This series chronicles sweet experiences recounted by the devotees of HH Maharanyam Sri Sri Muralidhara Swamiji as well as some divine experiences of Sri Swamiji himself. These articles are translations from the Madhurasmaranam series that is published every month in Madhuramurali Tamil monthly magazine.
A Weakling at His Holy Feet
In 2018, Sri Swamiji was staying in Thiruvannamalai in solitude for a few days. Sri Swamiji was staying in a beautiful grove, filled with trees, plants and vines, overlooking the majestic Arunachalam. That mind blowing grove was owned by devotees who had so much love for Sri Swamiji. Sri Swamiji said that the place was so peaceful and that being there transports one to a deep, tranquil state.
In those few days, Sri Swamiji got four new friends. A friendship that just started instantly became strong. That is how the exchange of love happened. A friendship that evoked jealousy in onlookers! Do you know who those blessed four were? They were four dogs who were roaming in the grove!
Always a connoisseur, our Sri Swamiji never ceases to relish things, sceneries and everything around Him. It is inexplicable for us to describe in words, His heart that relishes everything as God’s play. We cannot ever reach the heights of His appreciation, however hard we try.
Sri Swamiji has immense love for dogs. Sri Swamiji always says, “No one can express pure love as much as they do. They enslave us with that love.”
Everyday of His stay in Thiruvannamalai, the four of them would come running towards Sri Swamiji, as soon as He opened the door.
One could just keep looking at Sri Swamiji pampering and playing with them and enjoy it. Of the four, one was a weakling and was scared of the other three.
He would ask for different kinds of biscuits to be bought from the store for His friends daily around mealtime. He would divide it up with His own hands and give them.
What happened was that the three heavy dogs scared away the poor, weak dog and eat its portion too. The weak one did not get anything at all. Looking at this, Sri Swamiji was brimming with compassion towards that frail dog. He tried various techniques with the sole goal of getting the puny dog’s stomach filled. He tried calling the puny dog first. The other three dogs would scurry towards Sri Swamiji, so the weak one would just walk away. Next He tried feeding the the three stronger dogs first so that they would let the weak one to eat peacefully. That too failed. No plan turned out to be fruitful. Do you know what He did at last?
He kept the portions for the three dogs far away from Him. He kept the weak dog near the chair that He was sitting on and put the biscuits in between His legs and made it eat. Our frail friend ate the biscuits happily, wagging its tail, unafraid of anything. Eyes filled with happiness and vision of Sri Swamiji, it even licked His feet every so often. This graceful play continued on every meal.
Looking at this, we were also filled with inexplicably refreshing feelings in our minds. There is no need to worry even if we are a weak dog! Because we have His fort-like holy feet to surrender!
Article originally chronicled by Dr. A Bhagyanathan, personal secretary to Sri Swamiji, in Tamil Madhuramurali Magazine March, 2021 issue, Madhurasmaranam section.
Translated into English by Smt. Mangala Gowri Sridhar, Jacksonville FL
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