Datta Maata 98 : Do not let anger overpower you

Do not let anger overpower you. Once anger overpowers, you need to face many bad consequences. Many people are ruined because of anger. We have learnt several stories in the past, in the history and we have been listening to them now as well.

King Paraksit, who was an embodiment of Dharma (righteousness), became prey to anger. Shrungi, who was a treasure house of penance, also became a victim of anger and he finally had to waste his penance. Let us observe that story.

One day, Parakshit went for hunting to a forest. He was tired after some time. Meanwhile, a deer came there, mystically went into a nearby ashrama and disappeared. It was the ashrama of sage Shamika. He maintained a calm persona. But, his son, Shrungi was totally opposite to him. He did not win over anger. Parakshit followed the deer and came inside the ashrama of sage Shamika. His eyes could not find the deer. He only saw the sage who was deeply absorbed in penance. He waited for a long time for the sage to come out of penance so that he can ask him about the deer. But, the sage did not even open his eyes. The king, out of fury, threw the dead body of a snake onto the sage and left the place. By doing so, the samskara (noble traits) of the king got destroyed completely.

As soon as king Parakshit left the place, Shrungi came inside and became extremely furious seeing his father. He cursed saying, “Let the one who humiliated my father meet his death by snake’s bite on the seventh day from today!” Here, even Shrungi lost his patience and discretion. At that moment, his father, Shamika preached him enough. He said, “Anger dissolves penance. It even ruins the ashta siddhis (the eight powers). Hence, those who perform penance must give up anger. In the kingdom of a king who does not follow dharma, the penance which is devoid of patience and the treasure of the one who does not have ego are like the water in a pot with a hole. They do not remain forever.” This is how Shamika warned Shrungi.

We too succumb to anger. At that time, we must recollect this story very well. Give up anger and remember that such anger is the cause of complete downfall. In fact, this story is a very good example amongst all the stories in Bhagavatha and Mahabharata. The beginning of Bhagavata starts with the story of Parakshit. From there onwards, we have a lot of learning from many characters. Such Bhagavatham is quite important. It is not just about devotion or contemplation about God. It also has matters pertaining to Jnana. Even though the story appears strange, we understand that with the grace of God, all of them have acted so. However, all characters and matters very naturally relate to devotion. Reading Bhagavata, worshipping it in our homes and immersing ourselves in the ocean of devotion is our duty.

Jai Guru Datta! Sri Guru Datta!