Talk:Bhagavān Kṛṣṇa Blesses his Bhakta Puṇḍalika:Sant Ekanātha (1533–1599)

By Vishal Agarwal

Story: Sant Ekanātha shows that the greatest worship is to do good to others

He was a great scholar of Sanskrit who wrote his books in the language of Maharashtra so that the common man could understand the teachings of the holy books. Numerous stories are narrated from his life, which show his saintly qualities.

Sant Eknath Writing the Bhavarth Ramayan

One day, Ekanātha was taking a bath in the River Godāvarī when he saw a poor woman arrive with her infant and a bucket to fill some water. After she had filled her bucket with water, she started walking back towards her home alone, forgetting to carry the infant.

The baby soon started crying and caught Ekanātha’s attention. He rushed to the baby and picked him lovingly in his arms. He followed the woman and then gave the baby to her as she was just entering her home. The mother realized her absent-mindedness and cried with joy to see her baby back in her arms. She thanked Ekanātha for returning her child to her.

When the news of this incident spread in the village, several brāhmaṇas got very upset.

They approached him and said that he was a brāhmaṇa and asked how he could pick up the child of an untouchable and even go to their home. They insisted that he had committed a sin and therefore must bathe 108 times in the Godāvarī to purify himself.

Ekanātha was shocked and asked how they could be so heartless. He said that the child was crying and it was his duty to pick him up and take him to his mother. But the brāhmaṇas would not listen to Ekanātha and an argument started.

Discussion Among Pandits

Just then, a leper arrived and said that he was coming from the temple of Viṭhobā in Pandharpur. When he had worshipped Viṭhobā (Kṛṣṇa) to cure his disease, Bhagavān Kṛṣṇa had asked him to come to the village in search of a Sant named Ekanātha. Kṛṣṇa had told him that by returning the baby of untouchable parents to his mother, Ekanātha had accumulated a lot of good karm. If Ekanātha gave him even a portion of this good karm, then his leprosy would be cured.

Ekanātha replied that he was the one who had returned the baby to his mother, but that he did not know if he had earned any good karm by doing this deed, because he had only wanted to do his duty. But if it would help, he was willing to give all of his good karm. Saying this, Ekanātha took a spoonful of water in his hands and recited the name of Viṣṇu with great devotion. Then he sprinkled the water on the leper.

A miracle happened the leper was cured in front of everyone’s eyes. The narrow-minded brāhmaṇas were now ashamed. They had thought that Ekanātha had committed a sin by helping an untouchable family, but clearly in the eyes of Kṛṣṇa, Ekanātha had done a very good karm by doing so.

Story: Sant Ekanātha gives his holy water from Gaṅgā to a donkey

Once, Sant Ekanātha was travelling from Vārāṇasī in North India towards Rāmeśvaram in South India with some water from the Gaṅgā River. It is a Hindu tradition to offer Gaṅgā water to the Śivaliṅga at Rāmeśvaram. On their way, he and his disciples were travelling through an extremely hot and dry part of India.

Everyone wanted to quench their thirst, but the only water was the Gaṅgā water they were carrying. No one wanted to drink it because it was meant for worship at Rāmeśvaram. Suddenly, Ekanātha saw a donkey lying on the ground, dying of thirst.

Ekanātha was filled with compassion. He immediately took his pitcher of Gaṅgā water and poured it into the mouth of the dying donkey. With its thirst quenched, the donkey revived. Shocked at this act, a disciple asked Ekanātha how they would now get the water of Gaṅgā for worship at Rāmeśvaram’s Śiva when they had travelled hundreds of miles with this holy water for that purpose.

Ekanātha replied that this was his Rāmeśvara.

Sant Eknath’s Patience at the Riverbank

Ekanātha demonstrated through his deed that Bhagavān resides even in a donkey, and if we cannot treat animals with compassion, we cannot claim that we love Bhagavān.

Once, as Ekanātha was coming out of the river after his bath in the Godāvarī, a Muslim spat on him. Ekanātha, however, was not in the least perturbed and simply returned to the river and bathed again. This happened again and again, and still Ekanātha did not get angry. Finally, the Muslim understood that Ekanātha was not an ordinary person and apologized. Ekanātha simply replied that he himself was in the wrong to get in the Muslim’s way, and that he had had the benefit of taking so many baths in the Godāvarī. Then he said, let Allah bless you.

The Muslim was surprised and asked him why he did it. Ekanātha replied that God is one, whether you call Him Allah or Kṛṣṇa or any other name you like. He abides in you, in me, and in all the objects on this earth. If one tries, one can see Him everywhere, as I see you and you see me.

Story: Sant Ekanātha reforms his son-in-law

Sant Ekanātha was a renowned sant of Maharashtra. He married his daughter to a famous scholar (paṇḍita) of the region. Unfortunately, this scholar fell into bad company. He started going out of his home late in the night, leaving his wife alone. Ekanātha’s daughter became very worried about her husband’s behavior and she spoke to her father about it.

Ekanātha then called his son-in-law and said that he was a learned man, but his daughter was not. He requested him to do her a favor: before leaving home every night, to please read to her a verse or two of the Bhagavad Gītā. This, he said, would benefit her greatly. Then, he could go out wherever he pleased. The paṇḍita agreed. So every night before stepping out, he would read a couple of verses of the Bhagavad Gītā to his wife and explain the meaning to her.

Gradually, the paṇḍita realized how beautiful the teachings of the Bhagavad Gītā were. They started having an influence on his own mind. After some time, with the effect of the Gītā, the paṇḍita stopped going out at night. He had not intended to study the Gītā for his own benefit, but nevertheless, the study of the holy book for the sake of his wife impacted him too in a positive way, and he became a virtuous man.