Vachaspati
Mishra was a philosopher of the Advaita Vedanta tradition. He is believed to
have lived in the ninth or tenth century ECE, in Bihar. He had written
extensively and his bhasyas (commentaries) on texts of Hindu philosophy are
highly respected by scholars even today.
‘Bhamati’, one
of his most famous works, is a bhashya on Adi Sankara’s Brahma Sutra. Later, a
sub-school of Advaita Vedanta came to be called Bhamati.
The word ‘Bhamati’
sounds like the name of a woman. Why was a philosophical treatise named so? Who
was Bhamati? What is the connection between the Brahma sutra and this lady?
Though very
little authentic details are available regarding Vachaspati Misra and ‘Bhamati’,
the story that connects them, is truly fascinating.
Young
Vachaspati Misra had no interest in the
normal life of a householder. He was a great scholar and was firmly rooted on
the path of spirituality. He had decided that he would become an ascetic after
completing the commentary on ‘Brahma Sutra’.
But, his
mother Vatsala wanted to get him married and hoped that after the wedding, his
attitude would change. She spoke to the father of a girl from a neighbouring
village and almost finalised the alliance.
When Vachaspati
came to know of this, he wrote to the bride’s father confessing that he had no
intention of taking the responsibilities of a house holder and planned to leave
the village after completing his work.
Bhamati's
(bride) father was upset when he got the letter but glad that he knew about it
before the wedding and decided to call it off. But Bhamati, who heard about this,
was impressed by Vachaspati’s mission and was moved by his honesty. She insisted on marrying Vachaspati. The
father was surprised, but seeing that his daughter was firm, got her married to
Vachaspati on the auspicious ‘Guru Poornima’ day. Soon after the wedding,
Bhamati left for her husband’s house.
Vachaspati
busied himself in writing. He did not realize the passage of time. He did not
earn anything and was not even conscious that there was another person in the
house.
The young and
beautiful Bhamati somehow managed to run the house and always made sure that
her husband got food at the correct time and his lamp had enough oil. Misra would eat when he was hungry without
even looking up to see who was serving him food. And then, he would go back to
his work. He did not know how he got food and who provided it. Nor did he
bother to know. His only focus was his work.
Seven years
passed like this. And then, one day, Vachaspati Misra completed his magnum opus.
With great relief, he looked up and was surprised to find a young lady in his
house.
"Who are
you young lady? What are you doing in my house?" he asked.
"I'm your
wife, Bhamati. We were married seven years ago," replied Bhamati.
Vachaspati could
immediately recollect their wedding. He realised that it was she, who had taken care of him
all these years. He remembered the set of hands that served him food, and poured
oil into his lamp.
"Show me
your hands," asked Vachaspati. Bhamati showed her hands. "Yes. These
are the same hands I have been seeing every day, all these years.”
He said, "Bhamati!
I have completed my work. This will be my contribution to humanity. Now that I
have fulfilled my duty, I want to renounce this world."
"My lord!
Do as you wish, I will not stop you." said Bhamati.
"Dear, how
will you manage after I am gone?”, Vachaspati asked her feeling guilty that he
was leaving a young woman, all alone.
"The
merciful force that took care of me all these years will take care of me
hereafter, also. Don't worry about me. I will consider myself fortunate that I
got to serve you while you were making an extraordinary contribution to the
world."
Instead of protesting
and throwing tantrums, Bhamati made it easy for Vachaspati Misra to pursue his
goal.
Vachaspati saw
that she was an extraordinary woman with an enormous generosity. He was
overwhelmed. How can a person be so utterly selfless?
He said, "I
will forever be grateful to you, Bhamati. I surrender all my life's work at
your feet. I will name this book "BHAMATI" so that everyone would come
to know about you and hear about your selfless sacrifice. You will become
immortal.”
Though he
renounced his householder’s life, he remembered her gratefully as long as he
lived.
Though Bhamati
had nothing to do with the Advaita Vedanta discussed in the book that carried
her name, it is a fact that the book became possible because of her selfless
support and sacrifice.
True to
Misra’s prediction, more people know about Bhamati than about the composer,
Vachaspati Misra!
B. Ramadevi
References:
http://aumamen.com/story/story-of-bhamati-wife-of-vachaspati-mishra-love-is-unconditional
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V
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