Sankaracharya and the Enlightened Chandala

One summer noon, the Sankaracharya along with his disciples was walking towards the Ganga for his midday rites.
On the way, he and his disciples encountered a Chandala* who was walking from the opposite direction along with his dogs. Seeing him, the Acharya says "Move, move, so that I may pass".
*A Chandala is an untouchable and one of the lowest castes whose shadow is also said to be polluting.
The Chandala replies, "O worthy Brahman, please let me know what I should move out of your path. Do you want me move my physical body or my soul?"
He further asks, "Is there any difference between the reflection of the sun in the waters of the Ganga and the reflection of the sun in the water in the Chandala's vessel? Is there any difference in the space in a golden jar and that within a clay pot?"
He pointedly questions, "From where did you get the delusion that you see yourself as a brahmin and me as a chandala and ask me to move away? Is it because you did not realise that the supreme soul exists everywhere and pervades every soul?"
He laments that, "Even after obtaining supreme knowledge that can lead to salvation, some people believe that they should control other people; Alas, even great sages succumb to the illusions of the Lord."
Hearing this, Sri Sankaracharya said, "O best among men, what you speak is the truth. On hearing you, I have realised that you are a realised soul and not a mere Chandala. He who has realised the Self and the Supreme Knowledge, whether a brahmin or a chandala is to be respected and is my preceptor."

The Story of the Enlightened Butcher from the Mahabharata

Kaushika was his parents' only son. He was devoted to his parents, yet restless and ambitious in seeking a higher plane of spirituality. Since he was young, devotion and ego both were blended in him.
"Mother, father," he said one day, " I want to go off into the jungle and devote myself to spiritual studies."
His parents were distraught.
His mother said with concern, "But son, your father and I are very old. Your father is so sick he can hardly move. If you go away, what will happen to us? Who will attend to our needs?"
Kaushika was in no mood to listen as his mind was fixed on his spiritual goals. He was determined to study the Vedas.
His mother cried in vain as she watched her son turn his back on her and leave for the jungle.
Eventually, through great austerity and severe penance, Kaushika acquired great mystical powers.
One afternoon, as he was meditating under a tree, a crane flew up, and perched herself on a branch above Kaushika. Some bird droppings fell on Kaushika's head. Kaushika was furious and threw a fiery gaze at the crane.
The crane immediately fell dead.
The sage immediately was filled with remorse over what he had done. "How could I have allowed my anger to take over me that way?", he mourned. But, he was also proud of the powers he had acquired.

Later in the day, he went to a village to beg for alms. The lady of the house asked him to wait and went to get some food. Right then her husband arrived. She immediately set aside the pot of food she was taking to the sage and went to attend her husband.
After washing his feet, giving him food, and attending to his needs, she came back out to give the alms to the sage. The sage who had waited for a long time by now felt insulted. "You put your husband before a pious sage? Do you know the power of a Brahmin?"
She calmly replied, "Yes, a true Brahmin is he who has mastered his anger. Please do not threaten me, I am not a crane that will die by your fiery gaze."
The sage was stunned. "How does she know about the crane?" he wondered.
The lady continued, "Oh holy one! You are a learned Brahmin but you have not understood the truth about virtue. If you want to be enlightened, go to Dharmavyadha who lives in Mathura. Any one will tell you where he lives."

The sage thanked the lady and hurried to Mathura. "He must be a great and learned sage indeed," Kaushika thought to himself.
But when he finally reached Dharmavyadaha's place, he found it to be a butcher shop!
A very ordinary looking man came out and said, "Welcome holy one. I am Dharmavyadaha, the man you seek."
"How can a butcher be spiritually enlightened?" Kaushika wondered in amazement.
Dharmavyadaha smiled and said with compassion, "I know the story of the crane and of the woman who sent you here. Come, let us go to my house. "
The sage could not contain himself and blurted out, "But butchering animals is such a sinful profession! Are you not ashamed?"
"I am not," the butcher calmly said. "I am engaged in my family trade. I work hard and honestly at it. There is no reason for me to be ashamed of my work!"
"Holy one," continued the butcher. "If I do injury to other creatures, so do you and others. "
"As we walk on the soil, we are trampling on numerous creatures. Nor is the air devoid of creatures."
"You see that farmer tilling the land? He is killing so many animals that thrive under the soil."
They reached the butcher's house. The butcher's wife was doing her house hold chores and his two boys were playing.
The butcher introduced the sage to his wife and boys.
Then the butcher entered the house and touched his parents' feet and introduced Kaushika to them.

Before leaving the room, the butcher remarked, "My parents are my Gods. My wife and my children attend to them with devotion and love. We consider caring for them to be our greatest duty. That is our dharma."
"In doing one's duty cheerfully, lies true virtue. This is what the dutiful wife sent you to learn."
"Oh learned one!" the butcher continued, "You have run away from your responsibilities and deserted your aged father and mother. Spiritual achievement is useless if one has neglected one's Dharma, or duties."
The sage remembered his mother crying, "Who will look after us when you are gone my son?"
The sage apologized, "You have shown me the path of true virtue, the true meaning of Dharma, Oh pious one. I am deeply indebted to you."
Kaushika immediately returned to his parents and served them with devotion till the end of their days.

The Commitment of King Shibi to Duty - Jataka Tale

This is a Jataka tale narrated by the Buddha to emphasise the need to adhere to duty even at the cost of life itself.

There once was a king by name, Shibi (Sibi in Pali) who was widely known for his virtuosity and was known as the most righteous of all kings who ruled the earth.

King Shibi was performing a great sacrifice and the devas once decided to check if he was really as committed to dharma as reputed. So, Agni (Fire God) assumed the form of a dove and Indra (the King of Gods) assumed the form of a hawk which was hunting the dove. The dove sought refuge in the lap of King Shibi and sought protection from the hawk.

The hawk demanded that Shibi offer the dove he had been chasing. But, Shibi told the hawk that it was his bounden duty to protect anyone who sought his refuge and said he could not give up the dove.

The hawk reminded Shibi that it is the order of nature that a hawk has to hunt for his food and by depriving him of his prey, Shibi was being unjust to him. The king agreed that he cannot allow the hawk to go hungry and said he would be willing to offer some other form of flesh as a substitute for the hawk.

The hawk said if the king cannot give up the dove which the hawk had rightfully hunted, then the king should offer his own flesh in place of the dove and the flesh must be from his right thigh and equal in weight to the dove. King Shibi readily agreed to this.

A weighing scale was brought and the dove was place on one pan and King Shibi cut a piece of flesh from his right thigh and placed it on the other pan. But, the dove was heavier than his flesh. So, the king cut yet another piece of flesh from his thigh and placed it on the scale. They still found that the dove was heavier than his flesh. The king continued to cut his flesh and placed them on the scale, till he realised that the dove weighed more than all the flesh he sacrificed. Finally, the king placed himself on the scale to indicate that he intends to sacrifice himself in lieu of the dove.

Pleased with his commitment to dharma and duty as a king, the two gods revealed their true forms and made King Shibi whole again and bless him.