Baba
Shabda Cayanika & disembodied souls
Namaskar,
A few people have a lot of confusion and suffer from various illusions about the concept and reality of disembodied souls-- and, in particular, about how those souls make themselves visible to others etc. To clarify the matter, we can review Baba's colourful stories and encounters regarding this fascinating topic.
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Dogmatic creation of ghosts & goblins
In the past some so-called scholars created their own extravaganza to confuse the people for their selfish ends. We can see such skewed pictures in various religious preachings where they inject various types of dogma and fear by fabricating fanciful stories about ghosts, goblins, and witches etc. And when certain so-called intellectuals are expressing their fanaticism they create some colourful stories and link those things with some great personality like Shiva, Krsna etc.
AM: No such thing as ghosts
We know that in Ananda Marga teachings we have enough proof that there is no existence of ghosts.
Ananda Marga ideology states, "Ghosts do not exist." (1)
Ghosts are nothing but a play of the mind. That’s to say, what people generally think is a ghost is actually some sort of hallucination (positive or negative), mania, phobia, or other such type of psychic diseases. To make such phenomena clear and explain the science of these so-called ghosts or so-called apparitions, Baba has given many stories. And He has written them Himself as if He saw all those things. But there is no question of any confusion or doubt: Baba is writing all these stories for our understanding, to ensure we understand the science behind these so-called ghosts and different types of psychic diseases.
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Stories from Shabda Cayanika
For example, in Beloved Baba’s below noted story (see note 1), Sri Arupratan Mitra died, and after his death he came to Baba and talked with Him. In a similar fashion, many so-called ghost or ectoplasm stories (see note 2) given by Baba lead in a similar direction that after the death disembodied souls came to Baba and talked on different points. And, at the end of those stories, those disembodied souls showed Baba their tomb, or funeral pyre, or place of accident, or various types of things that they wanted to tell or communicate to Baba.
Central guideline
Here is the main point: Such disembodied souls did not come to Baba in the way they were just before reaching their death, when their body was bleeding etc.
In the case of the Arupratan Mitra story, his plane fell down in the Mediterranean Sea and within a short time reached Baba, who was travelling in a train in the state of Bihar, India. In that moment, Arupratan Mitra was gasping for breath, and he told Baba that for the last 15 minutes he was restless and wanted peace and nothing else. As the story recounts, when Arupratan reached Baba that was the moment of his death, and his body was completely burned, and he drowned in the sea. But when he reached Baba on the train his clothes were not drenched, and his skin was not at all affected by the burning crash. Indeed his physical presentation that time was impeccable, i.e. as normal.
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All these stories paint a similar picture of how different disembodied souls came to Baba on various occasions. Some faced death by a plane or road accident, or by drowning in a gorge or ocean, while others were killed by the police or military, and still more were affected by diseases or committed suicide by hanging oneself or jumping into the river. In all of these tragic scenarios, just before death their bodies were burning, bleeding, suffocating, hemorrhaging, gasping for air etc. By these various types of conditions they met their death. But when they appeared before Baba to communicate their feelings they were just simple beings in their healthy form, dressed as usual. Nobody was in a scarred or mangled condition. No one had a noose around their neck, burn marks on their body, broken bones, countless bullet wounds, or profuse bleeding etc. They all came to Baba in a very normal presentation. So the central idea is that whenever disembodied souls appear they look fine and well, not wounded etc.
Science behind of ectoplasmic beings - I
Baba's following teaching explains this ectoplasmic science. We should be clear about this science because the common non-margii population is very confused about such phenomena. That is why they believe in ghosts, goblins, witches, and pretas etc. And they feel afraid, terrified, and paranoid of such things and get exploited by various opportunists. For these reasons and more, Baba has given us the important duty to understand this science and remove such psychic ailments from the common mass. Please read the following where Baba is explaining the truth about these ectoplasmic beings.
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"Now during this period, this transitional period, when the mind has left the previous body and before it gets a new body, what happens? It moves in the universe, invisible and inaudible. But you know, by dint of Tantrika practices, anybody can develop his ectoplasmic structure. One may be a Vidya Tantrika or one may be an Avidya Tantrika, but ectoplasmic development is there. Such a Tantrika can, with the help of his own ectoplasmic stuff, help the detached mind to get a temporary ectoplasmic body. So for the time being that detached mind, with the help of the ectoplasmic stuff of the Tantrika -- Vidya Tantrika or Avidya Tantrika-gets an ectoplasmic structure. When that ectoplasmic structure is a bit solidified it becomes visible, and due to its vibrational frequency it may also become audible, but only for a short span of time."
"You have heard stories about bones being thrown into a particular house, bricks being thrown into a particular house, a cot moving upwards, etc. You have heard these ghost stories about certain haunted houses. What are these things? A Tantrika, certainly not a Vidya Tantrika, but an Avidya Tantrika, with the help of a certain portion of his or her own ectoplasmic stuff, sits still in an asana or yogic posture, and with the help of his or her ectoplasmic stuff, creates an ectoplasmic body for a detached mind (known as "preta" in Sam'skrta). With the help of his ectoplasmic stuff attached to the detached mind, he or she does all these things. And at the time his or her body remains motionless. So these things are actually not done by ghosts -- they are done by an Avidya Tantrika with the help of a detached mind. One may say that these things are done by ghosts, but actually they are not." (2)
Science behind ectoplasmic beings - II
Baba's explanation continues:
"Now what happens when a person sees some unnatural picture, unnatural image or unnatural being? I have already explained one possibility. It may be that a Tantrika, with the help of his ectoplasmic structure, has created a body for a disembodied mind just to terrorize others. A Vidya Tantrika will not do such things, but an Avidya Tantrika may do them just to terrorize others, as they used to do in the past. After getting some money they would stop this practice.”
“Suppose that you go to a particular house which people say is haunted. There are some haunted houses in every town. I have already told you that if you find any haunted house, you just purchase it and use it. Ghosts will not terrorize Ananda Margiis, because every Ananda Margii is a ghost. [laughter] They are the followers of Shiva. Ghosts will not terrorize ghosts.”
“So, what happens in such situations? Due to terror, due to pre-imposed terror, a person's mind gets concentrated. Due to fear the mind gets concentrated, and due to concentration, what happens? A certain portion of the person's own ectoplasmic stuff goes to help a detached mind create a body, an ectoplasmic body. So people see their own creation -- the creation that has been made out of their own ectoplasmic stuff. But a detached mind is also there. It is not a ghost. These brahmapishaca or types of ghosts are all ectoplasmic creations. Ectoplasmic stuff is transferred to the detached mind due to mental concentration, temporary concentration." (3)
Conclusion
The central idea is that in the Shabda Cayanika series the various historical figures that appear are disembodied souls, a.k.a ectoplasmic bodies. Ghosts do not exist, and these interactions are not a figment of one’s imagination. These beings are people who died but are in that transitional period wherein they are able to create a temporary ectoplasmic body. And when those ectoplasmic bodies manifest they appear as per their normal form in their prior human life. That is the phenomenon at work in many of the stories from Shabda Cayanika.
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In Him,
Vidyasagar
Note 1: Story of Arupratan Mitra
The following is an excerpt from Baba's story about Arupratan Mitra. In Baba's story Arupratan Mitra's appearance is as his normal self, and not with a bleeding head or burns etc.
Baba says: "...The train left with a whistle, and the wheels started moving. Suddenly, a handsome gentleman dressed in a military uniform came running up, and, gasping for breath, entered the compartment. Immediately he approached me with rapid steps. After a while, when I looked closely at him, I was amazed to see that he was none other than my brother-in-law, Aru'pratan Mitra, Sutanuka''s husband, whom I met about fifteen years ago at Bor'oka'liitala'at Chandannagar! I requested him to take his seat beside me, and said to him, "How are things going -- why are you running, gasping for breath? Why are you coming to meet me at 9:00 at night in this empty compartment? I'm on my way to Muzaffarpur; where are you going?"
Aru'p said, "About fifteen minutes ago, at a quarter to nine, my mind suddenly became restless and agitated with so many thoughts and feelings. I thought to myself, "However possible, and as fast as possible, I must come to you immediately. It is my firm conviction that this restlessness, this agitation, will be put to rest as soon as I come near you. I now desperately need peace ... only peace. I don't want happiness, or prosperity -- I don't want the least amount of wealth or jewels of this vast world -- I want only peace."
Aru'p sat down. He was still gasping for breath. I asked him, "When your mind became restless, where were you then?" He replied, "I was far away from here ... on the shore of a sea." I said, "If you were so far away from here, then how could you come here in fifteen minutes?"
With a glimmer of a sweet smile on his lips he replied, "I came very fast, so I am gasping for breath. Immediately after reaching you, my mind has become peaceful. Now I feel a deep tranquility within."
I said, "Unrest or peace are all in the mind. Well, let us talk for a while."
(After His extended meeting with Arupratan Mitra on the train, Baba's narrative continues...)
"[A few days later] I heard an announcement on the radio news. The news bulletin disclosed that there was a serious plane crash somewhere along the Mediterranean coast-line last Monday at 8.45 P.M. Due to certain military reasons the exact details could not be disclosed. All the passengers died in the crash. From the passenger list provided at the airport it appears there were twenty Indian passengers. Their names and addresses have been confirmed, but the dead bodies were so severely burned that identification is impossible. The names of the Indians are 1)... 2)... 3).... 4) ... Among the passengers there was a man from Calcutta, a Sri Aru'pratan Mitra."
"I was speechless. I pieced all the events together and concluded that it was indeed at 9 P.M. on Monday that Sri Aru'pratan, gasping for breath, rushed into my compartment at Benares railway station. He told me that he had been feeling considerable mental unease for the past fifteen minutes, since 8:45. His mind was terribly restless. He had come to me in quest of peace. He had travelled a long distance and that is why he was gasping for breath." (4)
Note 2: More encounters in Shabda Cayanika
Here are references to many stories from the Shabda Cayanika series which further demonstrate that such disembodied souls always appear in their normal physical pre-accident state. Viireshvijay who drowned in the river (5); Agnimitra General who died in battle against the British, (6); Niila'injana Bhainja whose truck crashed into the gorge, (7); Manotos'a Vasu who was killed by ruthless police, (8); Etc and the list goes on.
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Note 3: Avidya tantra
This is the way the science of Avidya's tantra works.
Ananda Marga philosophy says, "Sometimes it also happens that when the thought of an object from the natural world comes within the objective chamber of the mind, one's ectoplasmic stuff becomes so concentrated that it can be utilized in various ways...This science of the application of ectoplasmic strength through the objective mind upon external events or objects is known as "ra'ks'asii vidya'" in Sam'skrta." (9)
Note 4: Further reading
In the appendix 2 of the book "Strange Experiences", there is further information about Baba's viewpoints on ghosts, hallucinations, and psychic diseases.
References
1. Ananda Marga Ideology & Way of Life - 5, Matter and Spirit
2. Yoga Psychology, Ghosts and Evil Spirits
3. Yoga Psychology, Ghosts and Evil Spirits
4. Shabda Cayanika - 3, Kakubh to Kavaśńa (Discourse 17)
5. Shabda Cayanika - 1, Áṋka to Ád́hya (Discourse 4), p.93
6. Shabda Cayanika - 1, Áṋt to Áhiira (Discourse 5), p.124
7. Shabda Cayanika - 1, Auṋka to Akśa (Discourse 3), p.54
8. Shabda Cayanika - 1, Ik to Indura (Discourse 6), p.154
9. Ananda Marga Philosophy in a Nutshell - 5, The Faculty of Knowledge - 3
== Section 2: Prabhat Samgiita ==
Dried my tears
Prabhat Samgiita Intro: This following Prabhat Samgiita is the heart-felt expression of an A-grade bhakta. Here the bhakta is making a loving accusation to Parama Purusa. Such high feelings come when there is extreme intimacy and pure, one-pointed bhakti for Ista. Then the bhakta feels internally that he has the right to demand and place his accusation at the feet of Parama Purusa. The bhakta desires Parama Purusa in a close and intimate way, and that desire is not being fulfilled, so he lovingly accuses Parama Purusa: “You are not fulfilling my yearning to have You close.”
Note: Only those bhaktas who feel a spiritual vibration in their heart can understand this song in the depths of their core.
"Bhálobesechile, keno bolo..." (Prabhat Samgiita #2014)
Purport:
Parama Purusa, please tell me why You loved me. What was the use, if today You do not allow me to hold You. Internally, You are not moved or touched by my tears. You remain impassioned and distant. You have brought me in Your close proximity and showered me in Your exquisite prema. It is Your liila that now I have a deep yearning for You, yet You are not coming to me.
Supreme Entity Baba, I have decorated my humble abode exclusively for You. I am trying to follow 16 Points along with Your many dos and don'ts to prepare my mind for Your auspicious arrival. I have forgotten who is close and who is distant; in my heart, there is no differentiation from one living being to another. Everyone is mine. After weeping profusely for You, I became miserable, and in this way my whole night passed in Your longing. All because You did not come.
Baba, all the flowers for Your reception withered away, and the air dried my tears. All my pain and melancholy floated away in the sky and vanished. Tell me why all this has happened. I am shedding tears in Your longing, but You are not coming. Why are You attracting me, and why have You bound me in Your love. My heart and mind have become so restless, yet You are not coming close. Please grace me and come close...
Note: This is a deeply spiritual song where the sadhaka is blessed with intense bhakti for the Parama Purusa. It is only with the deep feeling of longing that the mind rushes towards Parama Purusa. Without that sense of 'longing' in the heart then one cannot get Parama Purusa. So on the spiritual path, one must long to attain Him. Indeed this yearning to have Him is one essential factor in getting His closeness. In this song, the bhakta has a deep sense of longing in his heart. And by that way the sadhaka becomes more and more close until finally merging in Him. Altogether, it is similar to how one baby starts crying and wants to be held by the mother, and then that mother comes rushing to get her baby. Likewise, the feeling of longing is absolutely necessary in spiritual life, because in that way one gets Him and reaches the Goal, by His grace.
Prabhat Samgiita Intro: This following Prabhat Samgiita is the heart-felt expression of an A-grade bhakta. Here the bhakta is making a loving accusation to Parama Purusa. Such high feelings come when there is extreme intimacy and pure, one-pointed bhakti for Ista. Then the bhakta feels internally that he has the right to demand and place his accusation at the feet of Parama Purusa. The bhakta desires Parama Purusa in a close and intimate way, and that desire is not being fulfilled, so he lovingly accuses Parama Purusa: “You are not fulfilling my yearning to have You close.”
Note: Only those bhaktas who feel a spiritual vibration in their heart can understand this song in the depths of their core.
"Bhálobesechile, keno bolo..." (Prabhat Samgiita #2014)
Purport:
Parama Purusa, please tell me why You loved me. What was the use, if today You do not allow me to hold You. Internally, You are not moved or touched by my tears. You remain impassioned and distant. You have brought me in Your close proximity and showered me in Your exquisite prema. It is Your liila that now I have a deep yearning for You, yet You are not coming to me.
Supreme Entity Baba, I have decorated my humble abode exclusively for You. I am trying to follow 16 Points along with Your many dos and don'ts to prepare my mind for Your auspicious arrival. I have forgotten who is close and who is distant; in my heart, there is no differentiation from one living being to another. Everyone is mine. After weeping profusely for You, I became miserable, and in this way my whole night passed in Your longing. All because You did not come.
Baba, all the flowers for Your reception withered away, and the air dried my tears. All my pain and melancholy floated away in the sky and vanished. Tell me why all this has happened. I am shedding tears in Your longing, but You are not coming. Why are You attracting me, and why have You bound me in Your love. My heart and mind have become so restless, yet You are not coming close. Please grace me and come close...
Note: This is a deeply spiritual song where the sadhaka is blessed with intense bhakti for the Parama Purusa. It is only with the deep feeling of longing that the mind rushes towards Parama Purusa. Without that sense of 'longing' in the heart then one cannot get Parama Purusa. So on the spiritual path, one must long to attain Him. Indeed this yearning to have Him is one essential factor in getting His closeness. In this song, the bhakta has a deep sense of longing in his heart. And by that way the sadhaka becomes more and more close until finally merging in Him. Altogether, it is similar to how one baby starts crying and wants to be held by the mother, and then that mother comes rushing to get her baby. Likewise, the feeling of longing is absolutely necessary in spiritual life, because in that way one gets Him and reaches the Goal, by His grace.
== Section 3: Links ==
Other topics of interest
