Baba
Pracara tool: sadhana or stories?
Namaskar,
The various religions and spiritual groups use stories of greatness and mythical tales about their leader to attract new people. They recount how their prophet or saint healed the sick of incurable diseases, or made gold watches appear from thin air, or so many other grand tales they tell to lure new followers. Yet by this approach, no one makes progress along the path - only the self-serving priest benefits by projecting his own so-called greatness and amassing more followers and donors etc. Side by side, the evils of society continue and dogmatic religious exploitation mounts.
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After listening, people may conclude...
In our Ananda Marga, our approach is entirely different. The uniqueness of our Ananda Marga is sadhana, i.e. direct, personal experience of Parama Purusa. On the practical side, we teach and emphasize the importance of spiritual engagement - kiirtan, meditation etc. And on the theoretical side, we do pracar with new people, and talk to them about our philosophy using logic and reasoning - encouraging the spirit of inquiry and rationality. Whereas the religions only rely on blind, unquestioned acceptance of their beliefs and miracle stories about their saviour or leader to gain new followers.
If we also follow such an approach - and only tell stories of Baba's glory to new people - then the public will think we are no different from those religions. Those new people will never truly understand Guru's greatness. No one can realise Baba as Parama Purusa through theoretical means alone, i.e. stories etc. Sadhana is needed.
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When anyone does sadhana sincerely, they invariably gain their own experience and begin to realise who Baba is. With that experience, Ananda Marga philosophy will be more clear and convincing. And they will become a greater adherent of Ananda Marga ideals. They will not be swayed by naysayers or controversy because they will have their own internal link with Parama Purusa. They will be able to weather any storm.
Without sadhana, one will not even be interested in the teachings of Ananda Marga. Or, in their heart, they will never be truly convinced of those teachings and stories. Rather they will always remain in doubt and quandary.
Glorifying oneself instead of the ideology
Ananda Marga teachings guide us, "A study of history will make it clear that a strong and healthy society has not yet evolved on this planet. This is mainly due to the inadequate propagation of an ideology. Although at different times a few people thought of establishing a strong and healthy society, they...ultimately ended up projecting themselves instead of the ideology. Thus the ideology became secondary and was ultimately swept away because people started worshipping them as mahátmas [elevated souls] or mahápuruśas [spiritual beings]. Due to the absence of an ideology a strong society could not be established, and many defects crept into individual life." (1)
What to be taught to newcomers
So sadhana is an absolute requisite to become a firm adherent of the teachings of Lord Shrii Shrii Anandamurti ji, and feel a magnetic attraction towards Parama Purusa. Deep within, by His grace, one will embrace Him as Parama Purusa. Then all those bhakti stories about Baba will be very inspiring and beautiful. So all kinds of Baba stories are highly beneficial for established sadhakas - but stories should not be our main pracar tool with new people. The practical approach of sadhana is the main thing. Then people will be able to come close and understand His divine teachings. And this is true for longtime sadhakas as well.
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Everyone in our Ananda Marga should challenge themselves to do more sadhana. And this is what makes our Ananda Marga unique. That makes one's link and relation with Parama Purusa more close; plus that sadhaka will feel that Baba's each and every teaching is special and extraordinary. Without the practical approach of sadhana, there is no hope for becoming a true Ananda Margii and realising Baba as Parama Purusa. With sadhana He is within Your reach, whereas if one relies on stories and theoretical knowledge alone, He will remain out of their grasp.
As we have seen, there are some examples of people who entered into Ananda Marga but could not remain for the long haul. There were many aspects of our Ananda Marga way of life which they liked: Retreats, Baba stories, vegetarian food, seminars, social service etc. But when challenges arose, due to a lack of sadhana, some did not have the mental strength to continue to forge ahead. Rather they gave up all that they were doing. Everything was going fine until they encountered a problem which they did not expect. And that single problem knocked them from the path because they did not have the requisite mental cum spiritual force that comes from sadhana. Lacking this, they were unable to persevere and forge ahead. So they left and forgot everything they learned.
What to do to stay in AM
Another circumstance that arises is when a sadhaka has been continuing for years in a particular mode. They have been maintaining a degree of engagement and participation in all kinds of ideological activities and pursuits. Then that begins to wane little by little with seemingly no precipitating cause. Until finally they completely remove themselves and discontinue all those works. Then people wonder what happened - why did that person leave. The answer is that they stopped doing their sadhana.
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So long as they were doing sadhana they could properly manage all kinds of dharmic works. That sadhana was their food, energy, and propulsion for doing all sorts of things in a smooth and easy manner. But as soon as that sadhana stopped, they no longer had the inspiration and mental force to carry out those various works and projects.
It is just like if everyday a person carries a 40kg box without any difficulty but then one day that individual is not given the requisite amount of food. Then for a day or so they will only carry a percentage of the weight they were carrying - say 15 or 20 kg. But as they are given less and less food - their capacity to carry anything wanes until finally one day they will completely desist from carrying anything at all. In this instance, the food was the energizing force for their physical involvement.
Similarly, in the psychic and psycho-spiritual realm, sadhana is the propelling factor for enabling one to continue their journey forward on the path of bhagavata dharma Ananda Marga. As soon as one’s sadhana dissipates or stops, their entire movement towards divinity will come to slow down or even come to a halt entirely, regardless of how active they were.
Conclusion
If we want new people to continue along the path then they should be encouraged with sadhana - not just external stories or superficial praise. Their sadhana experience will make them a veritable soldier to overcome all kinds of obstacles and difficulties and reach the apex of human existence. And not just for new people, every single Ananda Margii should properly maintain their daily sadhana, otherwise interest and adherence to dharmic pursuits will wane - whereby even a long-standing, committed sadhaka will become a shadow of their former self.
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So on this point of sadhana, no one is immune - no one is impregnable. For proof, just take a look around. Every single Ananda Margii is aware of some new people who could not stick to the path, as well as some seasoned Wts who abruptly left without any notice. Because tantra is the path of Sadguru’s divine ideology and that demands sadhana. That is the sole contributing factor for being an ideal Ananda Margii and progressing on the path towards Parama Purusa.
Namaskar,
In Him,
Satyadrasta’
Without ideology nothing achieved
Ananda Marga teachings guide us, "A study of history will make it clear that a strong and healthy society has not yet evolved on this planet. This is mainly due to the inadequate propagation of an ideology. Although at different times a few people thought of establishing a strong and healthy society, they...ultimately ended up projecting themselves instead of the ideology. Thus the ideology became secondary and was ultimately swept away because people started worshipping them as mahátmas [elevated souls] or mahápuruśas [spiritual beings]. Due to the absence of an ideology a strong society could not be established, and many defects crept into individual life." (2)
Raise consciousness of the people
Ananda Marga philosophy states, “As the situation stands in the world at present, the rule of Sadvipras as advocated by PROUT is the only solution to this vexed problem. However, it is a fact that the rule of Sadvipras will only come about through the systematic and rational application of PROUT by many highly intelligent people. It is not possible to establish the rule of Sadvipras by blind physical force or idle intellectual extravaganza. So, it is the duty of the vanguard of human society to reveal the present predicament of society to the people so that they can understand the real truth. They should make an all out effort to raise the consciousness of the people at the earliest.” (3)
References
1. Prout in a Nutshell - 5, The Responsibility of Society
2. Prout in a Nutshell - 5, The Responsibility of Society
3. Prout in a Nutshell - 14, Democracy and Group-Governed States
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The below sections are entirely different topics, unrelated to the above material.
They stand on their own as points of interest.
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== Section 2: Important Teaching ==
Blessing: forget past lives
Ananda Marga philosophy states, "Forgetfulness is a providential decree. Usually human beings forget their past lives. Is this forgetfulness a blessing or a curse? It is a blessing because human beings feel burdened by the weight of one life. It would be impossible for them to carry the burden of many lives together."
"The human mind is sentimental – full of love, affection, camaraderie, etc. People have a deep attraction to this world; they remain preoccupied throughout their lives with fears and anxieties for the safety of their families. So many problems have to be confronted. The problems of one life alone are enough to make people restless. If they had to face the problems of several lives, they would be unable to lead a natural life. The problems of the past lives, compounded by the strife of the present life, would drive them to the brink of insanity. Secondly, it is difficult for people to be detached from love and attachment for one life. So much effort is required to overcome the bondages of attachment and march towards Parama Puruśa. If the memory of the past lives is revived, the bondage of attachment will tighten its grip, putting a halt to spiritual advancement. One will be caught in the grip of worldly attachment. Thus the decree of merciful providence is, “Let human beings be oblivious of their past lives.”" (1)
Reference
1. Ananda Marga Philosophy in a Nutshell - 4, Cerebral and Extra-Cerebral Memory
== Section: Important Teaching ==
Why psychic ailments common
In this modern age, scientific development has made significant progress; in comparison, human psychic and spiritual growth has lagged far behind. In result, psychic problems and mental tension have multiplied in a geometrical progression. The final outcome is that nerve, brain, and heart diseases have become quite common; and anxiety, nervousness, and insanity are widespread in the society. The remedy for this has been given in our Ananda Marga ideology:
Ananda Marga philosophy states, "While doing work one should ideate, 'It is the work of Parama Purusa; it is not mine. I am doing His work to please Him'. By following this approach mental tension, nervousness, and psychic diseases will never arise. And also samskaras will not be formed." (1)
Reference
1. 08 April '84, Tattanagar DMC
== Section 3: Links ==
Other topics of interest
