Friday 8 July 2016

The Greatness of Sri Ananthazhwan - Part 4

Continued From: http://thoughtsonsanathanadharma.blogspot.ca/2016/07/the-greatness-of-sri-ananthazhwan-part-3.html?spref=fb




The Two Snakes


Not only was Sri Ananthazhwan a faithful disciple but, he was also a great vedantin. One morning, Sri Ananthazhwan was gathering flowers from the garden. He was followed by his disciples who also helped him. Sri Ananthazhwan lectured them on the commentaries of the 4000 Divya Prabandham and on the divine qualities of the Lord. Sri Ananthazhwan would pluck the flowers while the disciples carried them in bamboo baskets. As Ananthazhwan reached out to pluck a cluster of ylang-ylang, he was bitten by a black cobra. His disciples were terrified when they found out that their acharyan had been bitten by a deadly snake. They started to panic. 

‘You are the only one who can run very fast. Hurry! See if you can find a doctor. If you are near the temple, make inquiries to see if anyone knows of someone who belongs to the tribes who live in the forest as, they know some herbs which can break the venom,' instructed a disciple to his colleague. 

'What is the reason for the panic?' asked Sri Ananthazhwan. 

The disciples were astonished by Sri Ananthazhwan’s calm demeanor.

'You have been bitten by the deadliest snake. Isn't this enough to cause panic even in the three worlds?' 

'Did you forget so soon everything I just taught you? Didn't I just teach everyone that, the most deadly snake is our body? So what if my body has been bitten by a snake? Can the venom harm me, the atma which cannot be destroyed?' 

The disciples gathered around Sri Ananthazhwan with tears in their eyes. 

'We agree with the philosophy but,...' 

‘There is no room for but, what you see here is a struggle taking place between two snakes. If the cobra wins, I will take a dip in the Viraja and serve Paramapada Nathan. If my body wins, I will continue to serve Lord Srinivasa here at Tirumala. It doesn't matter to me which snake wins as the result is the same. Come on, help me gather flowers.' 

The disciples watched Sri Ananthazhwan with apprehension, but, to their relief, he continued to serve Lord Srinivasa. Perumal was overjoyed with Sri Ananthazhwan. He found in Sri Ananthazhwan, one who lived per the instructions provided in the Bagawad Gita. 'How I wish that, I could call Sri Ananthazhwan as my acharyan!’ sighed Perumal. 

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