Baba
Surprising question from Baba
Namaskar,
One day Baba graced me with the opportunity to have personal contact (PC). During that PC, Baba pointed out my past sins and punished me on each account.
After that He graciously blessed me and said, "From now onwards, look forward and forget about the past. Now you are pure."
https://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
Baba asks me: what kind of sinner are you
The next day I had a strong desire to go to Baba's room and massage His feet. Those days, i.e. in the early 1960's in Jamalpur, it was not difficult to get permission to enter Baba's room. Family margiis had various opportunities, if one desired. I put forth my request to PA Dada, and, by Baba's grace, it was approved.
I entered Baba's room and began massaging His feet. Then Baba started explaining about the different types of sinners: patakii [sinner], atipatkiis [bad sinner] and mahapatakiis [worst sinner].
After telling about these three categories of sinners, Baba looked at me and asked, "Which category are you in?"
Baba blessed me with a new vision
Instantaneously, at that very moment, one spontaneous idea sprouted in my mind. It was as if Baba was forcing the thought in my mind.
I replied, "Baba, I do not fall in any of these categories. I am not a sinner."
Baba smiled and laughed. He appreciated the response and said, "Yes, you are right; you are not a sinner."
That was eye-opening for me. Usually in life if people commit a sin - whether knowingly or unknowingly - they remember those misdeeds again and again. They cannot forget them. And that gives way to feelings of pain, shame, and guilt. Indeed they feel guilty even after getting punished. But with Baba as the Guru it is not like that.
On the previous day Baba punished me and told me that, "From now onwards, look forward and forget about the past. Now you are pure." And while this was all very new to me, internally I really did feel cleansed and pure. I understood that by coming in contact with Parama Purusa, one's sins vanish.
https://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
Baba gave me a new vision: I had made mistakes, I underwent punishment for those sins, and now I am pure, by His grace. There were no lingering stains. Parama Purusa is most gracious.
Conclusion
In the above story told by Shrii Sudarshan Rao, there are some valuable lessons to keep in mind.
1. In the above account, the margii sadhaka is purified of his past sins by Baba's causeless grace. The margii had committed some serious mistakes in the past and he was punished by Baba and completely cleansed of those sins.
2. Still today one is able to be purged of their sins by Baba's grace. Just we have to follow His system for normal type of misdeeds; and, if one has committed a grave crime, then we have to refer to His guideline from His chapter titled, "Social Punishment." That teaching is appended below.
Baba clearly guides us that when one commits a sin then they are to ask for punishment. In accepting punishment and taking atonement, one gets purified of their sin. At that point, one should no longer harbour the false notion that they are a sinner. They are in the same situation as the margii sadhaka who was punished by Baba. They both are cleansed of their sins.
Even today one can be purified of their past sins, just like in that pre-1990 period when one was punished directly by Baba. Still Baba's grace is there and by following His system of punishment and atonement, one is cleared of their misdeeds. In that case, one should not consider themselves as a sinner.
https://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
3. According to Baba's guideline, after seeking punishment and atoning for one's sins, then the general society too should no longer think of that person as a sinner.
In Him,
Shantisvarup Deva
~ In-depth study ~
Baba's mandate is very clear. That person who has taken punishment and rectified their behaviour should be looked upon by society in a positive manner. It is improper to continue to call or treat that person as a bad man or sinner.
Around the globe, there are various nations where a person commits a crime and accepts punishment, yet even after going through a full process of rectification they are still labeled and treated as a criminal. But this is wrong. If they have completed their jail sentence and / or undergone all kinds of measures to rectify themselves, then that individual should be seen in a positive light and be granted good-standing in society.
Unfortunately, in many so-called developed nations like throughout most of the US, criminals are not given scope to rectify themselves and again become full-fledged members of society. Instead they are branded as bad people and hence those criminals resort to even worse crimes. Only in some states are non-violent criminals given scope for reentry into society. While the vast majority of criminals in the US are doomed forever. This unfortunate situation is described in greater detail down below in the sub-heading: "Today's So-called Justice System Makes Sinners Even Worse."
https://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
Sinner's psychology: "one will actually become a sinner"
Sometimes people think that they are a sinner. They feel their life is bound up in sin and there is no escape. This type of defective outlook is prevalent in the Semitic religions of the west. But in Ananda Marga our view is completely different. Baba guides us that we should never think, "I am a sinner" rather one is to cultivate the idea that, "I am the blessed child of Parama Purusa."
Ananda Marga ideology states, "A man may always think: “I am a sinner, I am a sinner, I am a sinner.” If he feels like that, if he thinks like this, that “I am a sinner,” then actually one day he will become a sinner. Actually he is not a sinner, but if he thinks like this, that “I am a sinner, I am a sinner,” what will happen? – he will actually become a sinner, because it is the characteristic of the human mind that it takes the form of its object. So when a man thinks, “I am a sinner, I am a sinner, O Lord, I am a sinner, O Lord, I am a sinner,” then actually he will become a sinner. So such a psychology is fundamentally defective. You must never think that you are a sinner. You should think: “It may be a fact that I was a sinner in the past, but from this very moment I am on the lap of the Almighty Father; I cannot be a sinner, I am not a sinner. I am seated on the lap of my Supreme Father, I am not a sinner.”" (1)
Those unfortunate persons who suffer from sinner's psychology due to the imposition of dogma pollute their mind and degrade themselves.
Ananda Marga ideology states, "And you know, if you always think, “I am a sinner, I am a sinner”, then actually you will become a sinner, if you are not already a sinner – because what a person thinks, he or she will become like that. If you always think, “I am a sinner, I am a sinner”, then actually you will become a sinner." (2)
Today's so-called justice system makes sinners worse
Here below Baba points out the horrible condition of criminals in today's society. Instead of being encouraged to become a good person, such criminals are branded as sinful creature and this only encourages those criminals to become even worse - as they see no scope to be able to do good in society. This is the entirely wrong approach and below Baba points out this problem and gives the solution as well.
Baba says, "There are many petty criminals in today’s society. If you keep calling them sinners, they will develop a complex deep in their minds. “I am a sinner. I am a wretch. I am mean and vile. I have no future,” they will think. You must not do anything like this. Rather, you should find their good qualities and praise them. This praise will encourage them to cultivate their attributes and move along the path of virtue. They will concentrate more on their good qualities than on their wickedness, resulting in the gradual diminishment of their sinful tendencies. Finally the day will come when they will be so preoccupied with doing good deeds that they will cease to commit any crime. That is why I say, “Praise the good qualities in human beings.”"
"But if these criminals are neglected, their progress will be checked and they will become even more sinful. If they are repeatedly called sinners, if they are subjected to social punishment, their habit of committing crimes will become stronger."
"Even the worst sinners have some good qualities. If you appreciate their good qualities, they will be encouraged to take to the righteous path – there will be a great change for the better in their lives. This is the right approach. If, instead, so-called sinners are ostracized or criticized by society, they will no longer strive to cultivate their inherent good qualities but will stick to the path of vice so tenaciously that one day they will become a great burden on society."
"As most people do not know basic human psychology, their actions result in the so-called criminals becoming a greater burden on society. Having been subjected to much social injustice and criticism, some people think, “Now that I have stepped onto the path of vice, now that I have fallen down, I will not stop until I reach the deepest hell.”" (3)
Thus to keep criminals from sinking deeper into sin, we should help them recover by praising and encouraging their good qualities. By this way they will progress and eventually become strong, positive members of society, by Baba's grace. Failing this approach, such criminals will only resort to more heinous crimes.
https://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
Unfortunately in many places like the US, criminals are given zero scope to become contributing members of society. For the rest of their lives they are labeled as "ex-cons" (i.e. ex-convicts) and many of their basic rights are taken away for life such as their ability to get a decent job and the ability to vote etc. In particular, government jobs are not available to them, plus they are generally not allowed to work with children in the field of health and human services. That leaves only a very small segment of manual labor / low-paying jobs etc. Thus on various fronts they suffer their entire life and often resort to deeper and deeper crimes as they lose all hope for rectification. That is why the recidivism rate is so high in the US.
"I have the birthright to sit on your lap - please purify me"
Baba always reminds us that we should always try to rectify ourselves and seek His grace.
Ananda Marga ideology says, "So what are you to think? What are you to ideate upon? That is: “Oh Father, I am your loving child. I was a bit misguided, now please help me. I want to sit on your lap, I want to remain with you, I want to be an ideal boy, an ideal girl of yours, just help me. I am very weak and you are the strongest personality”, you should say like this." (4)
Ananda Marga ideology guides us, "If you say, “I am a sinner, I am a sinner,” you will be a sinner. Even if you are not a sinner but you always think, “I am a sinner, I am a sinner, I am a sinner,” you will be a sinner because that sinning becomes your mental object. So you should never say, “I am a sinner, I am a sinner, I am a sinner.” You should say, “O Lord, I am your child, I am your son, I am your daughter. I have the birthright to sit on your lap. Please purify me.” This is the proper approach. This is the proper approach." (5)
In multiple discourses Baba clearly guides us that we should never think of ourselves as sinners, rather we are the divine children of Parama Purusa.
https://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
No person is permanently wicked ~ honour those who are rectified
Ananda Marga philosophy states, "A person who is wicked today may be a noble person tomorrow, and one who is dull or stupid today may be wise tomorrow. These are all relative matters bound by the bondages of relativity. No one can be called permanently wicked." (6)
Ananda Marga philosophy states, "Once again I repeat that no human being should be considered irrevocably wicked. One should always try to find the good lying latent in all people...We should try to restore those who are rectified to an honourable position in society." (7)
All should go close to Parama Purusa
In Prabhat Samgiita #0737, the idea is expressed that:
Tumi eso eso more ghare baso
Sab kichu a'lokita kariya
My Lord please come and sit in my abode and make everything effulgent,
by Your divine touch. All the stains, dirt, sins will vanish.
Usually those who think that they are sinners do not want to go close to Parama Purusa because of their inferiority complex. They think, "How can I go to Him - to the Lord." But Ananda Marga philosophy teaches something else - all are encouraged to go close to Parama Purusa. By ideating on Him, by sheltering in Him, the stain and negative samskaras vanish and one's existence becomes pure.
It is just like if you bring a lamp to the darkness or drag the darkness to the lamp; in either case the darkness vanishes. Likewise, in His presence the filth of sin gets wiped away.
https://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
Certain religions harp on this sinner's psychology: I am sinner, I am sinner. They fundamentally believe that everyone is born in sin. The nucleus of their teaching is based on sin. That idea is faulty. In Ananda Marga we cultivate the notion that, "I am the blessed child of Parama Purusa."
The central idea is that by ideating on Him the mind becomes totally pure - all the black marks vanish - and the sadhaka can march forward on the path of spirituality and reach unto Him, by His grace.
References
1. Ananda Vacanamrtam - 34, Be Free from All Complexes
2. Subhasita Samgraha - 12, The Noumenal Cause and the Personal God
3. Ananda Vacanamrtam - 7, Exploitation – No More
4. Subhasita Samgraha - 12, The Noumenal Cause and the Personal God
5. Ananda Vacanamrtam - 12, Everything Comes from Something
6. A Few Problems Solved Part 5, Shravanii Purnima
7. A Few Problems Solved Part 5, Shravanii Purnima
* * *
The below sections are entirely different topics, unrelated to the above material.
They stand on their own as points of interest.
* * *
The below sections are entirely different topics, unrelated to the above material.
They stand on their own as points of interest.
* * *
== Section: Prabhat Samgiita ==
You have drenched my whole existence
"Je gán ámáy shunie chile, táki bholá jáy kono jiivane..." (Prabhat Samgiita #4502)
Purport:
Parama Purusa, the song which You made me listen to -- Your most divine and heart-rending melody -- inundated me in bhakti. How can I ever forget that in this life. It is Your grace. That tune was most beautiful and melodious. You are my most dear and present in each and every pulsation of my blood - my life-force. You have blessed me.
My Supreme Entity Baba, all the time - in the rising and setting of the sun - You are always along with me and saturate the seven layers of my mind with Your divine bliss. I do sastaunga pranam to You with my body, mind, soul, and heart - with my entire existence.
Baba, You are that eternal and most loving Entity. You were, are, and will remain in each and every molecule of this vast universe, throughout all the lokas including the spiritual world. In 6th lesson of sadhana, with the highest bhakit known as ra'ga'tmika', everyone dances encircling You.
Baba, Parama Purusa, You have drenched my whole existence with Your infinite krpa’ and bliss. How can I ever forget that. You are so gracious, the karuna' personified and the embodiment of love...
Note for Prabhat Samgiita #4502:
[1] Ra'ga'tmika': Ananda Marga ideology guides us, "Ra'ga'tmika' bhakti is the highest stage of pure devotion. In this type of devotion the ideation is, 'I love Parama Purus'a because it makes Him happy. I meditate on Him thinking that my meditation will bring joy to Him. This is my sole intention.' This is ra'ga'tmika' bhakti." (1)
Reference
1. Ananda Marga Ideology and Way of Life - 10, Vaedhii Bhakti and Shuddhá Bhakti
It is the accepted international standard and Baba's system not to copy another's work and publish it in your own way. Baba has given a very strict rule on plagiarism. Why is Baba against this type of plagiarism or stealing someone's work? There are many reasons:
1) It is against the code of asteya (non-stealing).
2) The individual who steals gets degenerated and it sets a bad example in the social sphere.
3) It impedes social progress as others will not be inclined to pursue new and original work as they think that others will just steal it.
4) It breeds a society of lethargic people who will always wait for others to create something new. It is just like those who are lazy in the kitchen do not cook - just they wait for others to prepare food and then they eat.
5) Countless stories of devotees need to be published. But some do not want to do the hard work of compiling and writing these stories, so they just steal them from others. But new stories need to be told, otherwise so many unpublished stories of sadhakas will be lost and forgotten forever.
Namaskar,
Some thieves have been (a) stealing Baba stories from this network, (b) posing that it was their origin writing (c) and printing in their publications, magazines, or posting it to their Facebook account, or What's App, blog, Google +, Tumbler, or any other media profiles etc. This type of blatant thievery / plagiarism discourages bhaktas from writing new stories. Because those bhaktas think someone is going to steal their work. fault here are only a few select people.
Yet, even after repeated warnings they continue to indulge in stealing stories whenever the opportunity arises. They refuse to write new new stories. Such lowly thieves don't care about yama and niyama, Sixteen Points, or the code of asteya (non-stealing).
The tragic outcome is that there are thousands of devotees who have stories to tell but there is a dearth of writers. Yet time marches on, and sadly those bhaktas will leave this world and their stories will be gone forever.
Our humble request then is to be creative and write new stories.
The sole motivation is to publish the maximum amount of Baba stories. Everyone should work hard and try to contribute original material in this respect. All unpublished stories should be written.
In addition, by following this code then fake stories will not be circulated as everyone will be responsible for demonstrating the authenticity of each story.
Thank you for abiding by this ethic and code that is both today's international standard as well as Baba's given system. Again, it is our formal request not to plagiarise this story or any published writing on this network.
So please do not circulate any letter or story letter on any other network without keeping the full and complete letter including the header, signature, and all related notes and references. In addition, it would be proper to introduce the letter as "Courtesy of Ananda Marga Universal". Then everyone will clearly understand from where you got the letter. This is the accepted standard.
Baba says, "It is not possible to guide others with mere cheap, superficial knowledge, like a half-baked pandit who reads a half-a-dozen books and then spouts a few mouthfuls of grandiloquence, and who has obtained a doctorate by plagiarizing others’ works. " (1)
Reference
1. Prout in a Nutshell - 1, The Practice of Art and Literature
How you are blessed
Ananda Marga ideology states, "What is Krpá? In Saḿskrta, the root verb is “kr”. “Kr” means to help one in one’s progress even when one does not deserve it. So if one deserves it, that is, if one has the qualification to get oneself fully developed and fully exalted, then in that case there is no necessity of krpá, there is no necessity of help from Táraka Brahma. But when one does not deserve it, when one has not got the qualification for development, and still one is helped, that sort of help is called “krpa”." (1)
Ananda Marga philosophy states, "A spiritual aspirant should not do spiritual practices to become omniscient. Rather, a spiritual aspirant is to perform spiritual practices to satisfy Parama Puruśa in the form of Parama Guru. That is why it has been rightly said: Guru krpá hi kevalam [“The grace of the Guru is everything”]." (2)
References
1. Ananda Vacanamrtam - 2, Guru Krpáhi Kevalam
2. Yoga Psychology, Bio-Psychology
Mahaprayan Info
"Je gán ámáy shunie chile, táki bholá jáy kono jiivane..." (Prabhat Samgiita #4502)
Purport:
Parama Purusa, the song which You made me listen to -- Your most divine and heart-rending melody -- inundated me in bhakti. How can I ever forget that in this life. It is Your grace. That tune was most beautiful and melodious. You are my most dear and present in each and every pulsation of my blood - my life-force. You have blessed me.
My Supreme Entity Baba, all the time - in the rising and setting of the sun - You are always along with me and saturate the seven layers of my mind with Your divine bliss. I do sastaunga pranam to You with my body, mind, soul, and heart - with my entire existence.
Baba, You are that eternal and most loving Entity. You were, are, and will remain in each and every molecule of this vast universe, throughout all the lokas including the spiritual world. In 6th lesson of sadhana, with the highest bhakit known as ra'ga'tmika', everyone dances encircling You.
Baba, Parama Purusa, You have drenched my whole existence with Your infinite krpa’ and bliss. How can I ever forget that. You are so gracious, the karuna' personified and the embodiment of love...
Note for Prabhat Samgiita #4502:
[1] Ra'ga'tmika': Ananda Marga ideology guides us, "Ra'ga'tmika' bhakti is the highest stage of pure devotion. In this type of devotion the ideation is, 'I love Parama Purus'a because it makes Him happy. I meditate on Him thinking that my meditation will bring joy to Him. This is my sole intention.' This is ra'ga'tmika' bhakti." (1)
Reference
1. Ananda Marga Ideology and Way of Life - 10, Vaedhii Bhakti and Shuddhá Bhakti
== Section: Warning About Plagiary ==
Warning about plagiary
It is the accepted international standard and Baba's system not to copy another's work and publish it in your own way. Baba has given a very strict rule on plagiarism. Why is Baba against this type of plagiarism or stealing someone's work? There are many reasons:
1) It is against the code of asteya (non-stealing).
2) The individual who steals gets degenerated and it sets a bad example in the social sphere.
3) It impedes social progress as others will not be inclined to pursue new and original work as they think that others will just steal it.
4) It breeds a society of lethargic people who will always wait for others to create something new. It is just like those who are lazy in the kitchen do not cook - just they wait for others to prepare food and then they eat.
5) Countless stories of devotees need to be published. But some do not want to do the hard work of compiling and writing these stories, so they just steal them from others. But new stories need to be told, otherwise so many unpublished stories of sadhakas will be lost and forgotten forever.
== Section: More on plagiary ==
Request only to story thieves
Namaskar,
Some thieves have been (a) stealing Baba stories from this network, (b) posing that it was their origin writing (c) and printing in their publications, magazines, or posting it to their Facebook account, or What's App, blog, Google +, Tumbler, or any other media profiles etc. This type of blatant thievery / plagiarism discourages bhaktas from writing new stories. Because those bhaktas think someone is going to steal their work. fault here are only a few select people.
Yet, even after repeated warnings they continue to indulge in stealing stories whenever the opportunity arises. They refuse to write new new stories. Such lowly thieves don't care about yama and niyama, Sixteen Points, or the code of asteya (non-stealing).
The tragic outcome is that there are thousands of devotees who have stories to tell but there is a dearth of writers. Yet time marches on, and sadly those bhaktas will leave this world and their stories will be gone forever.
Our humble request then is to be creative and write new stories.
The sole motivation is to publish the maximum amount of Baba stories. Everyone should work hard and try to contribute original material in this respect. All unpublished stories should be written.
In addition, by following this code then fake stories will not be circulated as everyone will be responsible for demonstrating the authenticity of each story.
Thank you for abiding by this ethic and code that is both today's international standard as well as Baba's given system. Again, it is our formal request not to plagiarise this story or any published writing on this network.
So please do not circulate any letter or story letter on any other network without keeping the full and complete letter including the header, signature, and all related notes and references. In addition, it would be proper to introduce the letter as "Courtesy of Ananda Marga Universal". Then everyone will clearly understand from where you got the letter. This is the accepted standard.
Baba says, "It is not possible to guide others with mere cheap, superficial knowledge, like a half-baked pandit who reads a half-a-dozen books and then spouts a few mouthfuls of grandiloquence, and who has obtained a doctorate by plagiarizing others’ works. " (1)
Reference
1. Prout in a Nutshell - 1, The Practice of Art and Literature
== Section: Important Teaching ==
How you are blessed
Ananda Marga ideology states, "What is Krpá? In Saḿskrta, the root verb is “kr”. “Kr” means to help one in one’s progress even when one does not deserve it. So if one deserves it, that is, if one has the qualification to get oneself fully developed and fully exalted, then in that case there is no necessity of krpá, there is no necessity of help from Táraka Brahma. But when one does not deserve it, when one has not got the qualification for development, and still one is helped, that sort of help is called “krpa”." (1)
Ananda Marga philosophy states, "A spiritual aspirant should not do spiritual practices to become omniscient. Rather, a spiritual aspirant is to perform spiritual practices to satisfy Parama Puruśa in the form of Parama Guru. That is why it has been rightly said: Guru krpá hi kevalam [“The grace of the Guru is everything”]." (2)
References
1. Ananda Vacanamrtam - 2, Guru Krpáhi Kevalam
2. Yoga Psychology, Bio-Psychology
== Section 3: Links ==
Recent postings
Other topics of interest
