Agra, 2016.04.28 (Business Standard, IANS): When ‘Shravan Kumar’ left the Taj city on foot for Mathura, his blind mother perched in a basket fastened to a sturdy rod, there were few onlookers who did not have misty eyes.
For some 20 years, Brahmachari Kailash Giri from Jabalpur has walked through India, responding to his mother’s wish to visit the ‘Chaar Dhaam’ pilgrimage circuit in the lower Himalayas.
Giri is following the footsteps of the bygone Shravan Kumar from the Ramayan who is revered as a dutiful son for taking his aged parents in two baskets that were tied to two ends of a bamboo pole which he shouldered.
On Sunday evening, a crowd gathered near Akbar’s tomb here to bid an emotional farewell to Giri.
His blind mother was seated in a basket-like seat, fastened to the rod, at the end of which was another basket, of almost equal weight, with basic necessities. Giri sang bhajans as he walked.
Giri said his mother was keen to visit the Sri Krishna-Radha land in Vrindavan and Mathura.
He said he normally covers around five kilometers a day, walking slowly. People often come out in large numbers to welcome him and praise his devotion to his mother.
Now 50 years old, Giri lost his father 21 years ago. Since then he has been fulfilling his mother’s wish to visit major Hindu religious centres.
After staying in Vrindavan for a few days, Giri would ask his mother her next destination. Depending on the answer, he would resume his journey on foot.
The original Shravan Kumar
The original Shravan Kumar, the symbol of filial piety, is spoken of in the Ramayan. Shravan Kumar’s parents were blind and poor but in spite of all their troubles they brought up their son well to be a devotee of the Lord. Shravan Kumar was correspondingly known for his dedication to his parents even while he was wholeheartedly devoted to God.
When Shravan Kumar’s parents became old, they asked him to take them for pilgrimage because they felt that in the last stage of life they wished to prepare to meet their Lord. During those days transportation was not easily available and his invalid parents were unable to walk.
So he decided to buy two baskets and put his parents into them and then carry them on his shoulders. In this way he took his parents to various places of pilgrimage. As he was going around with his parents near a river bank he decided to rest for a while. So he had put down the two baskets under the shade of a tree. The river by which they stopped was the Sarayu, which flows through Ayodhya.
Being near the river Shravan decided to take a dip and his parents also asked him to fetch a pitcher of water for them. King Dasaratha had come out for hunting in the woods and he mistook Shravan for a deer as he finished his bath and came out of the water. Dasharath’s arrow hit Shravan who fell into the water and died..
At this juncture it became the duty of King Dasaratha to complete the task of Shravan Kumar. Therefore, Dasaratha brought the pitcher of water to the parents of Shravan Kumar. But his blind parents were not ready to accept the water without hearing the voice of their son. As a result King Dasaratha had to tell the parents that Shravan had been killed.
Hearing this, Shravan Kumar’s parents could not bear the loss and they also expired, cursing Dasaratha that he would also lose his life from grief at the loss of his son.
The post Now ‘Shravan Kumar’ sets forth for Mathura appeared first on Vrindavan Today.