Closer and closer the boat sailed toward the shore of a small fishing village. Among the party of men that landed there was a golden Brahmin youth. Shankaracharya was on one of his many travels throughout India to establish the supremacy of Vedanta. Before entering this sleepy little fishing village, Shankaracharya prayed to the goddess of knowledge, Sarasvati, to make these humble fishermen receptive to the truth of Vedanta. Besides holding scholarly debates in vast royal courts throughout India he also, with less fanfare, went to the common people living in villages. The sanyasi saint wanted all mankind to be receptive to the truth that this life was pervaded by a divine reality of which each soul was an integral part. All the people gathered at the little temple to hear the message of the golden Brahmin youth. After an hour of quoting the Vedas, chanting hymns to the divine powers of God, and answering questions from the people it looked like his short visit to this fishing village was a success. Suddenly a young fisherman rushed up through the little gathering and spat in Shankaracharya’s face. "I spit upon your Vedanta" cried Apu. "Nature is the only truth, and it is the vast ocean which supports our life with food. Where is your God that I can see it?" Shankaracharya looked Apu in the eyes and declared that Apu himself would reveal the truth of Vedanta to the fishing village. Only the great master Shankaracharya had the vision to see the past lives of Apu.

Seven years later Apu was on his small fishing boat, when suddenly a great cyclone appeared. He knew that he was lost. Apu thought that not even God, if there was one, could save him. The waves violently smashed his small boat. Suddenly some heavy weight started pulling at his fishing net. All Apu wanted to do was to escape with his life from this fierce storm. Then he collapsed unconscious in his battered boat. But a miracle happened, and a huge gust of wind blew Apu’s boat and the heavy object caught in his fishing safely ashore. The next afternoon Apu woke up and stared at the golden figure caught in his fishing net. Was this a dream or was he actually awake? All Apu could be certain was that he was thankful for escaping with his life from that terrible storm at sea. The shining image continued to remain before his eyes until at last he accepted its reality. It resembled the great goddess that Shankaracharya had often worshipped at Kanchipuram. Apu was fascinated with this gift from the ocean. So he built a little thatched hut and installed the goddess. Apu sat down and thought what mystery does the ocean hold.

Now Apu was no longer a fisherman. Each day that he sat down in contemplation hastened his spiritual growth. At first he meditated on the vast ocean and its seawave roar. Finally he merged in the ocean and went beyond his mind’s ideas into an infinite state of consciousness. He saw little bubbles floating in a cosmic ocean. Thousands of these bubbles radiated picture images showing a vast panorama of Apu’s past lives. He was a merchant, a soldier, a priest, a farmer, a hunter, a criminal, and played numerous other roles in life. The outer circumstances were always different, but one luminous spark remained eternally the same. Apu witnessed his unchanging soul occupying so many different bodies throughout numerous lifetimes. In each life the central character always played his role and never looked beyond the passing show of events for a greater constant reality and reason for living. Now Apu saw that all these life bubbles floated in a luminous conscious ocean which was a mind of light without any limits. Apu became that conscious ocean and expanded beyond the range of mortal vision. He saw all life parading in the great cycles repeating themselves throughout eternity. All of creation was proceeding from the idea of an infinite Cosmic Mind.

Suddenly Apu reviewed the events of his present life. He saw himself insulting a great saint who had come to enlighten his village. But in past lifetimes Apu saw that he was always a humble disciple learning spiritual wisdom from this great master. The mystic vision ended. The golden Brahmin youth was now again visiting the village. Apu opened up his eyes and began to preach his guru’s Vedanta truth to the quiet fishing village.