Narada, the divine bard, he is the author of the Bhakti sutra or the principles of devotion. He is also the Manasa putra of Brahma. an ardent devotee of the Lord Vishnu prieded himself to the his greatest devotee.
one day he enquired of the Lord”Who is your greatest devotee” the bard anticipated that Lord would reply that he Narada was.
Interesting the Lord answered”The farmer of the an village “
Narada was disappointed and outraged that there could be a greater devotee than him. he asked the Lord why was the farmer greater than him.
The Lord called the farmer and gave him a jar of oil”balance this jar on head and go round the town without spilling the oil”
he did the same with Narada when they arrived he asked the farmer,
“did the oil spill”
“I do not know was the reply”
“What about you Narada?”
“Of course my Lord not a drop was spilt, your wish is my command.”
“How many times did you think of me”
“All the time my Lord how can I stop thinking of you?”replied the farmer
Narada was shamefaced, and he realized what the Lord wanted to tell him. for in concentrating on the jar he had forgotten the Lord!
what ever the Lord’s exercise with Narada, maybe it is something we need to ponder on when that sense of superiorty sneaks in.
But what made me wonder was why did this story enter my space again. Could it be tell me that I need not seek a trophy but to enjoy my act as I normally do. The path traversed, the flavor savored they were more relevant than the approval or trophy handed by passer by.
