100. UTANGA :

WHEN the battle was over, Krishna bade
farewell to the Pandavas and went to
Dwaraka. While on his way, he met his
old brahmana friend Utanga. Krishna
stopped and descending from his chariot
saluted the brahmana.



Utanga returned the greeting and
proceeded to make the usual inquiries
about the health and welfare of relatives.
"Madhava, do your cousins the Pandavas
and the Kauravas love one another as
brothers should? Are they well and
flourishing?" he asked.



The innocent recluse had not heard about
the great battle that had been fought.
Krishna was astounded at the question of
his brahmana friend. For a while, he stood
silent not knowing what to say in reply.
Then he softly disclosed what had
happened.



"Sir, a terrible battle had been fought by
the Pandavas and the Kauravas, I tried
hard and applied every means to prevent
the fight and make peace between them.
But they would not listen. Almost all of
them have perished on the field of battle.
Who can stop the hand of fate?" Then he
related all that had happened.



When Utanga heard the narrative, he was
exceedingly wroth. With eyes red with
indignation he spoke to Madhava:



"Vasudeva, were you there standing by
and did you let all this happen? You have
indeed failed in your duty. You have
surely practised deceit and led them to
destruction. Prepare now to receive my
curse!" Vasudeva smiled and said: "Peace,
peace! Calm yourself. Do not use up the
fruit of your great penances in this anger.
Listen to what I say and then, if you like,
you may pronounce your curse."



Krishna pacified the indignant brahmana
and appeared to him in his all-embracing
form, the Viswarupa.



"I am born in various bodies from time to
time to save the world and establish the
good. In whatever body I am born, I must
act in conformity with the nature of that
body. When I am born as a Deva, I act as
a Deva does. If I appear as a Yaksha or as
a Rakshasa, I do everything like a Yaksha
or a Rakshasa. If I am born as a human
being, or as a beast, I do what is natural to
that birth and complete my task. I begged
very hard of the ignorant Kauravas. They
were arrogant and intoxicated by power
and paid no heed to my advice. I tried to
intimidate them. Therein also I failed. I
was in wrath and showed them even my
Viswarupa. Even that failed to have an
effect. They persisted in wrongdoing.
They waged war and perished. O best
among brahmanas, you have no reason to
be angry with me."



After this explanation of Krishna, Utanga
recovered his calm. Krishna was,
delighted.



"I wish to give a boon to you. What would
you like?" said Krishna.



"Achchyuta," said Utanga, "is it not
enough I have seen Thee and Thy Form
Universal? I do not desire any further
boon."



But Krishna insisted and the desert
wandering simple brahmana said: "Well,
my Lord, if you must give me some boon,
let me find water to drink whenever I
might feel thirsty. Give me this boon."
Krishna smiled. "Is this all? Have it then,"
he said, and proceeded on his journey.
One day Utanga was very thirsty and,
unable to find water anywhere in the
desert, he bethought himself of the boon
he had received.



As soon as be did this, a Nishada appeared
before him, clothed in filthy rags. He had
five hunting hounds in leash and a waterskin
strapped to his shoulder.



The Nishada grinned at Utanga and
saying, "You seem to be thirsty. Here is
water for you," offered the bamboo spout
of his water-skin to the brahmana to drink
from.



Utanga, looking at the man and his dogs
and his water skin, said in disgust:
"Friend, I do not need it, thank you."
Saying this, he thought of Krishna and
reproached him in his mind: "Indeed, was
this all the boon you gave me?"



The outcaste Nishada pressed Utanga over
and over again to quench his thirst, but it
only made Utanga more and more angry
and he refused to drink. The hunter and
his dogs disappeared.



Seeing the strange disappearance of the
Nishada, Utanga reflected: "Who was
this? He could not have been a real
Nishada. It was certainly a test and I have
blundered miserably. My philosophy
deserted me. I rejected the water offered
by the Nishada and proved myself to be
an arrogant fool."



Utanga was in great anguish. A moment
later Madhava himself appeared with
conch and discus. "O Purushottama!"
exclaimed Utanga; "you put me to a
difficult trial. Was it right of you to try me
thus? Make an untouchable offer unclean
water to me, a brahmana, to drink. Was
this kind?" asked Utanga. Utanga spoke in
bitter tones.



Janardana smiled. "O Utanga, for your
sake, when you put my boon into action, I
asked Indra to take amrita to you and give
it to you as water. He said he could not
give to a mortal what would give him
immortality, while he was willing to do
anything else. But I prevailed upon him
and he agreed to take amrita and give it to
you as water, provided I let him do it as a
Chandala and tested your understanding
and found you willing to take water from
a Chandala. I accepted the challenge
believing you had attained jnana and
transcended externals. But you have done
this and made me suffer defeat at Indra's
hands." Utanga saw his mistake and was
ashamed.


Next : 101. A POUND OF FLOUR


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