The Tiger Swami

Dadi: "Guddu, what would you do if you met a real tiger?"

Guddu: "Run away as fast as I could!"

Dadi: "Tonight I'll tell you about a man who didn't run from tigers - he fought them with his bare hands! They called him the Tiger Swami."

Guddu: "He fought tigers?! Was he crazy?"

Dadi: "Maybe a little! When young Yogananda met him, the Tiger Swami had the most enormous body he had ever seen - a huge chest, arms like footballs, flowing locks and beard. He wore nothing but a tiger skin around his waist."

Guddu: "A real tiger skin?"

Dadi: "From a tiger he had defeated himself! The swami could shatter brick walls with single blows. But he taught Yogananda something important: "Mind is the wielder of muscles.""

Guddu: "What does that mean?"

Dadi: "The power of a punch doesn't just come from the arm - it comes from the will and courage behind it. The body is literally manufactured and sustained by mind."

Guddu: "So he thought himself strong?"

Dadi: "He had to. As a child, he was actually weak and sickly! But his earliest ambition was to fight tigers. He said, "My will was mighty, but my body was feeble.""

Guddu: "How did he transform?"

Dadi: "By indomitable persistence in thoughts of health and strength. Through pure mental force, he overcame his handicap and became the strongest man anyone had ever seen."

Guddu: "Did he fight many tigers?"

Dadi: "Many! He would enter their cages and wrestle them into submission. His pride grew with each victory. He felt invincible."

Guddu: "That sounds dangerous..."

Dadi: "His father had warned him about a saint's prophecy: the next tiger fight would result in severe wounds and six months of illness. After that, he would become a monk."

Guddu: "Did he believe the prophecy?"

Dadi: "He was too arrogant to listen. When a prince challenged him to fight Raja Begum - a newly captured, vicious royal Bengal tiger - he accepted proudly."

Guddu: "What happened in the fight?"

Dadi: "They built a special pavilion for thousands of spectators. Raja Begum was kept hungry to make him fierce. When the fight began... it was brutal. The tiger was the most ferocious opponent the swami had ever faced."

Guddu: "Did he win?"

Dadi: "He defeated the tiger, but... the tiger severed his hand. The swami developed blood poisoning and nearly died. He was sick for exactly six months."

Guddu: "The prophecy came true!"

Dadi: "Every word of it. And as he recovered, lying in bed with his injuries, something changed inside him. All his pride in physical strength seemed hollow now."

Guddu: "What did he do?"

Dadi: "He sought out the very saint who had prophesied his downfall. He asked to become a disciple. He became a monk - exactly as predicted."

Guddu: "From tiger fighter to monk?"

Dadi: "He discovered something profound. He told Yogananda: "There are many kinds of tigers. Some roam in jungles of human desires. Subduing the beasts of ignorance in the human mind is far more meaningful than knocking animals unconscious.""

Guddu: "The tigers of desire?"

Dadi: "Anger is a tiger. Greed is a tiger. Pride is a tiger. These inner beasts attack us constantly. The Tiger Swami learned that conquering them is far more important than physical victories."

Guddu: "He never fought real tigers again?"

Dadi: "Never. He spent the rest of his life fighting the tigers within - and helping others do the same. His story teaches us that physical strength means nothing if the spirit is weak."

Guddu: "And that pride comes before a fall?"

Dadi: "Exactly. His arrogance blinded him to the prophecy's warning. He thought his body was invincible, but no body is. True strength is mastering yourself - your fears, your desires, your ego."

Guddu: "I don't want to fight tigers, Dadi!"

Dadi: "*laughing* Good! But you will face your own tigers - moments when you must be brave, times when anger wants to control you, situations where pride tempts you. Remember the Tiger Swami. Real victory isn't over others - it's over yourself."

Guddu: "I'll try to tame my inner tigers!"

Dadi: "That's my little spiritual warrior. Sweet dreams, mera bachcha - and may all your tigers be friendly ones!"