Friday 12 October 2012

MIRACLES IN SAINT EKNATH'S LIFE


We get inspiration to do GOD's BHAKTHI when we hear 
MIRACLES that happened in SAINT's lives like EKNATH 
that if our BHAKTHI, DEVOTION is as deep, pure and
full of LOVE, we can also experience GOD in our lives
like SAINT EKNATH ! We need not have any doubt on 
this count.

SAINT EKNATH

About Saint Eknath Shrine , Paithan

Shrine of Sant Eknath is a religious attraction where devotees 
flock during Nathshasthi to pay their respects to the great saint 
at his tomb. A gala 10 day festival is held here every March to 
celebrate thePaithan Yatra or Nathshasthi. Inhabitants of the 
surrounding rural areas come to take part in the festivities.

-- He was born in 1533 A.D., in Paithana, the ancient city of 
        Pratishthana, in Maharashtra.

-- In his 12th year he went in search of his GURU, as per the 
        guidance he received in a SHIVA TEMPLE, to the fort in 
        Devgad (Devagiri, today’s Daulatabad) searching GURU
        JANARDANA SWAMI.
        COBRA COILS ROUND BODY
-- When Eknath was deep in samadhi, a cobra coiled round 
        him, which he was not aware. A cowherd boy who used to 
        give milk saw this.



-- As per the instructions of his GURU, he married Girija Bai 
       from Vijaypur, who was to prove to be one of the best 
       assets of Eknath’s life. Her selfless devotion, perfect 
       understanding and her sharing his hardships with a happy 
       heart marked her as a rare spouse, truly fit for a saint.

       LORD PANDURANGA CLEARS DEBT
-- A celebration was conducted on the banks of river Godavari
       as a mark of his guru’s birthday as well as the day he gave 
       him the darshan of Datta.There was serving of meals in 
       the afternoon, and exposition of  Kathas  and Kirtanas at 
       night.

       Uddava, Ekanth’s servant, had borrowed a sum from a 
       landlord in his master’s name to conduct the  utsava. Next 
       day, the landlord pressed Uddhava for repayment and 
       was put off by him. He got suspicious and feeling he 
       would never see his money back, he went straight to 
       Eknath and threatened him: “In Panduranga’s name, you 
       shouldn’t be allowed to eat until you repay your debt!”

       Without feeling in the least put out, both Girijabai and 
       Eknath kept fasting and didn’t touch a morsel of food.  
       Uddhava also didn’t eat. 

      Legend has it Panduranga (Krishna) taking form of 
      Uddhava went to the landlord. It was midnight and he was 
      naturally much annoyed at being aroused form his sleep. 
     “What have you come here for, so late?” 
     “To return the money.” 
    “Can’t that wait till tomorrow?” 
    “But what about my master and his wife fasting?” 
     So, the grumpy landlord, much against his will, got up and 
     went out to open his shop, accepted the money and gave 
     a receipt canceling the debt. 
     The next day, the landlord feeling guilty of having caused 
     trouble to a great saint like Eknath, went to him and 
     embraced his feet.  “Forgive me!” he said. But Eknath 
     humbly replied that he was himself at fault and would 
     resume eating as soon as he had repaid his debt in full. 
     Hearing this, the landlord turned to Uddhava and 
     exclaimed: “What! Didn’t you come last night to wake me 
     up  at midnight, with the money?” 
    “Certainly not!” replied the nonplussed Uddhava. Eknath 
     went and opened his account book and there, neatly kept 
     between the pages, was the receipt of the landlord. 

     Eknath knew that it was all the doings of Panduranga and 
     tears came to his eyes. Seeing this, the savkar (money-
     lender) again fell at the feet of Eknath begging for 
     forgiveness and would not relent until Eknath gave him 
     reassurance and peace of mind. Nothing ever ruffled 
     Eknath who was always even-minded and full of 
     compassion.

GOD's  LEELA--TAKES EKNATH'S FORM SO THAT TWO
                              EKNATHS PRESENT AT SAME TIME ! ! 
--  Ramu, the  mahar (an untouchable), attended Eknath’s 
        Kirtans and Kathas daily. His great desire was that 
       Eknath should one day come and have meals in his 
        house. So, after a Kirtana, he humbly requested him to 
       grace his house and partake of meals prepared by him.

       Eknath answered that he would. The mahar exulted with 
       joy, and all the town was agog at the news. People 
       followed Eknath everywhere, anxious to see whether he 
       would honor his promise and what would the 
       consequences be. The stronghold of orthodoxy buzzed 
       with excitement.

      The next day, they saw Eknath enter Ramu’s house 
       where the  mahar and his wife placed their heads 
       submissively on his feet and invited him with great love 
       and affection to accept a seat. Eknath obliged lovingly 
       and ate with delight the preparations they served on a 
       plantain leaf. Everyone else stood watching from the 
       outside. 

      The pundits of a common accord decided to 
      ex-communicate him then and there and so went over 
       to his house to await his return, but their eyes widened 
       in wonder and stupefaction as an impossible sight met 
       them. In the house, there was Eknath himself, teaching 
       a chapter of the Bhagavata to his listeners! 

      The troupe made a round about turn and ran back to 
      Ramu’s house where Eknath as before, was enjoying 
      Ramu’s hospitality! How could he be in two places at the 
      same time! By which magic did he possess two bodies 
      and which of the two was the real Eknath? 

      The pundits were utterly confused and retreated in 
      shame. But Eknath understood Panduranga’s action to
      protect his devotee and interpreted it thus: ‘God had 
      indeed taken my form and taught Bhagavata  so that 
      none could cast aspersions on me.’ 

      The people of the town were wonderstruck at the power 
      of such  bhakti which demands nothing from God but the 
      sight of his hallowed feet. 

LORD KRISHNA SERVED EKNATH AS SERVANT FOR
12 YEARS ! !
-- God loved his devotee so much that he even took the form 
       of a servant and served Eknath for 12 years. He was 
       called Sri Khandya and did all kinds of jobs for Eknath 
       and Girijibai. 

      A brahmin who keenly prayed for a darshan  of Sri 
      Krishna was told by Rukmini Devi, Sri Krishna’s consort, 
      in a dream, that Sri Krishna was working under the name 
      of Sri Khandya in the house of Eknath who lived in 
      Paithana, and that if he wanted to see him, that was where 
      he should go. The first person he met on arrival at 
      Paithana was a servant going to fetch water from the river 
      and he asked him the whereabouts of Eknath’s house. The 
      man who was none other than Sri Khandya, pointed the 
      house to him.  Eknath received him with great joy and 
      asked him who he was, from where he came and what he 
      wanted. 
      “I come from Dwaraka and have come here to have a 
      darshan of God.” 
     “God is everywhere, omnipresent. He lives through all 
      creatures, wherever you turn and look, there is but God.” 
     “Please, do not take offense, my Lord,” said the brahmin,
     “but I know all this Vedantic stuff by heart, back-wards and 
      forwards. I am fed  up  with  it  and  what  I  want  is  to  
      see the Lord in his saguna or form-aspect; that is why I 
      came from so far.” 
     “But how do you expect to see him here?” 
     “Haven’t you got one Sri Khandya on the premises? 
     Please send for him!” 
     “Oh, yes, Sri Khandya just left to fetch water.” 
     The brahmin recollected that he was the very one he had 
      met and who had showed him the house. Then he turned 
      to Eknath, a significant look in his eyes. “God is here as 
      Sri Khandya!” Eknath called and called but no one came.
      Uddhava said: “He was here just a moment ago.” 
      Girija commented: “After placing the water vessels, he 
      went into the puja room.”

      But there was no trace of the man anywhere.
     Eknath understood and took the brahmin into the worship 
     room and prayed intensely to Panduranga. The room 
     gradually lit with glowing effulgence and the form of Sri 
     Krishna, resplendent with love and compassion, appeared 
     before them. Eknath and the brahmin shed tears of joy 
     and the Lord having blessed them, returned to his form-less 
     state. The brahmin thanked Eknath profusely and then left 
     for Dwaraka. 
     “There is no bar on caste, colour, sex or age,” Eknath would 
     say “when it comes to the worship of Hari.” “God exists in 
     all souls and one should behave alike with all.” 

SRADDHA FEEDING OF MAHARS
-- Once Eknath was to feed brahmins on the occasion of the 
        Sraddha of his father. Girija bathed early and with 
        Uddhava’s and Sri Khandya’s help, started cooking. 

        One among the mahars passing by in the street outside 
        said: “Hmm! smells good, some nice food is being 
        cooked.” And another added: “Such food is not for the 
        like of us, so pass on!” 

        Eknath having heard their remarks asked Girijabai: 
       “Some mahars passing by have a desire to eat as they 
        smelt the aroma of cooking; shall we offer them this 
        food and can you then cook again for the others?” 
        “There is no difficulty at all,” replied the good wife.
        “Have I ever refused you anything? Whatever comes 
        to your mind is right.” 

        Eknath sent Uddhava to invite all the mahars of the 
        town to the feast. They filled the place to capacity and 
        took their meals on plantain leaves neatly spread on 
        the freshly washed floor, decorated with colourful 
        rangolis (coloured powder designs). Eknath seeing 
        the Lord in his guests, served them lovingly. When 
       they left, Girija got the floor washed a new and made
       fresh rangoli designs. After a bath, as was the custom, 
       she started cooking all over again. But not a single 
       brahmin made an appearance. Wherever Uddhava 
       went to remind them of the feast, he met with curses:
      “Is this Bhanudas’ great grandson whose life seems to 
      serve no other purpose than that of destroying dharma!” 

      Eknath went to request them in person: “The first food 
      was cooked for you but as the mahars desired it, I gave 
      it to them. We bathed, washed and purified the place 
      and cooked anew. Please come now and enjoy the 
      food of the Sraddha”

ANCESTORS OF SRADDHA PHYSICALLY APPEARED
     “You who are so well learned,” they replied scornfully,
     ” go and feed your ancestors. We won’t have any of 
     such food served us after the  mahars  having sat first. 
     So go now, and let your ancestors eat and enjoy it!” 
     Then Sri Khandya stepped for-ward and told the 
      Brahmins: “Yes indeed, they will certainly come and 
      enjoy the food!” 

      Then he took Eknath by the hand and led him indoors 
      and there, Eknath’s face lit up with joy at the wonderful 
      sight: On the seats neatly placed on the polished floor, 
      sat his ancestors, his guests! 
      Eknath closed his eyes and prayed to Panduranga and 
      bowing to them he began to serve them all. 

     The obdurate brahmins, observing this from the door,
      went home silently reflecting on Eknath’s principles 
      which had utterly escaped their limited understanding. 

STONE BULL(NANDI) EATS GRASS
In Paithana, there was a sannyasin whose habit it was to 
prostrate before everybody. He was a slightly eccentric 
devotee of God who liked to salute God in the form of 
whoever he met on the road. They called him Dandavat 
Baba. 
As he passed one day by the carcass of a donkey, some 
children asked him: “Dandavat Baba, why don’t you also 
prostrate to the dead donkey?” Obliging them, the Baba did 
so and to everyone’s amazement, the animal came back to 
life, got up and romped away. The news of it reached Eknath 
who felt concern for the sannyasin.


Eknath met Dandavat Baba & told him that people will 
pester him to revive dead people

Eknath then spoke about the ideal of sannyasins who have no 
ies in this world and for whom life and death are the same 
since they are identified with the soul which lives in its infinite 
state and suggested he give up his own body, by taking 
Mahasamadhi. This suited the Dandavat Baba well and he 
accepted his idea with great relief.

Eknath was forthwith branded as the killer of a brahmin. No
matter how he tried to clear himself, they wouldn’t listen. They 
held a meeting in front of a Siva temple and Eknath 
repeated what he had said so many times and over before:
 “I did not force him and God is witness that I am not guilty.” 
“Right,” cried their spokesman, “If God is witness to your 
innocence, let us see you feed fodder to this  Nandi bull 
(Siva’s vehicle). If God causes the bull to eat the grass, you 
will be exonerated, not otherwise!” 

How foolish, thought Eknath, but if this were the wish of his 
beloved Panduranga, well then let Panduranga deal with 
this in his own way. He took the fodder from the pundit’s 
hands and walked up to the bull. The pundits laughed. They 
had seen many miracles in Eknath’s time and life, but this 
was something outside the pale of any.

Eknath humbly bowed to the stone Nandi, patted him gently 
on the head and offered him the fodĂder, and yes, he 
opened his mouth, licked and ate the fodder, got up and 
trotted away, and finally disapĂpeared into the Godavari.

GOD PROVES FEEDING EKNATH IS EQUAL TO 
FEEDING 1000 BRAHMINS
There came an old woman who approached Eknath with a
request. She had always had a great desire to feed one 
thousand brahmins; but from wealth she had come into 
poverty and could not afford the feast. So would Sri Eknath 
whom she considered equal to a thousand brahmins, come 
to her house and accept an invitation to a meal? 
Eknath told her of his promise to his son not to go anywhere 
for food but all the same said he would come. Hari Pandit 
who was consulted, felt pity for the old woman and asked her 
if it would be all right if he himself cooked the food at her 
place. This would save Eknath from breaking his vow. She 
said she wouldn’t mind. 

The next day, Hari Pandit cooked in the widow’s little kitchen 
and then the old lady served both Eknath and Hari Pandit who 
sat side by side. Hari Pandit however noticed that the old one 
had surreptitiously placed a small vessel of a preparation she 
had made, on Eknath’s plantain leaf. He resented it but kept 
his peace. 

When they both got up to wash their hands, Eknath, pointing 
to the leftover leaves,told his son: “Let us spare the old lady 
the trouble of removing them, so please do it yourself.”


Hari Pandit obligingly bent down to remove his father’s leaf 
when he found a second below the first; he thought two leaves 
had been placed there by mistake so he removed both. But a 
third one appeared and then a fourth and so forth.  Hari felt 
weary and counted a thousand when the fresh appearance 
of leaves stopped.

THREE THIEVES BECAME BLIND & THEIR EYESIGHT
RESTORED

Three thieves crept into the inside rooms of EKNATH'S house
and collected whatever pots and articles they could lay their 
hands on. They piled them near the door and went in for more. 
Then calamity struck. 

One after the other the thieves became blind. Groping around 
for the way out, they stumbled upon the heap of pots and the 
noise woke  up  Eknath  who  came  to  see  what  the trouble 
was about. Hearing his footsteps the thieves who had 
realized that they had committed a crime by robbing the house 
of a saint for which they had become afflicted with blindness, 
cowered and huddled together.

Eknath called them and asked the reason of their fear and all 
three fell at his feet and told him of their woe.  

 He immediately passed his hands over their eyes and they 
regained their sight. He called Girijabai and asked her and 
Uddhava to feed them and then sent them away with all the 
pots they had stolen. The thieves, overĂwhelmed by his 
goodness and generosity, fell again at his feet and swore that 
they would never steal again. 

Seeing their change of heart, Eknath blessed them and 
explained: “God has come into my house in your forms, so go 
now, take these pots and start life a new, adhering to the 
honest path.”















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