Saint Purandaradasa.

June 24, 2005

Many people who hanger after riches ultimately gave away everything and turned towards God.In that category Purandara Dasa is also one.His original name was Srinivasa Nayak who lived in a small town in Maharashtra engaged in his family business of dealing in precious stones.He was enormously rich and his greediness had no limit and he wanted to make money,more money.Such persons become victims of God's play.Lord Vishnu wanted that it was time for Srinivasa Nayak to give up his love for money and take his rightful role among saints.So he took the form of a poor brahmin and approached Nayak with a request for contribution for the thread ceremony of his son.Even though days passed Nayak did not give anything becoz of his miserliness and love for money.Six months passed in this way.The brahmin also was relentless and visiting the shop of Nayak for donation.Finally Nayak decided something must be done to get rid of the beggar and so he had some old worn out worthless coins and

he put the same before the brahmin and asked him to take one and never come back.The brahmin went away crest fallen.

However Naiks wife Saraswathy was a kind hearted soul and wanted to do some amends for her husbands miserliness.The brahmin knew this and he went staright to the house of Nayak and told his wife about the whole affair.She was appalled at the behaviour of her husband and wanted to help the poor man but she felt helpless since she could not give anything without his permission.When she explained her position the poor brahmin asked if she had something given by her parents(which presumably she could give without asking her husbands permission) and she agreed and gave him the diamond stud her parents had given her.With that the brahmin went straight to the shop of Nayak.He became angry at the sight of the poor beggar but the brahmin explained he did not come to ask for alms but to pledge an ornament and take a loan from Nayak.He became skeptical and asked the brahmin to show the ornament.When he saw it he immediately recognised that it was his wife's and questioned abt the

antecedents of the same and for that the brahmin replied that it was a gift from a benefactor.

Nayak asked the brahmin to come the next day,safely locked away the ornament in a box and went to his house.When he saw his wife was without the ornament he got damn wild and questioned her abt the same.She tried to stall him with non committed answers but he insisted in seeing the same immediately.He was angry becoz he thought she gave away a valuable ornament to a beggar brahmin.His wife felt the ground giving under her feet,She knew Nayak would punish her if she told the truth.Unable to think of an alternative she decided to end her life.She poured poison into a cup and lifted to her lips.Just as she was abt to drink the poison she heard a metallic sound.Wonder of wonders,the ornament was right in the cup.She could not believe her eyes.Her heart filled with gratitude she prostrated before the idol of Sri Krishna and took the ornament to her husband.Nayak was astonished as it was the same ornament that he had safely locked away in his shop.Excusing himself he ran to his shop

to check.The box in which he had safely locked away the ornament was empty.He was totally dumbfounded.

He went back home and asked his wife to tell her the truth.She narrated the whole incident.This put his mind in a turmoil.After deep thought he came to the conclusion that the brahmin was none other than God Himself.He recalled the incidents that happened during the last six months.Since it was his love for money that made him ill treat the Lord he gave away all his wealth with the Lord's name in his lips.From that day onwards he became a great devotee of Lord Hari.He practiced the principle contained in the popular saying 'we must swim across the suffering,win victory over it'.As he was a learned man too and able to write verses and songs he started composing songs and verses in the name of Lord Hari.As he required a teacher to direct him he approached Vyasaraja acknowledge to be a great saint and pleaded to take him as his disciple which he accepted.Vyasaraja was so impressed by the compositions of Nayak he bestowed the name of Puranadara Vittala on the non attached Srinivasa

Nayak and blessed him.He also earned the well deserved praise"Among the devotees of Hari Purandara Dasa is the greatest".

After wandering to many places he finally settled in Hampi with his family.Every morning he went to the town wearing bells in his ankles and tulasimala around his neck with a tomboori(a musical instrument) in his hand and song Hari Kirtanas.The verses he song were his own compositions.Some of them abt the adventures of Lord Krishna,some abt the kindness of God to people,some were philosophical contained in the Vedas,Upanishads,Bhagawat Gita in simple words.In some verses he praises Lord Krishna affectionately and in some he makes a fun of Him.Thus he who was after money was changed by the Will of God, had willingly accepted the life of a saint and begged for his food.In his verses he praises all the devotees of Sri Hari.He praises the gud fortune of Lakshmy, the consort of Lord Hari and sings how fortunate,pious is Lakshmy who serves Lord Hari with love at all times.He envies Yasodha for her good fortune to protect with affection the Sripathi.(Krishna) when he was a

child.Thinking of Vidura who satisfied his friend and Lord of the World with just one cup of milk and praises the gud luck and the great fortune of Vidura that the Universe in the form of Lord Krishna is fully satisfied with what Vidura has offered.

Even though he has taken a vow of being Haridasa his mind had not yet acquired peace and felt unhappiness at the state of his mind which was not able to reach a state of complete restfulness.He lamented that he did not think of Hari always because of thirst and hunger during days or nights and the family attachment and he wanted to remove these desires also.He weeps to Purandara Vittala for this state of affairs.So ardent his devotion to Lord had developed that he could not think of anything else.His sole aim was to be victorious over all the desires and to win God's blessings.Sometimes he dreamt that Lord Hari appeared before him and at times the Lord appeared on his mental screen.All these only increased his craving for the Lord.The Lord seemed to test the depth of his longing and his sincerity.Purandara Dasa seemed to hv been disturbed and upset over the serious test to which he was subjected.

He practiced high standard of moral conduct.He had practiced what he had preached.Although he took to renunciation and asceticism he did not desert his wife and children.He lived with them only.He compared wicked people as the knotted tree of thorns.He warned the non believers that life is being wasted away at every stroke of the bell.He said the eyes which cannot see Narahari(Lord Krishna) are no better than the eyes of peacock's feathers.He made music and songs an integral part of common man's life.Vysaraja his teacher himself called Dasas verses and songs as'Purandaropanishad'.It is said he has composed abt 4.75 lakhs verses.Whatever be the numbers many of them contain the aspects of spiritual life and how it grew from stage to stage.The remaining songs are abt the experience,devotion,wisdom,and his detachment.The songs are in Kannada.Such was his influence he is dubbed as the doyen of Carnatic music.

Hare Krishna.

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