How far would Ashtavakra Get?

How far would Ashtavakra Get?

We are in a world where people are caught up in looks, presentation

style above and beyond the truth. Many believe that form is more

important than substance. One truly wonders," How far would an

unrecognized Ashtavakra get in the modern world. If he were at one of

our many gatherings would people turn from him because of his

deformities? would his wisdom be any less and would his worth be

measured by how he acts and looks? How many would even bother to hear

a cripple's views on life?

 

As long as people are lost in a world of image and form over

substance and experiance we will never overcome the hurtles in our

development. In a world where the agents of Kali yuga are empowered

with great wealth, charisma and appeal the agents of Dharma can only

respond effectively by maintaining the substance above and beyond

image and form. This is our true strength and our power. In the long

run it is not how you say it that matters. What really matters is

what you are saying. This is truth. It is thus. Om Tat Sat.Vrndavan

 

ASHTAVAKRA

 

Narrated by: Kanai L Mukherjee (Grandpa), Edited by: Anuradha

Chakravarthy

Courtesy: Association of Grandparents of Indian Immigrants (AGII)

 

 

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The story of Ashtavakra is taken from the great ancient Indian epic,

the Mahabharata. It is the story of a deformed young boy whose

intelligence surpassed many old sages of his time.

 

Sage Uddalaka ran a school (Ashram) teaching Vedic knowledge. Kahoda

was one of his best disciples. Uddalaka was so pleased with him that

he got his daughter Sujata married to him. Sujata, eventually got

pregnant and wanted her child to surpass all the sages of his time.

So, she began to sit in the classes taught by Uddalaka and Kahoda,

listening to their chanting with the unborn baby. It was one day, in

a class taught by Kahoda, the unborn baby spoke up from inside the

womb, "This is not the way to chant the verse, father." Kahoda felt

insulted in front of the class and cursed, "You will be born

deformed."

 

Sujata did not take the instance too seriously and was ambitious. She

wanted more money to raise her child the best. So she asked her

husband to go to king Janak who was then preparing for a fire worship

ceremony (Yagna) hoping that the ceremony will bring money to the

family.

 

When Kahoda approached Janak, the king received him respectfully but

said with regret "Kahoda, I am unable to perform the Yagna which I

decided to perform several years back. Sage, Bandhi arrived from no

where and asked me to start the Yagna only after he is defeated in an

academic discussion with the sages participating in the Yagna. His

condition further includes that the sages who come forth for the

debate, if defeated, will be drowned. So far he has killed many

learned sages. Now it is up to you to take the challenge." Kahoda

agreed to debate with Bandhi. He was defeated and drowned in the

nearby river. The widowed Sujata heard the news and repented her

actions. A few months later she gave birth to a boy who was deformed

at eight joints and so named Ashtavakra. He got his education from

his grandfather Uddalaka. Ashtavakra was extremely intelligent and

his grandfather loved him dearly and was very proud of him. When

Ashtavakra was only twelve, he finished all that he needed to know

from his grandfather. He also heard the fate of his father and the

Yagna of king Janak which still remained unfinished as no one could

defeat Bandhi.

 

One night Ashtavakra ran away from the hermitage and came to king

Janak. Looking to his deformed body, the guards were amused.

Ashtavakra retorted, "Do not judge a person by his appearance and

age, judge him by what he knows. Inform your king that there is a

person ready to challenge Bandhi." The king came and was surprised to

see a small deformed boy. He asked a few questions and was greatly

impressed by his knowledge. King Janak soon arranged for the debate

with Bandhi. When the spectators laughed on seeing the deformed

Ashtavakra, Ashtavakra said with anger, "I did not know that the so

called learned gathering is no better than a bunch of cobblers who

judge a person by the skin and not by the knowledge he has."

 

To everyone's surprise Ashtavakara defeated Bandhi in no time. With

vengeance he then requested the king to drown his father's killer.

Bandhi then disclosed his identity. He said, "I am the son of Varuna,

the god of water. I came to earth on the request of my father to get

the best sages from here to perform his twelve years of Yagna. The

only way I could get them to my father was to challenge them in a

debate and throw them into water. Now that my father has completed

the Yagna, let us go to the river band and watch the sages walk out

of the river."

 

People rushed to the river bank and watched the sages return from the

river. Kahoda came and embraced his learned son Ashtavakra. He then

openly admitted that his son Ashtavakra was a lot more intelligent

than he. Bandhi then asked Ashtavakra to take a dip in the river,

with the blessings of his father, Varuna, which would make him

normal. Ashtavakra did as he was told and came out of the river as a

handsome young man. Janak rewarded Ashtavakra and Kahoda. They went

back to their hermitage to be united with the family. Uddalaka, was

so happy to see his worthy grandson surpassing in knowledge to all

the great sages of his time. Sujata rejoiced at seeing her handsome

son and the husband.

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Kahoda married a daughter of his preceptor, Uddalaka, but he was so

devoted to study that he neglected his wife. When she was far

advanced in her pregnancy, the unborn son was provoked at his

father's neglect of her, and rebuked him for it. Kahoda was angry at

the child's impertinence, and condemned him to be born crooked; so he

came forth with his eight (ashta) limbs crooked (vakra) ; hence his

name.

 

Kahoda went to a great sacrifice at the court of Janaka, king of

Mithili. There was present there a great Buddhist sage, who

challenged disputations, upon the understanding that whoever was

overcome in argument should be thrown into the river. This was the

fate of many, and among them of Kahoda, who was drowned.

 

In his twelfth year Ashtavakra learned the manner of his father's

death, and set out to avenge him. The lad was possessed of great

ability and wisdom. He got the better of the sage who had worsted his

father, and insisted that the sage should be thrown into the water.

The sage then declared himself to be a son of Varuna, god of the

waters, who had sent him to obtain Brahmans for officiating at a

sacrifice by overpowering them in argument and throwing them into the

water.

 

When all was explained and set right, Kahoda directed his son to

bathe in the Samanga river, on doing which the lad became perfectly

straight.

 

A story is told in the Vishnu Purana that Ashtavakra was standing in

water performing penances when he was seen by some celestial nymphs

and worshipped by them. He was pleased, and told them to ask a boon.

They asked for the best of men as a husband. He came out of the water

and offered himself. When they saw him, ugly and crooked in eight

places, they laughed in derision. He was angry, and as he could not

recall his blessing, he said that, after obtaining it, they should

fall into the hands of thieves.

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Ashtavakra was a sage in ancient india. Ashtavakra, also spelt as

Ashtaavakra in Sanskrit means "eight bends". Ashta means eight. Vakra

means bend or deformity.

 

In ancient India, sage Ashtavakra was known to be very intelligent

and spiritually well advanced rishi who realized self or Atman. More

information about his birth and life comes from Indian epic Ramayana.

Sage Uddalaka ran a school (Ashram) teaching Vedic knowledge. Kahola

was one of his best disciples. Uddalaka was so pleased with him that

he got his daughter Sujata married to him. Sujata, eventually got

pregnant and wanted her child to surpass all the sages of his time in

spirituality and intelligence. So, she began to sit in the classes

taught by Uddalaka and Kahola, listening to their chanting of mantras

with the unborn baby. In ancient india, there was a belief that when

expectant mothers expose themselves spiritual teachings the child in

the womb hears it and gathers that knowledge and becomes a genius in

that spiritual area after its birth. It was one day, Kahola recited

the Vedas as laid down in the disciplinary rules, but within hearing

distance of the child growing in the womb. It heard the recitation

but, since it was already aware of the correct pronunciation of every

syllable since its mother used to attend classes with rapt attention,

whenever Kahola spelt a syllable wrong, the child in the womb

squirmed in distress. Sujata informed Kahola that he pronounced the

syllable wrongly as indicated by the child in the womb. This happened

on eight occasions. So, when the baby was born, it had eight bends,

crooked in eight places, Naturally, he was named Ashtavakra (Eight

Bends).

 

Later Ashtavakra grew into a spiritually advanced rishi and realised

Atman. He went to Mithila and instructed King Janaka about the

concept of Atman this forms the content of Ashtavakra Gita or

Ashtavakra Samhita as it is sometimes called.