The light on the hill-top

This was the first time that the little cubs were seeing the Deepam light on the top of the Arunachala Hill. They were all awe-struck at the sight.


The older cubs were telling the youngest one, six-month old Spotty, the story behind the fire on the hill-top.

Each one was telling his own version of the story and little Spotty was listening to each version with complete belief, unmindful of the inconsistencies.

Arunacub, who loved the Mahabharata, was telling Spotty of Vishnu and Brahma fighting with bows and arrows. Tirucub talked of Nandi the bull as Nandi the Hippo.

Mum Lioness had a difficult time controlling her laughter at this one.

Omcub with a very serious face told Spotty how the fire was brought every year by a great dragon that lived in the North Pole. He comes on a sleigh, added Tiru. Drawn by red-nosed reindeers, added Arunacub. If the sleigh breaks down, he takes the Polar Express, added Omcub.

All of them enjoyed the beauty of the fire and the aroma of camphor and ghee and other items.

Arunacub worried that the fire might frighten animals and decided he would write a note to Arunachala asking him. Tiru worried about the environmental issues and whether a forest fire could result out of this. When Om cub told them the fire would last for a week or so, little Spotty wanted to know how long a week was.
But won't little insects and other small animalses be hurt or inconvenienced by the fire, asked Arunacub. I must add that in my letter to Father Arunachala, he told Mum Lioness.

Tirucub explained to the younger cubs that people from far, far away had come for this special occasion. Bhagavan's grace, they say, increases during this period. Well, Unca Stripes certainly has been very silent this week, whispered Spotty to his brothers. Much less irritable than usual. Maybe he is finding some peace after all, added Tirucub.

Then the cubs stood silently gazing at the fire on the hill-top. Meditatively, thought Mum Lioness.

Some time later, the cubs got onto Mum Lioness's and Uncle Stripes's shoulders and they inched their way through the crowd towards Virupaksha Cave.

See how resplendent Bhagavan is looking today, remarked Tiru from a distance. He is shining like the sun, said Arunacub. He is looking soooo happy, said Omcub.


The thought never struck them that many, many decades later, in another life, they would look back and remember their moments with each other and Bhagavan on the hill, they would one day yearn for the days when they were in the physical presence of the Lord Himself.

But Lord Ramana will always be present as the Formless Self in everyone's Heart, and also as the Arunachala Hill till the end of time.

Digging and tree-felling at Arunachala Hill

Kindly refer this post and this.
The cubs reached home from the ashram. Stripes was licking prasad off his paws. Then he began licking crumbs from the paws and whiskers of the cubs. Om-cub was yawning. Mum Lioness said, you kids can't sleep yet. I must prepare you a hot meal. You too, Stripes. Even though you were not cub-napped, you clearly need extra calories today.

Stripes licks off prasad crumbs

Stripes was overjoyed at hearing this. If only all days could be like this (meaning the extra calories only, not what had to be done to earn them)!

They had just tucked into a plate of pasta with veggies, and roasted potatoes when Mum said, "So cubses, what happened when you were there at the mansion?"

Tiru cub started,"Well, Uncle Krackaswami took us --"
"UNCLE Krackaswami??" iksploded Stripes with mock anger.
The cubs burst into laughter. Mum looked at them with concern.
"Well we thought, that Krackaswami too is the Self, so we should refer to him with respect.", answered Arunacub
They were all laughing, or trying not to, so the cubs could continue the story, when the cave shook!
"Oh my God, an earthquake!" exclaimed Mum Lioness.
Spotty peeped out of the cave. "There's a cloud of dust over there.", pointed out Spotty. "Oh I see!"
They all crowded at the cave door. The little cubses peered from between the legs of the older ones. Two figures were coming thundering down the hill towards them. One large one, and one small one.
"Why, isn't that Meditator Rhino and his kid?", asked Arunacub.
"Junior or Tiny or something", said Om cub trying to rememborize his name.

"Maybe they are coming over to play", wondered Stripes.
"No, Stripes. They would not be coming like that. There's obviously some emergency.", replied Spotty.
"Just wishful thinking", said Stripes.
As the rhinos neared Med Rhino shouted, "The end is near!!!"
The little one burst into tears and was inconsolable.

Med Rhino and Junior bringing bad news

The cubs immediately took Junior aside and tried to console him. He would not listen. Om cub tried to sit Junior on his lap and wondered why it wasn't working out.

Stripes took Rhino to the puddle on the side of the cave for a drink. Rhino lapped up and felt better.
"Some people have attacked our holy Arunachala!"
Everyone looked at Rhino with shock. Mum went pale.
All they could get out of Rhino and Junior was that some people had come with machinery and were breaking boulders, cutting trees ("CUTTING TREES!!!" reacted Tirucub) and removing earth too.
"We tried hard to stop them but they would not listen!", wailed Rhino.
"O Arunachala! Father!! Why are you letting this happen to you? Why are you silent?" demanded Mum Lioness unable to suppress her emotion.
"What have YOU done, to deserve this fate. If not for yourself, at least for the sake of our loving Lord Ramana, protect yourself. Imagine how this will pain our Bhagavan Ramana!"

The cubs were furious. "How can people chop down trees ?" asked one.
"What will happen to the animals of Arunachala?" asked another. "Does no one care for animal nowadays, apart from Bhagavan?"
Mum tried to calm them down.
Stripes was lying by Bhagavan Ramana's picture shaking and heaving.
Mum Lioness called everyone to attention.
I am off to the hill to check things out with Stripes. Stripes got up and straightened himself out immediately.
Rhino, i want you to stay here with the cubses. Amid protests, Mum and Stripes strode off towards the part of the hill Rhino had spoken of.
"I don't want to go to Bhagavan about this, unless necerary. We can't break his heart." suggested Mum to Stripes.

MEANWHILE, the cubs excused themselves saying they needed to go to the bush for a tinks before they went to sleep. As they reached out, Arunacub whispered something into their earses. Their faces brightened up. In an instant, all became big elefinks. In another instant, they were off and a hundred yards from the site where the destruction was going on.


The cubses (now elefinks) peered through the bushes in shock. Trees lay on the ground lifeless. Earth was being shovelled and collected into piles. Animals were crying out, "This is our home! Where will we go?"
"You animals have NO home! This earth belongs to humans. Get lost, before you get hurt!" replied one human angrily.
"Mummy, our house has fallen down!" said one baby monkey to his mother pointing at a felled tree.

Mum, they've demolished our home!

Shh! Some swami wants to build a temple over our home. Mebbe that's more important than our lives.

The four elefinks (Tiru elly, Aruna elly, Om elly and Spotty elly) charged out of the bushes.
Spotty went to the tree that was about to be cut down and put his trunk against the machine blocking it.
Om elly lifted the heavy boulders and began putting them back. Arunacub picked up some injured tarsiers and put them aside safely. He asked one monkey mother to take care of them till help arrived.

Then Arunacub told the animals, "Animals, friends, we are also residents of Arunachala. We live on the other side of the hill. Please have faith in the Lord. Until now he has looked after you providing you with a home and food. He will sortanly look after you in the future. "
The animals calmed down a bit.
"Remember the names Ramana and Arunachala at all times. These are two of the many names of the Lord."

At that moment, Stripes and Mum Lioness arrived. They were surprised to see some elefinks holding off the workers. They strode past the elefinks and marched up to the workers.
Then Mum heard a little voice, "What took Mum so long?"
She turned in disbelief. The cubs, again! "I will speak with you four later", she said.

She walked up angrily to the workers and asked, "Who is in charge here?"
No one took notice.
Mum Lioness asked the workers to stop their work. The animals also began voicing their feelings. Mum Lioness asked a few of them to go call the police.

"This land is under the jurisdiction of --" began Mum Lioness to the workers.
"We are under the orders of Bhagavan Krackedswami!", said one worker.
"Everything in the world belongs to him", said another with a look of awe on his face.

After about fifteen minutes, Uncle Krishnamurthy of the Forest Department arrived. The elefinks recognized him but he could not recognize them as elefinks.
The workers had been asplaining to the crowd that they had a patta (some kid of permit, thought Stripes) for the land.
Uncle Krishnamurthy negated their claims.

"We are devotees of Sri Sri 1008 Bhagavan Krackaswami and are contructing a meditation centre here", said one robed person.
"Bhagavan WHO?" asked the official in disbelief. "These trees you just hacked down were planted a few years ago by us as part of our reforestation drive."

Uncle Krishnamurthy of the Forest Department warns monks not to destroy Arunachala Hill

"These rocks, " said Uncle Krishnamurthy picking up one and holding it reverentially, "are Arunachala Himself. Arunachala is our protector and our father."
The devotee gave him an assurance that he would not continue with this work.

"Oh hello Stripes, and Mum Lioness!" said Krishnamurthy. "Wasn't it during the boll-weevil infestation we met last?"
"Lice infestation.", corrected Mum Lioness.

Police arrive and commence investigations

The police arrived. The elefinks helped move away the machinery, which was then confiscated.
"Now i must rush over to the press and tell them how I sorted out this issue singlehandedly", said Uncle Krishnamurthy.
"Oh, you did a splendid job!" remarked Mum Lioness.

"Hope to see you on the front page, Uncle!" shouted the cubs with joy. Uncle Krishnamurthy spun around.
Behind him stood four little cubs. They bounded up to him and lovingly wiped their very muddy paws on his starched, spotless dhoti.
"That's holy earth." reminded Om-cub before anyone (especially Mum Lioness) could scold them.
"The very holiest!", added Uncle Krishnamurthy.

"But this is our home!"

Meditator Rhino and his young son decided to pay a visit to the cubses. But when they arrived at the lions' cave, there was no one home.

The two rhinos decided to continue on their walk.

They had walked for quite a while when Junior said to Med Rhino, "Something is wrong, Daddy."

"What is it exactly?" asked Med Rhino, looking around. He too could feel something strange, but he was not sure what it was.

"I don't know ... it is as if someone is crying, but I can't quite hear their voice, I can only feel their sadness."

Just then, they came upon a most startling and horrifying sight. Their beloved Arunachala was being attacked! Or that was how it appeared to them. A huge yellow backhoe was scraping up scoopfuls of Arunachala. Beautiful trees had been knocked down. All manner of plants had been torn up.



With huge tears welling up in his eyes, Junior implored, "Do something, Daddy! You have to stop this! Look what they are doing to Ramana's Father!"



Med Rhino shouted out above the noise of the backhoe, "Stop at once! Do you not realise what you are doing?!"

The workers paid no attention.

Just then a little deer came up to Med Rhino and Junior.



"My family has fled, but I got left behind. I don't know which direction to search in."

Behind them, they heard a snuffling sound. They turned to see a beaver crouched in fear.



"Beaver, you will soon be crushed! Come with us, and you too, little deer."

They were just leaving when some monkeys called out to them.



"Look what has happened to our trees!" the monkeys cried.

"Come away from there, monkeys. You may get run over," said Med Rhino with concern.

"But this is our home!"

"Do not risk your lives there," said Junior. "Come with us."