Song of the Free: Teachings of the 24 Gurus of Dattatreya

By Acharya Pundrik Goswami

A collection of true events, Song of the Free illustrates beautifully the life of Dattatreyaji, a monk, a syncretic deity, who is considered to be an incarnation of Trimurti, blessed with the qualities of Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh. An avatar and a wandering ascetic, Dattatreyaji's life stressed on the importance of learning. He taught us to recognise wisdom from even the smallest creature of nature, like the honey bee.

The book gathers the profound cognisance of Dattatreyaji. The 24 gurus, as accepted by him, are individually described, each forming a chapter. The guru is a source of divinity and the true guru guides us to attain our divine attributes. The book portrays the supreme consciousness of Dattatreyaji as he acknowledged the true guru found in nature-animals, birds and humans. He emphasised that if you have the desire to learn you can derive inspiration from anything. Moreover, his teachings inspire us to be in harmony with nature and other elements of the environment.

Song of the Free acts as a true guru who will lead you to wisdom, allowing youto thrive on your own. Influenced by spirituality and philosophy, the book is a guide to learning-learning to live and live with wisdom.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
• Release date: Sep 18, 2019
• ISBN: 9789388414739

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SHREE KRISHNA—A SOURCE OF BLISS

Shree Krishna is an epitome of everything which is true and pious. Let’s start by paying reverence to the lotus feet of Shree Krishna, the only avatar bearing 16 kalas (divine attributes). Embrace the ecstasy by getting immersed in the nectar of bliss, contentment, beatitude, allure and compassion. There is nothing better in this world than to take his name—and he has innumerable names. Yet out of all his names, none can fully describe him. None of his incalculable appellatives are capable of justifying the magnanimity of even an atom of his holy feet. Love is also one of the attributes that flourishes by the grace of Shree Krishna.

He himself is a paragon of love. Love here is not constrainted by the bounds of any particular thing. Love here has extensive meaning. It signifies being a humble, compassionate, devout and saintly being who loves and is loved so as to become precious to the Supreme Being, Shree Krishna. Love as manifested by the Gopis, selfless and resolute. Love as bestowed by the queen of Vrindavan, Radha Rani. Love which is manifested in the lifeless entities of Shree Vrindavan Dham. Love as pure and pious as Radha’s heart like Vrindavan. Love which is galaxies away from the concept of desire. Love which can be characterised by benevolent surrender. Shree Krishna personifies the love which is not just one aspect of a character, but edifies the character itself. He is brimming with divine bliss. Divinity and Shree Krishna are synonymous.

Divine not only in preaching but also in karma. Divine in a the absolute sense. From being a cowherd to becoming the sutardhar of the wealthiest and most powerful kingdom of Dwarka. Bearing the Sudarshan Chakra one day and annihilating evil, and on another day, becoming the sarthi of a friend in the world’s greatest war. His ways are divine.Lord Krishna conveyed the message of love and humanity to the world. Krishna narrated the epic poem, the Bhagavad Gita to the warrior Arjun, in which he pronounced: ‘Whenever Dharma, or the situation of law and order, is endangered on this world, I incarnate onto this world to re-establish Dharma, law and order, and to protect the sadhus or saints and to destroy the evil elements of the society.’

Though divinity cannot be alienated from Shree Krishna, he took on the avatar of a mortal and showed us the path to ultimate reality. Undoubtedly, every word articulated by him is heavenly, but his discussions with his two best friends, Arjun and Uddhav, are most revered. The one that we are all well acquainted with is the Bhagavad Gita; the second one is the Uddhav Gita. Just imagine the sagacity of a spiritual discourse—both the sacred writs are not mere sets of axioms laid down by the Supreme but, in fact, a set of discussions between a true guru and a worthy disciple.

Both the scriptures are not mere philosophies, neither are they a set of rules. Rather, they are intriguing discussions to initiate one’s inner consciousness. These two scriptures fully justify and comprehend Sanatana Dharma as a spiritual abode for seekers. What was important for Shree Krishna here was to stir up humanity and righteousness, not dictate morality. This is the only reason that even after thousands of years, His teachings are effective and meaningful. Both the sacred writs were expressed by Shree Krishna at the time of war—one was during the greatest war, the Mahabharat, and the other, at a time when Shree Krishna’s own clan, the Yadavs, were fighting amongst themselves. Only a supreme personality like Shree Krishna can be so calm and composed when your loved ones are at war.

For me, Uddhav can be considered more fortunate and certainly more bounteously blessed than Arjun. Uddhav is also Krishna’s cousin, being the son of Devabhagji, who was the brother of Vasudevji, Krishna’s father. His physical appearance was so similar to that of Krishna’s that in some instances he was even mistaken for the latter.

Uddhav plays a significant role in Shree Krishna’s life as a friend and political counsellor. He is also a great devout of Shree Krishna and a member of the Yadu clan. He is the only one who is taught the processes of yoga and bhakti directly by Krishna. If there is any other entity in this universe who can understand the love-hurt relationship between the Gopis and Shree Krishna then it is Uddhav. (The hurt was the result of not getting to spend enough time with Shree Krishna; they always longed for more.) Shree Krishna asked Uddhav to visit Vrindavan with a message from him to the Gopis and the other Gokul residents who were missing his companionship.

Krishna called on Uddhav to advise the people from Vrindavan to forget Him, as only then would they be able to perform their obligations on Earth.

Shree Krishna was aware of the ecstasy felt by the Gopis, even in separation. He wanted Uddhav to step out of the seed of knowledge—a state in which queries are only answered by logic and reason and not love or emotions—and into a field of love which would make them more holistic individuals. Love, whose status is not dependent on being together or isolated. Uddhav, realising the love that the Gopis had for Shree Krishna, was so filled with affection and devotion that he accepted the Gopis as his Guru. He had gone as a sack full of knowledge and came back from Vrindavan as an ocean full of love. The substance of the message—to forget Krishna and carry on their earthly duties—and the sentiments stimulated by it when heard by the inhabitants of Vrindavan constitute the most noteworthy comprehension of affection