Learning at subtle levels

 Learning at subtle levels 

I heard a ‘story' about some fellow called ‘Totaka’ (totakaAshtakam verse fame, maybe 😓).

Aadi shankara asked his students to assemble for an important lesson.

Disciples sat in the classroom, collecting all the attentiveness they could gather in them🙏.

The teacher is not getting_started 😳 ( students wondering “what's holding him now?”). Restlessness growing by each moment 😜

The ‘minds’ of the students ‘started’ trying to imagine the ‘reasons' for delay in the teachers bla_bla ! ( What happened to the ‘quality' of attentiveness of a ‘still’ mind? 😜)

Teacher looked out of the window. Students followed the ‘track’ of the teacher’s glance. And one student even remarked ‘Oh, it's totaka. He is a dull boy, not worth being called a student, since he is incapable of being ‘studious’... teacher, please ignore him, lets get started 👍”

Aadi shankara didn't shift his side_glance from totaka, who was picking flowers( a menial ‘task’, meant for the dullest disciple 🤣)

Suddenly, totaka started ‘blurting’ out a poetic song ( now famous as his_ashtakam, 8 stanzas) and entered the classroom to prostrate before his Guru.

Aadi shankara: “ lesson over, you all may disperse for the day👍”

All other students: 😥😳😳😳

An interesting story 👍

But, doesn't mean a damn thing to_me 😡

My turn to learn ( I mean, my experience).

1974 

A renowned saint Janardhan swami, himself corrected my postures during an Yoga-class( weeks long class 4:30 to 7 am).

I happened to be the best among a hundred beginners, as per the volunteers who confided the opinion of the teacher. ( “Maybe” i told myself, since I knew, i had inherited a flexible body from my mom😂). I didn't bother to get that ‘certificate’ which would make me a govt. Certified trainer. 

1992

Again a Yoga class 😜

This time, the scenario nudged me to tell myself “ hey! What kind of a teacher is this???😡”.  

He is reclining on a carpet on the stage, with his head supported by his palm bent at his elbow?? He is ‘enjoying’ some soft instrumental music! He merely utters “come on, lets do it now” ( for each new posture when a volunteer finished his demo).

Where is his_teaching????

Luckily, I didn't hang on to  this thought 🙏. It passed by unresponded by me(my brain, intellect or whatever 😥)

I focused on my_job👍. Getting into the right posture as best as I can 😂

½ day passed.

Still 2½ days more to go!(Residential program…. The main ‘trick’ was to  impose dietic ‘lab’ conditions perhaps, I deduced 😓)

Post lunch session, I was going through the physical motions of my body, as_told 👍. Eyes closed, so the focus had_to_be within.

Suddenly, a ‘totaka moment’ 😜😜😜. The ‘scale’ might be only a fraction of 1% ( 0.0001 %) but for sure, it happened 😳 

The movement of arms and legs etc, the breath in sync with the movement, and the different organs, limbs, nerves, muscles, tendons, ligament….etc…whatever —-- all of them felt like ‘got Fused’ 😥, and me con_Fused at this strange experience. And then, a strange ‘flow’ within 😳. I can use a word known to us ‘mild current ‘ to describe it 🙏. Not an apt description 😭.  We know of only a ‘jerk’ caused by an electric current, not exactly its ‘flow’ 😓. But we are told, current flows through the wires. So, I can use the expression ‘flow of energy’ in me 🙏 

The ‘joke’ was…. I was exempted from ‘suffering’ the muscle/nerves/body fatigue of going through the ‘acrobatics’ of some 30+ asana postures for 2½ days, morning to evening 😜😜😜😜. ( My body felt normal, as if I was only watching others do it. Something I couldn't ‘explain’ to even_myself, to this day🫪. Where did the ‘tiredness/fatigue’ go???)

( We were ‘supposed’ to practice the entire set in 2 parts, each on alternate days, for 41 days, as a body_preparation for another 7 days residential program.  Since I was exempted from the physical tiredness of doing it, I did both the sets twice daily 😜. Kids playing for the whole day, hectic moment of their body, don't experience any fatigue 😜. They are ‘lost’ into the joy of playing together. Something like that, maybe 🤔.  I did meet a rare few friends, in whom alcohol doesn't cause any unsteadiness, mentally or physically. 😜. Asanas decided to exempt me from its side_effects👍. Dunno,  if I reasoned it right. Some_bloody_logic to quieten my mind 😓🙏).

Anyway yours,

psn(25 Aug 2026)