Spotty shares his dream with the other cubs

Mum Lioness peeked outside to see what the cubs were up to. Spotty was speaking in hushed whispers. Seemed he was recounting a dream to the other cubs.

I was going past this big house. There were signs outside. One said "Instant Enlightment -- 5 days for Indians". The cubs giggled at the "Instant Enlightenment".
Another sign said "Enlightenment - only 21 days for foriegners"
There were huge sums of money mentioned.
On the gate was a sign saying "Swami Enlightenmentananda".

Om cub asked, how much money.
Oh, they were really large figures, i can't count that much. But there were many zeros.
Oh, that's big, said Tirucub.
The one for Indians said rupees, the other one said dollars.

Then i went past a window, and the Swami was sitting in front of a safe. The safe was open,
(The cubs' eyes opened wide).
There was a lot of money inside, but there was something different about the notes. This was ego money.
What!!!! asked the cubs, what's ego money?"

Well, explained Spotty, it sort of had ego written all over it. Like the money paid by the seekers gets converted to ego. It inflated the ego of the Swami!

Then I peeked into the other rooms where the participants were sitting. I could see that they were looking quite happy.

Arunacub interjected: Yes, the ego is getting happy, since it is getting inflated.
Om cub added: Participants come to these programs for Instant Enlightenment, but their egos get inflated, and they feel happier.
Tiru asked: So they are paying to have their egos inflated? Then the programs should be called: Instant Ego-inflatenment !

The cubs laughed at this.

Then Spotty continued:
The Swami was charging more for giving the participants the ablity to heal others and pass bliss onto others.

Ah, a big ego trap, observed little Omcub sagely.

Some sort of special connection to some divine force, added Spotty.

A neat way of getting more people to hear of this Swami, so they can come to him for Instant ego-inflatenment, remarked Tirucub.

You mean like whenever you see someone unhappy or unwell you offer healing, and then start telling them about Swami EnlightenmentAnanda, asked Arunacub

Precisely. Subtle is it not, asked Tirucub. As against just going around stopping people and telling them about him.

So what else happened in the dream, asked Om cub impatiently.

Oh, yes I just remembered. These people were going in for instant enlightenment and their heads were swelling up. I just knew that their heads were getting filled up with --

EGO, the other cubs shouted.

Spotty: Some were shouting, I am enlightened, I am enlightened.
Others were looking sad, and were being told that they have to submit to Swami EnlightenmentAnanda in order to get enlightened. Only if they accepted him as God would they be enlightened.

How did Swami Enlightenmentananda look, asked Omcub.

Well, if you took ego-stuff and made a human being out of it -- that's how he would look. But the people around him were saying how handsome he is looking, and how beautiful his wife was.

Wife!!! shouted the cubs.

Yes, did i not say there was a wife, too. Really filled out, like Mama Hippolyta.

The cubs laughed.

Truth to tell, I thought it was Mama Hippo wearing a saree.

(At this, even Mum Lioness, preparing idlies, burst into laughter).

They were very fancily dressed up - aspensive clothes, jewelry, sitting on a throne.

A THRONE!! shouted the cubs.

Yup, did i not say so earlier. Everything there was stinking of ego.

Ego has an awful smell, observed little Omcub wrinkling his tiny nose. Worse than poo.

Only Bhagavan Ramana can destroy the ego, stated Arunacub. Those who surrender to Him, will be realized. Maybe one or two more can, too. The rest will only inflate the ego.

Spotty said: In the dream there was talk of Swami Enlightenmentananda causing global enlightenment.

Omcub almost choked on this. It looks like he is preventing it!

Bhagavan Ramana is the only one who can bring about global enlightenment. But He never speaks about such things. He is the highest power, way way above and beyond a jnani, said Arunacub.

Bhagavan sees all as realized, explained Tirucub.

There was one very disturbing thing about the dream, said Spotty. There was a constant fighting of animals going on. Dogs barking at each other ferociously and biting each other. Monkey fighting viciously.

Bad energy over there, observed Om cub.
Very bad energy! added Arunacub.
A clear sign, said Tirucub, Humans can be hypnotised and brainwashed, but animals can't. This shows that the energy at this Swami Egoananda's -- (the cubs burst into fits of laughter) -- was not good energy. Had it been, the animals would have been living peacefully like they do on Arunachala, especially in the vicinity of Bhagavan Ramana.

At that moment, Uncle Stripes appeared, and sat down along with the cubs.

Unca Stripes, is there anyone other than Bhagavan Ramana who can help people realize the Self.

I sure hope so, cubs. But it seems that most poeple are only amassing a fortune at the expense of others. Some may be realized, but can they help others ? Bhagavan certainly has, and can.

People say Self-enquiry is difficult, is that true, Unca Stripes, asked Arunacub.

Maybe for those who are not devoted to Bhagavan. I think they will find it harder to disengage from the mind and be by themselves. The ego is a very attractive thing. However, there is only one thing in this world that is more attractive than the ego. And that is our Father Arunachala Ramana. If you love Him, you will believe and follow his words. When he says you are not the mind, you will be able to disengage from the mind. If devotion is not there, the ego will keep pulling you, and the instruction "I am not the mind" will fail.

When deep devotion is there, we will do anything to find the real Bhagavan, even detach from thoughts. If that longing to be one with the real Bhagavan is not there, what incentive have we, to detach from the mind which can be so attractive.

What if we have devotion, but can't do Self-enquiry? asked the cubs.

That's okay. Since your aim is to defeat the ego and be one with Him. He is clearly guiding your life already. He is already holding your hand and carrying you. Keeping one's thoughts on Bhagavan, or in silence seeking the Self, are both ways that allow Bhagavan's grace to flow in, although like sunlight, His grace is always there.

So you little cubs are doing just fine -- melting lovingly into the Self.

Mouna Swami on Arunachala hill

IN TOWN, news was spreading of a mouna swami who had arrived at the hill and was giving darshan. It was said that he maintained silence (mouna) and occasionally spoke through gestures or writing on slips of paper.
Poeple began trooping over to the hill for a darshan.

HERE at the caves, Mum Liones had her paws full taking care of all the displaced animals. She had made countless idlis and rotis for the animals and she still seemed to be on a roll.

Visitors for the displaced animals

Through the corner of her eye she saw many animals walking over towards their cave. Oh another round of displaced animals, she thought. Then recognizing one, she realized that these were animals from a side of the Arunachala Hill that had not faced demolition by the Swami K group. She guessed that they must be coming over to visit and comfort their displaced friends.
And so she put a big pot of water on the stove for tea.
There was not enough tea leaves left in her storeroom for so many but she knew that Bhagavan Ramana would take care of all the guests somehow.

After a while she noticed that a line had formed outside Meditator Tiger's cave and there was a lot of talk going on among them. She could hear the words "mouna" and "swami" too and sent a young monkey to enquire.

Crowds accumulate for darshan of Mouna Swami

He came back saying that he had heard from one of them that a mouna swami is sitting in the next cave and they have come for darshan. They will not go without darshan.
They are not believing that there is no swami there. One said they have come from afar, and they are willing to wait as long as it takes for a darshan.

Mum called out to Tiru, then Aruna then Om but no response came. They too were in the next cave. The monkey brought Tiru back.

Tirucub was very excited. He spoke to Mum breathlessly. Mum, I have some bad news for you.
Mum went pale. She had not recovered yet from the adventures of the previous days and was in no mood for any more. "It's about Unca Stripes."
Mum Lioness went paler.
Tiru explained that Unca Stripes had done too much dish-washing the previous day and was totally washed out. His tongue muscles were sore.
So what's the big deal with this crowd and all, asked Mum impatiently.
Don't you get it, Mum? asked Tiru incredulously.
No, be quick. i can't wait all day.
Unca Stripes is unable to talk! His tongue is, you know, tired from washing dishes.
A doctor among the monkeys said it may take a day, maybe two for Unca to be able to talk.

Stripes shows tongue to doctor

Mum went even paler. A whole day without Stripes talking!
Tiru: But look at the bright side, Mum. we won't have to hear Unca sing!

Anyway, he is able to answer, he is writing on slips of paper or gesticulating. We've been telling all these people to leave as Stripes is no silent jnani. He's just a tongue-tied tiger.
But they still insist on a darshan. A peek if nothing else. They are just not budging.

Mum: Well, take him some more buttermilk and make sure you don't spill any while squeezing it through the dropper.
Yes, Mum.

Stripes, the dish-washer, takes a day off

The cubs had been having a great time all morning feeding Stripes endless rounds of buttermilk through a dropper and licking off what was spilling. Stripes lay on his back enjoying the attention.

Mum speaks to crowd

Mum Lioness went out and explained the situation to all. They looked cheated. However, she said, since you have all come from afar, please have tea before leaving. And if anyone is hungry we could steam up some iddlis if you can wait a bit. But please understand that for darshans you must go to the young swami on the hill. He is there. (she said pointing towards Virupaksha Cave).

She then came in to prepare tea and iddlies.
Stripes was enjoying himself. He was "off-duty" today and being attended on by the cubs. But this mouna swami business had been a nuisance on an otherwise poafict day. Oh, there was the other fact that he could not eat.

Then one hippo noticed someone distributing pamphlets to the crowd and told the cubs. Om took a peek and shouted, "Flora! Flora!"

Tiru ran out to check and picked up a pamphlet. The pamphlet had "Instant Enlightenment" written over it with details of a deeksha program at the mansion. The deeksha would also result in abounding miracles in the lives of participants.

Flora, the goat, then saw Tiru cub approaching and ran for her life.