Digestion holding life back

A spiritual aspirant approached a realized sage in a forest, asking him for instruction to know the self, saying he was tormented by the world. The sage asked him to sit under a peepal tree saying "Wait here till I come back".

Many hours passed and there was no sign of the sage. He felt hungry and thirsty. Some passers by gave him water to drink but there was no food.

Soon the Sun set and mosquitoes began biting him viciously. Without food and just some water leftover, the aspirant waited for the sage in that dark place. By night, there was still no sign of the sage and the weather got extremely cold. The aspirant prayed for the sage to come soon and fell asleep under the tree.

It was a painful night where he was ravaged by the mosquitoes and severely cold weather. Insects bit him, causing extreme pain. He could not sleep for a single minute. This was how the night passed. Soon it was morning, but there was no sign of the sage.

Days passed and the aspirant had endured this torture with no respite. Determined to follow the instruction of his Guru who had asked him to wait, he spent his time meditating under the tree, eating what passersby sometimes gave him. Sometimes, there was no food for days. There was no shelter against the elements. His meager clothes were the only covering.

The clothes were now dirty and soiled from days of use. He could no longer wear them. So in desperation, he went to a nearby stream, took them off, washed them and hung them on a tree to dry. He had no clothes to wear meanwhile. Children from the nearby village, who came to play in the stream started laughing and throwing stones at the naked man. The wounds bled. The aspirant sat under a tree and meditated, unmindful of the torture. The children went away after a while. There was no sign of the sage.

Days passed into weeks and months. Travelers who passed by occasionally, gave him some food or water. The aspirant fell sick under the difficult conditions. There was no one to attend to him. For days, he suffered the illness. There was no sign of the sage.

Months became years. The aspirant was unshaven and unkempt, spending most of his time in meditation, waiting under the tree, as per the instruction of his Guru. The constant meditation and life of simplicity however gave him a peculiar strength he had not experienced earlier. Illness no longer touched him frequently, though he did fall ill occasionally. He led the life of a hermit, eating what came by divine providence. There was still no sign of the sage.

After many years of such a difficult and honest life of a true Yogi, the villagers nearby realized that here was a man of some virtue. They ensured some food was given to him more frequently when they passed by. They left some old clothes for him. He had a crude shelter made from wood, twigs and barks, under which he sat in meditation. The children stopped assaulting him. The aspirant had by now become indifferent to worldly comforts. Leading a harsh life of frugality, his mind was centered on meditation of the self, waiting for the sage to turn up. There was however no sign of the Guru.

Twelve years passed this way. He had just finished his meditation and opened his eyes, and the sage was before him, smiling warmly. The aspirant's joy knew no bounds. He burst out in tears, for the sage was finally here, to impart the him instruction. He could finally realize the self. He fell at the feet of the sage and asked him -"Venerable Sir, I have waited here as per your instructions. Could you impart me realization of God"?

The realized one brought him up, blessed him and uttered the Mahāvākyam - "Tat Tvam Asi" (Thou are THAT) and the aspirant experienced full blown realization. The sage then left.

The harsh conditions and years of suffering dissolved much of the karma and helped build 'Titiksha' (spiritual endurance). The frugal life annulled his attachments to the world & its possessions. Bathing naked at the stream, with all his mind on realization, being oblivious to the reactions of people destroyed his pride, shame and self-consciousness, which are all offshoots of the Aham (Ego), the only impediment to realization. The constant Dhyana (meditation) burnt the 'Asat' (unreal) covering the Atman. By the end of the 12 years, all impediments to realization were vacated. The sage had known this to be the way the moment he saw the aspirant.

Do you see the belief the aspirant had in the words of the sage? He was asked to wait and he waited. No questions or conditions. He would have died at that very place in the wait. Such was his trust. He could have walked away after a few hours or days as most would; but the one he considered his Guru had given a simple instruction - "Wait here" and so, he waited. He never let the Ego rise up and cast its foolish doubts, nor took the easy way out. With childlike trust and devotion, the aspirant persisted. This is called unconditional surrender.

One should develop such surrender, trust and love for the Lord, who alone manifests as the Guru. Such trust & surrender alone invokes the Lord. It is true 'Bhakti' (devotion). The urge within to realize the Atman (self) should be like a raging fire. Then, the grace slowly comes. The path reveals by itself. 'Brahmavidya' (knowledge of the self) is not easily obtainable, though one himself is THAT. Such is the nature of Maya. However, how can it not come to him who makes his own existence secondary and gives in to the cause? It will come as surely as the Sun rises every morning. There need be no doubt about this.

The sufferings and impediments which an aspirant experiences are the result of strong past karma which has to work out and be annulled by Sadhana and often suffering. One must let go of impatience and first develop the determination to perform unbroken practice for a sustained number of years, for knowledge is to be sought from within and not from external instruction. The purpose of instruction ends at showing the path. One has to travel himself and realize. Theoretical or fancy queries are therefore not the way. That which is to be known will be known at the right time.

Adopt the Yogic way of life and the advised Sadhana in a gradual manner, to the extent possible. The path will gradually clear. Unbroken Brahmacharya with proper transmutation will eventually vacate the trouble in the intestines.

ॐ तत् सत्
(That Supreme being is the absolute truth)