Aruni and the Broken Field Wall

Long, long ago, there lived a rishi named Ayod Dhaumya. Many pupils studied in his ashram. One of them was Aruni, from the land of Panchal. Aruni was a simple, hard-working boy who deeply respected his teacher.

Near the ashram were the guru's fields. A low wall of mud ran around the fields to hold the water in. One day the wall broke open in one place, and the water began to run out of the field through the gap. If the water ran away, the crop could be spoiled.

The guru said to Aruni, "Child, go and close the gap in the field wall, so the water does not run out."

Aruni went to the field at once. He filled the gap with mud, but the water washed it away. He filled it again and tried again, but the water would not stop. Aruni thought hard: "My guru has given me this work. I must finish it."

Then an idea came to him. He lay down in the gap himself. His body became the wall, and the water stopped flowing. Aruni lay there quietly.

A long time passed. At the ashram, the guru asked his other pupils, "Where is Aruni?" They said, "Guru ji, you sent him to close the gap in the field wall." The guru said, "Come, let us all go there."

When they reached the field, the guru called out loudly, "Aruni of Panchal, where are you, my child? Come here."

As soon as he heard his guru's voice, Aruni rose from the gap and ran to stand before him. He bowed and said, "Guru ji, here I am. When the water would not stop any other way, I lay down in the gap myself. I got up when I heard you call. Now tell me, what shall I do?"

The guru's heart filled with love. He blessed Aruni: "Child, you rose up by opening the wall, so from today you will also be called Uddalak. You have followed my words so sincerely that good will always come to you. The knowledge of all the Vedas and the Dharma Shastras will shine in your mind."

With his guru's blessing, Aruni grew up to be a very wise rishi, famous by the name Uddalak. The story of his true dedication to his guru is still told to children today.