Barkal is a tiny neat village on the banks of narmada river 45 kms away from Vadodara Gujarat India.Drive to Dabhoi then turn right to Shinor way and turn at Segwa chowdi to ask for the new Poicha bridge on Narmada linking it to Rajpipla.The great sage maharishi Vyas s' ashram is here in such a way that river forms it as an island when it is full in monsoon.There is a story how river was made to flow on the other side as a great sage had to get Bhiksha on the south bank not the north!! Opposite to this ashram is Shuka dev jis ashram temple.He was the great sage born wise awakened soul- son of maharishi Vyas.There is a story about how the son ran as vyas ji wanted to perform his Maunja thred ceremony -he ran naked towrds the other bank ,as few naked women bathing there saw him they just bowed to him but when Vyas ji came running after the son they shreiked and covered themselves up.Vyasji was perplexed that why should these ladies think of HIM a greatest rishi someone so ordinaryily LUSTY that they had tp cover up..The village ladies said that Shuk devjis' Vairagya was far more superior to all of you rishis .So even now we have shlokas and poems in marathi about Vairagya dispassion s' geatest peak as exemplified by Shukdevji.Swami Ramdasji 1608-82 AD is described  as having Vairagya like the Shuka whom the BHAGWAT PURANA IS READ TO BY VYASA. iT IS ON BOTH BANKS OF NARMADA RIVER THAT MANY PURANIC STORIES HAVE HAPPENNED AND MANY GREAT ANCIENT SITES  are present .Shankara charya ji met his GURU here and this river is the edfice of great LORD DUTTATRAYA GURU ,a rishi who blessed even Parshurama and many other heroes.
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