A Himachali Folktale
This is a story of a boy called Kirnu and his Guru called Kapish. They used to live in a small village in Himachal Pradesh.
Kirnu was an orphan. When he was ten years old, the villagers had taken him to an ashram in the village. Guru Kapish was the head of the ashram. The villagers had handed Kirnu over to Guru Kapish.
Kirnu gradually started working in the ashram and following Guru Kapish with great care. In a very little time, Kirnu became the apple of his guru’s eye.
When Kirnu turned fifteen, Guru Kapish felt that it was time for him to start learning the sacred healing mantras that he had known all his life. So began the guru’s tutelage.
Many years went by, and Kirnu’s training kept going. Then one day, Guru Kapish called Kirnu and said: “Kirnu, today I have turned 75 years of age. You have also grown to 30. It is now time for me to leave the ashram and lead a true ascetic life by being totally detached from all worldly affairs. When dawn breaks tomorrow, I shall leave the ashram and begin a new chapter of my life. The time has come for you to take charge of the ashram”.
Kirnu was shocked. He had never imagined that his guru, his only friend and constant companion, would ever leave him.
Kirnu started crying and pleading with his Guru not to go away from the ashram. Guru Kapish tried hard to explain that his own knowledge of mystical sciences had made it essential for him to leave the ashram right after his 75th year. But Kirnu refused to listen and held on to Guru’s feet.
Kirnu said, “If you do not take me with you wherever you go I will end my life.”
So the Guru had to ultimately agree to take Kirnu along with him.
An hour after dawn, once the guru and his student had bid goodbye to all the other disciples in the ashram. They decided that the best way to move around would be to walk along the banks of the river. They would have access to clean water and would mostly be easier to walk.
So they started walking towards the river. By the time they reached the river banks, they were exhausted. They decided to cook and rest.
Kirnu found some twigs and started a fire for cooking. But he saw that more firewood would be required for night-time to keep themselves warm. So Kirnu went looking for firewood.
Guru Kapish started preparing for the meal. He took out a small pot from his cloth bag and collected some water in it from the river. Then he put rice and lentils in it and started cooking porridge. But then he realised that he would need something like a ladle to stir the ingredients cooking in the pot.
His eyes fell on a stick floating in the river. He walked up to the river and pulled out the sturdy black stick. He figured that the stick was a good substitute for a spoon, and so he scrubbed it clean and started stirring the porridge with it.
Once the porridge started boiling, Guru Kapish thought instead of sitting in front of the pot and looking at it, he could finish his evening meditation while the porridge cooks. So he closed his eyes.
After about half an hour, Guru Kapish opened his eyes and saw that the sun had already set and a clamouring flock of birds were flying homewards. He looked around and saw that Kirnu had still not returned.
Then he checked the porridge. But he was completely horrified. The porridge that had been bright yellow was now completely black. Guru Kapish could not believe it. How had it burnt? After all,he hadn’t meditated for that long!
The porridge didn’t even smell scorched. Suddenly, it struck him. Of course, the culprit was the black stick.
Parts of his temporary ladle must have dissolved into the porridge, turning it black. Guru Kapish pulled the stick out of the pot and immediately flung it into the river. Guru Kapish couldn’t bear the thought of serving this inedible meal to Kirnu, who had always taken special care of him.
The guru decided to eat up the whole pot of black porridge, so that Kirnu would not even see the remnants of the spoilt food. For Kirnu, he thought he would cook a fresh pot of porridge so that he could have a hearty meal.
After eating every last morsel of the black porridge, Guru Kapish hurriedly washed the pot clean and started preparing more food. He let the pot sit on the flame without stirring its contents this time.
The porridge was done just a few minutes before Kirnu arrived. Guru Kapish saw his disciple and heaved a sigh of relief.
As Kirnu walked towards where he had left his guru, he seemed unsure in his gait. Even from a distance, Guru Kapish could tell that Kirnu was uneasy. The guru said to Kirnu, “What took you so long? I was worried. Hurry and wash up. The porridge is ready.”
Kirnu looked taken aback. His face turned pale, and he stumbled back and asked:
“Who are you? What did you do to him?”
“Him? Who him? Are you all right? What are you talking about?” asked Guru Kapish.
“My Guru. Guru Kapish. Where is he? What did you do to him? Where did he go?” Kirnu demanded.
“I am your Guru Kapish. Don’t you recognize me? What’s wrong with you, you silly lad!” Guru Kapish replied.
“Are you mad? What, you think I wouldn’t recognize my Guru? My Guru is 75 years old and you are merely a boy!” shouted Kirnu.
Guru Kapish was stunned by Kirnu’s behaviour. He thought all the exertion from walking and the emotional turmoil must have taken a toll on Kirnu‘s mind.
He walked up to Kirnu and gave him a hard shake and said, “Common Kirnu, come back to your senses. I am your Guru.”
“How can I accept you as my guru? Just look at yourself. You are just a kid. Go look at yourself in that still pool of water next to the riverbank,” said Kirnu.
Guru Kapish laughed and went to see his own reflection in the puddle of water that was present beside the river. But he screamed when he saw his own face. Staring back at him was a teenage boy, about fifteen years old, with tight, radiant skin and thick black hair. He almost fell back with shock and fright. The guru looked at Kirnu with disbelief.
“What has happened to me, son? What has happened to me? Oh God, what is this?” Guru Kirnu wailed.
But then, it dawned on Guru Kapish, as thoughts of the black porridge began to swim around in his mind.
“The porridge! That black porridge,” yelled the guru.
“Porridge?” asked Kirnu, completely bewildered.
“Yes, the porridge,” exclaimed Guru Kapish. He narrated the story of the black stick and the porridge to Kirnu.
When he finished, he said, “Kirnu, there’s no doubt in my mind that the black stick that I used as a ladle was kaala paaja, the magical herb found in the high reaches of the Himalayas. It causes age reversal. It had to be that. There is nothing else that could have turned an old man of 75 into a young lad of 15.”
“Are you sure? Are you sure you are my guruji?” Kirnu pleaded.
Guru Kapish answered, “I am your guru, my Kiribaba.”
Kirnu knew it was only Guru Kapish who used to address him as “Kiribaba” at times. Nobody else knew about this special nickname. So Kirnu went and hugged his guru. Both started weeping. In one evening, everything had changed for them.
After sometime Kirnu said, “Guruji, please give me some of that magical herb so that I too can become younger. How can I, your disciple, be older than you?”
Guru Kapish shook his head and said, “I can’t. I was afraid you might not like the black porridge, so I ate it all and threw away the stick.”
“We have to find the ladle then. We have to!” said Kirnu.
“Let’s try”, agreed Guru Kapish, and the duo started looking for the herb. For hours after sundown, the two searched for the black stick on the banks of the river. But nothing was found. As night fell, the two fell asleep next to the river, exhausted from the trials of the day.
That night, Devi, the Goddess Mother, appeared in Kirnu’s dream and softly said:
“I was the one who made Guru Kapish find the magical herb for immortality. That black stick is a rarity of the Himalayas. It was your sincere love for Guru Kapish that moved me. I thought you would both eat it. Your ages will be reversed and then you will be with each other forever. But all is not lost. If your seeking is ardent and your heart is pure, you will find that magical herb again. Immortality is after all the ultimate destination of this Creation.”
On hearing about the dream the next morning, Guru Kapish said, “Goddess Mother has sent us our purpose through this dream. We must now travel and look for the magical herb for immortality. This will be our eternal journey together. The black stick, the magical herb, which Goddess Mother has asked us to find, is not merely about being physically younger. It stands for our endless quest for the Supreme knowledge, the Divine Light and the Evolutionary Journey of the Whole Creation.”
Even today, they say, wandering shepherds sometimes see a young boy and an older man walking along the forests of the Kullu Valley, looking for the magical herb. Some can smell porridge close to the river and some can hear soft footsteps at sunset. The Guru and the disciple are still seeking the secret of the Divine Life on this mortal earth.