UG and Baby Sirisha |
UG staked everything - his fortune, career, family and reputation, in trying to explore the only thing that mattered to him in life - Brahman or Atma or Self or Reality or nature of existence!
We see such extraordinary, singular devotion in the lives of Ramana Maharshi, Buddha and a few others of the same ilk.
Once I queried UG, "Sir, what sport did you enjoy most when you were a kid?"
I received a lightning jolt from UG, " No sir! As a child, I had absolutely no time for games or sports ! I spent most of my time in mountain caves, in meditation, in chanting of mantras - several thousand times a day! I was put on a strict regimen and never got a chance to play games or sports like other kids!"
Such a lonely, regimented childhood!
Listening to this mind blowing account of his tender years, I momentarily felt a sickening pain in the pit of my stomach. But before I could even recover from the shock, typical of UG, he had segued on to yet another topic!
Unthinkable how a tender child could take on such severe penance! One is reminded of Ramana , Nityananda (Ganeshpuri) and that legendary Nachiketa - boy wonders who saw through the falsehood of our living and rejected the worldly life at such a tender age ! They belong to the league of precocious children with monstrous determination and phenomenal guts to plumb the depths of Reality, the only thing that mattered most in their lives!
Their search was devoid of any selfish motives or ego-centric ambitions, it was 'a search for the sake of search' ! We see pristine purity in their search. We see the qualities of abandonment and sacrifice as opposed to attainment and avarice, the selfish motives behind our spiritual quest !
Though UG personally underwent such harsh austerities on his part, he forbade others from taking up such practices and misadventures. He warned us in no uncertain terms, " You will only end up in a loony bin - singing loony tunes and merry melodies"
UG's characteristic disclaimer is a unique guidepost in spiritual wilderness!
Why was UG so concerned?
The devil perhaps lies in the purity or nobility in the intention behind such a pursuit. He repeated ad nauseum," What do you want? What is the single thing that you want in your life?" pushing us to the wall, as it were, to honestly take a look at ourselves and explore our hidden motives or intentions. In short, with these four words, he helped us to explore our hidden agenda! All our actions are tainted with hope, motivation and ambition leading to fear, hopelessness and despondency, sure-fire recipe for disaster and self-destruction !
What do you want? What a simple innocuous question and what serious implications !
Furthermore, UG spent a lifetime debunking spiritual undertakings of each and every kind. He relentlessly questioned the reality of such goals and exposed the futility of such pursuits to keep us away from traps and treachery, ripe in the spiritual bazaar!
I recall yet another anecdote of UG with regard to childhood and children.
Once while on a visit to our home, UG thoroughly enjoyed playing with my little baby daughter for a length of time. At one point, I proudly proclaimed that the little one was 'father's pet' and would never part with anything in her hands to anyone else except me - her doting father. UG wasted no time and right away challenged me and said that he would prove me wrong at every turn! The game started - every time I asked for the pen in her hands, she would turn away, ignore me and hand it over to UG sitting next to her! This happened so many times that I finally surrendered and conceded that I was the looser! UG, the magician, simply had charmed my infant daughter and proved me wrong!
Finding UG in a joyous mood that day, I took the opportunity and made a light-hearted remark," UG ! As I see it, you seem to thoroughly enjoy the company of children! But your saying ' children are monsters' and that 'you relish the soup made of new born babies' tongues' -this somehow doesn't gel with what I see!"
UG didn't mince words, " Sir! People don't know - I love children! I enjoy their company! Unfortunately, today there is no school or education system in any part of the globe, that can provide a curriculum to young children without corrupting their minds."
Behind UG's tough veneer, behind those outrageous remarks and statements, there lurked a gentle, tender spirit! One just needed to scratch the surface!