Vasudev Sharma was a pious man living in the city of Ujjain. He had a son named Gunakar (literally meaning one with virtues). Vishnu Sharma took pains to bring up and educate Gunakar. However, contrary to his name, Gunakar fell into all kinds of vices. Despite repeated counseling by his father, Gunakar kept on sinking deeper and deeper into the quicksand of vices and squandered a fortune on them. Not able to cope up any more, Vasudev Sharma, threw Gunakar out of his house disinherited him of all his money and property.
Without his father’s money, Gunakar turned a pauper overnight. Stung by the pangs of hunger, he drifted around. While wandering, he came across a lonely place where he saw a person sitting by a small fire. One getting closer, he found that the place was a shamshan (Cremation ground) with a yogi sitting near his dhuni (Sacred fire). Seeing hope of getting something to eat, he went near the yogi and begged for food. The yogi who was a practitioner of tantric sadhna (occult practice) offered some food to Gunakar in a human skull lying nearby. Although extremely hungry, Gunakar could not stand the sight of food being offered in a skull. “Excuse me Maharaj, I won’t be able to eat out of this skull”.
Taking pity on Gunakar’s miserable condition, the yogi chanted a mantra. Lo and behold- instantly appeared a beautiful yogini (a supernatural woman with magical powers). “This boy is tired and hungry”, said the yogi to yogini. “Give him some good food and relieve him of his fatigue.”
The yogini took him to a beautiful palace, where sumptuous dishes were served to him. Gunakar enjoyed the food, where after he was led to a luxurious bed. Having had a good fill, Gunakar fell into deep slumber.
After a good refreshing sleep, Gunakar opened his eyes. To his surprise, he found himself lying on a flat stone at the cremation ground. The yogini, and the palace were nowhere to be seen. He got up and went to the yogi.
“Maharaj, the yogini has left and the palace has vanished too”, he informed the yogi.
“She had to. She had been called through the power of mantras, only for a specific job.”
Gunakar fell to the feet of the yogi. “Maharaj, Kindly teach me the mantras for invoking the yogini”, he implored.
“No no” said the yogi. It is a special invocation. Not for every one.”
However, Gunakar was adamant. Crying like a child, he caught the feet of the yogi (as a mark of extreme reverence). “Maharaj please teach me this invocation. I will do all that is required.”
“It is a very arduous”, said the yogi. “It requires fasting, discipline, keeping awake for days and nights together and many more strenuous practices.”
“I am ready to undergo any thing to learn the invocation. Please teach me.”
Giving in to his entreaties, the yogi agreed. Gunakar was explained the mantra and the method to be adopted for accomplishment of the task. He had to follow the arduous routine, for one week.
Gunakar was disappointed to find that even one full week’s practice and mantra chanting, could not invoke the yogini. “Maharaj the week is over but the yogini has not appeared.”
“There must be something lacking in your Sadhana”, replied the yogi.
“No maharaj. I did all that you asked me to.”
“All right. Repeat the Sadhna for another week, this time sitting near a burning corpse.”
Another week went by, but success seemed nowhere near Gunakar.
He again went to the yogi. “Maharaj, yogini has not turned up even now”. The yogi looked at him, closed his eyes, gazed inwards and suddenly sprung to his legs, as if in great anger. “Get lost”, he shouted. “What a foolish man have I taken as a disciple.” Saying so , he kicked Gunakar out.
However Gunakar did not leave. He kept entreating the yogi, but the yogi would not budge. At the same time, a young man came and requested the yogi to teach him the sadhana for invocation of the yogini. The yogi obliged instantly and taught him the mantra as well as the method for invocation. The man was successful after just one week’s sadhana. Gunakar, who was there all this time, was surprised. “May be, the yogi has not taught me the complete process”. With this doubt in his mind, he approached the yogi again and expressed it to him.
The yogi was furious. “Go away”, he shouted,” or else I would put you under a curse.”
Dejected, Gunakar ended his life by jumping into a well.
The story of Gunakar ended thus. However it left behind a big question. Wasn’t the yogi’s conduct inappropriate? Had he not humiliated Gunakar, he would not have ended his life. He should have taught Gunakar again. He might have succeeded the next time. With such thoughts in mind, the general public, sympathized with Gunakar.
The matter was raised in the court of King Vikram, who had the reputation of being extremely wise and radiant. After hearing the facts, he declared the tantric yogi to be innocent as he had tried to help Gunakar without any selfish motive. The person who came to him in the presence of Gunakar, succeeded in the same sadhana in which Gunakar had failed. The yogi had understood why Gunakar failed. His fickle mind was not focused on the sadhana. It was blinded by the lust for the beautiful form of the yogini. The yogi knew that no form of sadhana could ever liberate a foolish sensuous person of his lust.
Committing suicide is a sign of extreme foolishness. Gunakar had gone to the extent of even accusing the yogi of partiality. He had already fallen short of the expectations of his father.
Keeping all these aspects in view the King held Gunakar to be at fault.
This world is full of people like Gunakar. Just think, how many of us can spot our own deficiencies and eliminate them? Far from identifying our faults, we try to malign those who are good enough to help us by pointing out our faults.
People suffer under the load of sorrows. They are ever so turbulent. They believe that this world is full of sorrows only, and they can be relieved of the sorrow only if they leave this world. Some people, with their own assumptions of liberations, try to go through many self ordained means for libration, abdicating their worldly responsibilities in the process, under the garb of become renunciates. They flee from the arena of duties and responsibilities. Many of us sympathise with such people, as in the case of Gunakar. Not only that we even revere them as ascetics. In fact these are tamoguni people who spend their lives in indolence and lethargy, not doing anything.
We go on enmeshing ourselves more and more in the mesh of sorrows, since we try to get out of it without understanding the origin of this mesh. Ability to comprehend the source of sorrow, itself heralds the beginning of the way to liberation and attainment of eternal bliss.
The root cause of sorrows is –dependence. So long as you seek comfort from any thing or anyone except your own selves, you are dependant; you have forgotten your identity.
You can free yourself from dependence if you gainfully utilize what ever time you have at your disposal; reach out to others with affection. Then you will not remain dependant. Having freed yourself from dependence, you will start drawing Param Sukh, the eternal bliss, from within yourselves.
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