Guru

Contributed by: Rahul D

During one of his sojourns, the preceptor gave his students a thin book to learn from while He was away ... for about a week

On his return, He asked them all whether they had learned the lessons. He had given them . All answered positively except his favourite student. He had not done the lessons.

The teacher asked him again in the hope that maybe there was some communication problem thing .. Maybe he hadn't heard him well. The student again answered that he had learned only one line from the book ..

The teacher blew his top so to say ... ONE WEEK and only a line .. and the boy had the impudence to say.. He had learnt just one line ....

The Guru smacked the boy across his face ...

The boy kept his face down in complete submission to his Guru ..

The Guru's face was still livid with rage ...

Again He asked him "How much did you learn?"

(Maybe the boy was joking at the Guru's expense)

"One line" answered the boy ...

SMACK!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!

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This one resounded in the ashram ....

Even the other disciples were beginning to feel for one of their own now

The Guru asked him to get out of his sight ...

Wiping away tears, the boy went to a secluded corner of the Ashram while the rest went about their duties

Time it is said is the best healer ...

In a couple of hours as the Guru had cooled down and was handling other matters, He thought over the incident again ...He felt sorry for the boy  ... He had never slapped any boy in his ashram ..and the boy was his favourite ....

He sent for the boy ...

The boy stood before him humble in his manner ..

The guru placed his hand on the boy's head and gently asked him,

"My dear, Show me .. What is the one line you have learnt?"

The student opened the book to the first page and the only line

He had taken over a week to learn ...

"Learn to control and be a master of your anger"

The Guru's hand trembled as the book slipped out of it ...

His heart filled up with remorse and guilt ...

He was the Guru and it was his duty to teach the students about Life

But in a week, the boy had learnt a lesson that He (the Guru) had failed

He embraced the boy hiding his tears ...

The student had taught the teacher ..

The Child had become the father of Man ...

The boy grew up to be known as Dharmraj Yudhisthir

and the Guru as Guru Dronacharya

Author - Rahul (bruntno1 @yahoo. com)

Obviously with inputs from the Mahabharta ... I remember reading this story years ago and how it affected me ..Yudhisthir did exactly what needs to be done today ... He took the lessons (idealism) from the book and brought it into real life ... He gave them form in real life ......No wonder the epithet "Dharmraj" became his Title of address The lesson to be learnt is also that one must honour the Guru under all circumstances .. If  Guru Dronacharya  had not gotten angry, Yudhisthir would never  have learnt the importance of controlling his anger ...

In the momentary loss of sanity that Dronacharya took upon himself, He showed his other students and generations to come, the folly of losing one's temper ... even though He may have to bear the ignominy of being a short tempered flawed preceptor ....  

Dronacharya - A Guru in the truest sense - with no desire for anything and

Yudhisthir - A student - ready to sacrifice everything for the Guru

Truly it is said in the Vedas

Gurur Brahma, Gurur Vishnu, Gurur devo Maheshwara

Gurur saakshat Parbrahm, tasmai Shri Gurvay namah

May the Guru be ever blessed!

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