In summer, the flow of water in the rivers decreases, but the sea does not dry out. It is not determined by time and space. Similarly, the muni should not exhibit his strength or express his feelings. He should not allow others to delve into his beginning and end. He should not become joyful when his desires are fulfilled, nor should he become depressed when they are not fulfilled. I learned from the sea to practice calmness and remain steadfast in my devotion to the inner Self.
11. Moth.
Deceived by the bright light of the fire, the moth rushes forward towards the light and burns. Also a person attracted to a beautiful woman with jewelry and a flirtatious gait. He is consumed by reckless passion for her without realizing that this illusory flirtation is a way to draw him into the spinning wheel of samsara and hidden prakriti. Instead, he believes that he is overwhelmed with happiness. In this regard, he loses two worlds: this and the next - and drowns in ignorance. In the same way, a woman, seeing an attractive man, becomes deluded and falls into the wheel of samsara. Therefore, I learned from the moth that I should not fall prey to the illusion created by the senses.
12. Bee.
I learned three things from the honey bee. The honey bee hums from flower to flower and nourishes its body; it gradually absorbs nectar from the flowers all the time, but does not cause them to wither. In the same way, the Muni should go to the householder's house and accept everything without imposition, being content with whatever is given to him.
The bee collects nectar from almost every flower. Like her, the muni must study all the sacred books, skilfully quickly grasping their essence and adapting them for his search for the inner Self.
In addition to these two good qualities, bees have a destructive recklessness. They make honey and store it for future use, but the man robs the entire supply after smoking it and kills them. Instead of enjoying the wealth they have accumulated, they encounter ruin and death.
Also, a muni should not save food for the next day. He must eat the food available in the house and go on his way.
13. Elephant.
While studying the life of an elephant, I learned one thing. The elephant is a very strong and intelligent animal. Therefore, it is very difficult to catch him. However, he is often caught by a person due to his lust. To capture an elephant, a hole is dug in the forest and covered with bamboo, mud and grass so that it looks like ordinary earth. Then a stuffed animal in the form of a female elephant is placed in this place, and the male, seeing the stuffed animal, is deceived by it, mistaking it for a real elephant, and lustfully rushes forward towards it. When he reaches the figure, the bamboo breaks and the elephant falls into the pit.
Seeing this, I came to the conclusion that I need to stay away from women to avoid such a trap.
Also, when an elephant follows a female elephant, and another strong elephant in sexual excitement sees them, he tries to drive away the other elephant and fights with him until one of them is killed. Seeing this, I concluded that just thinking about a woman is dangerous.
This is as true for women as it is for men.
14. Honey thief.
Listen to the lesson I learned from the honey thief.
Bees build a hive with great diligence. The honey thief plans to smoke out the bees and steal the honey. Thus the strong rob the weak of their wealth. This is the world, fair or unfair.
Therefore, I learned from the honey thief that if a person is stingy and hides his wealth without enjoying it himself or sharing it with others, he risks being robbed.
15. Deer.
Deer brings purity and tenderness to the mind. His speed in running is amazing, but, however, due to his strong love for music, he falls into the hands of a butcher. The hunter's music makes him stand still and listen with his eyes closed.
I learned from this that if a hermit living in the forest were to give in to music or dance, his downfall would be certain.
Was it not because he was enchanted by the music and dance that Muni Rishyasringa poured out in the traps of the dancing girl? Therefore, I learned from the deer that one should not be deceived by music or dance.
16. Fish.
O Yadu, know that of all the senses, the tongue is like an invisible thief. The munis practice strict asceticism by going without food and achieving control over all the senses, but they cannot control the tongue. It appears as if it could be controlled easily, but herein lies its deception. While the tongue must be controlled, the conquest of the senses is not complete. If you don't take care of your language, it's hard to avoid disaster.
Look at the fish. She has no defect except the fickleness of her tongue. It is that uncontrolled tongue that makes her prey to the fisherman's hook. Watching the fish in this way taught me the importance of controlling and subduing the tongue.
17. A prostitute named Pingala.
Pingala was a prostitute and I learned from her too. I'll tell you this story now.
In the glorious city of Videha, the capital of King Janaka, there lived a prostitute named Pingala. One day she was filled with desire for wealth and lustful pleasures. She stood, as usual, at the door of her house, looking for her lover, but to no avail. Not one was found that day. She stood waiting for a very long time with jealous eyes and strong desires. It's midnight. Her legs began to drag and her fatigue increased. When, disappointed, she went inside, the desire grew again. Therefore, she could not stay inside, but went to the door again. So, going in and out again and again, she became physically exhausted. Although midnight had passed, still not a single lover was found.
Strange indeed are the ways of the Divine. As a result of her exhaustion, her passionate desire for wealth, as well as voluptuous pleasures, gradually left her. She even repented that she had stooped so low, and her lust disappeared. She was overcome with disgust. Without this, the limitations of the body cannot be lost and the state of dispassion cannot be achieved. By God's grace, freedom from passion ignited in her and she began to look into herself. She thought:
"Ashamed! What madness! Ugh! Ugh! Unable to control my feelings, I grieved while I waited for a pathetic man who lustfully desires a woman. I'm ashamed of the miserable desire that someone will come and make me happy! Forgetting that God, who is Truth, who is eternal and constant and who gives happiness, is close to everyone; I imagined that if a low and unrighteous man squeezed this body, I would receive happiness. How wild is my mind! Oh, how I was mistaken in contemplating this body and its beauty! What is its true nature? At the bottom there are two legs, like pillars. At the top there are two arms, and there is a spine like a large beam connecting them. On either side of it are ribs that look like rafters. All this is covered with skin. There are nine doors, and what comes out of them every day is nothing, only garbage. How hard I have worked for the beauty of this thing called the body! What a fool I was! How can I consider another person to be a lover in this glorious “Videhapura”, forgetting Achiyuta, who is the form of my own Self and the nature of bliss and inner peace? This beauty and these desires and the gods who give them, will not they all be destroyed by time and, in the end, lose their qualities? By love for these perishable things, what happiness can we obtain? Therefore, I will not allow myself to be deceived any longer. Considering Sri Hari, the benefactor of all and the Essence of all things, as dearest to me, I surrender myself completely to Him. Some meritorious deed done by me in my previous birth may have now brought results and the company of some Mahatma contributed to my maturation and led to the grace of Sri Hari falling on me. Otherwise, how could such a good feeling prevail in a sinful person like me? Besides, haven't all kinds of difficulties beset me up to this point? And then impartiality appeared, which was the reason for such calm. Therefore, since this recognition which has arisen in me is undoubtedly the grace of Sri Hari, I will consider it as an order of Sri Hari and banish all desire for sense objects and surrender myself to Him alone. Only Sri Hari, the only one, can save individuals like me who are entangled in the desires of sense objects and who are perishing blindly in the mire of samsara and have been deceived by the poisonous snake called desire. Sri Hari Himself guides those in whom discrimination is rooted and who, being alert, have achieved dispassion. He alone is my mentor.”
Thus, when dispassion became firmly established, Pingala achieved extraordinary calm and peace of mind. Therefore, O Yadu, I have learned from this story of Pingala that desire is sorrow and lack of desire is the highest happiness.
18. Little hawk.
One day, this little bird was holding a piece of food in its mouth when a large and strong bird saw it and attacked it. The clever little bird immediately dropped the piece. Then the big bird left the little one and followed the piece of food. So the little bird escaped the impending danger.
I learned from the bird that if we keep a thing that others covet, it will subject us to great suffering and therefore it is wise to give such things away voluntarily.
19. Boy.
O King, in this world, yogis and their equals live like children.
The little boy has no worries about his wife and children. The praise or reproaches of others do not bother him. He is always happy playing with himself. I learned from him that a muni should also be like him.
Indeed, there is not much difference between a little boy and a yogi. Both are free from worries, both are happy. But whereas the boy does not make any effort because he has no knowledge, yoga, knowing everything and having achieved God, remains inactive through awareness.
20. Unmarried girl.
O King, in a village there lived a girl who had reached the age of marriage. Therefore, her father looked for a groom for her.
One day the groom came to see her. Since her mother was not in the village at that time, she herself had to take a pound of rice, cook it and serve it.
It wouldn't be right for her to be exposed in such an engagement, she thought. So she tried to pound the rice secretly. But the bracelets on her wrist began to jingle. The more bracelets you wear, the more ringing there is. So she left two bracelets on each wrist, took off the rest and started pounding again. But even then, a small jingling sound came from the bracelets. So she started pounding, leaving only one bracelet on each wrist.
I thought about this for a long time. I learned from this girl that if too many people gather in one place, fights will happen. When two people are together, a conversation begins. Therefore, yogis should always remain in solitude.
21. Arrow maker.
The concentration of the arrow maker is amazing. While the arrow is being made, his mind is so concentrated that even if a procession of Maharaja, accompanied by a group of musicians and dancers, were to pass near him, he would not know it. All his interest and diligence goes into making the arrow.
Similarly, O King, the yogi should gradually develop dispassion. He must learn to sit still for any length of time and then practice his yoga to maintain his vital atmosphere. Then the mind will become calm. If such a tranquil mind is directed by Sri Hari, vasana, the tendencies generated by karma will be burnt to ashes. Then sattva guna will increase and subdue rajas and tamas, completing the destruction of agitation and lies. The goal is the state of samadhi. One who reaches this stage will not have the division of knowledge into knowledge of either the inner world or the outer world. He will have no concept of duality. I learned this from an arrow maker.
22. Snake.
O King, you may notice that the snake moves entirely by wriggling. Not absent-mindedly thinking, but always vigilant. Even though she is bilingual, she doesn't make any stupid noise.
If this body is a temporary abode, why should a house be built for it? Moreover, homeowners know from experience that when a house is built, a lot of care and worry follows.
The snake, instead of wasting its time building a shelter, lives happily in a hole built and abandoned by white ants. As I thought about this, I realized that the muni should also follow this example.
23. Spider.
O King, the spider taught me Parabrahman, the Primordial Reality which is superior to Pradhana and Purusha. He also taught me that the processes of creation and destruction are caused by this reality.
The spider moves the threads on its abdomen, causing them to come out of its body, and with this material it weaves its web.
While thinking about this, it occurred to me that the process of creation is also similar to this. Narayana, who is the Absolute, creates the universe starting from Maya, but during its disintegration, he destroys it again. Then all three gunas: satva, rajas and tamas reach a state of evenness. This evenness itself is Pradhana. This Pradhana is an attribute of Purusha. Then Narayana - the god of Pradhana and Purusha, who is beyond all differences and who is the happy form of the Self - is the only one who remains.
When the desire to create comes to Him, Narayana shakes up Maya, consisting of three gunas, in order to create a thread with creative power. This thread creates the ego and the world of diversity. This creative thread is the original cause, which is the initiator of the universe, characterized by multiplicity and diversity. And when He so desires, Narayana absorbs it and again remains unchanged.
I learned all this from a spider.
24. Insect.
A certain species of bee catches an insect and keeps it in a nest, and it circles and circles there, buzzing loudly. Out of fear, the insect stares at the bee, completely concentrating its mind on it. By doing this, the insect's form gradually undergoes a change and it takes the form of a bee. Similarly, one attains the form of one on whom one concentrates one's mind completely, without fear or devotion, without hatred or friendship. If a small insect can change its body, can there be any doubt that a person with intelligence and the powers of meditation and concentration will achieve liberation after the body is overcome and reaches the same form as the deity on whom he is meditating? I learned this from an insect.
King Yadu, since you performed extraordinary worship, I told you all this out of love. These are my twenty-four gurus. O King, I will tell you a fundamental secret.
I have mentioned 24 teachers, but in reality, every atom in the world is my teacher, everyone in fact. All those who know the truth have received knowledge through their own dualistic mind endowed with discrimination. Ultimately, it is the mind that teaches the good and bad in all beings. Therefore, the true teacher for everyone is the mind itself. There is no doubt about it. A person who wants to understand the nature of virtue will discover, through analysis and testing of immediate perception and inference, that the mind alone is the teacher.
In this world, God created many different creatures, such as one-legged, two-legged, three-legged, four-legged, centipede and creatures without legs. However, He loves man because he alone is an intelligent being, and through testing and discernment, he can understand the divine principle residing in all of them as their inner Self. A person who is an expert in yoga can easily recognize the divine principle in this very birth. Man has the ability to explore. The body, feelings and intellect are all inert and dull. Therefore, they cannot glow. However, the body, senses and intellect are instruments for our use. The human body is very dear to God because it is the basis for seeking and recognizing the truth. Therefore, we must take good care of him.
But, oh King, this body itself is the first deceiver. I learned a lot from him.
From all points of view, the body always produces suffering. It cannot escape birth and death. That's why I'm not attached to him.
How much suffering do people endure because of their attachment to the body? They acquire a wife, children, servants, friends, wealth. They love, care and feed them and suffer all kinds of misfortunes, diseases for their sake. But what at the end? Life desires and has an end. The body desires and dies. Can the wife and children who surround him prevent this? Then why such excessive attachment to them?
This body doesn't just die. It dies only after acquiring enough sins and merits to create another body. The suffering caused by the body does not end with the body, it creates another body. It is like a seed falling from a tree and sprouting to become another tree. There are millions of desires. The sense organs and the organs of action tease and annoy a person, and yet dispassion does not grow.
O King, therefore, attachment to the body is foolish. Moreover, since this is a means to achieve the highest goal of human life, one must waste no time in embarking on the path of liberation before death comes.
The Supreme Brahman is described by the Rishis in various ways. Therefore, the knowledge of recognition must be acquired from one's own teachers before it is too late. Having thus achieved wisdom and cast aside selfishness and conceit, I have gone deep into my own “I” and wandered almost unattached. This is the religion I follow.
Listening to these instructions from Avadutta, all the Yadu practices performed in previous births bore fruit, and the light of the inner Self began to burn in the depths of his heart. Filled with happiness and devotion, he prostrated to Avadutta, and immediately Lord Dattatreya appeared before him. Thus King Yadu had Datta's darshan. He pondered on the teachings of Brahman imparted by Lord Dattatreya and attained Brahman.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru