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Sunday, May 9, 2021

Mahaprayan of Ac Shantananda Avt in Mumbai

 Baba


Mahaprayan of Ac Shantananda Avt in Mumbai

Namaskar,

It is with much sadness that we share the news of the mahaprayan of Ac Shantananda Avadhuta. Dada ji's mahaprayan occurred at 6.30am today at Karjat (Mumbai) hospital. It  was only yesterday that he was recovering well, and then Dada Shantananda ji suffered a heart attack in the morning which precipitated his mahaprayan. Dada ji was 86 years of age. 

Dada Shantananda was a strong and dedicated Wt who was keen to follow the teachings of Lord Shrii Shrii Anandamurti ji. Verily, he was inclined to do lots of pracara. All those who came in his contact found him to be quite amicable and service-minded. No doubt, this is a tragic loss for our AMPS, and Dada ji will be greatly missed by all those who knew him. 

May we all take solace in the fact that these respected Ac. Shantananda was a bhakta of Sadguru Baba. Certainly they will attain mukti or moksa, accordingly. Baba will lovingly bestow His infinite grace.

in Him,
Caetanya Deva 

Note: Here is an alert for those cremating a dead body in India or Indian managed cremation homes around the world. Their custom is to put the fire in the mouth of the deceased to initiate the burning of the body. This is prohibited in AM as it is uncivilised. So watch out; do not allow this. If you are not careful, they will end up cremating the body in this manner. Make them aware ahead of time. 

Ananda Marga Caryacarya states, "The practice of putting fire into the mouth of the dead body is repulsive, it should not be encouraged." (Caryacarya - 1, Disposal of the Dead Body)


~ In-depth study ~

We have seen that when somebody dies then in offering their condolences people say now Mr So-and-so is sitting on Baba's lap. On other occasions when telling a Baba story people also say, "Such and such person sat on Baba's lap." But these days the trend is that "sitting on Baba's lap" is used more in connection with death. And that causes some confusion in reader's mind. To unknot the situation please read below. 

Dogma: if "on Baba's lap" only used for death

Here are quoted lines from recently posted emails on various forums, wherein the writer uses the phrase - "in Baba's lap" - with the occasion of death:

- "May Parama Purusa Baba accept her in HIS divine lap"

- "We pray to Baba - please give him shelter in his lap... "

- "May his soul rest in the lap of our beloved BABA"

- "Now she is taking rest in Baba's Lap."

- "May Baba accept him in HIS divine lap....."

- "May he rest in HIS loving lap of eternity."

- "We are sure that Baba has taken him in His loving lap."

- "May his soul rest in Baba's lap forever."

- "Let her rest peacefully in Baba's Lap - which she always desired."

- "now he is in beloved Baba's lap"

- "May his soul get peaceful place in His lap"

- "He is now in Bábá's loving lap"

- "May Baba bless him with a seat in His lap."

- "May BABA accept him in HIS divine lap!"

- "May Baba take him in his eternal loving lap."

- "May his soul rest in peace taking shelter in Baba's lap."

- "Please keep him on Your lap forever."

- "We all collectively pray to Baba to take him on Baba's divine lap forever.”

All of the above lines are commonly written in eulogizing the deceased. These days mostly it is used in a eulogy and rarely used to recount one's intimate spiritual experiences - unfortunately. By this way, the phrase "in Baba's lap" is being misused and step by step the real meaning is being forgotten as now people more commonly use the phrase to eulogize those who have died, and much less so to express their inner feelings of bhakti. Unfortunately, the meaning and inner spirit of the phrase is getting lost.


Baba story: "sitting on Baba's lap"

Some time ago after dharmacakra, a senior margii was recounting his experiences of having dharma samiiksa with Baba. He said, "After being lovingly scolded by Baba for my wrongdoings, then He called me close and placed me on His lap - I remained there for some time soaking up His love - and He blessed me."

We all enjoyed hearing about his personal account with Baba during dharma samiiksa. When he finished telling his factual and historical event, there was a call for questions. Various people posed their queries. Towards the end, one new margii raised his hand and asked, "How did Baba bring you back to life?"

Everyone stared at the new margii in amazement. There was a look of astonishment all around - people were really shocked to hear him say this. The new sadhaka sensed that something was wrong He said very matter-of-factly, "I thought that sitting on Baba's Lap means that he (the margii) died - that is why I asked that question."

This was quite eye-opening for those of us in the room: Through our language and expression we had unknowingly taught someone to think that being on Baba's lap is the equivalent of death. Because it seems that nowadays people only use the phrase "Baba's lap" when a person has died, such as "Let him rest peacefully in Baba's lap", as if in order to sit on Baba’s lap one has to die. But that is false. Sincere sadhakas regularly sit on Baba’s lap in their meditation. It is His grace. It is just like a child need not die in order to sit on his father’s lap.

The idea is that this phrase - Baba's lap - has been linked with death due to extreme overuse. So for some time if sadhakas use this phrase exclusively for spiritual purposes, that will be best. The phrase, "sitting on Baba's lap", should not meet a similar fate. It should not lose its pure spiritual quality and just refer to one's death. That will be very negative.

Baba would bless bhaktas and place them on His lap

There are tens of thousands of recorded stories by sadhakas where they use the phrase, "on Baba's lap", when describing their experiences of being with Baba: He used to bless them and bring them on His lap. People should understand the deeply mystical value of this expression, and not just think that Baba's lap means death, i.e. that you can only sit on His lap at the time of death. Still today there are thousands of margiis walking this earth who sat in Baba's lap. And not only that, there are countless more sadhakas who were blessed by Baba in dreams and sadhana wherein they sat in His lap. And still today this deeply intimate experience is attainable by sadhakas, by His grace.

There are so many ways an aspirant can reach unto Baba's lap including in sadhana. That is the main idea that should be preserved. Sadhana is a spiritual practice and one can sit on Baba's lap in sadhana. We should make it cent-per-cent clear to one and all that the phrase, "sitting on Baba's lap", does not mean death.

"Mahaprayan" means death of mortals - confirm for yourself
from the Samsad Bengali-English Dictionary

Mahaprayan (Death): Many are aware that mahaprayan (death) is the common term used in India and especially in our Bengal to describe the death of any human being, even ordinary people. In that way, the obituary columns of the newspapers of Bengal regularly cite the mahaprayan (death) of various persons of society who died or passed away.

Some may get confused and wrongly think that the word 'mahaprayan' (death) is one extraordinarily term of bhakti to be used in association with Parama Purusa. But that is not at all the case. Rather to do so is only to undermine the eternal presence of Parama Purusa. That is why no bhaktas ever use the word 'mahaprayan' in reference to Lord Shiva or Lord Krsna. Because Lord Shiva and Lord Krsna exist eternally. Then there is no question of Their mahaprayan (death).

Baba is Parama Purusa so He is eternal and there is no question of His mahaprayan.

Here it should be known that the convention of an annual death day ceremony (i.e. shraddhainjali or mahaprayan) is a foundation of the Islamic tradition. Muslims are well known for this, and their approach of an annual death day ceremony was adopted by the leader of a particular group in AMPS. So no one should think that mahaprayan is some type of sacred event. It is done on the death day anniversary of Muslims.

And for those who need still more technical proof then all this can be clarified quite readily by referencing the dictionary. Specifically in the Samsad Bengali-English dictionary 3rd edition on page 848. Checking there it will be confirmed that the word 'mahaprayan' means death. Which is why it is used to refer to the passing away of even common citizens. And that is the case in this letter also. The term mahaprayan means death and this is the ideal term for this purpose.

Mahaprayan is only for humans not for Sadguru

Here it should be qualified that there is both real mahaprayan and fake mahaprayan. Real mahaprayan marks the death of any ordinary human being, just like the aforesaid news. This is the proper use of the term: To note a person's departure from this earth. That is the meaning of the mahaprayan term and that is the standard way the term is used in Indian languages.

Then there is the fake, or so-called, or dogmatic mahaprayan. That is when certain vested interests try to apply the mahaprayan term to Parama Purusa. This is grossly inappropriate because when Parama Purusa Sadguru Baba is that Divine Entity who is beginningless and endless and resides always in our heart, then it is entirely wrong to proclaim that He is gone.

That is why rational margiis are protesting; because the Oct 21st program is so-called mahaprayan. So-called means that something is fake. Parama Purusa is eternal, thus for some vested interests to declare "mahaprayan of Parama Purusa" is nothing but so-called mahaprayan.

Mahaprayan only really happens in the case of human beings, not Parama Purusa. Those doing mahaprayan for Sadguru are hypocrites. On the one side in meditation they ask His grace thinking that He is ever-present, and on the other side they think that Baba has passed away. That is their hypocrisy.


== Section 2: Links ==
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Friday, May 7, 2021

How to unite + 4 more

Baba

How to unite

Namaskar,

We must bear in mind that trying to build unity by inviting representation from various groups is an archaic approach doomed for failure and destruction. Keeping the communal award alive by holding onto groupism is not the way. Inviting Wts from the various camps to sit together under one roof will never work.

So long as our Wts cling to their petty group identity – and group allegiance is recognized and honoured by family margiis – then unity will remain a distant dream.

The moment we wholly embrace an anti-exploitation movement in AMPS and ideological values are wholeheartedly embraced, then true unity is easily within our grasp.
http://anandamarganewsbulletin.blogspot.com

Ingredients for anti-exploitation movement

Baba’s pointed directive is to launch an anti-exploitation movement. At present the various WT group leaders are exploiting margiis and Wts on numerous fronts and so many dogmas have been imposed. Here is an overview of the various dogmas and injustices imposed by the various groups:

(a) Curtailment of Bhukti Pradhan rights.
(b) Wt’s given punishment posting or opposing wrongdoing
(c) Economic exploitation of Wts by Centre
(d) Morally & sexually weak Wts given higher posts
(e) Manipulated the voter lists for BP elections.
(f) Continually forced margiis and wts to be subservient to central Wts.

(g) Ruined the ACB (Advisory Committee & Boards).
(h) Invented the Fake BP Manual.
(i) Took advantage of margiis & wts financially by Centre.
(j) Victimised countless innocent margiis and wts who expressed concern about unjust organisational dealings of central Wts.
(k) And there are many more points as well.

* For a complete list of injustices, please refer to the link directly below the signature. 

No Wt group taking dharmic stand

The key aspect is that all the various Wt groups are involved in exploiting margiis and Wts on these fronts. They all have been pushing margiis and Wts to the brink for their own gain. And none of the Wt groups have come forward and made a dharmic stand on these matters of exploitation. Not a single group has called for the eradication of the Fake BP manual or other injustices. Only they quarrel amongst themselves over gaining greater control over the margiis by using this Fake BP manual etc.
http://anandamarganewsbulletin.blogspot.com

The only way out of this tailspin is to launch an anti-exploitation movement. Then all rational margiis and rational Wts will walk arm-in-arm grounded in ideological issues – not group membership or other petty issues.

Just as Baba pointed out that an anti-exploitation movement for economic independence was needed during India’s quest for freedom, similarly an anti-exploitation movement must be the rallying cry amongst margiis and Wts today. That will positively save the organisation from splitting, as happened with India during India’s push for independence.

Cause of disunity: exploitation of one group by another

Ananda Marga philosophy, "Human unity is purely an ideological unity, which means unity in the psychic sphere. Where there is psychic unity, physical unity will also occur. In the realm of unity, unity is always psychic – ideological unity means unity in the subtlest level of the mind. However, psychic or ideological unity may be affected if we encourage the exploitation of one group by another. So to avoid this there should not be any scope for exploitation in society. And to ensure this we have to start a new order to safeguard the interests of the exploited masses. So for a proper social synthesis what we require is a common philosophy of life; that is, ideological unity." (1)

In Him,
Viplava

For a complete list of injustices: 

For further info on unity:


To end exploitation: raise public consciousness

Ananda Marga philosophy states, “You must raise the people’s consciousness, otherwise they will never be able to successfully resist psycho-economic or politico-economic exploitation. In India, the masses were inspired to fight for independence without arousing their consciousness. As a consequence, India ultimately attained political independence, no doubt, but the people have not attained politico-economic independence as yet. Even today, they are victims of psycho-economic and politico-economic exploitation.” (2)

We must bear in mind that trying to build unity by inviting representation from various groups is an archaic approach doomed for failure and destruction. Keeping the communal award alive by holding onto groupism is not the way. Inviting Wts from the various camps to sit together under one roof will never work.

This type of approach is no different from bringing 5 frogs together and putting a lid on the jar thinking that they will be united. Rather at the earliest instant those frogs will all jump in their own direction.
http://anandamarganewsbulletin.blogspot.com

Same is the case with the various groups. Over the years, countless peace meetings and unity forums have been called with representatives from the various groups. But that was just a show of unity only. Immediately, by their actions, it was clear they all pursued their own agenda.

References
1. Prout in a Nutshell – 3, Talks on Prout
2. Liberation of Intellect: Neo-humanism, Exploitation and Pseudo-Culture (Discourse 7)


*        *        *

The below sections are entirely different topics, unrelated to the above material.
They stand on their own as points of interest.

*        *        *

== Section 2: Prabhat Samgiita ==

Offering of sweets

"Tiirthe tomáre khunjiá páiini, gáne dharivár prayás kori..." (Prabhat Samgiita #4874)

Purport:

O’ Parama Purusa, I searched for You in different so-called holy places like - Tiljala, Jamalpur, Varanasi, Puri, Mecca, Rome, Jerusalem; and, I also went to  so-called holy land Ananda Nagar, and the top of the Himalayan mountain ranges etc, but I utterly failed to find You. My whole approach was meaningless, a waste of time, and based on dogma and ignorance. I was just indulged in lies and hypocrisy. That is why I was met with failure and could not succeed in getting You. By Your grace, now I am returning back on the path of satya, eternal truth. I am trying to reach You through spiritual songs, dance, and kiirtana. 

Baba, I heard that You remain in Your heavenly abode, satya loka, while I lie in the deepest, darkest depths at the bottom of the underworld, drowned in all kinds of vices, dogmas, and groupism. I declared You as dead. I thought that with the virtue of attending so-called MPD annual death ceremony annually in October I will get Your blessings. Hari, I will get you. I thought I could have Your close proximity by my ritualistic pújá, dogmatic arcaná, offering of sweets, and dakśińá money to the priest wts, giving black money to ‘big dadas’. I believed by this way I would get punya. But instead it was all for naught.

O’ my Supreme Entity, Baba, I thought You resided very far away. That’s why I was not getting You. I was thinking that You are not within my reach. Now I am trying hard to dye my mind in Your colour. Baba, Your cosmic attractive force is not pulling me. I don’t feel You drawing me near. To get You I have started doing my part - japa, dhyana, sadhana pranayama etc. Now I feel Your grace...


Notes for Prabhat Samgiita #4874:

[1] Ritualistic puja: Any type of worship that involves praying and making offerings to an idol, going to so-called tiirthas, singing hymns to the idol etc

[2] Arcana: Any worship done with external paraphernalia or worldly offerings such as flowers, sandalwood., colours etc. Some dogmatic Hindu worshipers collect physical articles, lamps, and flowers and do certain rituals to honour and call the Lord. That is arcana. In our Ananda Marga way of life, there is no place for that kind of physical, external, and ritualistic approach. It simply does not belong. 
And Baba tells us, "The type of worship which is performed with selfish motive and external paraphernalia is called arca or arcana." (1)  

[3] Daksina: Offering in cash and kind (sweets, money) made to the dogmatic priest.


Reference
1. Namah Shivaya Shantaya, Shiva's Teachings – 2 (continued) (Discourse 14)


== Section: Important Teaching ==

Misunderstanding of Dada Shambhushivananda

Ananda Marga philosophy states, “Everyone has a singular dharma named spirituality, and only this is worth calling dharma. Religions are not dharma; they are mere collections of rituals.” (1)

Note: Ananda Marga is bhagavad dharma and not based on any of the various dogmatic religions. Unfortunately, some of our Wt Dadas write books steeped in dogmatic religious preachings that are obviously not in concert with the eternal teachings of Ananda Marga ideology.

The mistakes are rampant in most of the dadas’ books so one need not search long to find an error. Here is an example of a serious ideological blunder.

Shambhushivananda writes: "The dynamism of Tantra, orthodoxy of Judaism, austerity of Jains, service spirit of Catholics, ethical stance of Buddhists, anti- exploitation emphasis of Marx, reverence for life of environmentalists, progressive use of science and technology of materialists, applied psychology of naturalists, social outlook of Islam, mysticism of Bauls and Sufis, devotion of Vaishnavites, pragmatism of the entrepreneurs and merchants and the thirst for sublime knowledge of the alchemists—all find their place in the holistic approach of the NHE Model of the Modern Gurukula. As Dr. Sohail Inayatullah, a notable futurist comments, "Even the futurists have a place in PR. Sarkar's thoughts on education". (Ac Shambhushivananda, Thoughts for a New Era, p. 258)
Ananda Marga ideology is not a combination of the "good points" of various religious traditions. This is a completely dogmatic idea, one which several other dadas like Dharmavedananda have supported and given many lectures on over the years. But it is a ridiculous approach. For example, the social outlook of Islam, praised above, is a disaster. They view non-Muslims as sinners who will go to hell. No one outside of Islam is their brother. So Islam does not have a social outlook which is to be extolled. Yet years ago some dada got this ludicrous idea of preaching that Ananda Marga philosophy is a combination of all the best aspects of the religions rolled into one. This notion spread among the dadas like wildfire-- they loved it. And they still use it even today. Whereas true disciples know that Ananda Marga ideology is totally new, not based on the ideas of the past, nor linked with various dogmatic religions. That is why Baba has given the discourse "Ananda Marga: A Revolution".

By pointing out the errors in the dadas’ books, our Ananda Marga society will benefit tremendously.

Let us bear in mind that the social outlook of the three Semitic religions - Islam, Christianity, and Judaism - are very similar: They all hold that if you do not follow their religions then you are cursed. For instance:
(a)  Muslims think that non-Muslims are cursed;
(b) Jews think that non-Jews are cursed;
(c) and, Christians think that non-Christians are cursed.

Our Ananda Marga ideology stands unparalleled and wholly distinct from the various dogmatic religions.

In Him,
Shyam

Extra points

Pointing out mistakes in dadas' books has a few fundamental benefits:
#1: First off, those Wts who are true to their code of conduct and strictly follow our AM way of life must be respected.
#2: To expose the blatant defects in publications by confused Wts and publicly shame such Wts so they refrain from writing books that contravene Guru’s teachings.
#3: To help the public not to think of Wts as second Maheshvaras (i.e. second gods). Baba is our Guru, and no one else. Our dadas are sadhakas just as family Margiis are. They are not to be given a higher status by default as though they were some holy being. That leads to the same religious dogmas that exist in the Catholic Church, Hinduism, and all the religions. Nowadays in Catholicism, the degrading conduct has been getting exposed so those followers are learning that their priests are not holy and beyond reproach. It is a process of learning to discard the priest dogma. Exposing the mistakes in dadas' books has a similar benefit.

Again, those wts who are true to their Wt conduct rules and strictly adhere to the teachings of AM must be respected.

Reference
1. Tattva Kaomudii - 1, Questions and Answers on Ananda Marga Philosophy, #46


== Section: Hindi Quote ==

परमपुरुष एक क्यों, अनेक क्यों नहीं?

“तो, ये रुद्र दो भी नहीं हो सकते हैं | क्यों ? न, विश्वब्रह्माण्ड में सब कुछ एक system के अनुसार, एक नियम के अनुसार चलता है | दो होने से नियम में सङ्घर्ष हो जाएगा | तो, नियम में सङ्घर्ष होने से कुछ भी रहेगा नहीं, विश्वब्रह्माण्ड का | किन्तु दुनिया में हम देखते हैं, सब कुछ नियम के अनुसार चलनेवाला है | इसी से प्रमाणित होता है कि ये एक हैं; दो नहीं हैं |”

[यह प्रवचन-अंश, बाबा के कैसेट से सीधे लिखा गया है । बाबा का यह असली प्रवचन, अमृतोपदेश है। आनन्दमार्ग हिन्दी पुस्तकों में छपे प्रवचन तो नक़ली प्रवचन हैं, असली नहीं हैं -- बंगालीकरण (बँगलाइजेसन) के तहत उनकी बर्बादी की गई] (1)

Reference
1. अप्रकाशित, हिन्दी, MGD, September 4, 1978 Patna


== Section 3: Links ==




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