AJAMILAM

Jai Sree Krishna

Ajamila was a pious brahmin boy who had learned the whole shastras and the vedas and was living a Vedic life. He was very helpful to his parents who were very ardent devotees of Lord Sree Krishna. He helped them in their daily pujas by plucking fresh flowers for their puja and good Samidas for their Agnihotram. He talked only Dharma in his daily life. And one day when he went to the flower garden to pluck the flowers, he saw a beautiful looking Veshya (prostitute) on the way and the sight of her instilled Kama (passion) in him. How he was seduced by the mere sight of the Veshya. We have seen many Guruputras who follow the footsteps of their fathers or Gurus in total devotion to the Lords. They are never distracted from their duties by the attractions of the outside world.Then how is that Ajamila fell on the sights of this Veshya ? The story goes like.........

There was a Maha Tapaswi living on the banks of GANGA, who was very meticulous in his Tapas. The outside world happenings never distracted him from his Tapas and he even went on and on with his Tapas for months and sometimes years without any food, water and other life saving items. Such was his determination in the Tapasya. Once in the winter days he was doing the Tapasya in the cold waters of Ganga with only his head outside the water. He did this Tapasya for many days without coming out of the cold waters even for once to get the warmth for his body. He lost his Pragnya, but continued with his Tapasya. There was a Sadhu Mahatma who came to the Ganges for his daily Anushtanams who used to see this Tapaswi every day. After many days have passed, one day the Sadhu saw that the Tapaswi's body was floating on the water and the body was brought to the shores by the waves. Sadhu was very sad , he wanted to save the life of the Tapaswi, whose body was chilled due to the toll of the winter's chillness. Sadhu knew that the Tapaswi was still continuing his Tapam. He called his beautiful daughter and told her to hug the Tapaswi for some time so that the daughter's body heat get transferred to his body and he may regain his consciousness . The obedient daughter did as her father told her to do and the Tapaswi regained his breath after couple of hours time. On regaining consciousness, the Tapaswi jumped out of the girl's arms in anger. He told her that "I am a Tapaswi and by touching me you have disturbed my Tapas and spoiled the Tapa Phalams. If you wanted to have some men you should have gone to others and not Tapaswis like me. And since you are interested in men for your Kamas I curse you that you will become a Veshya in your next birth." Sadhu's daughter was crying on hearing the Shapa, she could not control herself. She fell on the Tapaswi's feet, making a Sashtanga Namaskar and said in her gentle voice.." Oh Maha Tapaswi. I am not interested in you or in any other man, I only did what my father told me to do. And my father wanted to save your life and hence told me so. If you think that I have spoiled your Tapasya and not saved your life, then I accept your Shapa. But being a Maha Tapaswi you did not know what I did to you and hence I too give you a curse that in the next Janma when I roam around as a Veshya and if you happen to see me, the mere sight of me will instill Kama in you and at the end of your Kama Kreedas, Lord Krishna will give you Moksha." Then the Tapaswi realised his mistakes and said " Oh Devi, I accept your curse with whole heart because you have said that I will be saved by Krishna and I treat this as my Tapa Phalam as all the Tapas are for the attainment of Lord Krishna only, even though I have to suffer some time as a Kami in the next life." And in the next birth this Tapaswi was born as Ajamila to the Brahmin parents. And his story is illustrtated in the Bhagawatham which we know.