Lesson from a Pilgrimage

In a village, there lived a devotee. He had a strong desire to go on a pilgrimage. However, he could not leave his house because only his elderly father and mother were there at home.

One day, a relative came to visit. The relative said, 'I know about your wish. You should go on the pilgrimage. I will take care of your parents until you return.' The devotee was happy. He entrusted everything to his relative, chose an auspicious day, and began his journey.

The devotee traveled far and reached a forest near Prayag. He had heard about a saint named Kukkuta Muni, who resided in that forest. It was said that even a mere sight of the sage would remove all sins. The devotee eagerly decided to meet and bow before the saint.

When he reached the ashram of Kukkuta Muni, the devotee was disappointed. The sage was living an ordinary life. He was seen cooking food, feeding his aged parents, and seating them on a cot before coming to talk to the devotee.

The devotee greeted him and said humbly, 'Namaskara I have set out on a pilgrimage. I have heard a lot about you and came to see and bow before you. I also heard that Prayag is not far from here. Could you kindly guide me?'

The saint replied, 'Dear friend, I don’t know the way to Prayag. I have never been there.' The devotee left the ashrama.

On his way, he thought, 'Is this the great saint? He does not even know where Prayag is!'

As the devotee walked away from the ashram, he saw three women. Their appearance shocked him - they were very ugly, with spotted and scarred faces, so dreadful that it was frightening to look at them. The devotee thought of asking them the way to Prayag but lacked the courage.

When he turned back, he saw the three women entering the sage’s ashram. This made him even more curious. He decided to wait and ask them the way when they came out.

After a while, the three women emerged from the ashram. The devotee could not believe his eyes. The same women, who earlier looked horrifying, now appeared as beautiful as goddesses. Stunned, the devotee stood speechless. The women approached him.

The devotee asked, 'Sisters, who are you?'

One of them replied, 'Brother, we are three sisters. We are known as Ganga, Yamuna, and Saraswati. At Prayag, the three of us merge. People from around the world come to bathe in our waters to cleanse their sins and attain liberation. Their sins come into us, which makes us ugly. That is how we appeared ugly when you saw us earlier.'

'Then how did you regain your beauty?' the devotee asked.

'When we come here and see this saint, we regain our original forms,' the sisters said.

'Is he so powerful? How?' the devotee asked.

'He is not great because of any tapas. His greatness and power comes from serving his parents with love and care,' the sisters explained.

Hearing this, the devotee realized his mistake. He immediately returned home and started taking care of his parents with affection. After that, he never wished to go on a pilgrimage again.

Ramaswamy Sastry and Vighnesh Ghanapaathi