Lessons from Viswamitra’s life – I

Our Scriptures narrate the life of the great Sage Viswamitra. In it, we find that he performed intense spiritual austerities (’tapas’) but his progress was marred three times. At first, he lost the power of his penance as a result of entertaining lustful desires towards the heavenly damsels Ramba and Menaka. The second time it was due to his pride in creating a heaven for Trisanku that he lost his power of penance. The third time it was the exhibition his supernatural faculty in setting right the bent back of a man that stole away his power of penance.
These incidents in the life of the great Sage are not to be laughed at. They caution a Sadhak (spiritual aspirant). A Sadhak having attainment of the Supreme state as his goal should never, at any time, during the course of his sadhana, involve himself in such mundane matters: for, it would deprive him of his hard earned power of penance.