You’re likely referring to a traditional Maharashtrian saint anecdote associated with Swami Samarth of Akkalkot, sometimes retold in connection with devotees from Phaltan.
The Anecdote (Common Oral Version)
A man from Phaltan was born with a severe hunchback deformity. He approached Swami Samarth seeking relief.
The saint reportedly told him that in a previous birth he had been a bullock, heavily burdened and beaten while yoked for labor. The curvature of his current spine was described as the karmic residue of that life of burden.
After blessing him (accounts vary: touch, glance, or instruction), the man’s hunchback was said to be cured or significantly straightened.
Symbolic Themes
- Burden carried → Burden embodied
- Karmic continuity across births
- Prarabdha karma manifesting physically
- Grace overriding destiny
This story is often used to illustrate:
- How Sanchita (accumulated karma) becomes Prarabdha (now in action)
- How saintly grace can alter even prarabdha in certain traditions
There are variations of this anecdote in hagiographies of Swami Samarth and related Datta Sampradaya lore. Some oral versions attribute similar karmic revelations to other saints, but the Phaltan–bullock–hunchback motif most commonly circulates in Swami Samarth narratives.
If you’d like, I can:
- Trace the most likely textual source (if documented),
- Frame it philosophically (karma doctrine analysis),
- Or reinterpret it symbolically rather than literally.
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