You do not exist!

Long time ago, perhaps a few thousand years, there was a Guru who lived with his few disciples in his Ashram located in the middle of a wild forest. This forest happened to be a part of a large kingdom ruled by a kind king.

The Guru had made a few rules for the inmates of his Ashram and was very strict about them being followed to a tee. No one was to flout any of them at any cost. He was merciless! 

The Guru treated everyone alike. Be it the king, a minister, a casual visitor or his own disciples - all received the same cold treatment. He cared for nothing in return. It was for precise this reason that even the king tried to avoid visiting this Ashram. However, he ensured to do his duty as a king to supply whatever was needed in the ashram with all due respect and kindness.

The Guru's hostile behaviour was known not only to the people of this kingdom, but also to all the neighbouring states. People of all ranks and classes, highest to lowest, preferred a safe distance from the Ashram due to the fear of being shamed and insulted and losing the most precious possession - self-respect.

During the wee hours of every morning, the Guru would wake up all his disciples by sprinkling cold water on their faces. Everyone was expected to get up and assemble in the courtyard with no scope of any murmur or complaints.

The Guru would sit in front of the assembly and give a common guru-mantra to all of them in a very loud and clear voice and repeat it thrice. And what was that mantra - "Tell yourself, 'I do not exist.'" All of them would then chorus loudly, "I do not exist" repeating thrice.

At the end, the Guru would summon each disciple one-by-one close to himself and whisper into their ears a customised mantra. And what would that be? In a soft whisper, "I do not exist." Funny! But that is all he taught - nothing more, nothing less.

Having given mantra, the Guru would assign a task to each disciple, which they were expected to do from morning till night. Sometimes, an inmate would receive the same task for months and even for a year. While at times, the Guru would assign everyday a new task to everyone. No one could muster up enough courage to suggest or advice the Guru otherwise.

Besides, there were few unalterable rules to be observed strictly. Absolute silence even while discharging the respective duties. No one was allowed to sympathies with others verbally or otherwise. Similarly, no one was allowed to seek sympathy, or words or gesture of kindness from others. Any communication, if at all necessary as per the Ashram's standards, was strictly limited to between a disciple and the Guru.

If at any time, a disciple felt the need or urge to speak, the only utterance which was allowed was, "I do not exist," irrespective of pitch, tone and loudness. No restriction whatsoever in this matter.

If at all, a disciple felt emotional and desire to vent his feelings, the Guru would listen to every word carefully, ofcourse without any emotion. At the end, he would shout out loudly, "YOU DO NOT EXIST", while kicking the disciple with the firm command to resume his assigned work. Therefore, no one dared to share their feelings or concerns with the Guru.

One may ask, what kind of a Guru was he, so cold, so ruthless! You will find the answer soon.

No wonder, most of the disciples left the Ashram, except a few. Those who stayed back, remained loyal to the Guru no matter what. And these are the ones who became fully enlightened at the end - all of them!

The Guru had instructed his disciples, "the day I don't wake you up, know that this body is dead. You will find my final instruction under my bed."

The fateful day arrived. All the disciples rushed to the Guru's bed and found him dead. When they searched for the final instruction under his bed, they found a small piece of folded banana leaf. And what did they find written on that? The master's last words, the last instruction, "I never existed!"

What kind of a Guru was he? The most selfless, the most compassionate, who wanted nothing for himself, but the ultimate freedom for all those who came to him!