Raghav decided to start crossing the glacier hoping to find Acharya’s cave by next morning. Raghav found a small tent where he could get some food and shelter to spend the night to start again the next day. He knew if he could not find the cave within the next day, it would be so cold that he could not go back. He would have to spend the night in the biting cold with only his sleeping bag to protect him.
Next morning with renewed energy, Raghav braved crossing the huge boulders of the moraines trying to keep up with the signs on the rocks left behind by previous travellers. He remembered what Acharya had said about not taking the route towards the nandanwan. Climbing through the boulders took up a lot of energy and sometimes he would cry of pain. He tried to concentrate on his path even when old images of pain and sufferings kept bothering him and even followed some of the trekkers.
He fell down many times and the weight of his haversack slowed him down further. Ten years in comatose had decreased his bone density and weakened his muscles to climb the boulders. He suffered acute pain while pushing on the trek. To make matters worse Raghav's bag rolled down to a small stream when he rested to drink water. The bag absorbed the water and became heavier.
In the middle of crossing the mighty glacier and navigating the crevices, Raghav could not take the pain anymore and decided to move ahead without the bag. He took with him only the sleeping bag, strapping it to his back and started crossing the glaciers grabbing the stones to keep his balance. In the process he cut and bruised himself at places. By the time he crossed the glacier it was already afternoon and the path was completely covered with mist.
The hill that he was supposed to climb seemed so menacing that Raghav did not have the courage to look up at the sky for directions and glacier crossing has exhausted him more than what he expected. Somehow he kept pushing himself on the hill to reach to the cave as it would be the culmination of this journey.
But almost halfway in the hill, the pain and fear had overwhelmed him so much that he could not take another step while he was looking at the massive mountains of Mount Kedarnath, Mount Shivling, Mount Rudrageda, Mount Gangotri and other peaks which were all more than 20000 ft above sea level - waiting to give him an unprecedented welcome. Also doubts arose if he was doing the right thing there by following Acharya’s instructions.
He remembered his old friends saying,
“Mountains and oceans do something strange to you. They break your ego and make you realize that you are nothing in front of Mother Nature.”
Raghav who had just come out after finishing a dare devil act of destroying a military facility of the government of India felt so helpless and small in front of the mighty mountains. Suddenly the will to reach the cave had died down and he just wanted to be there at that very moment and not move. He was shaken to his bone and was in the state where all his wishes of life and death had just vanished.
He sat down on a boulder with tears rolling down his eyes. He kept looking down and not even lifting his head to see any sign of the cave. He also remembered Acharya's warning about bears in the region but Raghav now was not even scared of any such attack.
Raghav sat there for another half an hour lost in the emptiness of his being when he heard the sound of a whistle coming from behind a huge boulder. He got the courage to lift his head up to see two young boys, who later turned out to be the disciples of the Acharya, carrying torches coming towards him. Raghav raised his hand acknowledging their presence.
The two disciples rushed towards him. One of them provided him with a bottle of hot milk and the other covered him with a shawl. The older one among them said,
“Acharya has asked us to search for you. The cave is just half an hour from the top of the hill. Once you reached there it’s all downhill from there.”
Pointing at another big boulder he said,
“The moment you cross the boulder you will be able to see the cave. But first you must drink the milk.”
Raghav still lost in his own world looked at the bottle of milk not knowing what to do with it.
The senior disciple said,
“Once you reach the cave you can have hot soup. Acharya has already prepared soup and dinner for you.”
Raghav lifted his head again to look at the two disciples and could see the light in their eyes. The younger of the two moved around the boulder as if searching for something.
He enquired, “Sir where is your bag?”
“I left it in the glacier just at the point where the top of the glacier mouth starts.”
The older disciple reassured him
“Don't worry I will fetch the bag for you and in the meanwhile he will show you the way. You must keep going; Acharya is expecting you. But first you must drink the milk as it will give you energy”
Raghav, now completely recovered from his confused state hurriedly drank the milk and then stood up to finish the last leg of his journey.
He reached the top of the hill completely exhausted and fell down at the entrance of the Tapovan. The disciple accompanying Raghav picked him up and made him sit. Slowly he pulled him all the way towards Acharya’s cave and made him sit next to a fire. Raghav sat with his legs folded and his head buried between his knees unable to withstand the savage beauty of the mountains contradicted by the mesmerizing and soothing grace of Tapovan.
Acharya offered him soup and said,
“I know you don't want to eat or drink anything and just want to go to sleep, but you must not do so in the mountains otherwise tomorrow you will get sick. You must try to drink the soup.”
Raghav slowly tried to do so but could hardly gulp it down. His body was numb and exhausted. Acharya kept insisting that Raghav drink the soup.
By the time Raghav finished it off the other disciple had returned with Raghav's haversack. He said politely
“Here it is sir. It’s completely wet. We will put your items out to dry by the fire. Meanwhile take off your wet clothes. We will give you something of ours”
Raghav looked at them not able to fully comprehend the situation. He continued staring at his empty bowl of soup. Both the disciples sat next to Acharya and Acharya looked at Raghav and said,
“You should try to keep awake as long as possible. We have arranged a temporary bed for you. You can put your sleeping bag there and sleep. But you should stay awake as long as possible. This will help you acclimatize.”
Acclimatization is a process in the mountains where the body undergoes physical and biological changes to undertake daily routine work. Some of these changes are increase in red blood count, increase in the lung capacity and an increase in the heart rate to provide oxygen to the cells in the rarified atmosphere.
As they sat across the fire relaxed, one of the disciples asked, “Acharya, what happened when you went to Gangotri? We heard that you had some trouble with a sadhu out there. We heard it from the porters.”
Looking at Raghav the Acharya replied,
"Well, these days the mountains are full of frauds and thugs trying to sell religion. I heard about this guy who was pretending to be an aghori sadhu and had been bothering the villagers for quite some time now. He would curse all who passed by him and make offensive remarks against women.”
“So when I was passing by him while returning from the ashram on the day I met Raghav, he abused me He was pretending to take agni snan in front of some fire and called me a thug. He said, I just waste my time sitting in the mountains and that I have not gained any knowledge. He added that I should seek knowledge from him.”
Raghav was listening very intently to the discussion. Then the shishya asked,
“So what did you do?”
Acharya replied,
“I ignored him and went straight down to take a dip in the river. I met few other sadhus and discussed day to day activities in the villages and the world in general. They offered me food and I rested in their huts. Then’ when I was returning next morning this guy confronted me challenging me to show my hatha knowledge.”
Th
e disciple eagerly asked, “So what happened?
“I again ignored him. He then snatched my staff and started doing something akin to the tandav dance to show what he knew. Once he had finished I showed my appreciation for the show and proceeded towards the ashram. But he would not let me pass and blocked my way. No amount of cajoling made him give way so I gave him a good tight slap. He lay senseless for some time. I asked few villagers to take him back in his place. They thanked me and then I came back.”
Raghav, though thoroughly fatigued could comprehend what he had heard. He lifted his head to show his appreciation. The shishyas asked,
“What do you plan to do next when you meet him?”
Achaya replied,
“I don't think I will do anything at all nor will he do anything further!”
He looked at Raghav, “Now you must have recovered somewhat after having the soup. I will get you dinner and then you can go to sleep.”
Raghav ate the simple food of rice and pulses and went to sleep.
Raghav had not slept so peacefully for months. Next morning when he woke up early in the morning, he felt rejuvenated. He found the cave empty. He moved out of it but was still scared to look up and enjoy the view. After some time he gained enough courage to look around and felt a sense of peace and tranquility viewing the mountains. He enjoyed the moment for a long time. The snow capped mountains had never looked so beautiful to him earlier.
8.2: The Talk on Truth
When Raghav returned to the cave he saw that the Acharya and his disciples were chanting mantras facing the cave. Raghav sat quietly next to them till they finished their ritual. The sound of the mantras were so edifying that he realized he had come to the right place. Acharya opened his eyes and saw Raghav sitting on a rock. He did not speak or acknowledge Raghav's presence but looked at his disciples and asked them about the previous day’s discourse,
“Do you have any questions or doubts?”
The disciples at first felt slightly uncomfortable in the presence of the newcomer but soon they overcame that hesitation. Raghav sensed a separate aura around the monk and his disciples. They were calm and unpretentious. One disciple asked,
“How do you know what is in store for us in the future? Will we be able to see the future?”
Acharya replied
“You know I have been here in Tapovan for the last fourteen years. In the abode of these mountains, my meditation has given me the power to foresee the future. You know that this divine power poured down upon me. It is very strange and cannot be explained easily. It has taken me many years to understand and master this form of energy. That is the nearest I can say about it.”
He looked at Raghav finally acknowledging his presence and continued,
“Initially when I realized this, it was hard to comprehend what the future is, what all my power entailed. But I am now pretty sure that through proper yogic practices and a Guru to guide you, you can also gain these powers.”
At this point the younger and more inquisitive disciple asked skeptically
“How is it possible for anyone to see the future? Do you mean that the future is written? Is it possible for us to gain this ability and how long will it take us?”
Then the student looked to the other shishya and asked
“Also how far into the future can you see? Can you predict precisely when some events are going to happen? And how long will it take us to learn this?”
“Ha Ha Ha….".Acharya gave out a hearty laugh and continued in his reverberating tone,
“It’s amazing that you doubt what I have learnt. If I had been in your place I would have responded the same way. I appreciate that you are questioning my abilities and it is my duty to show you the right path. Actually, unknowingly you are on the right path though you will take time to realize that this is the right path.”
“Some people will never realize this in their life. Even Buddha's cousin, who was with him all the time, took around 44 years to realize what Buddha had taught.”
Again looking at Raghav and with a smile he said,
“I don't think intellectually I am anywhere close to the level of Buddha.”
Then he looked at the questioning face of the disciples who were sitting keenly to listen to what Acharya had to offer.
“But if you see the future as one event then you must understand the truth in my statement. What I just told you might not be true because truth is relative. You are the seeker and you found me in your quest for the truth. Future itself is relative and not absolute. Do you even understand what I am planning to teach you? It’s all in the non-linear domain that we practice our hatha yoga.”
Raghav realized that Acharya had this ability of circumlocution around the topic of discussion, taking the discussion in a circuitous manner while giving bigger knowledge in small doses. He thought if he had continued in the office environment people would have died of stress. Only one whose mind is trained will understand what he was speaking about.
Acharya continued,
“Ideally a Guru should know what he has to offer to his students, how much his students can take in. But a true guru is one who also knows what not to teach his disciples, what he should not offer to his students. The true seeker will get what he wants and his Guru is the means through which he will achieve it.”
Looking at his disciples who had been with him for many years as a gesture of humility to his disciples he continued
“To understand what I have to offer, you must understand some basic facts about human beings, our culture and society and precisely an understanding of the history of this country. This is something which I can teach you and probably through knowing history you can find the future.”
“I shall talk about the myths associated with the Vedas, the errors made in understanding the Buddha, the stories of the siddhas and their brutal murders, the conspiracies in many holy places and the politics of today and the yesterday.”
Listening to him Raghav knew he was with a person who not only had wisdom and knowledge of the past but was in sync with the present.
The Acharya paused and then stated
"Ancient India developed the techniques to culture the mind and body. There were universities built on these lines like the famous ones of Nalanda, Taxila and Vikramshila which were visited by many siddha sadhus of their time. Huan Tsang who grew up in the town of the Shaolin temple, took four years to gain entrance through the north gates of Nalanda University.”
“The practices were so secretive, like if the chancellor of Nalanda University used to drink cobra poison to maintain his immunity; you can well imagine the condition of their physical fitness. As you know – a healthy mind requires a healthy body. A healthy brain cannot survive without a healthy body and a giant among philosophers was a monk named Bodhidharma who developed the spirit of body culture through hatha yoga.”
Acharya again looked at Raghav and smiled acknowledging his interest in the topic.
“It’s an irony that Bodhidharma is famous around the world but almost is forgotten in India. It is said that he moved or rather fled to China at the age of 141 years and introduced them to martial arts - and the philosophy of what we call today as Zen. Bodhidharma preached dhyana in India which became Chan in China and then Zen in Japan.”
“It was said that he was an echha purush, someone who lived according to his will and it is said that he died at the age of 151 years. Then we had great seers like Gautam Buddha, Mahavira, Guru Nanak, Kabir who have shown the path to righteousness to thousands. Also you need to understand the story of the three Nagarjuna's whom the Tibetans consider as only one person with their lives spanning 600 years. Understanding the past will open up before you the path to the future.”
The disciples seemed to have liked the story of Bodhidharma. They asked
“Can you tell us how the monk Bodhidharma died if he was an echaa purush?”
The Acharya replied,
“Everyone likes to hear about Bodhidharma. Some say he di
d not die at the age that is specified in history. There is the famous myth of the empty burial chamber.”
“He was known by the name of Damo in China and when he died the Emperor attended his funeral. He was buried in a chamber. Two days later one traveller came and reported that he had seen Damo on the way. He was carrying one sandal and told him that he was going back to India. Hearing this, the burial chamber was opened and only one sandal was found inside it! This gave rise to the myth of ‘The Empty Burial Chamber’
The younger shishya asked, “So did he really not die?”
“Again everything in this world is relative. Age is something relative. Probably he was 151 years old but his heart might have been at 70 or 80 years. You see me climbing the mountains at a much faster pace than you people even though you are so young. It's only through practice that you can achieve a mastery over the mind and your body. Remember that your mind is your master.”
THE MYSTIC: PART I - THE SEEKER (Part 1 - THE SEEKER) Page 22