Dhaumya was an upadhyaya, a great teacher. He had three disciples, Aaruni Paanchalya, Upamanyu and Veda. The three were devoted to their guru and would do anything he asked without question.
One day, the guru asked Aaruni to fill a hole in a dyke as water from the hole was flooding his field. Unable to do anything, despite his best efforts, Aaruni lay down on the hole and blocked the flow of water. When a long time had lapsed and Aaruni did not return, Dhaumya along with his disciples went to look for him. When he called out his name, Aaruni got up from the hole and upon his teachers’ asking, told him what he had done to prevent the water from gushing out. When Aaruni told him what he had done, Dhaumya blessed and sent him on his way. Aaruni’s education was done he said. And since he had got up, tearing out the hole from the dyke, he would hereon be known as Uddalaka.
It was then Upamanyu’s turn to be tested. Dhaumya sent him out for the day with his flock of cows. At the end of the day Upamanyu came back and presented himself. He was a plump boy and the guru, intrigued that a day spent out in the fields guarding cows had left him unchanged, asked him what he had eaten that allowed him to look well-fed. Upamanyu replied that he had sought food as alms and that had helped him keep hunger at bay. Dhaumya found this unacceptable because no student can eat without first offering his teacher. So he ordered all the alms that Upamanyu would collect the next day, be brought to be him. Upamanyu did as asked but he still looked the same. Dhaumya asked him what had he eaten through the day and Upamanyu replied that he had gone for a second round of begging and the alms he collected thereby had been his food. Dhaumya said that this was not proper behaviour for a student as he was depriving people of their share of food.
The next day Upamanyu refrained from such action but he still looked plump. When Dhaumya asked what the secret was, he said that he had drunk the milk of the cows. Dhaumya reprimanded Upamanyu again; the cows were not his and hence he could not drink their milk. Obediently the student followed the latest instruction too, but he still looked plump and well fed. Now what had he eaten that day, the guru asked. Well since the milk was forbidden, Upamanyu said that he had filled his stomach with froth that the calves spat out after drinking from their mothers’ udders. Not done, said Dhaumya because the virtuous calved were probably giving up their share of food by throwing up more froth than usual out of pity for Upamanyu.
Upamanyu went back to his task, and this time he spent his days without any food. After a few days, tortured by hunger, he had arka leaves which turned him blind. And as he wandered about thus, he stumbled and fell into a well.
Dhaumya noticed his pupil was missing and he went to look for him. He called out and Upamanyu replied from the bottom of the well; Dhaumya advised that he pray to the Asvins who would restore his eye sight and help him climb out of the well. Upamanyu did as told, singing hymns in praise of the Asvins who appeared before him and offered him apupa (honey comb or rice cake). But he refused saying that he could not eat anything without giving it to his guru first. The Asvins persisted and when they found him steadfast in his refusal, blessed him and said that they were pleased with his behaviour and would not only help him out of the well but also restore his eyesight.
Upamanyu went back to his guru and told him everything that had transpired. Dhaumya pleased with his student; granted him knowledge of the Vedas and sent him home. The test was over.
STORY COLLECTED BY: Arundhuti Dasgupta
SOURCE: Mahabharata, Paushya Parva (Translation: KM Ganguli); The Sankrit Epics’ Representation of Vedic Myths by Danielle Feller
Location: Pan India
