Reminiscences

The festivities of Ramanavami were over. While a group of persons was sitting around, ShriMaharaj said, You had to exert a great deal in the festivities. But the exertions in worldly affairs are far too much greater in proportion to those. I really admire your perseverance. The worldly af­fairs knock you time and again, but your perseverance is really astonishing. You sincerely stick fast to worldly af­fairs. Even if one - tenth of this perseverance is applied towards attaining God, God will be easily attained. But no one takes paramartha seriously.'

Reminiscences

ShriMaharaj was once speaking about authority. Say­ing that a sadguru is invariably a saint, that we have no conception of his limitless authority, and that similarly we cannot fathom the extent of his pervasiveness, ShriMaharaj added, 'True that saints are one with God. But there is only one thing that they cannot do. Let any­one behave in any manner towards them, they will not do disservice to him. Not even the thought of doing disser­vice to someone touches a saint's mind. The single and sublime motivation left in their lives being the promotion of welfare of all living beings, there exists in their hearts limitless compassion for the good as well as the bad. On account of this, they do not spurn anyone."

Reminiscences

While residing in Ayodhya, in 1905, in the course of a casual talk, ShriMaharaj remarked that the precincts are additionally hallowed by the actual presence of Maruti. KrishnashastriUppinbetigiri's imagination was fired with a keen desire for a darshan   of the Chiranjeeva ( Ever-living ) Maruti, and implored ShriMaharaj repeatedly to arrange it. The latter put it off from one day to another. One day the Shastri implored so insistently that ShriMaharaj had to agree, and took him to the other bank of the river Sharayu. There the two sat under a tree, fac­ing each other. The Shastri was asked to close his eyes. When, after a few moments he was asked to open them,he saw the huge figure of Maruti, whose resplendence dazzled his eyes. In a flash the vision vanished and he saw the usual mild figure of ShriMaharaj, who said, "Shastriji, this vision is not lasting. The true sight is the inner vision, the spiritual realization." On returning home, the Shastri remarked to Shri. Bhausaheb Ketkar, " Bhausaheb, ShriMaharaj is not just the simple, attrac­tive human we commonly see as him ."

Reminiscences

While ShriMaharaj was on a tour in the Konkan re­gion, a gentleman named Madhavrao, then over seventy years of age, came to see him, and, much impressed by the teaching , requested that he be accepted as a disciple. .ShriMaharaj said," You do not need to be initiated by me, and I promise to look after your spiritual welfare."

After some years, Madhavrao's physical condition de­clined, and, finally, he came to be bedridden. His two sons, both in service in Bombay, were summoned to his bed­side, as he sank. His suffering became too painful to wit­ness. The two sons, watching his last moments, decided to sit on either side of his bed and helplessly chant nama .At about eleven at night, one of them, Vishnupant, fell into a trance. In that state, he approached ShriMaharaj, who asked, 'Vishnupant, what brings you here at this late hour ?' ' Sir ', Vishnupant replied, ' My father's agonies are painful to watch. When will he be relieved ?'' At about half past eight tomorrow morning .' On this, Vishnupant further asked,' And what about the promise that you will always be with him ? We see no sign of that.' ShriMaharaj said in reply,' Have you witnessed any deaths before this?' Vishnupant replied in the affirmative. ' Do you not see any difference between those and now ?' Vishnupant then realized that a feature of the present case was that namasmarana was going on by the side of the death-bed. At that moment the trance ended. Eventually, at half past eight, the old man's breathing ceased. One part of the interview in the trance had thus come out true.

Vishnupant's father-in-law was, like other relatives, duly apprised of Madhavrao's death, and he decided to attend the funeral rites, as is customary, from the tenth day. He also decided to see ShriMaharaj en route. In that interview, ShriMaharaj casually mentioned that Vishnupant had called upon him about a week back. The father-in-law, though he did not controvert the statement, was stunned to hear this, for Vishnupant could not have left his father's bedside around that time.

Later, the father-in-law, in a leisurely conversation, mentioned to him the gist of his talk with ShriMaharaj. Vishnupant then narrated his trance and was convinced that he had a corroboration of the other half of his trance, and that ShriMaharaj had kept his word and been present, though in the invisible form of namasmarana

Reminiscences

A Guru Is Required Even if For Saying ‘No Guru is Required.

A disciple of Shri Maharaj was the secretary of a well-qualified industrialist. Both used to go and listen to discourses of a well-known philosopher. In one discourse the speaker said, “One has to bring about one’s own uplift. A guru is not needed here, nor is he of any use.” This had an effect on the secretary’s mind. He asked Shri Maharaj what the true situation was in regard to a Guru. Shri Maharaj said, “What the speaker says is correct. One has to speak in a way that is appropriate for the attitude and aptitude of the listeners. If one were to tell them, the style of whose lives reflects that they possess complete faith in their own abilities, that they should rely on some one else, it will not be acceptable to them. It is therefore only appropriate to tell such listeners to seek their true selves with the help of their own experience, reading, and unbiased thinking. But for a person of the common run the support from a Guru is necessary. If the listeners obeyed the speaker’s exhortation, “Do not follow a Guru”, does not the speaker get assigned the position of a Guru?”. So is it not the proof that there is no attainment of God without a Guru?

Reminiscences

Once ShriMaharaj had gone to a village called Hulkoti in Karnataka. There a prostitute came to see ShriMaharaj. On seeing ShriMaharaj a sublime sentiment sprang up in her heart. She said, "Maharaj, please impart nama to me. I will conduct myself the way you tell me." Obtaining an assurance from her that she would give up the ignoble profession, and turn a florist, ShriMaharaj imparted nama to her. A bigoted pandit objected that this was in contra­vention ofShastric dictates. ShriMaharaj said in reply,' Believe me, Panditjee, I never disregard the Shastras. Let us remember, however, that the Shastras exist for man, not the other way round. Let us first give this woman a human status, and then apply the Shastric rules to her. Show me the person whose mind has never conceived sin; but the person who does not give in to it by using human discrimination and controls action on the desire is, practi­cally, considered a good person. By practising namasmarana unholy desires gradually weaken, and one begins to feel that one wants God. When that goes on in­creasing, sublimity increases, and ultimately desire gets eradicated.' Later that woman used to work at selling flowers and garlands made out of them. But because of her constant chanting of nama, her condition became like that of a sadhaka.

Reminiscences

A doctor asked, 'Maharaj, may I practise performing ajapajapa* ? How is that japa performed?' Upon this ShriMaharaj said, "Ajapajapa is not to be 'performed', it 'takes place¹ spontaneously. Saints are always in ajapajapa. You know how blood circulates effortlessly in the body .Ajapajapa goes on in the same way; japa takesplace throughout the body."

* Ajapajapa -    repeating nama where there is no formal performance

... 157 ...

Aradhana of Sri Sadguru Brahmachaithanya Maharaj - invitation

Reminiscences

A well - educated, only son of a devotee had secured a good job. He was to be married. The devotee asked ShriMaharaj, 'I have no experience in arranging marriages. Please tell me how to choose a daughter - in - law.' ShriMaharaj promptly said, 'Accept the girl whom all three of you like at first sight. Do not get into any further criti­cal examination.' After advising thus ShriMaharaj further added, 'In my opinion marriage of a son is of a more diffi­cult nature than that of a daughter. The effect of a daughter's marriage is felt at her in - laws.' The effect of a son's marriage is felt in one's home. If everyone at home behaves with a sentiment that he should mind and take care of others, comfort, and contentment will prevail . Also, the elders should act in the manner of elders, and young­sters should act in the free manner of youngsters. There­after, what scope can exist for arising of misunderstand­ings?'

Reminiscences

ShriMaharaj used to tell his followers, "Take refuge in Me." A sadhaka who had stayed with him for several years dedicatedly asked him, "Maharaj, what is the true sense of Take refuge in Me?"  Upon this ShriMaharaj said "Here, Me refers to God. To take refuge in Him means to surren­der to Him; that is, mentally to offer oneself to Him. To offer oneself is to merge one's will with His will. To merge will means to look upon Him as the controller of one's life, For this, one should conduct oneself the way He likes. To do one's duty in domestic life and practise namasmarana, is what He likes."

Reminiscences

A young man from another village met ShriMaharaj. He said to him whatever was to be said, accepted prasad, and returned. Later he remembered that his father had  told him to convey his salutation of regard to ShriMaharaj, and he had forgotten to convey that. Next time he met ShriMaharaj, he said, "Maharaj, please forgive me. Last time I forgot to convey my father's salutation to you.". Upon this ShriMaharaj promptly said, "Convey my blessings to him'; and added in a low voice, "What is the charm in conveying a salutation to him, whom it does not reach the very moment it is spoken ?"

Reminiscences

ShriMaharaj casually asked one teacher, ' Is there a shrine of a Muslim saint near your school?' The teacher said, ' Yes.' ShriMaharaj further said, " Balwantrao Ghanekar, who had studied at the same institution, was once asked the same question. His answer was, ' I do not know'' ' But, 1 said, ' everybody says so.' Balwantrao re­plied, ' Maybe it's so, but I used to go straight to the class,and when school was over, I returned home. I never rambled idly nor aimlessly.' I liked this reply, for the reason that it shows how single - mindedly one should                            pursue one's Sadhana ."

Reminiscences

One doctor asked, "The mental perturbation of every person that visits him becomes known to a saint. How does it happen ?' ShriMaharaj replied, "For this to hap­pen one's mind has to become holy and subtle. You know by using a thermometer what temperature a patient has. But a thermometer never gets a temperature. Likewise saints have passed beyond being perturbed, and so they come to know correctly the perturbation of another

Reminiscences

The Importance Of Discourse.

ShriMaharaj usually gave a daily discourse, of which the subject-matter invariably was some aspect of namasmarana . Many of those who attended spent an hour or more in coming and returning. One day one in the audi­ence raised the question whether, having once been con­vinced of the importance of namasmarana, it would not be more profitable to spend the entire two hours in namasmarana at home. ShriMaharaj immediately aquiesced, with the proviso that the ardour of the convic­tion continues unabated despite the cessation of the daily repetition, and does not get diverted to some other pur­pose. "The more important question,¹ he said,' is how the remaining chunk of the day's time (twenty-two hours ) is spent. If that much time is spent without chanting nama, it would be sheer waste. On the other hand, if, while lis­tening to the discourse, rather than listen as a matter of routine or entertainment, one listens with care, and with the object that love for God springs and endures in the mind, one may chant nama with genuine pleasure and reap the benefit. The very purpose of the discourse is that the mind should incline more and more to chanting of nama. Remember that it is not easy to create such a lik­ing for nama.

Reminiscences

ShriMaharaj was in Sajjangad to pay respects to Shri Samartha. A well-to-do but childless landlord who had his manor and farms in the shadow of the hill approached ShriMaharaj with a supplication that he may be blessed with a son to inherit the handsome estate. The following conversation took place:

ShriMaharaj ——You live right in the jurisdiction of Shri Samartha, and it is therefore proper that you ad­dress your supplication to Shri Samartha himself. Don't you think he has the power to grant it if he mean to Supplicant ———I agree.

ShriMaharaj -—— Then this is what I suggest: You and your wife should visit this Samadhi every day after the daily ablution, for a year. Stand before Shri Samartha with folded hands and pray thus:' We are happy and prosper­ous, by your grace; all that we want to complete our hap­piness is a son to inherit this estate. Please bless us, we pray, with a son if it is in our ultimate interest.' Do this daily for a year. If, during the year to follow, you are blessed with a son, treat him as the gift of Shri Samartha. If oth­erwise, your may conclude that it is not in your interest to have one, In either case, you will have a peaceful mind ready to accept either result calmly and cheerfully.

As luck would have it, the pair was eventually blessed with a son.

Reminiscences

A headmaster was a disciple of Kumbharaswami. He used to observe the practice of worship with great punctiliousness. Every day he used to get up well before daybreak, and completing his ablution etc., exactly at sun­rise he used to perform his guru's aarati. Observance of this practice went on year after year. Once he had fever. The temperature rose to 104 °F (40° c ). His family pressed him to perform aarati without performing the daily ablu­tion. But he would not listen. Immediately there after he covered himself and lay in bed. He fell asleep, there was a great deal of sweating, and his fever completely disap­peared. After this he happened to meet ShriMaharaj.

Complimenting him on his determination to observe the practice at all costs, ShriMaharaj said, "The disciplinary practices for the body are contingent upon the body's con­dition. Worship is mainly an affair of the mind. The pur­pose of a disciplinary practice is to mould and discipline the body and the mind. Till today you have observed the restrictions on the body. Now it is essential not to be bound down by the restrictions, and to go beyond them. It affects one vitally to break a practice one has preserved at all costs, but the root of this is in the subtle pride dwelling within. The subtle pride is, 'I have done this till today', therefore one feels bad that, 'I cannot do it now'. As a mat­ter of fact, whatever was done till today could succeed only because the sadguru got it done; the true doership is that of the sadguru. It is a mistake to take to oneself the credit of doership. One should exercise caution that some­thing does not fail to be done out of laziness, but if some­thing cannot be done because of the body becoming inca­pable, one should not be adamant about doing it. There should be total surrender. One should put an end to one's separate existence. By saying, 'whether it is done or not, either of it is his will', one also retains an awareness of him." After telling him this much, ShriMaharaj said, to him, "Do not forget that I am telling you all this in the name of your guru.'

Reminiscences

A person chanting nama complained to ShriMaharaj that he had a headache whenever he sat down to do it. ShriMaharaj expressed surprise, because actually namasmarana should bring calm to even a disturbed mind, and asked if nama was chanted as advised by the initiator. ' No,' said the person; ' he had asked me just to chant nama; but evidently it couldn't be so simple, so, as I had read in some books, I adopted the padmasana pose and fixed my gaze on the tip of the nose.' ShriMaharaj advised him to do nothing beyond what the initiator had asked him to. Very soon his headache stopped. ShriMaharaj explained this by saying that the initiator knows the disciple's capacity, to which he adapts his in­struction; so one should do neither more nor less.

Reminiscences

A gentleman had extreme fondness for meeting saints and Sadhakas. His luck too was such that he came to meet several saintly men, and he also obtained the benefit of close companionship of some of them. He also used to meet ShriMaharaj very often. During one such visit he narrated which saintly men he had met, and how and when, and how they took him under their fold. On listening to it ShriMaharaj calmly said, 'In that case you must have ob­tained initiation from one of these saintly persons !' The gentleman replied in the negative. Then ShriMaharaj said, expressing astonishment, 'It means that you have been to many weddings, but have not yet stepped upon the al­tar yourself ! So, I feel that you should get initiation of nama from some good person and get settled somewhere.' He was convinced by ShriMaharaj' s words, and he went to Alandi and secured initiation .

Reminiscences

ShriMaharaj was once talking with some gentleman. It was time for the customary singing of bhajan. Presently someone came and said, 'Maharaj, it is time for singing bhajan. Shall we begin?' ShriMaharaj assented. At once the gentleman said, 'Maharaj, this singing of bhajan so regularly, can it not be called a kind of addiction ?' ShriMaharaj promptly said, 'Yes, this can also be called an addiction. But this addiction is such that it frees man from the greater addiction (or peril) of recurring of births and deaths.'

reminiscences

A question arose why one does not develop a sense of complete surrender though one may chant nama and wor­ship God or the Sadguru. ShriMaharaj said, "A miracle wrought by one's identification with the physical self is that even when practising worship of God, one does not lose one's ego. Just consider this ! One says, 'God belongs to me'. While saying it the ' I' endures, and additionally one stakes a claim upon God. In saying, 'God belongs to me', a sense that God should act as one wishes, that he should satisfy one's desires, lurks. But a true devotee sin­cerely says, 'I belong to God.' In saying this one's being merges with the being of God. The ' I' does not exist as a separate entity for it to be able to have desires. This is real surrender."

Reminiscences

A disciple of ShriMaharaj once said to him, "Maharaj, please continue to bestow your grace upon me." ShriMaharaj then said, "A.guru who has to be told to be­stow his grace is not eligible for the status of a guru. His grace remains ever bestowed. No interruption occurs in it; but in one's asking for grace, the intention is that one should not suffer sorrow, or that things should turn out as one wishes. It is true that there is no limit to the sadguru's powers. But it is not proper to ask that by his grace he should alter the the allotments in one's lot . Sadguru does not avoid the fruition of a disciple's lot, but he safeguards the contentedness of his mind while he is going through it. From a practical standpoint he arranges for medical treatment and help from people. Thereby consciousness of sufferings in one's lot is diminished. The period of suffering passes quickly. Sadguru's grace is noticeable in his arranging for the painful experiences to be borne at one's convenience. At times the sadguru may take upon himself to suffer the tribulations of one who has completely sur­rendered to him; but one cannot expect or dictate it ."

Reminiscences

A person wearied by annoyances of domestic life asked ShriMaharaj, 'Maharaj, if one must suffer the fruition of one's destiny, what use is worship of God? There is no gain from practising worship.' In reply ShriMaharaj said, "Here, there is some confusion of understanding. Just as experiences of a pleasant nature come to pass in a person's life, painful experiences also fall to his lot. One's complaint is only about the pain. He who takes birth as a human being cannot escape the painful experiences that fall to his lot. This can be clearly observed from the lives of in­carnations like Rama and Krishna. One cannot bypass an experience that has fallen to one's lot, one has to finish it by bearing it. In that case, what does one practise wor­ship for ? While practising worship, in his devotion for God, a devotee loses consciousness of himself and his body. The devotee has no consciousness of whether his body is experiencing pleasure or pain.'

Reminiscences

A gentleman of advanced age had become bedridden from paralysis. He used to feel bad that he had become entirely dependent on others. When ShriMaharaj went to meet him, he said, 'Maharaj, long life is really a curse.' Upon this ShriMaharaj said, "In a way, being born is it­self a curse; but it is also a boon. If one spends life forget­ful of God, being born becomes a curse. If one spends life in remembrance of God, being born becomes a boon. In remembrance of God one forgets sorrow. For that remem­brance to endure there is no means like nama. So if you practise remaining absorbed in nama, the physical suf­fering will surely diminish, and the illness too will lessen.' He listened to ShriMaharaj's advice and his illness less­ened a great deal. Later he died of a heart - attack.

Reminiscences

An educated lady had come to meet ShriMaharaj, who was then giving a discourse. In conformity with the sub­ject matter he said that one should practise worship of God in a concrete form. After the discourse wound up, the lady said to ShriMaharaj, 'The practice of worship of a concrete God is a misconception originating in ignorance. The abstract form being, the ultimate truth how can you advocate otherwise ?' Instead of answering the lady's ques­tion, ShriMaharaj enquired after her family. In the course of converations   the lady sadly said, 'My daughter has grown to marriageable age. But as she is always unwell, I am worried about her. ShriMaharaj promptly said, ;   'Madam, just tell me whether this worry is concrete.' The  lady immediately understood. Realizing that her under­standing of the concrete and the abstract was merely un­derstanding of the literal senses of these words, and real­izing that she was very much a part of the concrete world, she became silent. 

Reminiscences

The husband of a middle - aged lady died suddenly. She began neglecting herself and her children from grief. When she met ShriMaharaj, he said to her, "Madam, I have full understanding of your grief. With all that, I say, you should act with due discrimination. Discrimination is a great fac­ulty accorded to man. It is present in everyone. If man acts making due use of it, he will belong to God. Grief is bound to be present in domestic life, and, without discrimi­nation, its severity will not be reduced. To keep the fac­ulty of discrimination active, one should either make God one's witness, or chant his nama uninterruptedly. Be ab­sorbed in nama, and your sorrow will be lightened."

Reminiscences

A student of saints' works asked ShriMaharaj, 'On one hand saints say that fruition of one's lot is inescapable, and on the other they say that there is nothing that is unattainable by effort. Which of these is true ?' ShriMaharaj promptly said, "So long as one has ego, that is, so long as one feels that one is the doer, efficacy of effort appears real; and once ego vanishes, that is, when one begins to feel that Rama is the doer, effectiveness of destiny appears real. That endeavour has a place in life, there is no doubt. But only the effort which takes place under the guidance of saints, proves capable of yielding fruit. Besides, the starting point of effort is the intent. If the intent is one of attaining God only then destiny does not come in the way of that effort. No importance is to be attached to the pains and pleasures that the body suffers by fruition of one's accumulated lot, in the course of endeavours to attain God."

.

Reminiscences

There is no doubt that morality and religiousness are regressing in Society. How should one who practises chant­ing of nama act during such times ? In course of telling about this, ShriMaharaj said, "What times are trying times? The times when it becomes difficult for a moral person to act morally should be considered trying times. Such times existed at the time of Ravana. Such times ex­isted at the time of Samartha. This is undeniable, but even then there existed Vibhishana in Ravana's kingdom.

Maruti went to Lanka to look for Sita. In almost every house he noticed a riot of sensuality. But while he was moving around, he suddenly heard the nama of Rama being chanted. That was Vibhishana's house. When he happened to meet Vibhishana, the latter  told him that he continued living under those circumstances sustained by nama of Rama. The same maxim applies to us. If we adhere to chanting of nama the bad external situation will not hurt us."

14A ...

Reminiscences

Once ShriMaharaj asked a teacher in an engineering college, 'Is it correct that your students are taught car­pentry, smithy, etc. ?' The teacher said, "Yes, we call it 'workshop practice'." Thereupon ShriMaharaj asked, "What price will the articles prepared by the students fetch if they are offered for sale in the market ?" The teacher said, "No one will purchase them even as scrap." ShriMaharaj asked again, "How much amount is spent on these articles?" The teacher replied, "A lot of expense is incurred. There is a lot of capital expense such as build­ings, machinery, etc.; besides, expenses are also incurred on special teaching staff, lighting, running the machines.

And including the cost of wood and steel actually used, the total expense incurred is huge." On hearing this, ShriMaharaj said, "Then is it not uneconomic to incur this unreasonable expense only to create utterly worth-less things ?" Upon this the teacher said, 'Maharaj, if this is looked upon as a business, it is all a dead loss. But it is necessary to incur this huge expense in order that the students, who are to be engineers in future, may some­what understand from experience what precautions to ex­ercise, what problems arise, what operations and skills are required.' ShriMaharaj said, "Likewise, in attainment of God, there is a definite necessity of worldly life, so that restraining of passions, maintaining equanimity, perform­ing duty eschewing attachment, putting up with honours and insults, praise and censure, may be practised. But if one lives worldly life with the idea of making a profit, that is, in the hope that happiness will result from worldly life, it will prove to be utterly wrong and loss - making,

14A ...

Reminiscences

There is in the Konkan a village with a temple dedi­cated to the deity Ganapati,* celebrated as responding to the devotee's supplication. During a visit to that temple, ShriMaharaj was asked, * What should one supplicate for, here?' The reply was," Ganapati* literally means 'Lord of the senses' and, by extension, of the tendencies which prompt them to action. These are both properly guided by namasmarana. So, we should pray Ganapati to grant us interest, pleasure, in chanting nama."

t) - from Gana - the senses + pati = lord,