Siddha Siddhanta Paddhati

Author(s): Kalyani Mallik
Publisher: Poona Oriental Book House Poona

Page 30

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for a time being, forget the knowledge thus obtained by decep. tion. In the Bengali story of Gorakṣa Vijaya or Minachotan it is related how the great guru Matsyendranāth has temporarily forgotten this knowledge and has become immersed in love of the queens of Kadali in Assam, who are proficient in magic. There are only women in this state, sixteen hundred of them, all able to bewitch men who happened to come their way. This belief is still held in certain parts of Assam! Gorakhnath, however, on receipt of this sad news of his guru's downfall goes forth in the disguise of a woman, delivers him and changes the sixteen hundred women of Kadali to bats, where to this day they can be found in a cave. This rather farfetched story was invented in all probability to depict the greater powers of Gorakhnāth over his guru. Gorakh is said to have attained superhuman powers by reason of his perfection in Yogic practices. But at the same time Gorakh delivers his guru by uttering ‘Jai Matsyendra'thus showing reverence to the guru though he may have fallen temporarily. This is the subject matter of the legend Goraksa-Vijaya which means the conquest of Gorakh', or Minachetan, which means 'the awakening of Mina' (Mina = Matsya= fish ). The books Goraksa-Vijaya and Minachotan are identical but published from different places. Both the works are in Bengali.
In the Kaula-jñana.nirnaya in Sanskrit, edited by Bagchi, we find that the Lord Siva had himself appeared on the earth, in the disguise of a fisherman as Matsyendra, to preach the doctrines of the Kaula sect. The Natha Yogis were at one time all known as Kaulas, a special branch of the Tántriks, who were worshippers of the Goddess. Matsyendra initiated Gorakhnāth, though there is no mention of Gorakhnāth in Kaula-jana-nirnaya.
Guru Gorakhnāth initiated Jālandharnāth. In a drama discovered in Nepāl on Gopichandra's renunciation, we find Jālandharnāth telling Gopichandra that he was the king of Jalandhar and had given up his throne and seven hundred queens to become a yogi. Jalandhar later on became Gopichandra's guru.
BhartȚhari, the king of Ujjain, became the disciple of Gorakhnāth. In some legends we find the mention of