Baba
Baba’s touch
Note: This letter is only for those doing serious sadhana, as it reviews a very significant aspect of bhakti, which only pointed, dedicated, and committed sadhakas can understand.
Namaskar,
One of the most visible ways to receive His grace is by His touch. While in His Mahasambhuti form, Baba would touch sadhakas as a way to bless and grace them. By His mere wish, His touch would put aspirants into samadhi and / or cure their ailments etc. Sadhakas could feel His grace as bliss. In so many demonstrations, Baba has shown this.
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After all, who has not heard about how Baba would regularly direct various persons, including Dasarath ji, to grab onto His toe and by doing so they would then be able to see past, present, and future of anybody - by Baba's grace. Then there are innumerable sadhakas who felt His grace merely by attending His darshan and seeing Him. In that case, there was no "physical contact" per se. Yet even then they could feel His touch and receive His vibration.
The spectrum continues: When doing His dhyana, we can come in contact with His presence and feel His closeness - His grace. Without touching Him, dhyana is impossible. Whenever the mind is pointed in sadhana, one will feel His tangible presence. So many have experienced and will continue to experience this regularly in their meditation practice.
Then in dream also He bathes us in His effulgence and blesses by His touch. We feel His grace and receive His vibration regularly. He has a multitude of ways to shower His infinite grace and bliss. As sadhakas and disciples of Lord Shrii Shrii Anandamurti ji, there are various avenues to receive His sweet touch and loving grace. Senior margiis initiated long ago as well as newly initiated sadhakas have been graced by Baba and have had beautiful experiences with Him in sadhana. So He is accessible to all sincere sadhakas - regardless of time and place.
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Here following are more remembrances from those early days, as well as thoughts on how we can cultivate and maintain a spiritual vibration in this current era and tangibly feel His presence.
Getting pulled by irresistible attraction
With His exquisite charm and attractive quality, bhaktas were completely drawn unto Him. They could not control themselves. And if Baba was wishing to deliver a discourse or hold a meeting or go for field walk, then His entire plan and program would be interrupted by crowds of bhaktas trying to go close to Him. When the mind became a little elevated and one was feeling His supreme pull, then those bhaktas could not keep themselves away from Him. They would try to grab Baba and hold Him, and dance and sing in a blissful manner. Yet Baba was needing to keep Himself away.
For sadhakas though, the whole aim was to go close to Baba at any cost because His presence was irresistible. All were attracted by His subtle vibration and the more elevated a person's mind was, the more they were drawn towards Him.
Here it should be well understood that this was all being expressed in a very natural way. Bhaktas were acting on a spontaneous, spiritual urge. They felt an inner, dire need to go close to Him. There was no logic or reasoning involved. It was pure, spiritual attraction. Such sadhakas were in altered or abnormal states due to great spiritual desire and His pull. In that elevated state, they did not have control over what they were doing. Some were verily running towards Baba, lifting Him up, and trying to run away with Him. This was not just one incident, but there were so many events of this nature. Sadhakas literally could not control themselves in His presence. He was emanating such a blissful and charming vibration that they were lost in His flow and beauty.
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Spiritual attraction and duty of VSS
Those days Baba was showering His grace immensely; all wanted to go close to Him. The atmosphere was magnetic. Sadhakas were eager to go close and touch Him. In that situation, when Baba was surrounded by bhaktas whose sole aim was to go close to Him physically, then Parama Purusa Baba enacted His plan to manifest VSS. He needed volunteers to keep people away from Him so He could attend to His routine and oversee the organisation etc.
Bhaktas know that Parama Purusa Baba is the nucleus of charm; all get attracted to Him, people grab Him, so for that reason He had to make VSS. Thus, Baba formed the cadre of VSS: Volunteers Social Service. Those days, the first and foremost duty of VSS was to keep sadhakas from touching Him. VSS personnel created a clear pathway for Baba wherever He went. Yet it was always a challenge because sadhakas were ever-persistent to go close to Baba due to His charm.
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So sadhana and get Him
Nowadays one can also reach that special state, by His grace, where one feels an irresistible urge to go closer and closer to Him. In sadhana, this feeling comes - but it takes effort. Whereas those days, just by getting a glimpse of Baba then bhakas were overwhelmed with yearning and longing to go close to Him. No effort was needed on the sadhaka's behalf; just being in Baba's presence was enough.
We can think of it this way: Those days anyone in His presence was getting drenched in His bliss - it was akin to standing outside in a rainstorm. It did not take any effort to get wet. Whereas now to feel His bliss one must do sadhana. So it takes effort. One cannot just stand outside and get drenched, rather to get wet one has to draw water from the well - i.e. exert energy in sadhana. Then one can come in contact with His sublime presence, i.e. spiritual waves.
In both circumstances Parama Purusa Baba is accessible and one can get His bliss. Those days just by being in His presence one would feel attracted and the more the mind became elevated the greater the attraction was - and the more bliss one would feel. That is why good sadhakas would start doing their mantra japa whenever in Baba's presence in order to maximize and heighten their spiritual experience of being with Him. Nowadays one can also get Him, but it is not quite as easy. One must sincerely do sadhana and all related spiritual practices, and then surely by His grace they will be successful.
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Ananda Marga ideology states, "Now by dint of sádhaná, one is to arouse and exalt that sleeping divinity. That Svayambhúliuṋga becomes one with Shambhúliuṋga. But for this one requires divine help. And I know one is sure to get divine help. And I know further that one is getting divine help. And I know still further that in future, for infinite time and infinite space, one will be getting this divine favour. And you are all sádhakas. You will certainly attain that supreme stance and enjoy that divine blessedness. You are sure to enjoy it, my sons and my daughters." (1)
While He was in form of Mahasambhuti, all were madly running after Baba. Because by coming in His physical contact, per His wish, one could feel His spiritual vibration, His grace, His boundless love. And still today, as recounted above, His touch and spiritual grace are readily felt in sadhana. Yet, there was something very unique and special about His physical presence.
How bhaktas are attracted to Him
Everything in this universe has vibration and people are attracted to those sympathetic wavelengths that are similar to their own. Yet with Parama Purusa, He is verily the epicenter of this cosmological order. He is the Hub. All are revolving around Him. That is the natural and inherent flow of this universe. So when He takes human form and resides on this earth, then sadhakas feel an incredible pull and attraction towards Him. His vibration is very tantalizing for any bhakta.
At the same time, many may surely recall how Baba was not allowing disciples to touch Him. Touching His feet was forbidden when doing sastaunga pranam. If anyone tried to touch Him, Baba would feign His fury and anger. This was His divine liila. Yet sadhakas were deeply attracted to His physical form due to His infinite charm. Sadguru Baba has infinite qualities and attributions one of which is "shrii".
Ananda Marga ideology states, "Shrii meaning charm, or attraction. People will be attracted towards Him. Shrii means charm, fascination." (2)
Spiritual science behind not touching others
From all this, there are many teachings for our practical day to day life which give insight into the spiritual science behind not touching others.
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1. Baba is the Nucleus of charm. He is shrii. Hence all wish to go close to Him. By creating VSS, He is guiding us to be careful on this point. Because as sadhakas we ideate on Him and gain degrees of psycho-spiritual parallelism with Him, by His grace. In that case, the common people will become attracted towards us and if we allow them to touch then we will lose our spiritual flow. It will vanish. Parama Purusa is Parama Purusa - He never loses His charm, but to teach us He is showing in his practical day to day life that we should be very strict on this point of touching others. For us as sadhakas, it will be very harmful.
2. The other reasoning we gain is that back in those early days sadhakas could bring their minds to great heights just by going physically close to Him. There was not a lot of effort involved. Just it was His causeless grace and divine presence. Now however, times have changed. One can still reach those sublime heights of spiritual joy and bliss, but it demands arduous efforts of following yama and niyama, Sixteen Points, prolonged sadhana and other disciplines. Thus one should be keen not to lose their hard-earned spiritual flow by touching others. Rather every sadhaka should carefully cultivate and protect their spiritual vibration.
One will lose their hard-earned spiritual flow
The main aspect of spiritual life is cultivating a more subtle vibration. As described, those days just being around Baba was enough to become immersed in His bliss. Now a more sustained effort is needed - it is His liila. So in these circumstances, we should be cent per cent careful to generate a spiritual vibration - and not lose it. When the mind maintains its spiritual flow or heightens that flow, then one's inner feeling is maintained or increased.
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When one comes in contact with mundane engagements, then that spiritual vibration quickly wanes. Being exposed to pseudo-culture (movies, pop music etc), touching others, gossiping, thinking about your mundane job or money - in all these interactions one will lose their hard-earned spiritual flow. In that case, you will not feel close to Parama Purusa, and you will not feel His bliss. Rather, one will feel quite disturbed and uncomfortable.
Sadly, some sadhakas get adjusted with those mundane vibrations and they may even leave the spiritual path entirely. We must never allow this to happen - neither to ourselves nor to those around us. We should always goad the mind towards a more subtle state through the practice of manan (thinking of Him), shravan (listening to His name), and nidhidhyasana (ideating on Him). Then we may live on this earth and bask in His sweet flow. This takes a concerted, ongoing effort, coupled by His grace.
So this is the spiritual science: as the mind becomes more refined and subtle, the more spiritually vibrated you will feel - all because your mind is closer to Parama Purusa and one can feel His special waves of bliss.
Practice yourself - how vibration works
On this point everyone should experiment for themselves:
1. First, set aside some time to do very long kiirtan and very long sadhana in one quiet and lonely place.
2. That day you will feel a surge of spiritual vibration; continue your practice until you distinctly feel His spiritual touch which brings feelings of deep tranquility and bliss.
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3. Then with that deep tranquility and bliss, go and leave your sadhana place and touch and hug normal citizens etc. Then you will feel for yourself how the spiritual vibration wanes. Some of the flow gained from sadhana will fade away.
4. But remember, if you experiment with this without first purifying the mind with lots of kiirtan, sadhana, deep tranquility and bliss, then it will not work. Because if the mind is not cleansed, if it is dirty, then there will not be any sweet spiritual vibration to lose. In that way, one will not feel differently by touching others. Whereas if one does sadhana sincerely with pointed concentration, and gets deep tranquility and bliss, then a sadhaka will feel a distinct loss of spiritual energy when coming in hugging or physical contact with others. It is akin to having your clean clothes become soiled from the dirt.
In contrast, if one's clothes are already dirty then that person can sit down in the dirt without realising that their clothes have become even more soiled. So those not doing strong sadhana will venture out in the general society and touch or hug others without realising that their mind has been adversely affected.
5. After involving deeply in sadhana, if you refrain from touching others, then you will maintain your spiritual energy, by His grace. And you will build upon that base and it will multiply in your next session of sadhana.
So this is one very good spiritual experiment to see how sadhana really transforms your existence. If you practice this for a day or so, you will see how the tranquil spiritual vibration of sadhana will linger on and on, from day to day, from one sadhana session to the next. In contrast, if you engage in touching or hugging others, then the opposite will occur. There will be some loss of sweet lingering feeling, some of that energy will have been wasted away and one will start each sadhana session from the lower level. So sadhana will be about just replacing what you lost rather than building upon and growing from the last sadhana session.
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Conclusion
Today also, in sadhana, His divine touch is readily received by sincere sadhakas. Parama Purusa is that most gracious, omnipresent Entity; across time and space, He showers His divine blessing upon bhaktas and they become ensconced in His bliss.
Ananda Marga ideology guides us, “Parama Puruśa is infinite and omnipresent; therefore His hands and feet are spread in all directions. As this entire creation is His mental projection, it has no absolute existence to Him. He does not require any physical hands or feet; even without them He can get any work done or go anywhere He likes, through mental imagination.” (3)
Namaskar,
at His lotus feet,
Liila’sundar
References
1. Ananda Vacanamrtam - 23, Stages of Samádhi
2. Subhasita Samgraha - 19, The Supreme Aesthetic Science and the Cult of Devotion
3. Ananda Vacanamrtam – 33, Purusatattva
== Section: Important Teaching ==
Blessedness of the bhakta
Ananda Marga ideology says, “Parama Puruśa, the Supreme Entity, the Supreme Lord, He loves His devotees very much. He can do anything and everything for His devotees, and actually He does. A devotee should always be fearless, because Parama Puruśa is always ready to do anything and everything for him." (1)
Reference
1. Ananda Vacanamrtam - 14, “Prańipátena Pariprashnena Sevayá” – 1 / Yoga – Its Fundamental Factors
== Section: Important Teaching ==
Fate: how exploiters perpetuate their injustices
Religious leaders regularly tell their followers that, “You must not blame others or point towards social injustices for your current suffering. What you are undergoing now is because of your own fate. So just accept your situation.” In this way the priest class implements vicious control methods and restrictions, thereby keeping the people docile. Nowadays, to find their escape from dire poverty, people take shelter in buying lottery tickets - hoping their fate is to win and become rich. And if that person does not win, then it is just their bad luck.
Ananda Marga philosophy says, "The problem of individual or collective suffering due to lack of physical requirements can be easily solved by implementing a system of social justice and social equality. So it is useless to blame the…fate of others." (1)
Reference
1. Human Society - 1, Social Justice
== Section: Important Teaching ==
Narrow-mindedness of nationalism
Prout philosophy states, “It has become fashionable today to cry out for nationalism. In fact, nationalism is also a psychic ailment. The supreme broadness lies with the Supreme Self. The broadness of an individual depends on his or her angle of vision – as the angle of vision becomes smaller and smaller, he or she gets more and more mean-minded. Those who think that casteism is worse than nationalism are incorrect. The total population of Brahmins in India is approximately 20 million people and the Malayan population is near 4.5 million. The angle of vision of a Brahmin is bigger than a Malayan nationalist. Persia has a population of 15 million people and Australia has a total population of 7.5 million. The continentalism of Australia is worse than the nationalism of Persia. An Indian nationalist is more mean-minded than a Chinese nationalist. Thus it is universalism and universalism alone that deserves support. In fact universalism is no ism, for it is all-pervading and does not favour any group or party interest. The mental projection of a universalist does not know any narrowness. Universalism is the only panacea for all mundane and supramundane ailments. Therefore, a Proutist is necessarily a universalist.” (1)
Note: Everyone knows that nationalism and patriotism are the same thing.
Reference
1. Prout in a Nutshell - 15, Talks on Prout
== Section: Important Teaching ==
Keep politicians out of schools
Prout philosophy states, "In a democratic system non-educationalist politicians poke their noses into university affairs. They do not know what education is, but they interfere to create a sentiment amongst the people to gain support for the particular ism they preach. They have no other motivation. In the democratic system public support has to be purchased to secure votes and this is the reason why politicians make an all out effort to create sentiments in the minds of the people. In communist countries, no other ism other than Marxism can be preached. People are forced to support it. Institutions which have educational value should be controlled by educationalists and not by politicians. Educationalists should also control the radio, otherwise the party in power will have the opportunity to propagate their ism through the radio system, just as they do in the books approved by university boards." (1)
Reference
1. Prout in a Nutshell - 15, Talks on Prout
अब तुम्हारी अहैतुकी कृपा से कोई भी जड़ता के अंधेरे में नहीं रहेगा।
प्रभात संगीत 3289 एशेछो तुमि एशेछो भुवन भरिया एशेछो...
भावार्थ
हे परमपुरुष! तुम आ गये, तुम आ गये! और तुमने सारे संसार को भक्ति भाव में डुबो दिया है। युगों-युगों के कष्ट तुम्हारे आगमन से दूर हट गए हैं, तुम दिव्य प्रकाश की धरा लाए हो।
हे परमपुरुष!बाबा, अब तुम्हारी अहैतुकी कृपा से कोई भी जड़ता के अंधेरे में नहीं रहेगा। तुम्हें इन तीन प्रकार से पाया जा सकता है कार्य , ज्ञान, ध्यान और साधना । तुम प्रेम और करुणा के महासागर हो। तुम अमाप्य और अनन्त हो और स्नेहाकर्षण से पूर्ण हो।
हे परम पुरुष! बाबा, इस सृष्टि के पालन निर्माण और संहार सब कुछ तुम्हारे नियंत्रण में है। हे गुणातीत ! सत रज और तम तीनों तुम्हारे भीतर ही हैं। हे कालातीत! तुम अपनी दिव्य लीला, समय के साथ खेलते जा रहे हो। तुम अपने दिव्य लीला के लय के साथ नाचते हो। बाबा, तुमको शत शत प्रणाम.
Reference
1. Prout in a Nutshell - 15, Talks on Prout
== Section: Prabhat Samgiita ==
अब तुम्हारी अहैतुकी कृपा से कोई भी जड़ता के अंधेरे में नहीं रहेगा।
प्रभात संगीत 3289 एशेछो तुमि एशेछो भुवन भरिया एशेछो...
भावार्थ
हे परमपुरुष! तुम आ गये, तुम आ गये! और तुमने सारे संसार को भक्ति भाव में डुबो दिया है। युगों-युगों के कष्ट तुम्हारे आगमन से दूर हट गए हैं, तुम दिव्य प्रकाश की धरा लाए हो।
हे परमपुरुष!बाबा, अब तुम्हारी अहैतुकी कृपा से कोई भी जड़ता के अंधेरे में नहीं रहेगा। तुम्हें इन तीन प्रकार से पाया जा सकता है कार्य , ज्ञान, ध्यान और साधना । तुम प्रेम और करुणा के महासागर हो। तुम अमाप्य और अनन्त हो और स्नेहाकर्षण से पूर्ण हो।
हे परम पुरुष! बाबा, इस सृष्टि के पालन निर्माण और संहार सब कुछ तुम्हारे नियंत्रण में है। हे गुणातीत ! सत रज और तम तीनों तुम्हारे भीतर ही हैं। हे कालातीत! तुम अपनी दिव्य लीला, समय के साथ खेलते जा रहे हो। तुम अपने दिव्य लीला के लय के साथ नाचते हो। बाबा, तुमको शत शत प्रणाम.
