Isavaasyam - Teachings to Change the Lives

Dasganu Maharaj once wanted to write commentary on Isavasyopanishad and fulfills his desire by writing this complicated scripture. So many people appreciated his writing and praised for doing so. But Dasganu had lot of questions and he put his doubts in front of some great scholars. But they could not satisfy his mind. He was unhappy about this. He approaches Baba and requested him to bless him with this knowledge. Then Baba says that there is nothing difficult about this and when you go back, visit kaka’s house. His maid will clarify your doubts.

Every one felt that Baba is joking and how a maid can teach a scripture. But Dasganu knew that he has to go to Kaka Dixit’s house. What Baba said is the truth. 

Here the take home point is the belief in your Guru in Baba’s words Shradda (Faith). Guru’s word is God’s word. 

Then he goes to Kaka’s house and rests that night. He suddenly wakes up to a sweet voice who was singing about a saree. Then he woke up and wanted to check who that lady was? He started thinking is this the lady Baba was talking about? She was the sister of another worker by name Namya. Then he listens closely to the song she was singing about Saree (dress) which is in color orange. She was wearing a rag yet she was singing about a beautiful dress. She was very happy in singing this song.

Then he felt for her poverty and asked Moreswar Pradhan to give her a Saree. Then she wore that dress next day and started singing again. She came back to work next day with her original rag and still she was happy. She was singing and there was no difference in her attitude. After observing all this, Dasganu felt that he understood the Isavasyopanishad. He was able to satisfy his zeal in understanding the scripture.

What did Dasganu learn from observing this maid? 

Baba could have taught him this in Shirdi itself. Why send him to kaka’s house? 

What can we learn from the maid, the Saree, the work she was doing, the happiness that she showed by singing even when she was not wearing the new saree. What is the link and relation to Isavasyopanishad?

Isavasyopanishad has 18 verses. This is the smallest Upanishad of all of the Upanishads. Eesa means God and Vaasa means “who is omnipresent. 

Baba could have told him this in Shirdi itself. But he wanted to show Dasganu that he can teach through a maid to prove that he is everywhere.  

The initial verse teaches us that God is every where and is all pervading. The universe came from this completeness. 

The maid’s poverty, ragged Saree, person who donated the saree, and all this is part of God.

If we can get rid of ego, the sense of me, mine and enjoy with out expectation, then we will succeed in spiritual path.

In this story, maid was happy when she was in a rag or new Saree. This did not affect her happiness. This is what Baba wanted Dasganu to learn. This teaching is confirmed in the verses of Isavasyopanishad. It is really hard to reject the materialistic happiness. But we have to enjoy them by rejecting them. They both are contradicting each other. What it really means is to enjoy the worldly things with out getting attached to the object. All these objects were given to us by God. He gave air to breath, water to drink, and all the required elements to live. We did not bring any thing when we came in to this world and we do not take any thing with us when we die. We have to appreciate God for giving all this. The scripture says that we should not take any thing that does not belong to us. In this universe we were given enough and we have to understand our piece of the pie. If we try to snatch from others and accumulate, what will happen? Some people by their crooked ways gulp every thing around them. This is not fair and we can not even imagine what they have to go through after wards.  There will be balance in the nature.

The word “Tena Tyaktena Bhunjida” also denotes another meaning. When we eat banana, we eat the pulp and throw the skin. In a similar way, we have to reject the materialistic world by grasping the force behind this that is Paramatma (Supreme God). 

In our story we have lot of elements like the maid, saree, and rag, person who donated the saree etc. But the happiness that she was in irrespective of what she was wearing is the concept of ultimate happiness (Paramatma tatva). 

Baba not only provided this situation for Dasganu to learn but he also gave him an extraordinary out of body experience. This is what great Gurus do! They will make you experience the scripture rather than just telling you. With this ultimate experience Dasganu’s doubts were cleared once for all about Isavasyopanishad. 

OM SRI SAI RAM!