Chhaju Ram Explains the Gita - Guru Har Krishan

Dadi: "Guddu, how old are you now?"

Guddu: "Eight years old, Dadi!"

Dadi: "Let me tell you about a boy who became a Guru - a spiritual teacher - when he was only five years old."

Guddu: "Five?! That's younger than my little cousin!"

Dadi: "His name was Har Krishan, and he was the eighth Guru of the Sikhs. When his father, the seventh Guru, chose him over his older brother, many people were jealous and angry."

Guddu: "Why was a little boy chosen?"

Dadi: "Because spiritual wisdom has nothing to do with age, beta. But not everyone understood this. A proud scholar named Pandit Lal Chand came to test the young Guru."

Guddu: "To test a five-year-old? That seems unfair!"

Dadi: "The pandit was arrogant. He said, "How can this little child be a Guru? I challenge him to explain the Bhagavad Gita - the sacred scripture that even great scholars struggle to understand!""

Guddu: "What did Guru Har Krishan say?"

Dadi: "The young Guru smiled calmly. "The meanings of the Gita," he said, "even an illiterate person can explain.""

Guddu: "An illiterate person? Someone who can't even read?"

Dadi: "That's what the pandit thought too! He laughed and said, "Prove it!""

Guru Har Krishan said simply, "Bring whoever you want."

Guddu: "Who did the pandit bring?"

Dadi: "The pandit thought he was being clever. He went to the village and brought a man named Chhaju Ram. Chhaju was a poor water-carrier who couldn't read a single letter. He couldn't even speak properly. The pandit thought, "Surely this will humiliate the young Guru!""

Guddu: "Poor Chhaju Ram... he must have been so scared."

Dadi: "He was. Chhaju stood trembling before the assembly. He said, "I don't even know how to read and write. How can I say anything in front of these learned people?""

But the young Guru just smiled and placed his stick gently on Chhaju's head.

Guddu: "What happened?!"

Dadi: "Divine knowledge flowed into Chhaju like water filling an empty pot. His eyes changed. His voice became clear and strong. And he began to speak about the Bhagavad Gita with such wisdom and depth that even the proudest scholars sat in stunned silence."

Guddu: "From the stick? Like magic?"

Dadi: "Like grace, beta. The Guru shared his divine blessing. Chhaju explained concepts that Pandit Lal Chand had never heard in all his years of study."

Guddu: "What did the pandit do?"

Dadi: "He fell to his knees in shame. He had spent his whole life thinking education made people superior. But here was an unlettered water-carrier speaking truths beyond any book."

The pandit begged forgiveness. He became a Sikh that very day and escorted the young Guru to his next destination.

Guddu: "Dadi, does this mean studying isn't important?"

Dadi: "*thoughtfully* No, beta. Study is important - Chhaju's knowledge came from divine grace, which is rare. But the story teaches us not to be proud of our learning. Not to look down on others who had fewer opportunities."

The poorest, simplest person may have wisdom you've never encountered. And the highest knowledge - understanding God and life's meaning - isn't about books. It's about the heart.

Guddu: "Is Chhaju Ram famous now?"

Dadi: "His moment of divine speech is remembered in Sikh history. He went back to carrying water after that day. But for one shining moment, he taught the proud what humility means."

Guddu: "I won't be proud when I learn new things, Dadi."

Dadi: "Good, beta. Learn with joy, share with humility. That's the true student's way."