When the tongueless bell rings...

In a story filled with folk motifs, the bard gives a fascinating account of how Pandu attained heaven.

Dharmaraya performed the Rajasuyayaga so that his father would attain heaven. Seating Krishna on the throne, he sought his blessings. “How are we to know if our father has attained a place in heaven or not?” he asked Krishna. “Tie a tongueless silver bell at the entrance. The tongueless bell will ring thrice if King Pandu has attained heaven. It will remain silent if he hasn’t,” Krishna told the Pandavas.

In the nearby forest, there lived a rishi called Goruka Siddha, who having performed penance for 12 years, had obtained a lot of powers. He had a disciple called Manikasiddha, who had spent his entire life serving his guru, without asking anything in return. The guru was highly pleased with the loyalty of his disciple but didn’t wish to give him anything without being asked.

When Goruka Rishi’s end approached, he asked his disciple to pour some water into his mouth. Finding the pot empty, Manikasiddha ran to fetch water. Since it was summer, he couldn’t find water anywhere. When he was scanning the forest for water, the guru’s final moment came. He grew tearful at the thought that he hadn’t done anything for his honest disciple. So, taking a stick he scribbled these words on the ground: ‘Your loyal service to your guru will bring you good fortune in the future. When Dharmaraya performs the Rajasuya so that his father can attain heaven, he will achieve his goal with your help. Your honesty and fairness will be rewarded.”

Meanwhile, washerman Machaiah’s daughter Eeramma came to the wood with her friends. She found the guru’s body and saw what he had scribbled. She copied the words on a palm leaf and erased the writing on the ground. Just then Manika Siddha came there carrying water. At the sight of his guru’s body, he started wailing: “What a wretched sinner I am, guruji. I failed to pour water into your mouth and receive your blessings.”

Eeramma told him: “When I came here, your guru was still alive. He told me wise words he wanted me to pass on to you.” When the disciple begged her to tell him those wise words, she said “I won’t pass them on without getting anything in return. I shall tell you those words if you serve me for 12 years”. “I served my guru for 20 years. If you tell me his wise words, I shall serve you for 20 years,” said the devoted disciple. The woman agreed and sent him to graze her donkeys. He slogged for the woman doing everything she asked him to. He didn’t get enough food or sleep.

While Dharmaraya was performing Rajasuya in Indraprastha, Manikasiddha was grazing donkeys. On a hot summer day, feeling very thirsty, he came to Indraprastha to ask for water. He was told: “Though we have water, we can’t give it to you. Until Dharmaraya has washed the Lord’s feet and the Brahmins have been feasted, nobody will give you water.”

On the way, outside Dharmaraya’s kitchen, he saw gruel strained from different kinds of cooked rice, flowing like a stream. Thanking his guru, he drank three handfuls of that gruel. Inside the palace, Brahmins sitting down to lunch had not been served any rice yet. The tongueless silver bell rang three times, once with each handful of gruel he drank.

On hearing the bell, Dharmaraya came running to the door. He asked Krishna how this miracle had come about. “The merit, a truthful and just disciple has earned by serving his guru faithfully, has helped your father attain heaven.” Paramathma then took Dharmaraya to Manikasiddha. They asked him about his family. Overcome with grief, he told them his tale of woe. As they spoke, they approached the place where he had drunk gruel. The grains of rice had turned into precious stones.

Paramathma told Dharmaraya to honour him. They found him a suitable girl and celebrated his marriage in a grand manner. He was given land, a house and property.

As for washerwoman Eeramma, in return for her deceitful act, her whole tribe was cursed with meagre returns for their hard work and the task of washing soiled clothes till the end of time.

The author, a retired professor of English, is a well-known theatre and television artiste and an award-winning translator.

Folktales from the Mahabharata is a monthly column that features lesser-known episodes from ‘Janapada Mahabharata’ sung by eminent folk-artiste Bettada Beedu Siddhashetty and published by Dr P K Rajashekara.