The Cosmos created by God is wonderful. It is huge and beyond our imagination. Trillions of planets and stars are spread across the vastness of space like sand scattered on a beach. When we study the cosmos and life, it is easy to understand that everything created by Him has its own worth, value and usage. There is not one single item which is useless or worthless. We have created traditions in which we have placed our own value to all things. We label some things as useless and discard them. We even label people as unworthy or inferior just because they are not like us by birth or qualification or lifestyle. When people or things are labelled in this manner, we are unable to comprehend their actual value or usage. We fail to see the vast Intelligence and Logic of God who has created everything with multiple uses and value. When we sit and ponder, the usefulness and uniqueness of every part of creation is very clear. This story of the two pupils and their Guru teaches us to view the world from a different perspective:
There was a Gurukula (school) at the edge of the forest where many children studied under a wise Guru. Two of the students had finished their education and were ready to leave the Gurukula. They wished to offer their Guru a gift of the Guru’s choice as Gurudakshina ( offering made to Guru in lieu of fees). The Guru was pleased with the love, devotion, discipline and sense of duty of the students. He did not want anything from them. However, he decided to add a little more wisdom to their store of knowledge before they left. So he asked them to go to the forest behind the Gurukula and bring him some dry leaves for which no one had any use. The boys wondered at the strange request but left obediently to fulfill the Guru’s request.
As soon as they entered the forest, they saw a small heap of dry leaves beneath a tree. They went to pick it up and a farmer came out running and stopped them. He had collected them to burn and utilize the ashes as manure. By doing so, his fields would produce excellent crop.
They went further into the forest and saw three women collecting dry leaves and putting them into their baskets. The boys asked them why they collected dry leaves which were useless. The first woman said she used them as fuel for heating bath water and for washing clothes. The second woman said she pinned nice dry leaves together and made leaf plates which were used as dinner plates in ashrams and temples. She earned some money by doing so and fed her children. The third woman said that she collected dry leaves of a particular tree. Her husband was a doctor and used them for preparing herbal medicines. Many sick people were cured by using those medicines.
As the boys walked farther, they saw some dry leaves under a tall tree. As they were watching, a big bird swooped down and picked up a leaf and flew away. It carried it to the top of a small tree where it was building a nest. As it was growing late, they decided to return to the Gurukula. On the way back, they saw a big leaf float in the water. One of the boys picked it up as it was of no use to anyone. To his surprise, he saw two red ants sitting on it. They had used it as their raft and saved themselves. So he put the leaf gently on the ground and left it.
The boys were sad and informed their Guru that they could not get him even dry leaves as they discovered dry leaves have so many uses and people, birds and insects used them extensively. The Guru replied that the wisdom they had received that day was his real Gurudakshina. Dry leaves had such extensive use. The human body was extremely precious and must be put to right use. We must take good care of it and use it to make ourselves happy and others happy. We must use it for the most important purpose of our lives- loving God and for self realization. In the meantime as we live our lives, we must help the needy, poor and sick. Every part of creation is beautiful and is useful.
Let us be thankful for all the blessings we have received in life and understand their value. Let us transform ourselves by the SitaRam Mantra, meditation and following the teachings of the Guru. This will change our perspective in life and help us fulfil our goals of life.
