Arjunacharya and his wife were very simple and humble devotees. They lived in a small hut. Every day after his morning duties, he used to go to the village and beg for alms. As a rule, he used to visit only three houses to beg. He used to accept just enough alms for himself and his wife to live.
He was writing a commentary on Bhagavad Gita and every day he spent hours reading and writing. One day he was so engrossed in it that he forgot to go to the village to get food. Since it was already late that afternoon, the ladies in the village were resting and there was no spare food even in a single house. So, he came back empty-handed.
Once more he sat to read the Bhagavad Gita. In the 9th chapter verse 22, Lord Krishna says-
Ananyaas cintayanto mamm ye janaah paryupaasate
Tesaam nityaabhiyuktaanaam
Yoga-kshemam vahaamy aham
Means- “But those who always worship me with exclusive devotion, meditating on my transcendental form, to them I carry what they lack, and I preserve what they have.”
Arjunacharya started thinking about the last words deeply and did not find them correct. How could the Lord say: “Vahamya ham – I personally carry”?
He scratched the line – “yoga kshema vahaamyaham” and then he told his wife that he was going to the river for a bath.
Meanwhile, two boys (Krishna and Balarama) appeared to carry loads of rice, vegetables, fruits, and butter and handed them over to Arjunacharya’s wife.
She was surprised and wonder-struck by their beautiful faces and so she asked them who they were. They introduced themselves as disciples of her husband and that they had brought these provisions as per their order.
She was very thankful and happy that now she could cook something for her hungry husband.
When the boys started leaving she saw the scars on the back of their bodies, she was shocked.
She asked them – Who has done this to you oh beautiful boys?
They told her that her husband made them work so hard and if they didn’t obey he used to beat them.
She was not able to believe what they said. But she felt very sad for them and applied sandalwood paste on their backs to relieve the pain and then they left immediately.
When Arjunacharya returned home his wife was very angry at him. She even didn’t want to speak to him.
Arjunacharya asked her: Why you do not want to speak to me? Have I hurt you?
The wife replied – No, you are a bad person. You are hurting small children!
Arjunacharya asked – How?
His wife told him the whole story of the arrival of the two boys. When he heard what his wife told him, he was able to realize that the two boys were Krishna and Balaram.
He ran inside where his Bhagavad Gita was lying and could see that the pen marks on his shloka had vanished. He started weeping for doubting the Lord’s word and said,” Yogakshemam vaahamy aham! It’s true. You do come personally to save the devotees. Oh Lord! Please forgive me”.
His wife felt sad for not having recognized them, though she saw them face to face. But Arjunacharaya was very happy thinking how his wife has direct darshan of Krishna and Balarama.
Arjunacharaya consoled her and said, “Now I have understood that there is no difference between Lord Krishna and Bhagavad Gita. By screeching on Bhagavad Gita, I was scratching the body of the Lord Krishna. And the Lord is truth, He takes care of his devotees. He personally carries what they have and provides what they lack”.
Then both husband and wife began to chant and glorify the Lord.
(This is a real incident that took place in the life of a great devotee called Arjunacharya who lived in South India.)
Moral of the story:
Bhagavad Gita is spoken by the Supreme Lord, and so it is all perfect. Gita provides the best solution for any kind of problem. We have experienced practically that when we are facing difficult situations, and are not sure about what we should do, the Lord answers through his words in Bhagavad Gita.
