The atmosphere was filled with vedic mantras as special poojas were being organised and conducted by devotees in the outside complex as well as inside the hall. I was listening to the rhythmic sound of mantras recited by the pujaris, the Brahmins as I sat there facing the idol in the hall.

Gently my eyelids shut as I began ‘naam smaran’ or repeating the holy name. I was uttering mutely…Nityananda, Nityananda, Nityananda….

My mind was soon interiorized with the help of the ongoing chanting when after a brief spell I heard these words  inside me, “Chanting band karo.”

 “Stop the chanting.”

 I obeyed immediately and I sat there with a restful mind. A few moments were spent like this when….

At the point of concentration in between the two eyebrows of my forehead, I saw a Jyot, a Divine Flame in oval shape glowing radiantly. It was lemon yellow in colour. The flame had a thin outer ring of  blue colour. Or to be a  little more precise it was more close to cobalt blue, which quickly disappeared and only the yellow flame remained there.  The  flame was steady. I saw it glowing continuously.

Ah! What do I say what I saw!? Words can never translate what I experienced in those moments. How am I to say what I saw? What can I say how I felt at that moment? And whenever I recall those peerless moments in the temple, my whole being fills up with deep tranquility and joyful peace! I recapitulate those moments even now in times of solitude and repose to connect with the Eternal and relive that sense of oneness with it. Words cannot describe what your soul has felt. They will always fail me to express such sublime moments of oneness with Divinity!

The preparation and foundation I realized later, for further higher experience had been laid with the glimpse of Light and with this my mind was elevated to higher sources by this time. I understood sitting there that Sri Nityananda Swami had prepared the ground for me for higher and deeper revelations of spiritual sciences and enriching experience. Something more is yet to come.  And so….

The quiet, mute conversation now began with the omnipresent Guru. He informed me by speaking very gently, “Yeh Divya jyot hai.”

“This is the sacred flame of God.”

It occurred to me that it  was a confirmation of the spiritual phenomenon which took place just a few seconds before, or else I would have not fully understood what exactly had happened .

He continued, ” Mei tumhara param Guru hun. Param Guru Param Siddha Yogi hota hai.”

“I am your Param Guru.  Param Guru is a Param Siddha Yogi”

I bowed down reverentially in my heart at the blessed moment with a feeling of deep gratitude and thankfulness directed towards him. I stooped down to touch his feet, which always beam divine beatific rays, as though he was actually present in his physical body in front of me. I today realize that I had become a recipient of God’s blessing through Shri Nityananda on that very special day. So far I had known only about Kripa- Prasad, but for the first time it dawned on me that this is ‘Hari Prasad’ – God’s blessings in such wonderful ways. I was very, very pleasantly awakened with such a rewarding experience!

After this, the oval shaped flame expanded to become a small circle and covered my upper portion of the face and forehead and the malleable energy in its circumference was touching my skin while I felt its tingling on my cheekbones very vividly. I even felt the sensations on the eyelids and forehead. I was deeply absorbed in this experience sitting there with my eyes closed and did not care at all about what was happening around me as the minutes that were floating were too blissful to barter with anything else and was not worth its match really!

At this stage, Swami Nityananda enlightened me by giving me knowledge of various stages of spiritual progress by the human soul.  He began by revealing “Divya gyan Param Guru se hota hai.”

“Sacred knowledge is imparted by Param Guru only”.

These words of wisdom from the great soul were like immortal drops of elixir, words that infused life and vigour in me because they were spiritually awakening in every sense. I became more attentive now as I wanted to gather every little piece of the priceless pearls that were falling in my lap one by one.

At this point, the circle of the halo extended and became bigger than even before as I felt the soothing warmth of the extremely light and gentle tingling sensation of the halo touching my shoulders. The scattering rays sat lightly over my both shoulders. And there I sat, unmoved soaking myself in the balsamic rays and felt lighter and lighter. I was further gratified by the following upcoming words of spiritual wisdom from the kind-hearted saint.

“Guru aur Ishwar ek ho jata hai is awastha par. Yahan par shanti hai.”

“Guru and God become one at this stage. There is Peace here.”

Soon the ethereal halo became much larger, big enough to encircle me wholly and completely by now. I was so enamoured by it that I can’t really tell! I felt the emollient  rays of Light which were falling and descending all over me like satin-soft light showers of featherweight rain drizzle. They were too, too endearing and alluring. And they continued to fall till they touched my knees and the rest of the body by now. I sat there bathing under the thick canopy of soul-soothing Divine rays. I took a spiritual bath under the shower of Divine Light and felt profusely blessed at that stupendous moment. I was completely dissolved with gratitude for my Guru and God both. God’s blessings came as a real surprise and I was receiving them like the  thirsty dry  earth  that sips the first rain drops of the rainy season hungrily! My thirsty soul never once wished for the rains to stop! A memorable time of my life written with indelible ink!

It was the sheer Grace of God which was flowing towards me through the benevolent saint of Ganeshpuri. Had he not intervened and explained to me in explicit terms through his soft spoken mellifluous words,  I would have not known and understood the matchless value of this valuable experience.

He went on to  speak these weighty words of enlightenment to illumine me once again. ” Yahan aakar, Guru bhi nahi rahta, Brahma hota hai.  Is awastha mei kewal nishabad brahma hota hai. Shanti ke baad maun, shunya hai.  Yeh satya ki khoj hai. Brahma hamara strot hai. Hum wahin se aaye hai aur punha usme leen hona hai. To dhyan karo, is Ishwar ki Jyot par dhyan karo.”

“After arriving at  this stage even the Guru is not there, only Brahmn remains. At this stage there is the Absolute Truth, absolute Brahma, Immutable Brahma, Unchanging Atman our Spirit. This is the beginning of the search of the Truth. Brahma  is the source of our Origin. We must immerse in it again. So meditate on the Light of God! Meditate on the golden glow of illuminating Light!”

So my dear child kindly listen to me now. Surrender completely in your heart and mind at the Lotus Feet of your spiritual master. He is the messenger of God for his devotees. He will show you the path of salvation and the road to illumination. God’s Grace is received by those who have complete trust in their spiritual mentor and who are ready to obey them unconditionally. One can chant this mantra for moksha thus freeing his soul from bondage of karmic consequences.….

Om Namo Bhagwate Nityananda. Om Namo Bhagwate Nityananda.. Om Namo Bhagwate Nityananda….

 Guru Brahma, Guru Vishnu.

 Gururo Devo Maheshwara.

Guru sakshat para Brahma

Tasmai Shri Gurvai namah.

Om Shanti, Shanti, Shanti Om.

(Please read the previous post to know who is a Param Siddha Yogi)

Last night on 23^rd Jan, I slept in deep peace. Something mystical conjured up before I was retiring to bed. As is the practice every night, I washed my face by splashing some tap water and began preparing myself for a good night’s sleep. While I was  brushing, I smelt something heavenly near me. There was a waft of jasmine incense stick scent sweeping in my area and it caught my attention instantaneously. I was quick to perceive and identify the alluring ethereal scent  in the atmosphere. It was very distinct. I spoke to myself,  “This is not the ordinary Jasmine fragrance I know of, though it is similar to the one I have at home.” My extra sensory perceptions were heightened and I continued thinking “Definitely, there is something supernatural happening around me. A celestial being is near me at this moment and wishes to convey something. But who can it be? Why has He appeared before me? What am I to understand and grasp from all this?”

I comprehended and perceived the identity of the Divine Soul right then with whom I am very familiar with and was obviously delighted and felt so blessed. Not ready to miss this blessed moment, I went in my room without allowing my mind to get engaged in its trivial and frittering movements. I sat quietly on my bed with no lights. I bowed unpretentiously to my beloved astral accomplice of those blissful moments. I then meditated upon the pious and serene image of this compassionate saint and waited in expectancy to receive his bountiful gifts.

Within a few seconds, I slipped into a spell of calmness and tranquility and began to experience profound peace vibrations falling all over me. The room was radiating with abundant peace and I tried to absorb every little ray of peace floating around me. I became calmer and more calmer and the mind melted completely in the calm sea of peace and bliss. I continued sitting still without moving and was bathing in joyful peace. My eyes were closed and on my forehead, cheeks, head and shoulders as well as on arms were falling glimmering rays of golden Light one by one buoyantly. I got completely softened, melted  and immersed in the golden glow of mellow luminosity!

During such glorious moments, I submitted myself at the Lord’s feet and sincerely requested Him to suggest to me what I must write next in the upcoming post of mine. “I, in all humility and submission offer each word that I write to the Merciful Father, the endower of all creative works.”  I spoke politely to Him. With such wonderful thoughts, I went to sleep peacefully. So peaceful were the last moments that I woke up on light ethereal wings and I yearned to experience those sublime moments once more after absorbing the leftover divine beatific rays!

The morning that followed was a distinguished one. I returned to the same spot and began to concentrate on the inner illuminating eye. The connection with the inner Self seemed effortless on that day. Enlightening thoughts began to brim over one by one and I could comprehend that this is because of last night’s ‘classic encounter’ of mine. So I consolidated previous night’s sojourn with the Deity within me who began to speak in its own distinctive language and speech! Ideas and thoughts began to flow with his benign flow of Grace!

My dear daughter, now this is for you….

During the meditation span, I started getting insights regarding the current situations of our country as well as the world from the viewpoint of the liberated souls of the saints and mahayogis who are not in their physical body at present but they still wish to communicate something to us. Doors to an entirely new subject were opened for me and I saw their  wide and broad-minded opinion of  a global vision during meditation. The current economic and political situation is not only our concern today, but also for them. They are more concerned than any of us I feel. I began to understand this more and more during the passing moments and clarity crept in.

To those liberated souls, progress in spirit and the events of the world are of equal concern as these events affect our lives and future in many serious ways. We cannot be indifferent to the circumstances around us. It is the limited mind which thinks otherwise. God speaks to us in so many ways you see! Sometimes through nature, sometimes through bizarre incidents and sometimes through the medium of saints. Man doubts God’s existence and His power existing behind the presence of life on the earth. But God is very, very compassionate and is looking after and protecting humanity by conveying peace messages through Divine Souls. Like god, the liberated souls are equally concerned about bringing peace upon the world for progress and prosperity.

Look at the phase through which our country  and the whole world for that matter, is passing through now-a-days. Many developmental and economic reforms were undertaken in our country in the last few years and there was a boom. People were thrilled and were beginning to expect the country to take a giant leap by its emerging as a super economic power. But with the  recent abrupt halt we now see gloom. There is a downturn and all eyes are on the President of US, who won the elections recently as to what economic and political policies will he adopt and the consequent results they will have on the other countries as well.

Now let’s look at this particular scene from the view point of spiritualism and humanitarianism put together. The question is can only bringing about economic reforms and developments, changing political situations bring about peace and prosperity in the world? Can there be prosperity for all of us only by making life more abundant, comfortable and tizzy? Let’s assume for a moment that all the nations of the world have Presidents or Prime Ministers who are ideally suited and have only one mission- serving the people. Will we still be done? If every person benefits (which is incredibly impossible) from the incredible economic and political waves of reforms, will then each man be happy? If not, then let’s think, what is missing here?

From the spiritual viewpoint- no, he won’t. Because-

Apart from economic, social and political correctness, the man also needs something more, something else. And that is peace! Man thrives on peace. We must have peace in the world, peace in our country, at home, at office and peace everywhere.

Many years ago, Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated and his peace plans were thwarted. Look at the social and political scene of the two neighbouring countries at present. There are no signs of peace but only conflict and violence. War, hatred, economic rivalry, petty ideals make our world narrow and difficult and unsafe to live in. Our countrymen are being divided and further divided into smaller groups for personal petty gains by people in power and politics. Therefore, corrective measures as individuals, groups as well as nations need to be taken  soon. If the President of US is today taking corrective measures to bring about peace in the world by resolving and amending the conflict between warring groups and countries, let’s join in the world family and wish good for all and pray for him and others too, so that there is lasting peace established in the world that we live in today.

These days, I am flipping through the  pages of  ‘Savitri‘. I understood some paras well. The following lines convey similar line of thoughts which I have picked up and am writing  for you.

 In ignorance and nescience are our roots.

A growing register of calamities

Is the past’s account, the future’s book of Fate:

The centuries pile man’s follies and man’s crimes

Upon the countless crowd of Nature’s ills;

As if the world’s stone was not enough,

A crop of miseries obstinately sown

By his own hand in the furrows of the gods,

The vast increasing tragic harvest reaped

From old misdeeds buried by oblivious Time.

He walks by his own choice into Hell’s trap;

This mortal creature is his own worst foe.

His science is an artificer of doom;

He ransacks earth for means to harm his kind;

He slays his happiness and others’ good.

Nothing has he learnt from Time and its history.

   ‘ Savitri’ Canto II  by Sri Aurobindo.

In this Universe, of which we are a part, there is a constant play of God and anti-God forces. When the anti-God forces increase in the form of unrest, agitation, violence, unrighteousness or adharma, crimes and other sinful acts, there is chaos, disruption of peace plans and prosperity.

Our world is going through the era of ‘Kalyug’. The basic characteristics of the Kalyug man are greed, selfishness and materialism. With such characteristics, where is the scope of peace in his mind?

Greed divides man from man, society from  society, one nation from another nation. If only we could realize that true happiness comes from peace within and not by satisfying our selfish materialistic goals and impulses and passing pleasures, we can make our ‘Home’, the world a better and worth living  place for all of us.

Hope you understand the underlying many good thoughts and golden rules of spirituality which are interwoven in this thought provoking post.

So my dear girl, we, as responsible citizens and devotees of God must pray for peace for the  world and for ourselves. When you remember God in your meditations and prayers, bring down peace in your heart, in your mind and disperse it everywhere you go. Bring down peace for yourself, for your family, for your neighbourhood, for the country and for the whole world. During meditation, chant the mantra- ‘Om shanti, shanti, shanti Om’ many times. The holy word Om has peace vibrations, its frequency is such that it creates creative energies in the environment we live in. Shanti means peace. Shanti word dispels agitation in the mind and relieves the body from restlessness and mental agitations. It is a powerful mantra. Chant it whenever you can, wherever you go.

This is the ideal way to offer our contributions towards our Mother Earth, Nature and our planet as a whole. We owe a lot towards them, don’t we?  In return we must spread vibrations of peace on the place we live in. Do you recall this mantra from Upanishada?

Om Sarve bhavantu sukhina. Sarve santu niramaya. Sarve bhadrani pashyantu.  Ma kashchit dukhbhag bhavet. Om Shanti, shanti, shanti Om!

May all be happy. May all be without diseases. May all have well being. May none have misery of any type.

                                                                                                                          Brihadaaranyaka    Upnishada 1.4.14

(This post is dedicated to Mahatma Gandhi, the apostle of peace. Today is 30^th Jan, Gandhiji’s death anniversary)

Today is 31^st December, the last day of this year and of the month too. And it is also my birthday and this year I would like to celebrate it differently- by writing down my thoughts for you about what all I know my dear Mandira regarding the importance of our birthday. I hope you will enjoy reading my blog entry as much as I have enjoyed collecting and writing  my thoughts. I humbly dedicate this article to my Divine Mother of Pondicherry who infused  spiritual vitality and resurrected me with Her vibrations when things were not going right for me once and I was groping without any direction.

I read somewhere in a book in which the Mother had mentioned that-

On our birthday our soul rises up and goes to meet the Divine. Therefore, we must pray and meditate with great interest and fervour on this particular day as we are very close to our source of origin.

Though these days people believe that merrymaking and revelry is a way of celebration but for me these lines reverberate on every birthday of mine since then.

Ma also explained to me that before we are about to take birth and come on the earth, it is our soul which decides and determines as to how many karmas  it will dry up or work out, out of the uncountable karmas, out of sanchit karmas or accumulated karmas of all the previous lives stored up as unripe fruits of karmic seeds in us.

It is we who decide whether we want to undergo the formidable efforts  and salvage ourselves or not. It is we who  decide in which life and when and how should it be done.

Some individuals don’t want it, some postpone it and just a very few have the courage and fiery determination to decide and agree to finish the long-pending job of salvaging their soul from their millenniums old ignorance. It is decided on the reasoning and understanding that if eventually one has to bear and work out the fruits of actions of many past lives at some point anyway, so why not do it now? Why not free myself from the entrapment of numberless cycles of life and death? It has to be done any way at some point. Although man lives in a deep slumber but the Spirit wants to be free from the shackles and soar in vast space and take a flight of freedom and float in ether without limits.

Now the question is -Does it really happen? And how?

The answer is yes,  when we pray.

Pray how?

Pray intensely!

When we pray so quietly, unknown to all, who is the witness then?

The God residing in us is the witness and administrator of our pledge and invocation.

And on what basis does God give a consent to our request?

If the pleader makes an earnest request by praying intensely to God to free him or her from the bondage of countless regressing rebirths and consequently free oneself with associated mental and physical suffering, wishes to atone, make amends, then God is merciful and gives consent.

Liberation and salvation is not possible without the consent of God who is benevolent, supportive and sympathetic.

He helps by appointing a mentor for us in the form of a Divine Guru when we come to stay  on earth and also bears a part of the weight by giving us the much required support and encouragement in the form of generating the force of forbearance, courage, fortitude, firmness in our goal, persistence in us. And also by helping us build an unshakable  faith and complete trust in the Highest Power.

My dear child, whatever I have revealed to you today is a very pensive and profound matter of spirituality. It is worth consuming all your attention and thoughts.

Imagine that very short transitory moment, the power of a single moment when we decide for all our lives to come and that moment when we pray intensely to God for this, even when we are not born in the physical body! The impact and repercussions of a moment’s intense prayers! How much power is contained in our praying intensely!

 Think. Imagine the power of intensity, imagine the power of praying and put it together and see the impact of the power of intense praying!

Intense praying contains the power of feelings, faith, devotion of God and is surcharged with willful intentions. So we must learn to pray everyday, many times and make it a natural habit. You never know which is that crucial, life-altering moment you see. Praying should become a habit. Talk to God in this way.

Some people ask me what is praying? Why should I pray?

A prayer is an invocation, a request for help and an expression of thanks made to God. It can be an earnest hope or a wish. It is a call upon God for mercy, redemption and correction.

Praying is communicating with the Omnipresent God to find a solution to a problem. It is an acknowledgment to God for favours and obligations.

When we pray, we acknowledge and accept that there is a Higher force in this universe and we submit to it for our existence.

With our prayers we send out positive vibrations in the atmosphere. It is the broadcasting of one’s innermost desires, yearnings, requests and wishes. It is purposeful invocation to the Supreme for the advancement of oneself and others.

In praying lies mental, emotional, physical and spiritual healing. We can regress in previous lives and therefore heal our past. We become even-tempered, peaceful and restful in mind, body and spirit. It dissolves and releases the knots and blotches of stagnant blocked or burnt energies in our system. It accelerates the process of evolution of our Spirit by exhausting the karmic deposits.

Prayers can be said loudly or silently, alone or in a  group small or big one. It can be for ourselves, our family, community, country or for humanity for the well being and goodness of all.

The more intense and truthful, emotion packed the prayer, the more powerful its impact on oneself and on others as well.

One can pray anytime, during the day or at night, while resting or while in activity, at work. By doing so the mind of the devotee  does not wander aimlessly and is  riveted firmly and hence in control. It is attuned to the Highest Power through which we receive solutions, guidance, strength, determination, peace, fortitude and stability.

Extraordinary and welcome events occur in the form of miracles in sincere praying through the work of God.

We recover, recuperate, revitalize, find remedies. We bloom, we flower, we rejoice in health and mental peace.

Many of my prayers have come true. I have prayed for years for mental prosperity, spiritual growth and physical fitness and for an uncomplicated, worry less existence. I have  wished and asked God to make each day of my life peaceful, joyful and purposeful. I see all my prayers coming true!

My sweet child, it is my sincere prayer that may your heartfelt prayers also be heard and come true!

The last many weeks have been hard and tiring for me, full of changes and new developments because of some hard decisions that I took at the domestic front. During this time while busy with work, I have been thinking at the back of my mind about the power of endurance and also how to increase it. As each day progressed, I taught myself over and over again that something good will eventually emerge out of all that although the going got tougher. Based on this bright thought, I let myself lose and allowed myself to take on whatever experiences that I had to undergo to prove to myself, “If you endure, you will procure.” I reminded myself repeatedly that God has some definite and nice plans for me and before that actually manifests in physical terms, I should endure this phase of alteration and ambiguity.

Literally, endure means to tolerate or undergo, to suffer patiently. It is the power to put up with something. In brief, my dear,

Endurance is the staying power

And now that the brief period of my test is over, I write my next post on the power of endurance for you. Had I not endured, the new  positive developments that have taken place after the silent storms would not have taken place at all.

These are the realizations which have emerged within me during all these days and today evening. I present them to you as my next post. I am sure you will benefit from this sooner or later in your professional as well as personal life as no one has ever succeeded in true sense without the grind of life. During the grinding, one must endure as it is only through grinding, during testing times that we cultivate and develop the special quality of endurance. So child,

• Do not be meek, be dauntless. And do not be intimidated by people at all. They may do what they wish, we hold on to our principles and convictions. Right?

Each day brings new challenges. Each day is different from the other. Each day is a test of one’s abilities and sometimes even patience. Each day is a call to prove something. Each day we face a demanding task or situation. Live up to that with a smile on your face.

If we endure, the power of endurance develops and increases by each trying time. It is only through the demanding situations that we develop this power and not by avoiding people or skipping situations.

• See the brighter side of the dark cloud. Tell yourself that there is always  a brighter side to every difficult situation. Know that after storm comes peace, after night day.
• It takes some time for the forces in nature to re-align. During difficult climate, we need much effort and skill to understand the reasons causing the stumbling blocks or problems. Try to understand that. It takes time to re-align forces and thereby to bring about positive developments. Changing life-situations means changing the negative forces to positive. It does take time for the negative forces to diminish and positive forces to increase, till then endure. There is a constant play of the flux of these two forces in the universe. Once the delicate balance is again restored, things sort out and we smooth over the problems. During such times

 Take the best and leave the rest.

“Endurance is patience concentrated.”  Thomas Carlyle

You know these days we have had many discussions at home about how we can change our life with our own efforts and also by putting up with many twists and turns of our fate. As my thoughts were revelling on these issues, I have been thinking to myself that actually speaking at the moment our future is still at bay and what really matters right now is how prudently we live our today. And therefore it becomes essential for us to make our day to day living worthwhile and meaningful. If we fill up our present day full of practical wisdom, peace and joy then we surely have a wonderful future ahead.

Today is 30th Nov, Swami Nityanand Bhagwan’s birth anniversary. It is my deep desire that I dedicate this post at His benevolent feet.

He has taught me so many things for which I shall be grateful all my life. He guides and inspires my life by telling me what is good for me and what is not, which actions are beneficial and which are to be shunned completely so that I do not have to put up with so much or undergo any kind of suffering. He has revealed to me some important insights into the mysteries of the perplexing human miseries and also the solutions for them which I wish to pass on to you. This is as follows:-

The majority of people in this world are ignorant and  live in the ‘gutter’. Their lives are dark, they do not know what is right for them. They do wrong and suffer and bear so much unnecessarily. Their instincts and behaviour are very similar to that of the animal kingdom. They are unhappy and miserable because they have created that for themselves by doing all kinds of sins. The world is full of miseries and sorrows because men sin gravely. If on the other hand,  if man establishes a world based on self-discipline, tolerance, co-operation, love, peace, brotherhood, friendship, sobriety and self giving, there would be a paradise on earth.

There are 3 types of sins termed as:- paap, maha paap and jaghanya paap.

Sins, grave sins and extreme sins.

Paap are actions such as lying, deceit, deliberate injury or damage to a person, ill-treatment of others, selfishness, stealing, jealousy, repulsion, antagonism, indifference to one’s duties. They can be worldly, religious or spiritual misconduct. Disrespect to elderly, women and guru, violence to children are all sins. They are paap, sins and can be forgiven if one changes his behaviour and moulds his life to that of virtuous living.

Maha paap are those grave sins which are unpardonable- infidelity, treachery, killing,  lying and cheating the poor by usurping their land and depriving them of their livelihood, swindling public money etc.

Jaghanya paap are those despicable acts which are very grave in nature such as annihilation, destroying lives, betraying countrymen and one’s own country, spreading terror by killing innocent people, spying against one’s nation and mass destruction.

When we go against the wish of God and do what one is supposed to shun, there are repercussions in our environment, it impacts the surrounding and on the whole it affects our planet’s ecology and environment. Nature’s fury, catastrophes, disbalance and havoc in the environment is man created and not god created. So each one of us should fulfill his duties by knowing what are the laws of nature, how should we contribute to make our lives and everyone’s more harmonious, joyous and sorrow free. All our attention and energies should be directed to build our lives so that we become useful citizens first and then aspiring spiritual seekers. Our days should be full of attempts to create more powers within and then get an access to the kingdom of God. In brief, our daily lives should be lived in these good ways-

Leave behind your past. Store and remember only the happy moments, good times and wonderful experiences in your mind. Based on these building- blocks of memories, build a new life and advance ahead. Discard the painful, insipid, distasteful and distressing memories of events that took place in the past and throw them out of your system. Selective choice helps the mind to filter out the unwanted and used up energies of past  karmas. Fruits of karmas that we have already lived and what is over and done with should be discarded and expelled and in their place saplings of  radiant beautiful flowers for a lovely garden should be planted now. Do not hold anyone responsible for your miseries and misfortune, just change your perception and outlook towards those  circumstances and move on. In fact, make the most of your misfortune! They are truly blessings in disguise!

Do not have a limited purview of life,  expand your horizon. Transgress your limitations. Human knowledge gained through the intellect and memory has its own limiting periphery. While knowledge that flows from God through telepathy, intuition knows no boundaries.

Through meditation and continuous good acts awaken and develop the quiet voice of God and intuit. There is power in wisdom.

Blocked understanding and tarnished  knowledge gives birth to undesirable traits and tendencies like envy, greed for power and money, selfishness, hollowness of character, stubbornness, argumentative nature, trampling over others etc. Everyday think and ask yourself what new things have I learnt today? What more is there that I need to know? Never stop your mind where learning is concerned. Our mind is like the  large porcelain dish which when kept out in the open will fill up with rain showers by falling raindrops! Collect them!

Improve your existing skills and learn new ones. Be a store house of many talents and gifts and be useful to others. The human skills are given to us to first help and empower ourselves and make our lives better and enriching and then to become a source of help to others. Do not be dependent on others to provide you all the help. Develop yourself to the fullest. Be gifted and let your Spirit shine forth through your work, nature and your attitude!

Set targets and meaningful goals for yourself and chase them till they see the light of the day. My dear girl, it is very important to plan our life. For planning, we need to set our short term and long term goals. Reach out to meet the goals and achieve results as per the chalked out previous plans. Make your plans for future in areas of business and money matters, relations, personal development, career promotions, health as well as your personal life. Once they are met, have another set of goals and chase them. A directionless life has no meaning. A soporific life is not really worth living. To enrich our lives we must have definite chartered plans for today as well as for future. An unplanned life is like a boat sailing without the boatman in deep waters!

Invest time, energy and money in health. Spare some time everyday in body care, good diet and health. It is a very good investment and will always pay back handsomely. A disease-free body with a good amount of stored energy is a pre-condition to achieve our spiritual goals and targets. Attain that. Happiness, calmness, moods and stability of mind is directly dependent on our health. It is a long term investment and its importance should not be overlooked. If you want quality work in your life then maintain good health. It is a vehicle by which we travel to the abode of God!

Worship God in any form- formless or with a form. Do good karmas, acts of kindness and be charitable and always remain unselfish in your motives. Remember that God will always look after all your needs if you care for his other children. Reach out to those who are in distress and are looking for your help. Withhold negative emotions like anger, frustration, despair, agony, doubts, aimlessness, sadness etc and cultivate friendliness, faith, re-assurance, joy and trust in God.

Work hard and work sincerely always in all circumstances, no matter what. God watches over us all the time, people don’t. Offer all your work to God because even work is a form of worship. Pray for others, do good and be good and do good to others always, irrespective of their behaviour towards you. Speak kind words and never use harsh words as injuring others does not solve our problems. Help others in achieving their goals whether material, professional or spiritual. You will in return  get help from God in many quiet and subtle ways. Comfort others and you will be comforted. Help people to tide over their regression, difficulties and rough times during their lean period. Receive their blessings in return as the reward for your good intentions.

If we try to live up to these principles of  life, our each day will be beaming with God’s Grace and we will have a true spiritual life in real sense. If we sow healthy seeds of good trees, the fruit that it will bear will be very, very sweet. Have a refulgent future..

May God bless you!

In Divine remembrance,

Ma.

(If you wish to know and read more about Swami Nityananda of Ganeshpuri, then turn to Ignite the flame of Illumination-I and Ignite the flame of Illumination-II

At dusk on 1^st Nov ’08, for me it was time to remember God. I offered two incense sticks on my behalf and joined my hands with closed eye-lids and stood in front of Mahavatar Babaji’s photo that day in my house. My heart welled up and I was infused with strong feelings of thanksgiving and gratitude towards Him for his limitless love and compassion flowing towards me as always. He has done for me that no human can ever imagine and no words suffice.

A silent selfless prayer emerged from within me when I expressed my wish to Him that from now I want to help others, who like me are facing insurmountable,  exhausting difficulties in their lives currently. In a quick reply He said briefly, “Write the next post on this topic.”

To let you know dear child, I have from the very outset been very attracted to the photo and image of Divine Babaji. His aura, his personage and presence has been very, very mystical and equally magnetic for me. I was amazingly fascinated by his personality, his life and his mission on the earth, not to forget to mention his extra-ordinary, out of this world divine powers when I first read the all time classic, “Autobiography of  a Yogi” in 2002 and many times thereafter. His distinguished and imposing stature had an indelible sketch which got engraved in my mind from the very start. His blissful figure would re-surface time and time again and his remembrance was always very soul- soothing.

Here I stood- my heart melting down in reverence and gratefulness when in a very soft gentle tone He said sweetly to me, “Remember me and my name in any form you like. Do naam jaap. Back in your past you called out to God and chanted His Name so intensely and poignantly that God heard your cry and I gave you sakshat  or direct Darshan. I appear to those who remember and pray to God sincerely for guiding their way and are in need of spiritual assistance and remedy.”

Next I questioned him that why is it that when I look into his gazing eyes I get transfixed? Peace and tranquility enveloped me at this point when in a grave mystic voice he explained, “You have known me earlier too in the distant past in your previous lives. Your faith in me is unshakable and trust complete. You will always recognize me in every form and figure I take because you see me as Spirit and  not a body.”

Mandira, there I stood  enchanted and enamoured when I felt His divine rays of pearly hue reach me and I was encircled by them in my shoulders, neck and arms like a very light stole. My mind became super-sensory towards divine perceptions and I began to gather the showery gentle white and silver rays of Light and  rare jewels of divine words that were arriving towards me from Him. He then slightly touched my mind with His, and a long buried, unread page from the library of my memory was re-opened.  A flash of serendipitous  events raced my mind and I recollected this particular date- 10^th Nov, which incidentally falls today. It holds a special meaning for me because it is the date of my marriage and also because of some other significant reason besides that. According to the Hindu calendar, I got married on Tulsi Vivah Diwas, an auspicious day when Goddess Mahalaxmi in the form of Tulsi wedded Lord Vishnu. And today after 30 years, 10th Nov again falls on Tulsi Vivah Diwas. But to tell you more on the importance of 10th Nov in my life, please wait. I will come back to that.

A bizarre turn of events. Stormy patch of life with no end to groaning troubles. No rescue in sight.

Dear readers, a quick glimpse of my personal life account of  my past  needs to be reviewed and re-visited as this throws light on the gigantic spiritual figure- Immortal Babaji. It will also reveal as to when and how I met Him, the crucial situations in which we met and its life-altering significance in my life. This blog on my searching and finding God, our dialogue and the consequent serious thinking as after-thoughts would have never happened had it not been for Babaji. So lets stroll down the alley of my past when…

Those were immensely difficult years. My family had made a recent move to Mumbai in 2001 due to familial and professional reasons. As a result of shifting base, my family had to disjoint. Shortly after moving cities, the three of us found ourselves in three different locations spread across two sub-continents. Ties with extended family were strained, there was a split in the family and no signs of improvement could be seen on the horizon. I found myself alone in a new city without any faintest idea as to what was in store for me. Anyway,

To keep myself occupied I picked up a teaching job in a prestigious school- a profession I love, and am reputedly good at. Inexplicably, I was at the receiving end of fierce competition and jealousy. I frequently found myself at the wrong place at the wrong time and would receive the ire of the management for no fault of mine. Colleagues who were aware of my sincerity and commitment refused to stand by me. I was distraught. This was a profession I loved and was good at but time and again I would find myself into sticky situations that were not my creation. The children I taught  were my only source of happiness during my tenure. My failing health made my situation worse. So much so that I was eventually asked to quit. Life had never meted out such a blow before. I had never been asked to leave a job. The kids loved me, I was good at my work, yet I was asked to go. Needless to say, I was disheartened and shaken up.

My health continued to deteriorate day by day for almost 4 years during which I underwent a minor and an extra major surgery. As it is to begin with, I had a fragile constitution and have frequently battled illnesses and complications of various intensities since I got married. But dealing with illness at mid-life crisis is very different from dealing with it when you are younger and stronger. A third abdominal surgery in one life time is not at all easy to tackle and deal with.  For those four plus something years, in the absence of a family, illness was my only faithful companion. I had a constant mysterious lingering shooting pain in the stomach that couldn’t be diagnosed or treated for a few years. My sinusitis and varieties of chronic allergies flared up with a vengeance. I suffered so many coughs, colds, throat, eye and ear infections that a stage came where I didn’t need to visit a doctor. I knew which medicine treated which illness! There were other health problems too but I suppose I can do without getting into their descriptions. In spite of all these nagging health issues, I was determined and maintained my grit to go about my daily life as usual. I would do house hold chores for a brief time, then rest and then again get back to do another stint at the chores in easy installments! Even when I was working at the school, I would carry on the day on sheer will power of  mind. I learnt to live with the unending pain and uneasiness. I desperately wanted to beat odds and I was firmly determined to make it in life.  Though I  never complained but…

Financial worries plagued me. Our shifting to Mumbai hadn’t been in the best financial conditions- in fact it was at a time where my family’s needs were increasing and incomes were grossly inadequate. At that point in time, the Indian economy was in a sad condition that we were grateful we had a job. I continuously worried about my future and that of my family. I worried about my daughter’s education and marriage. I worried about the physical and mental health of my husband living far away. I worried about resolving many lingering family issues. I worried about my health. To make things still worse, I was surrounded by a set of pernicious people about whom I was unaware. They targeted me surreptitiously which made my life impossible. It was only that much I could take. I was in a flurried state, bewildered, helpless and I touched the abysmal low. But I was not prepared to get crushed under my own load when…

It was in these trying times that I wept and I wept. I had no-one to go to and there was no-one who knew what was happening inside my life. I behaved as if nothing had happened and everything was alright outwardly. I was bereft and very lonely. It was at that time that I took a very conscious decision of turning my mind towards God. I thought to myself, “The situation is already so bad that it can’t get any worse. God is my only saviour. No human being is able to help me.” So I took refuge in God residing in my heart with full trust for shelter and protection. I cried to Him for much needed help and my salvation. I called out to Him day in and day out incessantly. I prayed fervently so that my heart would dissolve and I could forgive those whom I had really loved and received only their indifference, mistrust and sometimes  ill-will in return. I wanted to carry my own karmic burden but was incapacitated. I could not do it alone. I urgently needed a helping hand from God. So, I began practicing naam jap or spiritual chanting. This I could do while I was engaged in routine activities as well. The results were quick for me to see. I began to forgive those people and buried my past  as I understood it is my doing alone and no-one else’s.

I joined Yogananda Satsang Society [YSS]started by Sri Paramhansa Yogananda, learnt the meditation techniques taught there and  practiced meditation every single day- even if that meant I only sat silently in a corner. I read all the spiritual books I could lay my hands on. I embarked on a new spiritual journey with my whole heart, soul and mind. I travelled  extensively to spiritual places, sometimes alone and went on pilgrimages on a limping foot, agony in my stomach and a broken heart! But I made it everywhere. I undertook long journeys in dirty trains to Pondicherry and looked for solace and answers to my reflections in solitude. I walked up the mountains and sacred hills in Tiruvanannamalai and  Badrinath. I walked in sweltering heat and scorching sun, I stood in long, serpentine queues in temples and samadhis, stayed in ashrams maintaining silence in quietude and reflecting on sombre, perplexing topics that intrigued me. My heart would bleed when I remembered the Lord and on some lonely nights, I used to call Him out with a pitched fever and a soft whisper in my heart- “Krishna, Krishna, my Krishna, Krishna… Where are you Krishna?  Krishna, Krishna, Krishna… Listen to me Krishna,  Talk to me, my Krishna, where are you? Krishna, Krishna, Krishna”…In my sleep also this chanting was going on.

I wrote a spiritual diary in which I noted down my learnt lessons of life, divine visions,  realizations, prophecies and saw God’s Glory in them. I did this without a day’s break for more than 3 years. When I was too sick to do anything, I would lay down in bed quietly for hours and prayed emotionally and fervently for God to listen to me. I endured everything. I now perceived all that was happening to me not as a punishment but as penance.

I realized that one finds God through tapas and not by misunderstood outside rituals and ceremonies and flashy devotion. God had to be searched inside, within myself…..I thought to myself.

My health matters could no longer be ignored. I wanted to bounce back with same zeal, determination and exceptional energy. So I exercised 10 minutes in the morning and 10 minutes in the evening even if it meant 11 o’clock at night with my aching, dead body. I never skipped any energization exercises sessions at home during that period. I read YSS home lessons pertaining to my life stage and circumstances. I did everything that was possible for me to do under the sky,

I did not want people to write me off and the undying spirit in me never allowed me to give up and….

I knew even then that God listens, I knew that God will hear my voice one day, it was just  a matter of time. I knew that it was only God who had all the answers and solutions to my overwhelming troubles.

Then on one memorable night…

(To be continued)