A Sadguru once set out with his disciples for begging. He approached a rich merchant, who instead of giving alms, shouted abuses and obscenities. Nevertheless, the Sadguru blessed him, saying, ‘Your profits will double.’
The Sadguru then approached another wealthier merchant, who mistreated him even more badly. He, however, blessed this man, saying, ‘Your profits will quadruple.’
Then the Sadguru, with his disciples, approached the shop of a poor old man, who received them with reverence, and offered whatever he could provide from his meager store. The old shopkeeper had only one son, whom he loved dearly. Before leaving, the Sadguru cursed him: ‘By the power of God, I pray that your son dies soon.’ The next day the son was found dead.
When the Sadguru’s disciples found this out, they were bewildered by their Master’s behavior. The only man who had received them with humble reverence had been cursed, not blessed.
Afterward, the Sadguru explained: ‘Both merchants were immersed in the mire of worldliness, and did not want to be extricated. For that reason, I had to submerge them even more in the mire of the world by my blessings, so that one day they will cry to be pulled out. The poor shopkeeper was spiritually inclined. However his love for his son was much too binding. It was an obstruction to the old man’s progress on the Path. The son was, unknowingly, a thorn in his father’s side, and so I opened the door to the Path by removing his son. Now you tell me, who was blessed and who was cursed?’
April? 1922,
Poona, to his men Mandali,
LM2 p361-362
Note: The Perfect Master was a Hindu