The zamindar's son challenges the bull

There was a temple dedicated to Lord Shiva. The temple priest was excellent in every way. His name was Ram. He used to worship Lord Shiva most devotedly, and everybody had a very high opinion of him.

A certain bull belonged to the temple. Unfortunately this bull was very restless, powerful and aggressive. Only in front of Ram did the bull behave well. In his presence, the bull was under control. But in his absence, the bull was totally destructive. Nobody could come near it. The bull would charge at the person, throw him to the ground ruthlessly and break his limbs. When innocent villagers saw the bull charging at them, immediately they would run into the bushes to hide from the bull.

The villagers suffered tremendously because of the bull, but they did not dare to say anything against it because the bull belonged to the Shiva temple. They learned to be very, very careful. Only when the bull was sleeping or distracted would they pass by the temple. At other times, they all avoided the temple precincts.

The zamindar of this village had only one son. This son was very proud and haughty. He lived at his maternal uncle's place in a distant town because there was a very good school in that town. One day he returned home for a holiday, and he heard all the stories about the bull from his friends, dear ones and relatives. He said, "I am the zamindar's son. It is beneath my dignity to surrender to an animal. I will thrash it if it dares to charge me."

Everybody said, "Oh, do not go near it, do not go near it!"

He said, "No, I will go."

They were all begging him, "Do not go, do not go! You will be killed!"

They were all afraid of the bull, and they were afraid for the young man's life because he was challenging this destructive bull.

The zamindar's son bravely set out in the direction of the temple, and his friends and relatives followed a few metres behind him. He was not carrying a gun or any other weapon, and they were also unarmed.

The young man said, "Nothing will happen. I will tell that bull that I am the zamindar's son. When my father passes away, I will be the zamindar. At that time I will not allow the bull to be anywhere near the temple."

Before long, they arrived at the temple. The young man was ahead of the others, and he saw a mendicant passing by the bull. The mendicant muttered a few words and, lo and behold, the bull did not charge at him. It just continued munching the grass. Only the zamindar's son was able to hear the words the mendicant had uttered. He had said very soulfully, "Shiva Shankara, Shiva Shankara, Shiva Shankara." "Shankara" is an epithet, another name, of Lord Shiva. The mendicant repeated Shiva's name very soulfully, and the bull was pacified. It did not do anything. On the contrary, it was very, very calm and quiet.

The zamindar's son said, "I have learned the secret mantra from this mendicant. Now nothing will happen to me. I can easily pass by the bull."

Everybody said, "Are you sure you know the secret mantra?"

The zamindar's son proudly said, "Yes, I know it. The bull will do nothing to me. The bull will even respect me."

By this time the group had come very close to the bull. Now it was time for the bull to show its true nature. The zamindar's son said, "Now watch me. I will pass by the bull and nothing will happen."

The young man had only walked a few steps closer to the bull when it suddenly charged him, as if it were going to kill him. The zamindar's son immediately chanted, "Myself, myself, myself."

But the bull was not deterred. It continued towards him at full speed. Then the zamindar's son shouted, "What is this? The bull is not listening to me even though I said the secret mantra."

His friends said, "What did you hear?"

He said, "I heard 'Shiva Shankara, Shiva Shankara'. Since my own name is Shiva Shankara, I simply said 'myself, myself'. Why is the bull not listening to me?"

No sooner had he said these words than the bull reached him and injured him very seriously. His dear ones took him to the hospital, and he had to remain there for many weeks. To everyone who came to visit him, he said the same thing, "When the mendicant said 'Shiva Shankara', the bull remained calm and quiet and very respectful. But when I said 'myself', the bull charged at me. Why? Why? Why?"

Some Indian parents name their children after the cosmic gods. They also give names like Krishna or Rama or Buddha, or they invoke some other spiritual figures of the highest order. By giving this kind of spiritual name, they feel they are killing two birds with one stone. Actually they are not praying to Lord Buddha or Lord Krishna or Sri Ramakrishna each time they repeat their children's names. They are only calling their own child to come and be near them. Some even give the names Bhagavan or Ishwara, the Names of the Supreme Being. These parents are not thinking of the real Bhagavan. They are thinking of their own children first and hoping to please God in the process.

So we have to be careful. When we receive a spiritual name, it does not mean that we have automatically become something. In India we say " Shivaham" — "I am Shiva" — or " Brahmosmi" — "I am the Brahman." But these are things we have to practise. We have to bring forward the divinity of that name in our own lives. If your name is Shiva, for example, you have to repeat, "Shiva, Shiva, Shiva," until you feel Shiva's consciousness descending into your own life. If you do not realise the inner divinity of your spiritual name, you will meet with the same fate as the zamindar's son in this story.