CHENNAI: Lord Shiva further tells Mother Parvathi that Prayag represents the guru shakti. It is the abode of the Avadhoota Dattatreya who is the essence of the trinity of Brahma, Vishnu and Maheshwara- the energies of jnana or wisdom, Chaitanya or consciousness and Laya or dissolution of negative traits, karmas and vasanas or tendencies. In short Brahma, Vishnu, Maheshwara represent Brahma as intellect, Vishnu as consciousness and Shiva as the embodied awareness carrying the two - chaitanya and intellect.
At this stage let us rewind and recollect the collective wisdom as emphasized by lord Shiva for a moment. Sage Atri and Anasuya are the parents of Dattatreya. When we prostrate in front of the guru and then take a dip in the holy Prayaga, the consciousness in us is charged in the form of Dattatreya. Here Dattatreya takes the form of our subtlety as well as antaratma or refinement. Gaya is the place where one gets liberation- mukti this way. So also, on the other side, if we cannot physically go to Gaya, sipping the holywater of the guru gives us instant liberation from our karma and vasanas. Padodaka is thus the holiest water. By sipping even a thousandth part of Padodaka, it is equivalent to bathing in all the holy waters of the seven seas and the holy rivers.
“In Gaya, the river is called as holy Phalgu”. Gaya is where Vishnu’s feet first touched the earth. Lord Vishnu’s sweat gets converted into black sesame seeds - till on this earth. Here, Lord Vishnu’s feet is like a fossil on a rock embedded in an igneous rock where puja is being done from time immemorial.
Lord Shiva further explains that many common people with their own in-built karmas of their past cannot come to Gaya, where they can see lord Vishnu’s Feet but I have intuited in the hearts and minds of the gurus to go and have the holy darshan of Lord Vishnu’s feet so in turn they can bless the common man and also liberate them from their karmas and vasanas and further through the sadhana imparted by the guru’s themselves to evolve and attain liberation and enlightenment. In short, reach emancipation. River Phalgu in Gaya will start ebbing away in Kali yuga. So the water, which, washes the Guru’s feet, becomes just as special.
After Vishnu leaves his foot prints, He tells Shiva - “Wherever there is guru’s padodaka, let that become Prayag, where Ganga, Yamuna and Saraswati meet.” It was in Prayag that the first guru Dattatreya was born.
That is why meditating on the guru is so important. Here we can also see lord Dakshinamurthy sitting under the holy banyan tree, where four sages are listening to his teachings. This is the same place where Buddha attained enlightenment. That is why there is a banyan tree there. Today, there is the 465th generation of the holy Banyan tree there. Now it’s called Bodh Gaya. Not only Kashi is the guru’s residence, but also Gaya. The guru is Dattatreya himself.
The guru’s lotus feet denote infinity, unconditional love, care, share, compassion, patience , tolerance , attitude of gratitude and peace. Padodaka gives us knowledge and detachment which destroys ignorance and removes all worldly impurities and takes us towards liberation.
The guru Padodaka is also the Akshaya (Banyan) tree which fulfils all our wishes.
Padodaka blesses us with prosperity and grants all worldly desires in abundance. Knowledge, health wealth prosperity- everything multiplies.
How to partake the holy teertha or Paadodaka: We should take the teertha in the Omkara mudra with the right hand, with the thumb encircling the index finger. The index finger should point to the sky.
The thumb represents earth and (hence the body), the index finger represents ether (hence the soul). Omkara mudra makes a depression in the centre of the palm and holds the teertha perfectly. We should take just enough teertha, so that it is just enough to wet the mouth and it does not go beyond the gullet.
The more we sip the guru padodaka, clearer will be the form of the guru to us. We get clarity of vision and we start comprehending who we are.