Retold by DKM Kartha
यतो वाचो निवर्तन्ते अप्राप्य मनसा सह।
आनन्दं ब्रह्मणो विद्वान् न बिभेति कुतश्चन।।
तैत्तिरीयोपनिषद् ब्रह्मानन्दवल्ली नवमोऽनुवाकः Verse १
[The Bliss of the Eternal Brahman from which words turn back without being able to grasp and describe it and from which the mind also returns without comprehending it — the Wise One who knows and feels this Bliss fears nothing and no one.]
A holy man of the Kerala region once got the nickname the "Lunatic of NaraaNattu^” because he would do absurd things. He would push a heavy stone up the slope of a hill, and once it had reached the top he would watch it roll down again, roaring with laughter. Some who knew him said he was making fun of human endeavors filled with egotism and spiritual fruitlessness. Others just thought that he had lost the power of logical, cohesive thought.
The Lunatic of NaaraaNatttu^ often would be seen meditating in cremation grounds, even in the middle of the dark, moonless night. Some said that he wanted the peacefulness of the cremation grounds, which most people avoided out of fear of spirits. Others said that he was just insane.
Folks also said that the holy man was pointing out death's inevitability to ordinary people and indicating that he himself had overcome the fear of death because he was engaged in self-realization. Others just thought that he had lost his lucidity.
One night, as the man was meditating on the Supreme Reality, Goddess KaaLi and Her attendants entered the cremation grounds. They started their customary ritual dance — wild and fearsome to ordinary beings with the purpose of driving away evil using fear as a spiritual means.
The dancing goddess and Her retinue of spirits were astonished to find that the meditating man was not even aware of their presence. They went close to him and woke him up from his trance.
"Why aren't you disturbed by our terrifying dance? What is the source of your inner peace?,” KaaLi asked the holy man.
The “Lunatic”replied, "My mind — antahkaraNam — is in the realm of Brahman, the Supreme Essence of all reality. Nothing disturbs me, nothing frightens me —not wild creatures, not scary spirits, not death, not even you, O KaaLi.
यतो वाचो निवर्तन्ते अप्राप्य मनसा सह।
आनन्दं ब्रह्मणो विद्वान् न बिभेति कुतश्चन।।
The fearsome goddess was impressed by this answer and asked the holy man to request a blessing from Her. He replied that he needed nothing, being filled with the bliss of Brahman, but the goddess insisted.
At last the Lunatic of Naranath relented and said, "Goddess Kali, look at my left leg. There is a swelling on it that I got from an attack of filaria. Please remove the swelling from the left leg and put it on the right leg.”
Kali performed the miracle ignoring its meaninglessness and humor and was satisfied. She knew that the Holy Man was making a satirical comment because for him nothing except BrahmAnubhooti mattered. Everything else was immaterial. KaaLi and Her retinue disappeared and the holy man went back into his rapturous internal communion with Brahman in the cremation ground.