Unimaginable Gains of Surrendering to the Guru
Prince Arjuna, alongwith his 4 brothers and Kaurav cousins were learning the art and science of battlefield under the guidance of their Guru Dronacharya, the greatest professor of Archery and other acts of warfare. Looking at the sincerity and the extraordinary skills of Arjuna, Dronacharya promised Arjun to prepare him as the most proficient master of Archery on Earth.
A small bright boy, belonging to a lower caste lived near the ashram of Guru Dronacharya. His name was Eklavya. He had a great desire to learn the art of archery from Dronacharya. So, he approached him, to accept him as his disciple but Dronacharya refused saying, “I am teaching the royal princes and cannot accept someone from a lower caste as his disciple”.
The boy was highly motivated and did not want to give up. He installed a clay idol (murti) of Dronacharya under a tree near his house and started worshipping thast idol as his Guru every day, offering flowers and natural perfumes in front of this image and started taking self-lessons in the art of bow and arrow. The talented young Eklavya soon acquired high knowledge in archery. He attributed his success to his Guru Dronacharya.
One day, as it happened, Acharya Drona and Arjuna were passing near the hut of Eklavya. It was a pleasant and peaceful afternoon and people were resting in their homes, but the tranquility and silence of the neighborhood was disturbed by the constant barking of a dog. Eklavya did not like this, and filled the mouth of the dog with arrows. Dronacharya and Arjuna were surprised to see the accuracy and swiftness of the archer.
Naturally, the curious Arjuna asked his Gurudev as to who could have done this delicate job. Even Dronacharya was amazed and knew the archer must be an exceptionally skilled artist. They decided to trace this skillful fellow and reached the spot where Eklavya was practicing wonders with his bow and arrow in front of the clay image of Drona. It took no time for Dronacharya to understand the situation. He realized that Eklavya was superior to Arjuna in some respects. Dronacharya loved Arjuna very much and had promised to make him the best archer on Earth. Guru Dronacharya thought for a little while and came to a decision to remove Eklavya as a competitor to Arjuna.
Dronacharya went to Eklavya and said, "O young man, who has taught you such wonderful skills in archery! Who is your Guru?"
Seeing the Guru in front of him, the boy Eklavya was overjoyed and said, "Why, O Gurudev, this all is your grace! I worship you as my Guru. Look you are there in that image!"
Dronacharya was pleased with the dedication of Eklavya, and said, "I bless you my son. But as is customary, won't you give me my Guru-Dakshina?"
Eklavya was overjoyed to see Dronacharya had accepted him as his disciple! Loudly he said, "O Honorable Teacher, whatever you ask, this humble disciple of yours will try his utmost to offer you as Guru-Dakshina! I am blessed."
Guru Drona said, "O Eklavya, I am pleased with your respect for Guru. I want the thumb of your right hand as my Guru-Dakshina."
It seemed the time stood still for a minute! Even Arjuna was stunned on listening to the unusual and almost cruel demand of his Guru. To ask for the thumb of an archer was equivalent to almost killing him! How could Dronacharya demand such a heavy price from one disciple to protect the honor of the other!
But Eklavya had no such remorse. Unruffled, with due humility, and without protesting or asking any questions, he cut his right thumb and placed it at the feet of Dronacharya. The demi Gods in heaven praised the greatness of Eklavya's sacrifice.
Moral
By having firm faith and steadfast unconditional devotion towards the Guru, a disciple can accomplish anything in the world even without getting the Guru’s physical association.
This is true IF your Guru is a God-realized soul. So, first surrender to real saint then practice devotion. Then, do not apply your human worldly logic in any of His actions or words.
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