Miracles of the child Vasudeva
- Illustration : Smt. Chomini Prakash
Miraculous events occurred centering on Vaasudeva right from his infancy. The parents once took the child to the temple of Sri Ananteshwara and the path lay through forests inhabited by man eating wild animals and demonic spirits. The presence of the divine child could evade such spirits.
Once, the mother Vedavathi entrusted the child to her daughter and no sooner than the mother had left, the child started crying intensely.
Thinking that the child was hungry, the girl looked around the house for some edibles to be given fed to the child. Finally, she came across Kulitta (huruli/horsegram) gram kept for feeding the cattle. The infant’s health was not in the least affected upon feeding this gram. He did not face any danger whatsoever. Vaasudeva was smiling as ever before.
When Vaasudeva was only one year of age, one day he clung to the tail of a bull and in that strange manner went through the bushy grazing grounds and jungles that the bull traversed along. The parents searched everywhere and could not find Vaasudeva anywhere in the house and Vaasudeva returned when the Sun was racing towards the west.
Once a creditor was demanding to liquidate the money Madhyageha Bhatta had borrowed from him and Madhyageha was unwilling to have his lunch leaving behind the creditor. He was aware of the concept that one should not have his food without clearing the debt and he asked the child Vaasudeva to have his lunch. But Vaasudeva called the creditor and took him near the tamarind tree. Vaasudeva picked and gave the creditor a handful of the tamarind seeds which appeared as money for the rich man. The rich man was satisfied with the sense of commitment the child had towards the repayment of debt and the course of his life itself got changed after that incident. He was liberated from the clutches of this Samsara. All the people in the village were wonderstruck and happy at the presence of such a divine child in their midst.
Once, the parents had gone with Vaasudeva to attend a marriage function at a nearby village. Amidst the festivities of the marriage, the mother forgot to give importance to her child. Vaasudeva noted that his mother was not noticing him and quietly walked out from the marriage. In a short while, the couple and the relatives who had assembled there noticed the absence of the child. Madhyageha Bhatta went out in search of him and anxiously began to enquire about his son.
He went in search of his son as per the directions given by those whom he met along the way. At last, treading the route of the child, hecould find Vaasudeva in the Ananthasana temple of Udupi where Vaasudeva was devotedly performing obeisance to the Lord. The father asked his son “How did you tread this long distance all alone?” The son replied that he was not alone and he had been accompanied by Sri Vishnu. This incident further indicated the fact that Vaasudeva was a divine child born with the blessings of Sri Vishnu.
