Yudhishtir and other Pandavas were given the path to Swarg by Lord Krishna. This path called Rohini was in the form of stairs that ended at Swarg. They started climbing the stairs together but not all could make it till the end. First Nakul, then Sahdev, then Arjun and then Bheem, all fell on their way one by one. These were the great Pandavas who vanquished the entire Kaurav army and had the ability to change anything in the world and enjoy any kind of pleasure. Yet they could not enjoy their victory. All the pleasures, all the power slipped out of their hands like sand from a fist. They went to Swarg for a while when the body left because they had upheld dharma and followed the Lord’s word. Thus most of us need to do swadhyay today, that are we following dharma/Guru’s word. What is going to be our fate when our time comes? For most of us, the hands are empty of positive karma. But they are full of pleasures which maya has to offer, the due date of payment of which is approaching and our banks are empty. The four Pandavas had some balance so they were there, but even they met a fall.
Yudhishtir, due to his extreme tyaag and firm following of the Lord’s word was the only one left at the end. As Yudhishtir was climbing, a dog came from somewhere and started walking alongside him. Yudhishtir started giving food to the dog, as it was a long way. This continued, with the dog accompanying him the whole way. Finally, when Yudhishtir reached the gate of Swarg, the dwarpals stopped him and did not allow him to enter. They told him that a dog was not allowed as only humans have entitlement to Swarg and animals do not. Yudhishtir told the dwarpals that even he would not go to Swarg then. His answer surprised the dwarpals and they told him that this opportunity of going to Swarg in human body was very rare and should not be missed.
Yudhisthir did not leave his responsibility (pet) even when Swarg was offered to him. Yet, most of us leave our pets and responsibilities at the first sign of an opportunity in the physical world. What awaits us for this blow of maya is explained when one visits the ICU of a hospital. Yudhishtir told the dwarpals that the dog was dependent on him and was his responsibility and if he left him half way and went to Swarg alone, then he would not be able to last there for long. Soon after the dog transformed into Yamraj who had come to test Yudhishtir, whether he was eligible to enter Swarg or not.
These are not mere anecdotes but they have logic and gyan in them. Responsibility is an important word and should not be taken lightly. It is normally seen that when people move up in life, they take their power for granted and forget their responsibilities. They get engrossed in enjoying their power, showing it off and collecting for themselves. One should never forget that there is no responsibility without power and no power without responsibility. Whatever one’s state or position in life, even if one is a sweeper, then it is his responsibility to clean the portion assigned to him to the best of his ability.
As one moves up in life, his responsibilities increase. With more power comes more responsibility. As one progress in yog, he is given more powers and simultaneously his responsibilities also increase. Guru tests at every step to check whether one is deserving or not. The ones who have the capacity, move to the next step, the ones
who do not, fall into the depths of maya, indulging in extreme physical pleasures without any responsibilities and in the process lose their vitality and glow at a phenomenal speed…something which I have personally witnessed and was shocked to see.
Giving power to the ineligible is like giving a razor in the hands of a monkey, who will first hurt his own self. Either the monkey becomes human with Guru’s grace or remains a monkey, dancing around…
