Sri Gopaladaasaru.Gurubhakti personified Part.1

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Namaskara to all Haribhaktaas.

 

28-1-2000 Gopala daasara punya dina.

 

Among the eight haridaasa sreshtaas of Karnataka the name of Sri Gopaladaasaru

stands as an example of gurubhakti to be emulated. The keynote of Madhva

tradition is abject devotion to one's preceptor and dasaru lived a life in

accordance to the above traditon.

 

In Raichur district in a place called mosaragallu there lived a pious couple

Maralirayaru and venkamma. They had four children bhaaganna,dasappa,seenaappa

and rangaappaa. The sudden demise of the head of the family left the family in

lurch and venkama had to shoulder the responsibility of nurturing

the four young boyus. She used to work hard in many houses to bring up the

children. Seeing her plight two generous people gave her a piece of land and

cultivated for her in that land respectively. By the grace of the Lord there was

a bumper harvest . The local chieftain angry with venkamma for not

working in his house asked for the forfeiture of the crops on the pretext of Her

using the lake belonging to the state. Appeals of pardon to him was of no avail

and he remained stubborn. Venkamma was frustrated and cursed her fate.

Bhaganna could not bear the sufferings of the mother and cursed

the chieftan to be childless and the lake to go dry and till today it is so.

The mother had entrusted Her children to a broad minded teacher who taught the

children with a selfless attitude. One day a rich man performed the thread

ceremony of his son and simultaneously also extended that opportunity to

Bhaganna. This was a turning point in the life of Bhaganna.

His mother had inisisted to her son to chant gayatri with devotion since it is

capable of not only granting what one desires but also because there is no other

mantra more sacred than the Holy gayatri. Bhaganna took the word as vedavaakyaa

and used to chant the mantra with greatest devotion. He

used to sit down under a peepal tree after the morning ablutions and get

absorbed in the recitation of the sacred mantra. This continued for yuears

together and the people began to doubt the reason for thismeditation and some

even ridiculed the boy. .

One prankster poured hot bubbling water on the boy who was unmoved from his

posture with closed eyes on dyana and to everyone's consternation the person who

did the mischief got burns and boils all over the body while the young meditator

was unscathed.

Then one day mother gayatri was extremely pleased with the sadhana of the young

boy and appeared before Him and wrote the beejaakshara on the tongue of the

young boy. This caused a metamorphosis in the life of the boy. He could by the

blessings of gayatri and the grace of Sri Harih Vaayuh gurugalu

could not only compose divine songs but also could foretell and explain three

births of people who stoood before Him.

I would like to highlight some points on the above incidents and then proceed

further.

1. Firstly the above events reveals how the parents must force the children and

instruct them to do sandyavandana thrice and repeat gayatri with great

devotion.(even if they may not do so!!!!!!)

2. It also brings to the light that one who catches the feet of Gayatri will

never come to any harm and on the contrary the mother will be as a constant

companion and saviour to the aspirant.

3. brihat saama tataa saamnaam gaayatri chandasamaham/

Srimadhbhagavatgita. ch10 shloka35

The Lord Himself Has stated the importance of gaayatri in the vibhuti yoga and

this incident brings to the limelight the role of the holy gayatri mantra in the

sojourn of the spiritual aspirant to emancipation.

The lives of such great souls are meant for souls like us ensnared in this

samsara and reiterate the mahima of the mantra and make our janma saapalya by

reciting the mantra knowing its efficacy atleast after listenening or reading

the lifehistory of such great saints.

 

Bhaganna decided to shift to Uddhanur and serve at the Srinivaasaa temple there.

Again by the grace of Gaayatri all his wants were fulfilled and the Lord who

dispels agnaana easily alleviated his poverty.

His visit to adoni to meet Vijayadasaru changed his nomenclature to the renowned

Gopala daasaaru. On the darshana maatraa of His Guru he got the ankita of Gopala

Vittala and he was called as Sri Gopaladaasaru. This incident again reiterates

the importance of a spiritual Guru and mantropadesha even

if the aspirant is on a spiritually high profile.

 

Then when the daasaru was proceeding to Udupi to have a darshan of Sri Krishna

there was a dacoit called mandeketta bheemannna who wanted to assault Sri

Gopaladaasaru and His retinue. When He lifted His hand to do so then immediately

His hand was paralysed and he fell at the feet of the daasaru who

immediately pardoned him.and restored him to normalcy.

 

There was a pundit who was arrogant and did not recognize the daasaru whereas

His wife was totally dedicated and prayed for better sense to dawn upon her

husband . One day she asked him to go to the daasaru to ask about the future of

their son as the daasa could predict the future. The pundit went

in the guise of picking thulasi leaves but the saint told him about the purpose

of the visit and also that his son would be a great scholar. The pundit fell at

the feet and acknowledged the greatness of the saint. Once, the pundit was doing

his evening sandyavandana and gopaladaasaru requested Him

not to give the fourth argya (kaalaadikrakama dosha......) though the sun had

set. The pundit was nonplussed but the daasa showed the sun at the top thereby

proving that nothing was possible for a aproxagyaanin. The pundit asked the

saint as to when aparoxa was possible to him. The saint said that

if he initiates himself into sanyaasa then it would be possible and the pundit

did so with the name of Vyaasatatvagyaru.

 

to be continued.

Yours in the Service of Sri Harih.

Dr. B. Basker.