A sample test from God!
Reference: Extracted and adapted from Puran of Sriom Vaidehi – Volume 2 Chapter 11
In this Puran, Madhavan’s son drops the idol of Lord Krishna in the river. The boy wanted to celebrate Vinayaga Chaturthi. He was told by the parents that he must see Lord Vinayaga in the idol of Lord Krishna. The boy did pooja accordingly. As the villagers immersed the idols of Lord Vinayaga (made of clay) in the nearby river, the boy also decided to immerse the idol of Lord Krishna in the river, which he did. We know Madhavan is so attached to Lord Krishna and the idol. He became mad when he found the idol missing. His wife, Vaidehi was also equally upset. They cry without knowing what had happened. The boy comes and tells her mother slowly what he did to the idol. Then all of them rush to the place where the boy immersed the idol. Madhavan says that he would not return home without the idol of Lord Krishna. Vaidehi prays Lord Krishna that he must come back. Madhavan sleeps on the banks of the river. He was woken up in the early morning by a boy who looked like a fisherman. His face was attractive. Let us join their conversation.
“Sir, why are you lying down here?”
“Who are you, son?”
“My name is Machahan. I am a fisherman.”
“Ok. Why did you wake me up?”
“You seem to be quite depressed. I thought of asking you why and so woke you up.”
“Nothing! How can you understand my distress?”
“I will help you if I can. Tell me. It is not good to be lying down on the river banks unnecessarily.”
“It’s alright. I will remain like this. Kanna Himself has no sympathy.”
“Who is Kanna? Have you come out of the house getting angry with your son?”
“Why are you talking all this? Please understand the tragedy I am in.”
“If you don’t tell me anything, how and what I can understand?”
“You won’t understand even if I tell you.”
“Why all these unnecessary talk? Tell me. I will certainly help you.”
“Ok. I will tell. Listen. My Kanna’s idol has fallen into this water. It has fallen into the middle of the river there.”
“You are telling that it is an idol. How big is that, Sir? “
“It is a small idol”, Madhavan showed the size, with his hands.
“Oh. Is that all? Are you shrieking for the small idol? If it is missing, buy another one.”
“Don’t talk without understanding. That is an idol of Kanna. It is not a toy as you think.”
“Alright! Who is that Kanna you are telling?”
“It is Lord Kanna, whom I worship from my childhood. His glory cannot be told. He took ten incarnations that people know of and there are many more incarnations. He resides in pure souls. He respects pure devotion. He protects those who believe in Him. He is there with us all the time. I can keep on saying a lot. It is difficult to make you understand.”
“You say that He is everywhere and has taken ten incarnations. Is He only in that idol? You are telling that He is within your mind. Then why do you search for the lost idol. As you say, if He comes when you call, why don’t you call now? Let him come out from the river”. Machahan kept on talking.
“Stop it. Why do you talk so negatively?”
“I am not talking anything wrong, Sir. I just told what you said. Should we not understand and feel that Kanna who is everywhere?”
“I am a distressed man. I can’t live without that Kanna.”
“So, for you, the idol is important?”
“Yes, the idol is important to me. Can you bring that out?”
“You said that it has fallen in that place. You pray to Kanna. Most probably it would be stuck between some stones. I will bring it.”
Machahan jumped into the river. Half an hour went by. He did not come back. Madhavan was a bit tense.
“Kanna, the person who went in search of You is also gone. Has he stolen You? He talked a lot, but now he is not to be seen. Kanna, nothing should happen to him. If something happens, his parents will blame me. Kanna, please come back.” Madhavan kept thinking.
Suddenly, he could see Machahan standing up from a distance. He was showing his hands. Madhavan could not understand his gesture. After some time, he came closer.
“I took out this idol with great difficulty, Sir. You had panicked for such a small idol. You can make this idol from anyone. To be on the safer side, make some more like this and keep for future.”
With great joy of getting back Kanna, Madhavan did not say anything to Machahan.
“Sir, why do you have such passion towards this idol like a small child? You seem to be a learned man who knows a lot but still you have such a great desire.” He laughed.
“How will you know the greatness of this idol?”
“Ok. If you know the greatness, why did you not jump in the river and take out the idol, with the confidence that the great idol will save you?”
“You forgive me for that. I don’t know swimming and I am also afraid of jumping into the water and that’s why I asked you to bring it.”
“If we have started and keen to do something, we should be brave enough to do anything for that cause. How will you understand that? Ok. I need to do some fishing. I came looking for fish here. Looks like I won’t get it here. I will come another time and catch fish.” Machahan was ready to leave.
“What would you like to have? You have done a great help for me. You can come home and have food. I can also give you a lot of money.”
“Sir, you have not understood me. I did not do this for the sake of money. You looked very sad and that’s why I helped you. I also did not get what I came for. What else to do other than leaving? Let me tell you one thing. Don’t have this much attachment to this idol and regret it later”. Machahan left.
Gyanaamrith
Here, in this Puran, Lord Krishna comes as a fisherman and gives so much Gyan in a short span of time in an innocent manner. He is giving message full of wisdom to Madhavan who is an epitome of devotion.
Here Madhavan, while explaining the importance of the lost idol, says that Lord Krishna is present everywhere and he is with us at all times. Then the boy asks why he is looking for the missing idol whilst he is present everywhere.
Then the boy gets the idol from the river and hands over to Madhavan and tells him that why he panicked for such a small idol. Then Madhavan says that he would not understand its value and greatness.
The boy asks Madhavan why he did not dive into the river to get the idol out. Madhavan replies that he does not know swimming. The boy replies that if he had faith and also started working on a project, he must be brave enough to complete it.
It is really an interesting dialogue between the boy and the Madhavan.
He is telling Madhavan to get detached from the idol that he is worshipping. As one worships a particular form, one gets attached to the idol that a person worships. On attaining a particular stage, a devotee would be tested by his Guru or God on his attachment to the idol that he worships. That is what happens to Madhavan here.
The boy says casually why Madhavan did not dive into the river searching for idol if he had absolute faith in his Lord. Here Madhavan is tested to see whether he has surrendered completely to God.
We see in this Puran the level of devotion Madhavan shows to Lord Krishna. He is attached to Lord Krishna from the birth. When he is tested for his attachment and surrender to God, one can make out where he/she stands.
Another point to note is that God answers to the prayers of Madhavan and Vaidehi here. Both cry from their heart for the return of the idol. Their sincere prayers with pure mind are answered. The boy comes from nowhere and helps in getting the idol from the river. The idol could have gone anywhere but the Lord helps through the boy or he comes as a boy and helps.
To conclude, this simple anecdote leaves so much Gyan for us to comprehend!
Sriom.
