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this time, Rup felt both his own pain as well as that of his father. He suffered to see how his father was suffering. It was such a blow that for three days his father underwent a complete fast, taking no food, not even a drop of water. He seemed unable to recover his peace or even the slightest taste for life. Magi had been more than a beloved daughter to him. She was the symbol of his departed wife Chunibai, in all her beauty, both inner and outer.
After the loss of his wife, Chhogalal had emerged from the pain with a clear vision of what remained for him to fulfill, his responsibility to his children. He had taken upon himself a vow, to be both father and mother to his two small offspring. Never again would he take a wife. It was to be a lifetime conomitment to brahmacharya, celibacy, in order to harness all of his inner energy for the higher purpose of living selflessly for others. He had adjusted his outer life to this newfound commitment. He had reduced the hours in which he kept his shop open so that he could spend more time with his children and with himself in meditation. When friends chided him, he had answered that his material wants were small and that his own peace of mind and the children's need for his companionship were more important.
As a result, the townspeople had made a special effort to bring him their business. There were always customers lined up outside his door before he came to open the shop. In this way, he had time for Rup and Magi. They would spend hours with him, climbing in his lap, telling him their innermost thoughts, giving him as many hugs as he would be willing to take! He gratified their whims and spoiled them to a large degree. They were growing up strong and sure, though at times Rup became overly demanding and willful, but their father felt contented with his decision to focus on these young lives rather than to mourn ti e irreparable loss of his wife. In this, he proved to be a great inspiration to Rup in his approach to life and living.
But this time, Chhogalal could not get back his peace. Something went out of him when this little life on whom he had poured so much affection was snuffed out. So he took Rup away for a while to a small mountaintop village where
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