Fwd: The Story of the Immortal Gorakh Nath

[Guest guest]

Found this in another .

Minapa is same as Matsyendra-natha or Mina-natha, I think.

It is quite common among Tantrics to think of themselves as prophets

after reaching some spiritual level only to fall down or get

enlightened later(based on their karma).

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-----, "sivadancer" <sivadancer> wrote:

Here is the story of the beginnings of the immortal Gorakh Nath who

is supposedly still in physical form teaching yoga to qualified

seekers. He is considered to be one of the 84 mahasiddhas. This

story is taken from the book _Masters of Enchantment_ translated by

Keith Dowman.

 

GORAKSA, The Immortal Cowherd

 

"Whatever your birth—high, middle, or low—

Use the circumstances of your life

To the fullest. Realize the flow

Of karma is helping you reach your goal.

I seized my chance for enlightenment

In faithful service to Caurangi, the Limbless One.

Then Acinta served me the nectar of immortality

And I beheld nondual reality.

Now I have become the Cowherd King of Three Realms."

 

During the reign of King Devapala, a poor incense seller in the

eastern part of India was forced to hire out his youngest son,

Goraksa, as a cowherd. It was a humble, simple life, but the boy

enjoyed the countryside and the gentle company of the animals.

 

One lazy afternoon he was lying in the tall grass talking with some

of the other cowherds when, suddenly, a towering form appeared

before them. It was the mahasiddha Minapa, known also as Acintapa.

The guru pointed into the distance and in a ringing voice asked, "Do

you see the vultures circling over there? They are awaiting the

death of a young prince who lies gravely wounded in the shade of a

lone tree. He has been set upon and his arms and legs have been cut

off. Who will save him and care for him?"

 

Instinctively seizing the moment, Goraksa cried, "I will," and leapt

to his feet. "But if I do your work for you," he said to

Minapa, "you must do mine for me."

 

And so the bargain was struck. Minapa remained to watch the herd,

and the boy ran off toward the cloud of vultures. Before long, he

discovered the limbless victim, whose lifeblood was seeping into the

roots of the tree beneath him. Goraksa cleaned and bound the

terrible wounds with bandages torn from his own clothes. After he

had done what he could to make the prince comfortable, he returned

to Minapa and reported all that he had seen and done.

 

"Will you find a way to feed him?" asked the guru.

 

"Yes," the boy replied. "The owner of my herd gives me food and

drink morning and evening. I will give the prince half of what I

receive."

 

The guru praised Goraksa and gave him instructions for the care of

the prince. "In order to live, he must perform the four basic

functions of life: eating, drinking, sleeping, and defecating.

 

The humble cowherd went back to the prince and used the branches and

leaves of the tree to build a protective shelter around him. Each

day thereafter, as they both grew to manhood, Goraksa shared his

food and drink with him. And he bathed the prince, and cleaned away

the excrement, and did all that was needed for the prince's comfort.

 

One beautiful evening, twelve years later, when the setting sun was

painting the darkening sky with glorious crimsons and golds, Goraksa

was bringing the prince his evening meal as usual. But when the

simple cowherd arrived at the tree shelter, he saw the most

incredible sight.

 

Openmouthed, Goraksa watched as the prince stood up from the spot

where his limbless body had remained motionless for all those long

years. Now he was standing on two strong, healthy legs and

stretching out two muscular arms.

 

"You'd better close your mouth," said the prince sharply. "You'll

swallow a fly." Whereupon he levitated into the air and hovered just

over Goraksa's head. "Minapa has taught me a yoga that has caused my

limbs to regenerate. In repayment for your service I am willing to

teach you how to meditate."

 

"Thank you, my lord, but no," replied Goraksa. "I already have a

guru. In serving you all these years, I have simply been obeying his

instructions."

 

And the faithful cowherd returned to his grazing animals. Before

long, Minapa appeared before him and inquired after his charge.

Goraksa told him of the prince's miraculous restoration. The guru

was delighted and praised the young man's diligence and

faithfulness. Then and there he gave Goraksa initiation and

empowerment, and carefully instructed him in the precepts he should

follow.

 

Goraksa then traveled to a distant land where he could practice

meditation according to Minapa's instruction. When he attained the

more mundane level of awareness, Minapa appeared before him

again. "You cannot attain complete awakening and the purity of

Buddhahood," said the guru, "until you have liberated one hundred

million beings."

 

Such was Goraksa's enthusiasm for service that he rushed off into

the world and began initiating anyone who would stop and listen to

him. However, in his eagerness, he neglected to make a careful

assessment of his students' ripeness for instruction.

 

This upset the Great God Mahadeva, who appeared before Goraksa as he

sat amid a crowd of initiates. Reproving him, Mahadeva warned the

cowherd, "Instruct only those who come to you and request your

teachings. Never initiate those who lack faith or true

understanding."

 

Thereafter, Goraksa taught only those whose karma had prepared them

for initiation, yet he still liberated countless numbers of people.

To this very day Goraksa, whose name means "Protector of the Herd,"

continues to teach. Those who are pure in mind and ready for

instruction hear the steady beat of his drum. But to others, he will

forever remain silent and unseen.

 

AUM

--- End forwarded message ---