(The Story of Kundadanta)  

I wandered through the mountains

For such a long long time

I was seeking spiritual company

I found a man at last

He was hanging by one foot

From the branch of a tree

 

The Ascetic was alive

He was practicing strict penance

I served him as he hung there from the tree

 

When the right moment came

I asked the man my question

Why are you hanging by one foot alone?

He said, “Twelve years I’ve been hanging here

To obtain my goal

I want to be the Emperor of the World”

 

The Ascetic was alive

He was practicing strict penance

I served him as he hung there from the tree

 

He said, my brothers and I read the scriptures

We learned that kings enjoy all the pleasures

We all wanted to be Emperor of the World

We spread out through the forests

In inspired devotion

This penance shall bring all things to me

 

The Ascetic was alive

Altho he hung there as dead

For six months I served him at the tree

One day there appeared at the scene

A Being brilliant as the sun

The Ascetic worshipped him mentally

The Being said, “Your penance is done

And I shall grant you a boon ~

7,000 years as Emperor of the World”

 

The Ascetic was released

And I snapped the rope

that had bound him to the tree

 

I followed after him to Mathura

As he returned to his childhood home

His seven brothers were there, having received their boons

The eight brothers ruled eight earths

From within that house

How’s that possible, you may ask

 

In just an atom the entire earth shines,

Not to speak of an entire house

The mind perceives the worlds within itself.

 

The Ascetic was alive

He had practiced strict penance

Now he lived with his brothers in his childhood home

 

The Ascetic is alive

He’s now an Emperor

Til in 7000 years when it all starts over again

  

Copyright © Mary Scott 2005-2008

Desert Light Studio, Arivaca, Arizona