CHAPTER 38: Education of Aryaman

 It was a tough choice to make for the young Prince.  Finally, he communicated his decision to the sage, “You have yourself acknowledged the purity of my mother’s thoughts. 

Thus, I have decided to adopt her teachings, guruji!  I am prepared to make any sacrifice to follow in her footsteps!” 

This satisfied the sage and from that day, he began to impart such education to his student that conformed to ethics and morality.  Whenever his resolve was challenged by Brihaspati’s curse, which had him in two minds, Mrutyunjay began to meditate under the sage’s instructions where he tried to concentrate on the goal he had chosen for himself in his life.

This certainly helped in relaxing his troubled mind and brought back his focus in treading his mother’s path of righteousness.  His firm willpower gradually denuded Brihaspati’s curse from having its perverse impact on him! 

With his mind now cleared, the Prince was able to concentrate hard on his studies.  He tried to implement all that his guru taught him in his day-to-day conduct. 

The sage asked him to cultivate the quality of according equal importance and respect to all.  “How did Rama manage to lift Lord Shiva’s bow, which none of the other stalwarts could do, and win Sita’s hand in marriage in the Ramayana? 

Not only because he was God incarnate but also due to his act of bowing before the bow out of veneration before lifting it, which the others did not do.  He was duly rewarded for being so humble and down-to-earth.”

On another occasion, he asked his pupil to not possess any misgivings towards anyone.  He cited an instance of a tree, which provides shade even to that person who has given it pain by chopping off its branches!    

 All this was listened with great keenness by the young Prince and had an everlasting impact on him.

Prathameshwar taught him some maya tactics for which the asuras were famous.  It was owing to such illusionary powers that they were able to defy the earth’s gravity and fly in the sky! 

However, at that time Mrutyunjay could not fly with that incredible speed which he did later as Aryaman.

In the field of weaponry, the Prince mastered the art of archery with his sheer perseverance and practice.  It were owing to these factors that he gained the remarkable swiftness in releasing arrows from his bow. 

Once the sage asked him, “You are a lover of peace.  Then how is it that you are so interested in archery?  Are you having second thoughts of helping your father fight the Devas?”  He ended in a lighter vein. 

Mrutyunjay highlighted the same aspect that he had later done before King Chandrashekar that weapons need not always be used to take lives.   This impressed the sage.

Once he gave his guru a pleasant surprise by hitting an arrow at the trunk of a tree and then making a chain of arrows!  Delighted, Prathameshwar blessed him.  During that time, the chain could be easily broken by anyone unlike the unassailable wall of arrows he created later as Aryaman!

Seeing the high ability in the Prince to learn more, the sage began to divulge the secrets of invoking divine astras and its use at the appropriate time.