Aswathama Existed – Ashwathama Seen By People – Ashwathama Is Alive
Ashwatthama was the son of guru Dronacharya. Dronacharya did many years
dhyan
and penance of Bhagwan Shiv Shankar in order to obtain a son who
possesses the same valiance as of Lord Shiva. Aswatthama is the avatar
of one of the eight Rudras and he is one of the seven Chiranjivi’s or
the immortal ones. Aswatthama is the lone survivor still living, who
actually fought in the kurukshetra war.
Aswatthama was born with a gem in his forehead which gave him power over all living beings lower than
manav yoni.
This gem protected him from any attacks of ghosts,daemons ,poisonous
insects, snakes, animals etc. The gem was later removed from his
forehead.
Ashwathama Alive – Ashwathama Seen By People, personal accounts shared
Due to
ambiguity, contamination of english language, Ashwathama is spelled differently. Aswathama was cursed to roam in
Kaliyuga due to his sinful deed of killing innocent 5 sons of Draupadi, wife of Pandavas.
Prarabdh and What is Ashwatthama’s Prarabdh ?
History: No one can escape Prarabdh. If you worship
Lord Krishna, then you can think of changing your Prarabdh to good
one. Through Divine grace (Kripa) of Lord Krishna, one can go beyond the
influences of actions of past lives. Ashwatthama’s Prarabdh lead him to
an immortal life, roam in forests with pain. Bhishma strove hard
throughout his life to protect Hastinapur in his quest of finding the
legal heir of Sathyavati’s clan. Bhishma entrusted on Krishna this
responsibility of finding the next heir of Sathyavati’s family and to
continue the lineage of the Pandavas. Although, after Duryodhana’s
defeat it appeared that Hastinapur was now safe, as it was clear that
Yudhishthira was the next king of Hastinapur, Ashwatthama’s action
brought an end to the Pandava line.
Lord Krishna then placed a curse on Ashwatthama(actually
it was his Prarabdha karma) that “he will carry the burden of all
people’s sins on his shoulders and will roam alone like a ghost without
getting any love and courtesy till the end of Kaliyuga; He will have
neither any hospitality nor any accommodation; He will be in total
isolation from mankind and society; His body will suffer from a host of
incurable diseases forming sores and ulcers that would never heal”.
Ashwatthama had a gem which was similar to Shamantakamani on his
forehead which used to protect the wearer from fear of any snakes,
ghosts, demigods and demons. So, Ashwatthama was asked to surrender this
gem. Lord Sri Krishna further states that “the wound caused by the
removal of this gem on his forehead will never heal and will suffer from
leprosy, till the end of Kaliyuga”. It is believed that in Kaliyuga,
his name will be “Suryakanta”. Thus, Ashwatthama will be in search of
death every moment, and yet he will never die. At the end of Kali Yuga,
Ashwatthama is to meet Sri Kalki, the tenth avatar of Lord Vishnu. Few
readers are apprehensive why Ashwathama was cursed, there were series of
incidences in the history of Mahabharat that converted Ashwathama’s
boon in to curse.
[Read Also Secrets Revealed: Why Hindus Do Idol Worship In Their Temples]
Ananth Iyer Ji had written great
ending of Mahabharat
in one of his online writings. Excerpt from that post is given below
here. Ashwatthama had a mission- to annihilate the Paandava race. His
resources were limited. All the soldiers fighting for the Kaurava army
had perished. All the ally kings were dead and Duryodhana was the only
one of the hundred brothers still alive, if only barely. In contrast,
all the five Paandavas were alive. Drishtadhyumna, brother of Draupadi,
and their general had lead their forces to victory in all the battles.
However, Ashwatthama had vowed vengeance for the deceitful killing of
his father and for the polemic defeat of Duryodhana. It was the night of
the eighteenth day of the war and he was sitting beneath a tree,
plotting the slaying of the Paandavas when a strange sight met his eyes.
He saw an owl enter a crow’s nest and, in the darkness, kill the crow
that had harassed it in the morning. When it was day and the contest was
fair, the owl could not resist the crow’s advances. However, the owl
exploited its advantage of being a nocturnal creature and at night, when
the unsuspecting crow was asleep, the owl killed it. Ashwatthama then
knew what he had to do.
With Kripaacharya, his uncle, and Krittavarma, the only two surviving
members of the army, he rode out to the Paandavas’ camp at night. He
stationed Kripa and Krittavarma at the entrance to the camp and
stealthily went inside himself. With his long, gleaming blade, he
silently beheaded Drishtadhyumna and Shikhandi. He then proceeded
seeking the Paandavas. Seeing five men sleeping in a tent, he beheaded
them all. As it happened, Krishna had taken the Paandavas away for some
purpose that night. The five men Ashwatthama had actually killed were
the sons of the five Paandavas, born from Drapuadi. Feeling remorse for
his lowly and dastardly act, Ashwatthama decided to do penance in rishi
Veda-Vyasa’s hermitage and he sought asylum there.
When the Paandavas discovered their sons and brothers in law were
slayed by Ashwatthama in the middle of the night, they were furious.
Seeking their revenge, they hunted down the son of their guru with the
guidance of Krishna. Seeing the enemy approach, Ashwatthama suddenly
erupted with rage- He forgot all about the remorse he had felt prior to
coming to the aashrama. He plucked a blade of grass and uttered the
Vedic incantations required to transform it to a Brahmaastra. On
Krishna’s instruction, Arjuna produced a Brahmaastra of his own. The two
faced each other, each ready to fire the most potent of all missiles.
The hatred in their eyes burned brighter than the light of a thousand
suns. And they fired. Veda-Vyasa, blessed with divine sight, saw that a
clash of two Brahmaastras would bring about cataclysm. The world would
be destroyed for generations to come. This had to be averted at all
costs and so, using his tremendous spiritual powers, he stalled the
motion of the astras before they collided.
[ Read Also Stunning Fact: Mount Kailash, Abode of Lord Shiva Is Indeed Made by Gods ! ]
The great sage appealed to Krishna to ask the two warriors to summon
back their missiles. Arjuna did so immediately and replaced the now
ordinary arrow in his quiver. Ashwatthama, however, could not obey. He
knew only how to invoke the Brahmaastra. He knew not how it was to be
withdrawn. Krishna sensed this and spoke with contempt. “Great Vyasa,
Drona was not supposed to impart the knowledge of the Brahmaastra to
Ashwatthama. Nonetheless, he did so out of paternal affection but held
himself back from teaching his son how to call it back, since empowered
with that knowledge, his unworthy son could employ the potent missile at
will. Ashwatthama here is at a loss because once fired, he does not
know how to revoke his missile.” Vyasa then said to Ashwatthama, “Son of
Drona, if it is true that you cannot revoke your missile, then channel
it to target an isolated point on the planet that is uninhabited by any
life form.” However, being truly evil and spiteful, Ashwatthama said,
“then let it destroy Abhimanyu’s yet unborn son in Uttara’s womb and end
the vile Paandava dynasty” Immediately, his missile deviated and
Uttara’s fetus was destroyed. Krishna, Supreme Lord of the Universe,
incarnation of Vishnu the Preserver, was enraged. His voice thunderous
with rage, he cursed Ashwatthama, “May you, Ashwatthama, lead the most
wretched life anyone can ever lead. May the sin of every man on Earth
haunt you and burden you with guilt. May you roam the lands like a
ghost, despicable and contemptible. May you never receive love or
affection ever in your life unto the end of Time.” Saying so, he
demanded the gem on Ashwatthama’s forehead that protected the bearer
from disease. “May the wound caused by the removal of this gem never
heal, serving you as a reminder of your abhorrent crimes. May you beg
for death each moment of your life and may it never come to you. Out of
the great affection your father had for you, he granted you immortality
as a boon, by the merit of his spiritual prowess. May that very boon be
your bane.” Then, he said, “If I have tread on the right path all my
life and am the upholder of righteousness, may Uttara’s baby be revived”
and sure enough, the infant was revived. He was named Pariksheet, the
tested one. He ruled long after the Paandavas retired and his son
Janamejaya ruled long after him. The referred excerpt ends here.
Pariksheet, an eminent King and his conversation with Sage Sukhdev
Gosvami Ji in last week of his life, lead to compilation of great Srimad
Bhagvatam. Sukhdev Gosvami Ji described Pariksheet in detail about past
lives of Sages and Kings of Bharat Varsha (India), and how
Lord Vishnu made this world and other Universes. Srimad Bhagvatam is same ancient text for Hindus and Vedic people that taught one of the simple ways in
Kaliyuga to attain
sadgati,
if properly recited by pious Sage – which means such knowledge must
come down through the disciplic succession (for disciples of a learned
pious Hindu Guru), Guru reciting and explaining Srimad Bhagvatam to his
disciples. It’s also called Amar Katha (Eternal History, to make one
eternal). People ask whether
Ashwatthaamaa is still alive
or not? Other people tell many incidents of his being alive and seen in
various forms. The purpose of this is not to prove that he is alive,
but just to refer some historic incidents what people say about him.
Interestingly,
people who met Ashwatthama never cited the incident as an ego boosting
incident but merely highlighted it in their biographies or as contextual
reference in their historical documents; giving very little importance
to the occasion – writing up few lines on their meeting with Aswatthama
This could be because they were not astonished to
meet him or never thought of giving it due importance in their writings
due to his past deeds in Dwapar Yuga. You may contact Dr Narayan Dutta Srimali’s disciples in Jodhpur, INDIA. They tell all these with evidence.
As per Vedas, killing fetus is heinous crime which is equivalent to
killing mother cow. So all those to-be parents who kill female fetus in
hope to bring life to a generation of sons are committing bigger crimes.
Similarly, those couples who abort fetus to rub off from
responsibilities are committing anti-Vedic sins. Ashwathama was cursed
because he killed innocent sons of Pandavas and later also tried to harm
fetus of Utarra. Don’t you think, those couples who are doing alike
crimes would face the same wrath during their lives or after their
deaths.
Whatever deed we do here in
mrityulok (earth) – whether good
or bad – does come back with reflective fruits of it. One must never
kill innocent, non-aggressive animals and fetus. We cannot give birth to
anyone – only Lord Krishna can – so who are us to kill anyone.
[Read Also Kaaba is Ancient Hindu Temple]
Killing
adharmis in Dharmayudh to impose morality and humanity is pious but killing to put off responsibility or in fit of anger is crime.
Incident 1 – Ashwathama seen by Railway Employee
A more than a decade old newspaper article ran about a railway
employee on leave. During his wanderings in the jungles of Navsari
(Gujarat) he had reported a very tall man of about 12 feet with a wound
on his head. He claimed to have conversation with him and learnt that
Bheem was much taller and stronger than him.
Incident 2 – Ashwathama met Pilot Baba ?
The last record of his existence came to my notice while reading a
book called “Himalaya kah raha hai” by Pilot Baba. you can also go to
his website to read the excerpts. The temple where he stayed was washed
away in the floods a few years back. But before that he had interesting
encounters with Aswathama which he shared and we have recorded it as
incident 8.
Incident 3 – Prithviraj Chauhan Hindu King Meeting Ashwathama
When in 1192, Prithveeraaj Chauhaan lost the battle from Mohammad
Gauree, he left for jungle. There he met one old person with a scar on
his head. Being a very good doctor Prithveeraaj Chauhaan confidently
asked him that he can cure his scar. The old man agreed. But even after
week’s medication it remained as it is. Prithveeraaj was surprised and
understood the details. He asked old man if he is Ashwatthaamaa. Because
only the scars that is created through taking up the “MANI” the gem
from forehead cannot be cured. The old man told that he was
Ashwatthaamaa and then he went away. This description is given in
“Prithviraj Raso” the book written in 12th century on him.
Incident 4 – Ashwatthama Ecounter with Saint Naranappa
In late 14th, early 15th century there lived in Gadag, Karnaatak, a
poor Braahman called Naranappa. Later, because of the Mahabharata epic
“Karnata Bharata Kathamanjari” that he wrote in Kannada, he came to be
called as Kumara Vyasa. His greatest desire was to write Mahaabhaarat
based on original sources, and to this end he prayed day-in and day-out
in the Temple of Veera Naaraayan, temple of Trikooteshwar. One day the
Almighty decided to answer his prayers and appeared in his dream and
said: “Attend the forthcoming Dwaadashee Paaran (Dwaadashee feast) in
the Veera Naaraayan Temple. Watch out for one lone Braahman who would
leave the feast earliest. He is none other than Ashwathaamaa of MBH.
Fall at his feet and ask him to narrate the MahaBharat as it happened.
You can record it in writing and claim your share of fame”.
Promptly
Naranappa (Narayanappa) attended the following Dwaadashee Paaran at the
Veera Narayan Temple, and then followed the Brahmin who finished his
feast the earliest and started walking out of the Temple. He approached
him and fell at his feet saying, “I know who you are, you are the very
same Ashwatthaamaa of MahaBharat, please help me”. At this Ashwathaamaa
was taken aback and asked him how do you know this? Naranappa responded
saying “The Veera Naaraayan Swamy” appeared in his dream and told me so.
Ashwatthaamaa was mightily pleased hearing this and asked Naranappa,
OK, tell me what can I do for you. Naranappa responded saying he would
like to write the Mahaabhaarat in Kannada as it happened.
To this Ashwatthaamaa agreed under two conditions. He said that
Naranappa should start writing the Mahaabhaarat everyday after he
finished his bath, wearing a wet Veshti (Dhotee). Ashwatthaamaa said –
“You can keep writing till such time your Veshti is wet and the
MahaBharata would flow from your pen as it happened. The moment your
clothes dry up, the flow would stop. He also put a condition that he
should not disclose this secret to anyone failing which the flow would
stop forever. Needless to say, our Naranappa, was immensely excited
about the project, and he kept his secret till the time he reached the
“Gadaa Parv” (the time when Duryodhan and Bheem fought the duel of the
mace fight). At this moment it is believed that Ashwatthaamaa appeared
before Naranappa and he was in tears — remembering his friend Duryodhan
and the A-Dhaarmik (unjustified) way in which Bheem defeated Duryodhan.
Naranappa overcome with excitement disclosed this secret to his wife,
and his writing flow stopped immediately. That is why his Mahaabhaarat
ends with Gadaa Parv only. Later someone might have added up from Vyaas’
MahaBharat, but our Kumara Vyaas’s MahaBharata ended only with Gadaa
Parv.
End of Mahabharat and Beginning of Kaliyuga
further suggest that Dronacharya’s son is very much alive and is bound
to roam in India to serve the curse bestowed on him. The curse that
“Ashwatthaamaa would roam the world carrying his own sins, with people
shunning him, and suffering the pain of the wound on his forehead from
where the “Mani” was removed by force”, 5000 years ago. Or Vikram Samvat
2070** years, since Mahabharata is now long passed, and I am sure,
Ashwatthaamaa is there somewhere in the Himaalaya, performing Tapasyaa.
(**Vikram Samvat is calendar derived by King Vikramaditya to record
historical evidences).
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Incident 5 – Aswathama Meeting Parents of Swaminarayan
Dharmdev and Bhaktimaataa (father and mother of Swaminarayan) were
cursed over two hundred years ago by Ashwatthaamaa – son of Dronacharya.
This is described in Satsangi Jivan written by Shatanand Muni – He was
tall and well built robed in orange clothes as a Braahman. His head was
strapped just above his eyebrows and he was covered with Bhasm (ash). He
had big red eyes full of angerness. Mother Bhakti and father Dharm were
on their way back from Vrindaavan where Shree Krishn proclaimed to them
that their troubles in Chapaiyaa (village close to the banks of
Sarayoo) would soon end after He himself would be born to them.
On the way back one night (it took 28 days for them to get back to
chapaiyaa village – the birthplace of Swaminarayan Bhagwan), as they
walked through the forest they lost there way. They saw a tall Braahman
roaming in the forest. They asked him for direction. The Braahman with a
deep voice asked where they were coming from as they looked feared.
Dharmdev explained that they were a Sarvariyaa Saam Vedee Braahman and
his Kuldev was Hanumaan Jee and up on Hanumaan Jee’s advice at Hanumaan
Garhee -Ayodhyaa (where Dharmdev did Tapascharyaa for 3 months) they
went to Vrindaavan. Dharmdev further explained the whole incident as
well as telling him how they had a revelation from Lord Krishn and
Shreemati Raadhaaraanee in Vrindaavan. With this the Brahmin spoke with
anger in his voice “Krishna my arch enemy? Will be born to you? I curse
Him for the pain I have borne as of Him, that He as your son will never
be able to bear weapons and neither shall he be able to fight in any
war.” Saying this he left pushing Dharmdev aside. Bhaktimata started
trembling and crying. Just then Hanumaan Jee arrived to them once again
and calmed them and showed them the way and told them that they need not
fear as God does not need any weapon nor need to fight to rid evil and
tyranny. This incident shows that Ashwatthaamaa is still roaming in
forests and jungles of India today. As this was just over 200 odd years
ago.
Incident 6 – Aswathama Seen in Ludhiana, Punjab
Narrated by a commenter. My Father’s uncle was a famous (Vaidya) –
Doctor in Ludhiana. He would spend hours meditating too. He was a Bhakt
of Data Dayal, a well Known Guru in Panjaab (try to search for Data
Dayal on net). One day as he was closing his shop in the after noon, it
was summer time and everything was shut due to summers, in 1968-69,
Ludhiaanaa, Panjaab, just then an old person came to him, whose face was
covered and spoke to him in crude Panjaabee and Hindi mix, “Badaa naam
sunaa hai teraa, bhaut badaa vaidya hai too? Ilaaj kar sakdaa hai meraa?
My father’s uncle said – “Tell me what the problem is?” and when he
removed the Pagadee from his head, there was a dent on the forehead. He
had never seen such a dent before, as if the brain was taken away from
the fore front, yet the skin was tight as if nothing had happened. My
dad’s uncle was a bit nervous but still said that he would like to have a
second look at him. He said – “Tenu pataa hai main kaun hoon?” and my
dad’s uncle said – “I think I know who you are but still let me get my
stuff.” By the time he brings his stuff from the almirah, that man had
left, never to be found again. But he said that his eyes always haunted
him, He had blue eyes, which were so sharp as if he would walk inside
his brain.
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Incident 7 – Aswathama seen nearby Narmada river (Gujarat)
Narrated by another commenter. I have also heard from numerous people
that others have spotted someone with a dent in the forehead roaming
around the Narmadaa river (Gujaraat). He was described as tall person,
and that there was tons of fly’s, bugs surrounding him all the time.
Incident 8 – Vasudevanand Saraswati Met Ashwathama in Shoolpaneeshawar
Vasudevanand Saraswati, a saint who is considered as incarnation of
Dattatreya by his followers, saw Ashwatthama in the dense forest of
Shulpaneeshawar near
Katarkheda*, in the year 1912 (2 years before he took samadhi on Mangalwar, Nakshatra Ardra, Ashadh Shuddha Pratipada).
*Katarkheda is small village located in Dahi Tehsil of Dhar district, Madhya Pradesh
In 1912 Chikhalada, 22nd chaturmaas. After a stay of 6-7 months Swami
crossed the dense forest of Shulpaneeshawar near Katarkheda. He was
partly guided by Ashwatthama. Thus he arrived for his final chaturmaas
on the banks of Narmada with the help of Ashwathama.
The incident went like this: Tembe Swami who was also devotee of
Dattatreya got lost in the dense Shulpaneeshawar forest (now in Gujarat)
and was unable to reach the town. In the thick forest, an odd person
appeared in front of the Swami and offered to help him in finding the
right path to move out of forest. The Swami was not bewildered as he was
true yogi and pious saint not to afraid of anyone. The Swami keenly
observed his physique and characteristics which were very peculiar.
When they almost reached the end of the forest, the strange man who
helped the Swami said, “We are close to the town. I cannot accompany you
anymore. This is the farthest I can come. ” Swamiji replied, “I have
observed your gait, behavior and physique very keenly. None of them seem
human to me. Who are you? Are you a ghost? Are you a Yaksha? Reveal
your true identity!”. The odd man replied, “You are right. None of them
seem normal because I do not belong to this yuga. I belong to the
Dwapara yuga. I am Ashwathama.”
This encounter with Ashwathama was written in the auto biography of Vasudevanand Saraswathi (Tembe Swami Maharaj).
Original Photo of Tembe Swami Maharaj
Apart from meeting Ashwathama, divine beings like the goddesses of
River Narmada, River Nirmala(Mangaon), River Krishna, Nar and Narayan
Muni(Badri Narayan) have interacted with Vasudevanand Saraswati. Other
saints like Shri Rajarajeshvar Swami (Shankaracharya from Shringeri),
Shri Gulabrao Maharaj(Vidarbha), Shri Shantashram Swami(Varanasi), Shri
Deo Mamledar (Nasik) also held Tembe Swami Maharaj in high regard.
Vasudevanand Saraswati preached Sattvic form of life and it was one
of these preachings that made him meet divine beings who are still
roaming and protecting mother earth and humans.
To cultivate Sattvic nature, diet has to be wholesome (Hit), measured (Mit) and pure (Medhya). The signs of Sattvic nature are:
– Firm faith in Sanatan Dharma,
– Meticulous observance of Dharma conducts viz.
Snaan (bath)
Sandhya (prayer)
Dev Puja (worship)
Five major Yadnyas
Atithti Satkar (honor to the true guest, sadhus, saints, bhramins)
Service to Gomata (Cow)
Sincere attendance of Katha, Keertan, Bhajans, Puran etc.
Soft and kind speech
Refraining from harming anyone in any way
Service and obedience to parents (for men), and to husband, in-laws (for women) and other elders
Incident 9 – Ashwatthama Personally Welcomed Pilot Baba
Man’s life is the crowning glory of the entire ‘creation’. Even the
gods have made use of the gross in order to attain the supreme bliss or ‘
Bramha tatva ‘. and whenever the need has arisen Ishwar has also
assumed human forms . Human life is that result of good sanskaras.
Meeting Ashwathama
Aswathama as tribal Leader, Revered Bhila Since – times, immemorial,
Himalayas has been the abode of great yogis, sages and
Mahatamas.Thousands of years old, Saints, still live in the serene
precincts of the lofty Himalayas. During my wanderings, I came across
these lofty souls, fortunately I could spend some time in their gracious
company and benifit from their wisdom. With my readers, I, Pilot Baba,
wish to share my rich experiences, so that they may also redesign the
structure of life. One day, I began the ‘ parikrama ‘ of the pious river
Narmada,’Pahari Baba’ gave me company during the Parikrama of the holy
river.
[Read Also Rambhakt Hanuman Ji Seen By Devotees ]
There are interesting tales and myths about the river ‘Narmada’,
which have enhanced its religious importance. After walking for some
time we came across a dense forest, over grown, with ‘sulfan’ trees. The
‘Bhilas’ are native inhabitants of the forest. These tribals are not
insignificant people, but have a long of history of notoriety which
cannot be ignored. The tribals always looted the piligrims who happened
to travel via the forests. But, whenever they spotted the gypsies they
displayed an amazing dis – interest. We were dressed only in our
‘Kopins’ when we entered the notorious forest. Some of the tribals
spotted us and began to make strange noises. The noises were meant as a
signal to invite the attention of their kins. All the noise and
confusion could not deter us, and we continued to march ahead. Shortly,
we surrounded by hordes of tribals who came towards us menacingly. We
were carrying only two bundles which contained some Neem leaves and
little, Vibhuti power.The tribals, roughly snatched our meagre
belongings and eagerly opened the bundles. But, when they saw the
strange contents, their Behaviour under went a remarkable change. After a
hurried consultation in soft tones,they signalled us to follow them. We
did ,as we were told, and very soon found ourselves in front of couple
of hutments. We accepted their hospitality and went inside one of the
huts. It’s interior was neat and orderly. First, they made us sit on
mats made from dry leaves, and then they lit a ‘Dhuni”. They also gave
us to eat a couple of grass chappatis with some fresh honey. We broke
the chappatis in small pieces,mixed them with honey and offered to our
gentle hosts. We,also ate some portion of their native meal. The tribals
were very happy to have us amongst them. They built a small hut for us
and collected fruits and edible roots for us to eat. The tribals looked
after us with a rare devotion. Though they were considred wild, yet they
had a discipline of their own. And no one ever dared to break the
rules. Their obedience towards their chief was total. They never
questioned his authority on the contrary they almost worshipped him.
“Shiva” was their deity. In the morning they either looted unsuspecting
passengers or hunted animals. Every morning and evening they came to us
in hundreds and sat with apparent devotion.Sometimes, they danced the
entire night in aspirit of gay abandon, But, surprisingly enough they
celebrated their festival day without any activity. Generally, a
majority of ‘Bhilas’ men and women covered their bodies in mat like
pieces. These pieces were either made from dry leaves or bark of trees,
still, there were some who preferred to dress in the stolen clothes.
One particular man, who came with the tribals, had a commanding
disposition He was always dressed in yellow, and looked different from
the other tribals. We wanted to talk to him, but before we could make
any move, he used to walk away from our place.
One day, while we were resting in the premises of Sulpaneshwar
Mahadeva Mandir, my eyes got locked into the eyes of that extraordinary
being. He looked young and had an admirable height and long arms. He had
a sharp moustache and his eyes had a fire like brilliance. He looked
composed and had a celestial bearing. His forehead was covered by the
characteristic yellow cloth. When I began, to whisper into ‘
PahariBaba’s ears about the ‘special’ ‘Bhila’ he gave a knowing smile
and left that place. But my curiosity regarding the ‘Bhila’ was so
overpowering, that I also got up from my place and began to follow him.
When the tribals saw me following the magnificient figure, they also
joined me. The ‘Bhila’ turned around and requested us to leave. Since I
had reached quite close to him, I caught his feet and burst out
beseechingly – “Who ever you are, I want your introduction, whether we
are complete or incomplete, we look up to your guidance. Your lofty
personality tells us that you do not belong to this age. With great
humility I want to surrender my self at your feet. Please reveal your
identity : I want to know whether my guess regarding your identity is
right or wrong. The bhilas were infuriated at my act and began to
protest,excitedly. The civilised looking ‘Bhila’ was their revered one
and during the festival of ‘Shiva Ratri’ they worshipped him along with
Lord Shiva.
The great Bhila gestured to the crowd to stop and
then gathered me affectionately in his arms. He said, ” Kapil: I am
Acharya Dronacharya’s son Ashwathama. I was the senapati ( the chief
warrior) during the days of the historical Mahabarat. Those days have
become a history, but , I still live in the past. This temple is my
residence and these Bhilas are my companions. Once in a while I go to
the Himalayas to meet ” Kripa Charya’ and Vidhur. But most of the times I
involve myself in the activities of the tribemen. For us, time has
become stand still , Ironically enough we are moving ahead of time
common man is trying to keep pace with time, whereas with us the
opposite phenomenon, is occuring, time is tyring to keep pace with us.
Sulpaneshwar becomes a small Himalayas, whenever great souls like Kripa
Charya and Vidhur visit this place. An occasional encounter with
Gorakhnathji turns out to be a blessing. In his company we evoke the
past of ‘Bramhand’ and watched with rapt attention the Jeevas repeated
cycles of birth and death. We are changeless. Life has come to terms
with us and we have come to terms with life. We are well acquantied with
‘past”present’ and ‘future’. Though we are aware of the three states of
‘Time’ ‘past’ ‘present’ and future, we cannot do anything. This is
because we are not what we used to be in the past.”
When Ashwathama removed his head gear a bunch of unruly curls tumbled
on his forehead. A strange light lurked in the deep wound mark which
was in the centre of his impressive forehead. In a reflective mood
Ashwathama again said ‘- ” Due to the appearance of this gem on my
forehead all my war tactics and divine potential have come to an end.
All these powers have foresaken me. But in return I have received the
boon of immortality, which could not be taken away by Lord Krishna and
Pandavas . Since then I have been living on the face of the earth. When I
watch my contempories in the yonis of animals, birds and snakes I began
to ponder the helpless dependence of ‘ man’. In the ‘ human yoni’ man
in his ignorance does certain acts which force him to become birds and
animals in the next birth. Consequently he is caught in the endless,
vicious cycle of birth and death. Since I am not entangled in this mesh,
I have reached a level where ‘ time has become still. Even in the past I
have never given guidance to anyone. So, in the present I am not
inclined towards any guidance and sermons. Today, I am totally immersed
in Shiva’s Aradhana and do not bother about anything else’. We spent
about six months in the company of the exalted being ‘ Ashwathama’. We
used to go on long tours and move around as common men. During my stay, I
discovered how a man who is thousands of years old can remain
unaffected by the ways of the society in which he is living. In the
company of the great soul how time flew away we did not know. One day
the ‘great man’ blessed us, bade us farewell and disappeared. Before
departing he uttered these words – you go ahead with your journey now.
We were suppose to be together only for this alotted period. After this
brief interlude, we proceeded on the ‘Parikrama’ of the Narmada river.
On the way we met a young saint who was also on the similar mission.
One morning while we were having a dip in the river, a huge snake
crept towards us. Our first reaction was to run away. Butr something
held us back. When I looked into the eyes of the venomous snake, it
cowered momentarily but his next move was totally unexpected. Instead of
slithering away it came to us with a threatening speed and threw us out
of gear. Pahari Baba sought refuge in the waters and the young saint
picked a huge stone with intention of killing the snake. But before he
could strike a alethal blow, the snake bit him. Dharmanand became
unconscious and fell on the ground. The snake glided away to a distant
rock and returned to his former watchful position. Pahari Baba tried his
best to revive the unconcious Dharmanand. But his efforts proved
ineffective. In a fit of fury he rushed to kill the snake. The snake
remained unmoved by the menacing form of ‘Pahari Baba’ And, before
Pahari Baba could crush it,it transformed into an aged saint. the old
man with folded hands began ” Pahari Baba spit your anger. I am none
other than Awadhoot Baba- I belong to Varmdeshwar – I for the last
twenty five years, I have been waiting for “Dharmanand” . Finally, today
my patient waiting has borne fruit. Now Dharmanand is liberated from
his crimes. Hence onwards he can wander in the state. I request you not
to take any action in this matter because every thing will be futile”.
With these revealing words the old man once again returned to the guise
of snake and hid itself amidst the cluster of stones. I tried my best to
dissuade,Pahari Baba from taking Dharmanand’s unconscious form to the
other side of the river, but all my pleas fell on deaf ears. Pahari Baba
lowered Dharmanand in a boat and rowed him across the river. By this
act he unknowingly broke his ‘Parikrama’. The doctors tried their best
to save Dharmanand’s life, but failed. Even Pahari Baba’s indigineous
methods could not bring Dharmanand back to life.
[Read Also Vedic Inventions Misused By Modern Scientists]
All these days, while I awaited Pahari Baba’s return, Avadhoot Baba
brought food for me. One afternoon, while we were basking in the sun,
Avadhoot Baba spotted the floating corpse of Dharmanand. Overcome with
excitement, he discarded the body of the snake and entered the physical
form of Dharmanand. But before leaving he told me to throw the snakes
body in the water since it was no longer useful to him, I did as I was
told. Pahari Baba was dumb founded, he simply blinked with disbelief to
see dead Dharmanand coming out of the waters. When Pahari Baba looked at
me inquiringly I told him about Avdhoot Baba and how he had made use of
Dharmanand’s body. Dharmanand’s episode had broken Pahari Baba’s
Parikrama. So, there was no choice left but to go on seperate
paths,because I still had to finish my parikrama.
Thought: What is more startling about
the experiences that every person shared was; the incidences were
unique, non-repetitive and their descriptions differed which further add
value to the perception that Ashwathama is still roaming in the forest
to serve the curse that he got from Lord Krishna. And most of all, these
were shared by revered Kings, Saints and Sages who never fell for
recognition but shared it with disciples as one of the incident of their
lives; which is one of the basis of strength for the sustenance of the
great Indian spiritual power.
A Decisive Expedition to Meet Ashwathama – It All Depends on Our Focus
Suggestion: There should be decisive campaign to search for Ashwathama (which we are organizing you check the bottom of this post under
Important Development
heading) so that at least great teachings that he received from
Kripacharya, Dronacharya and Bhisma can be revealed to Indian people, in
this manner, his presence can help Indian youth to understand the great
history of Mahabharat. Imagine a person who was part of Mahabharata
explaining you each incident in detail. He is also few of the
Chiranjeevis who had seen and met Lord Krishna personally.
Chiranjeevi (Chiranjivi): There are seven
Chiranjeevis
as mentioned in Indian scriptures of Hinduism. Chiranjivis are those
people who remain alive throughout this Kali Yuga until the start of
Satya Yuga.
Chiranjivi is a Sanskrit word which is a
combination of two words “Chiram” which means “long” and “Jivi” means
“lived”. There are mainly Seven Chiranjeevis in Hinduism. The Sapta
Chiranjeevi mentioned in Hindu Puranas are
1) Ashwattama
2) Mahabali
3) Sage Vyasa
4) Lord Hanuman (Also check Hanuman Ji Seen by People)
5) Vibhishana
6) Kripacharya
7) Lord Parashurama
Did Aswathama ever met Rambhakt Hanuman Ji, we do n’t know; though it is possible because both are alive.
You can also feel the presence of strong force in the form of positive energy with the powerful rays generated by Rambhakt Hanuman when you recite Hanuman Chalisa.
