A Journal of Nama Kirtan Satsangs

Feb 11: Bhishmacharya

11 Feb 2011 2 Comments

by namadwaar in Telecon Satsangs

Sadhana is the path and ‘Sadhya’ is the goal.  The ultimate goal is God realization. Interestingly, when Mahans speak about God Realization, they say it ca cannot be explained by words and is beyond description and hence it cannot be really comprehended by reading books or by having it imparted as mere knowledge. Then how can perceive that state when it cannot be comprehended and is beyond imagination? It is verily when that very goal desires to let the seeker experience the state that one can really experience it; not by one’s own dint and this is ‘grace’ – that He showers through the Sadguru. 

After a short round of introductions, Sri Narayananji from Bostondelivered a beautiful lecture on Bhishmacharya, in view of Bheeshmashtami that fell on the 11^th February 2011.

The Eleventh canto of Srimad Bhagavatam speaks about how a true devotee of the Lord celebrates His Leelas. These Leelas are not confined to the ones performed during His incarnation, but also the ones that He does till date – about how He showers His grace and takes care of their own lives, instant by instant.  The Bhagavatha attributes every event in his life as a divine leela of Lord Krishna, not being a small boy in Brindavan but being as a small boy right in his own heart and as a small boy in his home as Srimad Bhagavatham. He thus extols every small incident in his life as the divine grace of the Lord. It is this quality of a Bhagavatha that is indeed liked by the Lord.

In Ajamila Charitra in Bhagavatam, after the episode at Ajamila’s, the Yama Dhutas go to Yama Loka and ask their Master for a clarification for about the events that happened in the residence of Ajamila. King Yama first meditated on the Lord and then replied to his servile followers that there is a very secretive dharma called Bhagavatha Dharma and there are twelve people who are conversant with this dharma Lord Brahma, Narada, Shiva, Sanatkumaras, Kapila, Manu, Prahlada, Janaka, Bheesama,Bali, Sage Sukha and Yama Himself.

When he annotated the path of Bhagavatha Dharma, he says “Guhyam Vishudham Durbhodam”. One would believe that this path is one of the easiest and simplest paths to attain the Lord since it involves chanting the Divine Names of the Lord even without thinking the Lord. On the contrary, King Yama turned it down and said that this path is indeed the most difficult [Durbhodham] to comprehend and also very secretive [Guhyam].  Right in the dhyana sloka where we meditate on Sage Suka and Veda Vyasa- “Purana Guhyam” which means Bhagavatha Purana is a very secretive purana. When Bhagavata Dharma (shown by Bhagavatam) is so open and clear in stating its import, what is so secretive about it?

In Gita Govindam, Sri Jayadeva says – “Keshava Keli Rahasyam”. He sings about the various leelas of the Lord and yet terms them as ‘secretive’!

There are three Granthas that are considered to give us the greatest truths. They are called “Rahasyatraya”. They are Brahmasutra, Upanishads and Bhagavad Gita. What is so Guhya about the three granthas?

When Sage Narada initiates Dhruva into ‘Dwadasaakshari’, he openly gives the Mantra to Dhruva (and to us through Bhagavatam!) and yet terms it as ‘extremely secretive’.(‘paramo guhyam’)

What is the meaning of secret here?
Something may be right in front of our eyes, exposed, as it were, and yet remain secret, if we don’t understand the utility or meaning of it, is it not?  The moment we relish its import and utility, the ‘rahasya’ is revealed.  – and that is the ‘secret’!

Yama identifies only 12 people as knowing Bhagavata Dharma, and interestingly, Bhagavatam is the story of these Bhagavatas! One in the dozen shows Bhagavata Dharma in a very beautiful way – Bheeshmacharya.

It is on Bhishmashtami that Bhishma shed his mortal coil and attained the holy feet of the Lord. When the Sun is oriented towards the North, it is Uttarayana.  It is said that Beeshma waited for the Uttarayana (which starts on the Rathasaptami day, which is the seventh day of the bright fortnight of lunar calendar).

A staunch keeper of his oath, Bheeshma demonstrated how a devotee should lead a life, by keeping up the promise of Bhakti and devotion. He had immense confidence [Drida Vishwasa] on the Lord throughout his life and that’s the key takeaway from his life. He had an inherent love for Krishna; he was from the same clan asKrishna-  He was the son of Mother Ganga which is verily the water from the feet of Lord Krishna!

Beeshma’s bhakti was concealed all throughout his life. It was once in his lifetime that he depicted his love for the Lord and it happened when Dharmaputra was performing a sacrifice. During the sacrifice, Shisupala started to bad mouth Lord Krishna. Beeshma stopped him and chided Shishupala expounding onKrishna’s glories – but he did it in a Asathsabha and hence he stopped short since it was not a satsang. He then understood the heart of the Lord that he wanted take Shisupala unto himself.

He was eventually waiting to pour his love for Lord Krishna and that is why he patiently waited for Lord Krishna to come right in front of him before he shed his mortal coil. That’s the truth behind Beeshma waiting for Uttarayana was only for the world, while truly, he was waiting for Lord Krishna to come and see him. This is akin to how Vritrasura concealed his love for Bhagawan and he never revealed it. Eventually Vritrasura demonstrated his love in four verses and Beeshmacharya exhibited his love for the Lord in eleven verses, in the midst of a satsang of great devotees, along with Dharmaputra who was the epitome of all Dharma, with Lord Krishna who being the end of all Dharma and along with all Devas, Yakshas, Gandharvas and Kinnars and Beeshma lying on the bed of arrows.

Beeshma called out all the Pandavas and revealed that Lord Krishna was indeed the Lord, whom the Pandavas were thinking as a mere cow-boy friend.

“Yam manyasae mathuleymam priyam mithram suhrutamam
Akaroho sasivam dootam sourudhadada saratim
Sarvathmana sama dhrusho hrudhyathasyana hankruthae
Thath krutham mathi vaishamyam niravadhyasya na  kvachith” [Srimad Bhagavatham 1.9.20 and 1.9.21]

Beeshma summoned the Pandavas and showed the Lord to them who is controlling the entire universe, the end of all quests, who is none but their uncle’s son, their most dear friend, a well-wisher and a charioteer.

One who leads someone to the Lord is indeed a Guru in which ever form they may be. Beesha now became the Guru to the Pandavas since he showed them the Lord. Dharmaputra, the personification of Dharma, knew that Beeshma was ready to take their questions and requested him to expound on all Dharmas.

“Dhaana Dharmaan raaja Dharmaan Moksha dharmaan vibhaagashah”
“Stri Dharmaan Bhagavat Dharmaan Samaasavyaasayogatah” [Srimad Bhagavatham 1.9.27]

“Dharmaarthakaamamokshaamscha sahopayan yathaa munae|
“Nanakyaanaethihaaseshu varnayaamaasa tatvavit||” [Srimad Bhagavatha 1.9.28]

Bhishma beautifully expounded on the different Dharmas, the Dhaana Dharma, Raja Dharma, Moksha Dharma, Stri Dharma and Bhagavatha Dharma with reference to the Vedas and the Ramayana and also by taking excerpts from the eighteen Puranas.  He also expounded on the four Purusharthas in detail. Dharmaputra not satisfied with Bhishma’s questions finally asked a question as to what it the supreme dharma of all and that dharma that needs to be followed by everyone.

“Ko Dharma Sarva dharmanam bhavata paramo mathaha |
Kim Japan Muchyate Jantur janma samsara bandhanath ||”

Bhishma beautifully replied that the supreme path of God Realization is indeed the path of chanting the divine names of the Lord and bestowed with thousands names as Vishnu Shashranama and by chanting the Divine Names it would lead one to the holy feet of Lord Krishna. One can satiate all the desires by chanting the Divine Names of the Lord along with the holy feet of the Lord.

After expounding on all the dharmas, Bhishma was satisfied that he had given all his discourses and was getting ready to depart his mortal coil and was getting ready to present himself in full form. In his momentous hour of leaving his body, even though Lord Krishna was standing in front of Bheeshma with a peacock feather on his crown, a flute in his hand and his face wearing a beautiful smile and his hands on his hips, Bheeshma however saw the beautiful form of Vishnu,with four hands and clad in a golden pitambara.

“Krishne lasatbita-pute chathurbhuje purah sthite amilitadrig vyadharayat”
“visudhaya dharanaya hatasubhaha tadikshayaivasu gata-yudhau vyathaha”                                         [Srimad Bhagavatham 1.9.30 and 1.9.31]

If we see in the life-history of Dhruva, he was immersed in the penance with the form of the Lord that Sage Narada had inscribed in his heart.  He was enjoying the form of the Lord to the extent that when the Lord came in front of him, he did not even open his eyes. He was in the divine ecstasy enjoying the form of the Lord within himself and so the Lord had to shake him and wake him up. The moment he removed the form of the Lord from Dhruva’s heart, he immediately woke up and was able to have the darshan of the Lord right in front of him. But in Bheeshmacharya’s case, he did not attempt to meditate on the Lord at all, being a Yogi of the greatest order. When he lay on the bed of arrows, he did not even close or wink his eye and his eyes were fully focused on Lord Krishna and got ready to do a beautiful stuthi on Lord Krishna in eleven verses, which is the epitome of Sadhya Bhakti and hence it starts with the term – “Ithi”. He embarked on the song of praise on Lord Krishna by saying –

“itimatir upakalpita vitrishna bhagavati satvatapungave vibhumnih
svasukham upagate kvacith vihartum prakritim upeyushi yadbhavapravahah”   [Srimad Bhagavatham 1.9.32]

 The term ‘Ithi’ connotes ‘thus’. In general the term ‘Ataha” is used to start any great verse and great compositions start with an auspicious term. Bhagavad Gita begins with “Dharmaha”, Srimad Bhagavatham starts off with “Janmadyasya” which is verily the Brahma Sutra, Ramayana beings with “Thapah”, Kunti embarked on her stuti with the term “Namaste”, Gajendra Stuti “Namo Bhagavathae Thubyam”.

The reason Bheeshma starts the stuti with the term ‘thus’ is because he is winding down all his thoughts, actions and other occupational duties. Now that the Mahabharata war is over which is a battle between divine [satvika] and demonic [rajasa] people, and with divine people finally with triumph, it is now time to offer myself to you, says Bheeshma.

 I have followed all the dharmas in my life and today I have the fruit of all Dharmas standing in front of me – Dharmasya Prabhurachyutah”. Having been a Yogeshwara – practicing strict vows like celibacy and the Ashtanga Yoga all my life, I am now here to enjoy the fruit of all Sadhanas.’

 He then offered himself to the Lord by offering his mind to the Lord. The moment we understand that the Lord is beyond one’s intellect, it is easy to attain the Lord.  He reminisces all the divine leelas of the Lord in his life , where He captivated Bhishma at his first sight. He also recollected the leelas of the Lord during the Mahabharatha war.

“bheeshma pratignya palana thae mangalam sukshma swarropa sundarathae mangalam” – A beautiful Mangalam kirtan of our Guru Maharaj, where he says “you protected the vow of Bheeshma by breaking your own vow”

He remembers the Gopis who are the greatest Bhagavathas, the epitome of Bhakti. ‘Let me think of them since they were in constant thought of you and they finally got merged in you.’

 lalitagativilasa valguhasa pranaya nirikshana kalpitorumanah
kritamanu krita vatya unmadandhahprakritim agan kila yasya gopa-vadhvah

He recollects all the divine leelas of the Lord since by fondly reminiscing the leelas of the Lord, will one focus their mind on the Lord. He is able to think about the Lord since he had led a life thinking about Lord Krishna always.

Lord Krishna thus takes Bhishmacharya unto him. Yoga means ‘communion’. He was a Yogeshwara not because he performed the Ashtanga Yoga but because his communion with the Lord was so touching. His submission to the Lord was so beautiful and divine. That’s why Bhishma was called as “Bhishma Yogeshwara”. He was a greatest devotee of the Lord.

The satsang ended with prayers and Namasankirtan after reminiscing about Bhishmacharya.

Jan 15: Purushartas in Bhagavatam – 1 : Dharma

15 Jan 2011 1 Comment

by namadwaar in Telecon Satsangs

Sri Aravindji from Orlando delivered a lecture series on the four Purusharthas with relevance to Srimad Bhagavatham. Let’s first understand what the term ‘Purushartha’ connotes. The word ‘Purusha’ means human and ‘Artha’ means meaning. Purushartha thus refers to “Purpose of Life”. The four Purushsharthas are Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha.

Our Guru Maharaj in one of his Kirtans sings –

“arthamum kAmamum niraindadhu Prapanjamam”
verondrum kAnavillai Undi Para
vedanai vedanai undi para”

Our Guru Maharaj says that he only sees wealth and desire being given more weightage by people living in the age of Kali and that he doesn’t perceive anything beyond wealth and desire. And saying this, he commiserates these mundane people.

But friends, who are part of satsang, do not worry. Let’s see what Srimad Bhagavatham preaches us on the four Purusharthas.  Srimad Bhagavatham is a unique grantha since it is filled with both worldly and spiritual advice. It gives advice akin to a friend and one can never get overwhelmed by the proposition. One immediately takes the advice unto their heart – Shusrushibih Thakshanaat. A child can learn lot of good values by listening to life-histories of Prahalad and Dhruva to name a few. A learned person enjoys the doctrines of Uddava Gita. It is a grantha that is applicable to people of all Dharmas.

Suta Pouranika, started to expound about Dharma in front of all Maharishis.

Dharma projita kaitavo atra paramo nirmatsaranam satam
vedyam vastavam atra vastuhu shivatam tapatrayahunmoolanam

All the three types of miseries are obliterated by comprehending the term “Dharma”.

Dharma is very subtle. The inherent nature of a flower is to spread fragrance. The very nature of the sun is to give sunshine. The three fears are dispelled by comprehending dharma. Let’s look at the three kinds of fears – Aadideivika are the ones that are caused by the mind, while Aaadiboutika are the fears caused by extraneous elements like animals or nature and Aadhyathmika is inflicted by super-natural powers like the Gods and Devas.

Our Guru Maharaj absolves the fear of Samsara by feeding the nectar of Srimad Bhagavatham. By assimilating the essence of Srimad Bhagavatham, one can decipher the term Dharma. By following the precepts of dharma, all the fears are obliterated. Let’s take a practical example to substantiate this. A person enters a dark room and he perceives a big snake. He immediately switches the light and sees that it is not a snake but a big rope instead. The illusion is thus wiped out when he switches the light.

 dharmasya hyApavargasya nArthOthAyOpakalpatE |
nArthasya dharmaikAnthasya kAmO lAbhAya hi smruta: || [Srimad Bhagavatham1.2.9]

 kAmasya nEndriyaprItirlAbhO jIvEta yAvatA |
jIvasya tatvajignyAsA nArthO yashvEha karmabhi:  || [1.2.10]

The moment Srimad Bhagavatham inculcates the purpose of life, the three fears are absolved. How is this possible? By comprehending and following the Supreme dharma [paramo dharmaha], one can shed away the three fears. So what is this Supreme Dharma?

In order to understand the Supreme Dharma, let us first understand Sva dharma, which is verily our inherent nature. The Lord in Srimad Bhagavatham tells Arjuna -

sarva-dharman parityajya  maam ekam saranam vrajaa
aham tvam sarva-papebhyo moksayisyami maa sucah [Srimad Bhagavad Gita 18.66]

Oh! Arjuna, I will emancipate you from all the sins and bestow you Moksha if you give up all the dharma and surrender unto me.

In the above verse, the call to give up Dharma cannot be called as a message of inactivity. The Lord will never preach his devotees to not perform their duties. The Lord in the above verse says one not to renounce the act but to renounce the attitude. The beauty of Srimad Bhagavatham is that it shows us a path where we do not renounce anything by force but it makes people renounce on their own. If one goes to a mango tree and tries to pluck a mango that had not ripened, it starts to bleed from the stem. The Lord in our case has shown us a ripe mango and it falls off the moment one goes near to pluck it. The inherent nature [Svadharma] will be dispelled when one adheres to the path shown by Srimad Bhagavatham. One can relate this easily through the life-history of Sage Narada. Sage Narada was born as a son of a maid-servant. His mother earned her living by doing house-hold chores. One day a group of saints camped in the same village where Narada and his mother lived. Seeing the saints, his mother asked Narada to go along with them and also asked him to consume the left-over food from the plates of the saints. This little boy who was about five years old implicitly obeyed his mother’s orders. By doing service to the saints and by being in their divine company, the inherent nature of a five year old boy to play with his friends and his toys slowly started to recede away akin to how a ripe mango falls off on its own.

Lord Krishna in his expositions preaches one not to renounce their acts and duties and that by being in a satsang, they will dwindle on their own. From the numerous life-histories of the devotees of Lord Panduranga, we learn that one of them was a cobbler, a barber and one great devotee of the Lord, Vittobha whose profession was tailoring. Just by adhering to the path of Bhagavatha Dharma, our Sva dharma will inherently fall away. This is lucidly depicted from their life-histories. Lord Prahalada was incessantly chanting the Divine Names of the Lord Narayana. He was sent to the Gurukula and his preceptors were Chanda and Amarka who were Asuras themselves.  They taught him all the worthy topics and he studied everything and excelled in whatever he did since he was constantly catching the Divine Names of the Lord.

One should continue to perform his daily chores and when chant the Divine Names of the time upon the completion of his chores. By following this, the inherent nature [sva dharma] will soon depart from us leaving the path to paramo Dharma, the supreme dharma.

Srimad Bhagavatham expounds the great precept of humility.

Daksha was one of the prajapatis of Lord Brahma. The first and supreme position was held by Lord Narayana himself. The next in hierarchy was Lord Brahma. The third position was being held by Daksha. Hence he was in a very commendable position. We have seen that the higher one goes in the spiritual path, he should become more and more humble. Once a sacrifice [yagna] was being performed and everyone including the Devas including Lord Brahma and Lord Shiva also attended. Daksha also attended the event. Daksha being in a respectable position, everyone stood up and paid their respects to him. Lord Siva did not get up from his seat since he was deeply engrossed in his penance. This really irked Daksha and he immediately started to badmouth Lord Shiva. He started despising Lord Shiva’s appearance.  Lord Shiva an embodiment of patience and calmness was just patiently listening to the abuses by Daksha. Lord Shiva is an epitome of both positive and negative attributes. To substantiate this, he has the symbol of moon signifying the essence of nectar and has a snake tied around his neck that represents poison. His hand personifies fire, while on the other hand he has river Ganga flowing on his head. He has both Boothganas and Devaganas. He perceives both stuthi and ninda to be the same.

Sri Sri Anna in Vaishnava Samhita saya -

“Avamaanepi Sammane Sukhe Dukhepi Vaishnava, Pashyatyeva Harer Leelam Gunadoshau Na Pashyathi”

A Vaishnava never discerns honor or dishonor to be different and perceives both to be same and take it as a blessing from Lord Hari.

Daksha had married his daughter Dakshayini to Lord Shiva. Days passed by and Daksha performed another sacrifice in a pomp manner to exhibiting his pride. It was known as “Brihaspati Sthava”.   He invited everybody in town except Lord Shiva and Dakshayini. She noticed that all her friends were going for the sacrifice which her father was performing. She expressed her interest to attend the sacrifice and confided it to Lord Shiva. Upon hearing to her request, he gently advised her that one should not go to a place where one is not invited. In reply, Dakshayini replied that one should not expect any invitation to a place where the Lord is being worshipped.  But if the host does not look into the guest’s eyes and expresses his delight by your presence, then one should not make it to that host’s place, added Lord Shiva. The greatness of Mahans is that they won’t force their thoughts on their devotees. They would express their opinion and leave it to the decision of the devotee. Thus, Lord Shiva just forewarned Dakshayini that she should not go to a place without an invitation.  If she insisted on going to the sacrifice then that would probably lead to death.

Despite Lord Shiva’s advice, she decided to go since she had bondage to her parent’s home. She left for the sacrifice with some Lord Shiva’s supporters [Bhutaganas]. Upon reaching that place, she was very much welcomed by her mother and her siblings. Daksha, her father did not show his hospitality to her and did not welcome her. She did not pay much heed to her father’s act. But later Daksha started to show his grudge on Lord Shiva in a very obvious way. He stopped all oblations [havirbhagam] that was supposed to reach Lord Rudra. He also did not recite any vedic hymns related to Lord Shiva. This irritated Dakshayini beyond belief.  In an irked tone, she asked her father, “Oh Father! You are showing your hatred on Lord Shiva who has done no harm to you?. His name is so sacred that it purifies anybody who recites his name. The Divine Names of Lord Shiva bestow one with prosperity when chanted.

There was a hunter who was in his deathbed. His son was standing next to him. His son was seeking advice from his father as to how he should earn a living. In reply the hunter mentioned, “Prahara  Aahara Samhara”. Prahara means to hunt, Aahara means to bring and Saamhara means to kill and so the hunter advised his son to go for hunting. If we remove the prefix of all three words and only focus on the suffix, which is “hara”, it verily means Lord Shiva. Saying the three words, the hunter passed away. Immediately Lord Shiva’s sub-ordinates [Shiva Ganas] came to take the hunter to Kailasha since he chanted His Name, even though unknowingly, before he died. Such is Lord Shiva’s compassion and love.

Dakshayini added “Oh father, you have not only exhibited your hatred to Lord Shiva but to his Divine Name. You also not did pay any respect to Vedas since you did not recite the section of Vedas that referred to Lord Shiva.”. She repented for being born as a daughter to a father who did Shiva Dwesha. She immediately burnt herself in the Yoga Agni.

Lord Shiva was still in tranquil state which was his natural state. Mahans are Sankalpa-rahita – they don’t have a will of their own. Witnessing this gory scene, Sage Narada advised Lord Shiva to avenge Daksha. He immediately plucked a hair from his head and breathed life into the hair and there stood a Bhootagana by name Veerabhadra. This newly born Veerabhadra went to the place where Daksha was performing the sacrifice and killed Daksha. The sacrifice could not be completed since Daksha died and so all Devas went to Lord Brahma and requested to make sure that the Brihaspati Sthava Yaga be completed.

Lord Narayana also appeared in the Brishaspathi Shrava and said the following verse –

“Mat Bhakta Sankara Dweshi math dweshi sankara priyaha  Yavadh sankara divakaram”

A devotee of mine who speaks ill or demean Lord Shiva or a devotee of Lord Shiva bad mouths or despises me will end in an infernal region, says Lord Narayana in the above verse.

A devotee of the highest order should never possess any hatred towards Lord Shiva or Lord Brahma. Even a smallest level of ill-feeling would hinder that devotee to reach the highest states.

All kinds of conceit, hypocrisy, and deceit should be absolved in one who is in quest for the Lord.

Dharma projita kaitavo atra paramo nirmatsaranam satam
vedyam vastavam atra vastuhu shivatam tapatrayahunmoolanam

sa vai puḿsāḿ paro dharmo yato bhaktir adhokṣajeh

ahaitukyapratihatā yayātmā suprasīdati [Srimad Bhagavatham 1.2.6]

The supreme occupation [Svadharma] of all human beings is that which will usher into the path of supreme devotion to the Lord. Offer all the acts that one does to the Lord and by doing this one will attain the highest states of devotion to the Lord.  As long as we chant the Divine Names of the Lord, all our sins and fears are dispelled and one will attain the purpose of life which is verily the lotus feet of the Lord. By incessant chanting of the Divine Names of the Lord, our Svadharma will leave us and will lead us unto the holy feet of the Lord.

The satsang ended with prayers and Namasankirtan.

Jan 8: Satsang – the company of the divine

08 Jan 2011 Leave a Comment

by namadwaar in Telecon Satsangs

Prayers are indeed the first step towards the path of bhakti and devotion. It is indeed the last step as well. Prayers done with an open heart is what is very much liked by the Lord. The easiest way to do prayers is to sing his Divine Names. When we chant his Divine Names we do not need to do any special prayer to support it. The chanting of Divine Names is verily enough and indeed makes the prayers for us. Such is the power of Divine Names when coupled with the prayers. The other end of prayers is to request the Lord to bestow with more and more devotion and be in the divine company of Sadhus always. This is indeed what the Sadhus and Mahatmas pray for.  They are only requesting for the bond between the Lord and them to get strengthened.  They want to remember the Lord and his Divine Form forever.  That kind of prayer is indeed the most supreme and one should aim to do such prayers. The Lord is extremely pleased when we perform such prayers and our satsangs are one such prayer meet where we intersperse the chanting of Divine Names in the beginning and end of our satsangs.

Nishaji from Houston delivered a beautiful lecture expounding on the greatness of being in the divine company of Sadhus.

Who is a Sadhu? One cannot proclaim someone as a Sadhu if he wears a Gopichandan and clad in a saffron cloth. Our Guru Maharaj beautifully defines who a real Sadhu is. A sadhu is one who always listens to the glories of the Lord, expounds on the glories of the Lord and sings the glories of the Lord. They know nothing other than these. On the other hand the normal mortals who even in spite of being in satsang who are not there to revel in complete supreme bliss sometime delve into mundane talks. Our Guru Maharaj by making Madhurasmaranam official, our compassionate Guru Maharaj wanted his devotees to gossip about him and gave all our little wagging tongue, his stories to hold on to. By reminiscing on the divine stories of our Guru Maharaj we get ourselves into the highest states of meditation of the Lord who is in the form of Guru. This is a classic example to elucidate the precept that the divine association of the sadhus makes everybody sadhus itself. This goes to show the power of satsang.

It is a fact that a person’s attitude is a median of the top five people with whom he/she interacts with. If we ponder on this without scratching the surface, we will realize that it is a star fact in all our lives. When we associate with people who are pessimists, we find ourselves doing the same thing and having lot of negative energy in us. On the other hand, if we are in the companionship with people who have a lot of positive energy, we are also in turn motivated and energized. Our Guru Maharaj says that one second acquaintance with a Mahan can transform an individual.

In one of the kirtans of our Guru Maharaj, he extols the greatness of satsangs –

“Aagacha Aagacha Sajjana Sangam Maa Gacha Maa Gacha Durjana Sangam”

In the above verse, our Guru Maharaj welcomes the association of holy men [sadhus], who are the very manifestation of the Lord himself.

“Sajjana Sangam bahusaaram Dur Jana Sangam Athi Goram”

The association of the sadhus is so sweet and filled with bliss. When Lord Krishna had incarnated in the holy land of Vraja, the Gopis and Gopas were always in the divine company of the Lord. As years passed by, Krishna became the ruler of Mathura and he had ordained his dear Uddava to go to Vrindavan to have a darshan of the Gopas and Gopis. He was moved to tears when he saw their love and prema for Lord Krishna and he rolled over the sands which contained the dust from the feet [Pada Rajas] of these Gopis.

Having proclaimed the power of Sajjana Sangam, let us know look into the consequences of having a bad company. If we take the people during Kamsa’s reign, they were in quandary and always filled with fear about Kamsa’s course of actions.

“Sajjana Sangam Dharma chinthanam Dhurjana sangam dhurbhodhanam”

The association of Sadhus leads one in the path of dharma. The Pandavas were always in the divine companionship with Lord Krishna. The Lord was always with them in flesh and blood. They never deviated from the path of dharma. On the other hand, Dhuryodhana solicited the company of his uncle, Shakuni. Karna, being the son of Kunti, who was the mother of the Pandavas, befriended Dhuryodhana.  When Arjuna and Dhuryodhana went to seek help and advice before the advent of the Kurkshetra War, Krishna was in the state of slumber. He woke up and had the glimpse of Arjuna at the first sight since he was near his feet. The Lord knew that both of them came for taking help for the Mahabharatha war. The Lord came out with a clause that he will give his entire army for one and that he himself will be with one of them. Duryodhana did not have confidence on the Lord and hence he culled the army while Arjuna who was also in company of the Lord opted for Krishna to be along with the Pandavas during the battle. The outcome of the battle was evident, with the Pandavas triumphed over the Kauravas and they were completely annihilated.

“Sajjana Sangam Hari Sevanam Dhurjana Sangam Parihasanam”

The divine communion with the holy men ushers one and all to the service of the Lord. On the other hand association with mundane people makes one repugnant. Let’s take some examples to substantiate this precept from the life-history of Sant Tukkaram. There lived a great Brahmin scholar Rameshwar Bhat. He gave a lot of discourses. One day, he found lot of people moving past his place and he enquired of those few who sat listening to him, “Where are all these people going?” They said that these people were going to listen to Tukkaram since his sings are rendered with full of devotion. Hearing this Rameshwar Bhat was furious and headed straight to Tukkaram. He told him that the Lord Panduranga cannot comprehend the kirtans composed in Marathi and that the Lord can only follow Sanskrit. Anybody else would have argued with the Brahmin, but Tukkaram being a Sadhu who are humility personified implicitly apologized to him and asked him for the next course of actions. The brahmin asked him to bundle up all his kirtans and throw them into the Chandrabaga river.

Rameshwar bhat said, “Bundle up your kirtans and throw them into the Chandrabhaga river. And from now onwards stop singing your kirtans.” Tukkaram bundled all his kirtans and threw them into the Chandrabhaga. He experienced deep pain as if he had pushed into the river a child of his whom he had brought up lovingly. He then sat on the banks of the river without food or sleep. After three days, when the Pandas (priests) in Pandarpur temple opened the doors of Lord Panduranga’s sannidhi they found a wet sack on the head of the Lord. It was dripping with water and the Lord’s garments were totally wet. Wonder struck they took the sack from the Lord’s head and opened it. They found innumerable writings with the stamp of ‘Tukkaram’ in them. They realized that it was the kirtans of the Sadhu who visited the temple from Dehu Road. They immediately took the kirtans to Tukkaram.
When Tukkaram saw them with his writings, he asked them, “It is I who had thrown them in the river. Why did you retrieve them?” The Pandas explained, “No! We did not retrieve them from the river. We found them on the Lord’s head this morning when we opened the door. Since they all carry your stamp we realized that they are all your kirtans. We, therefore, came to return them to you.”
Tukkaram’s joy knew no bounds as he realized that Panduranga had accepted his kirtans.
He asked the Lord, “If you approve of them why this delay in bringing them to me, Oh! Lord! I have been sitting here without food and sleep these for the past three days.”
The Lord said to him, “Tukkaram! They were so wonderful that I have been reading them for the past three days!” Learning about the incident, Rameshwar Bhat came running to Tukkaram and fell at his feet. “I did not realize your greatness. Please forgive me for the wrong done.” Tukkaram shrunk away pleading, “You are a great scholar. You know all the Shastras. How can you fall at my feet? Please do not fall at my feet.” Such is the humility of Sadhus.

“Sajjana sangam Aanandah Durjana sangae Alasyah”         

The ardent devotee of Lord Krishna, Meera grew up in her grandfather’s place. He used to invite lot of Mahans to his home. Meera used to eagerly listen to all the divine exploits of Lord Krishna with reverence and this was verily how devotion to Lord Krishna was sowed in her hearts. The satsang that she got gave her the bhakti and devotion to hold onto Lord Krishna all throughout her life. From our eyes, we perceive Meera to have been happy only in her childhood days. As she grew up, she was forced to marry someone whom she didn’t want to marry.  Her in-laws did not like her being devoted to Krishna. Her husband Rana who was earlier provided her support to perform bhakti to Lord Krishna did not like it later. She was in captive where she was in isolation and also underwent lots of trials and tribulations even threat to her life. This is the state of Meera as perceived by normal mortals.  But our Guru Maharaj clarifies this perception that it is verily the people around her who were under the impression that Meera was depressed, but in reality she was completely lost in the bliss of love for her dear Krishna. She was totally lost in joy. Krishna bhakti gave her the supreme bliss and hence she did not bother about the events happening around her.

In one of her bhajans, she expounds her enjoyment that she deuces by being a devout to Lord Krishna.

hari guN gAvat nAchUngI mei
prabhu guN gAvat nAchUngI

apne mandir me beit beit kar
gIta bhAgavata vAchUngI

“Meera Bai Sings- ‘I shall sit in the temple of my beloved Lord and read Srimad Bhagavat Gita and Srimad Bhagavata. I shall immerse myself in singing the Divine Names and plays of the Lord and dancing to its tunes! ’

On the other hand, bad company can lead us into loathsome and become indolent. A classic example is Kumbakarna.

The next verse goes – “Sajjana Sangae Mana shanthih Durjana Sangae Mano Branthih”

The divine company ushers in mental peace. Our little Prahalad was in acquaintance with Sage Narada even when he was in his mother’s womb. He came as his Guru and was bestowed with the Divine Name ‘Narayana’. Prahalad was incessantly chanting the Divine Name and hence he was an embodiment of peace despite all the harassments enforced on him by his father Hiranyakashipu. On the other hand, Hiranyakashipu was the most powerful ruler on Earth and had boons so that he wouldn’t die by any common means. In spite of this, his mind was always wandering and was always perturbed. This was because of the fact that he did not have any divine communion with a realized soul. Even though his son was a sadhu, he did not cherish his companionship.

“Sajjana Sangae Pramodhah Durjana Sangae Pramadhah”

The company of holy men leads us to immense happiness and joy and helps us to realize the purpose of our life which is verily attaining the holy feet of the Lord.

“Sajjana Sangae Sadhu Poshanam Durjana Sangae Sadhu Dhushanam”

The divine company with realized souls makes us perform service to Mahans. This act bestows one with all goodness. Sugreeva was in the divine company of Hanuman and that finally lead him to do service to Lord Rama. On the other hand, Ravana harassed and disrespected Sadhus and hence the consequences were obivious. Our Guru Maharaj in one of his discourses mentioned that at the beginning of Ramayana, Sri Lanka was a prosperous country with untold riches. At the end of Ramayana, Lanka was completely burned down. Sugreeva was a pauper at the advent of Ramayana but he was crowned as a king at the culmination of Ramayana. It was verily because Sugreeva cherished the company of Sadhus and was always in the divine company of Hanuman, whereas Ravana who abused the Sadhus destroyed his entire clan.

“Sajjana Sangae Krishna Katha Durjana Sangae Gramya Katha”

The divine company leads us to listen to the stories of Lord Krishna. Parikshit had the company of Sage Sukha who was his guru. He was bestowed to listen to the divine exploits of Lord Krishna.  He had the honor to be the first recipient to listen to Srimad Bhagavatham.

“Sajjana Sangae Muralidharah Durjana Sangae Mahisharudhah”

Our Guru Mahraj concludes his song by saying that by being in the divine company of holy men will lead us to Muralidhara. A good example to support this is Ajamila. Even though he was a good person initially, he later started to have the company of bad people and developed a lot of vices. In the last minute of his life, he called out his son Narayana and this was heard by our Lord Narayana in Vaikunta and hence he sent the Vishu Dootas. The second satsang that he had with the Vishnu Dootas bestowed him liberation. Such is the greatness of chanting the Divine Names of the Lord and being in the divine company of Sadhus.

Dec 24: Bhakti in modern times

24 Dec 2010 Leave a Comment

by namadwaar in Telecon Satsangs

Ramyaji fromSan Jose talked about bhakti in modern times. It is very important to discuss it as friends because in this the age where questioning has taken over faith, skepticism has taken over devotion and it is the age where intellect has taken over the heart. So we are in this age where these three elements have taken over the three classical elements of the earlier three. There is a general thought among the youth that our scriptures are not of any reference to this day and that the path of bhakti may not be applicable in the age of Kali. People are interested towards the intellectual portion of Vedanta even when they are in a spiritual path. But the important precept to note is that faith is the backbone of Vedanta itself. When someone is expounding on the path of self-enquiry which is rationale and radical, we first need to repose our faith on the person who is expounding the path and hear him out before one poses questions before the lecturer. Even though questioning is greatly encouraged in our faith, questioning and reasoning has its own limit. It has to start with faith and when we make progress in a path, we find that what we had assumed as truth is indeed true. Even in the cold logic of hypothesis testing, the logicians have a null hypothesis and alternate hypothesis. We need to have a hypothesis and must work on it to finally prove if it right or wrong. But if we don’t even assume on a hypothesis to go on a particular path, then we are not doing any experiment. It is verily why all mahatmas who have decorated the holy land of Bharat have given us hypothesis and they never asked us to believe. Believing is a concept. Religion is for those bold few who dare to walk the path and just not to talk. When we read our scriptures there are things that are very predominant. All our scriptures are in the form of Question and Answers. Right from all puranas, the crown of the Puranas being Srimad Bhagavatham starts with six questions. People who expound on the scriptures encourage the listeners to question. Upanishads are also about a disciple going to a guru and requesting him to delineate about truth, which the guru in turns explicates the concepts to his disciple.  The spirit of learning is an experience. When a pupil questions his guru and the guru does not give him an answer it shows the precept that answering the question is a means of stopping the quest and hence the guru does not answer.

There was this person who had a vital question about purport of life. He went around the world seeking answer to his question. Finally he went to an enlightened Master and earnestly desired to seek his darshan. The master did not give him any darshan and this person waited patiently. One day he became very impatient and so he barged in and posed his vital question to the master. He received a resounding slap. He then talked to a devotee nearby and he clarified to him that every action of the master is loaded with meaning. A true shishya will learn from all these things and since this person was new to this master he failed to realize this. The other devotee continued to explain that the master gave him a slap to make you understand that one should not trade a good question for an answer outside. Spirituality ends when the question is answered and when the answer comes from outside, then our spiritual quest also ends. That is verily why all Mahans do not reply to devotee’s questions immediately. They strongly encourage the devotees to find the answers so that the devotees can be light to themselves. This knowledge which is our own nature cannot come from outside. The Mahatmas make the devotees probe deeper and deeper into the truth so that we will uncover the truth and when we unfold the truth ourselves, we will not have any doubts anymore. In the above example, if the master had answered his devotee’s question, that the purpose of life is Self Realization, then everyone will come out with different versions of the answer and the truth is already lost. The master gave him a slap so that he does not pose this to question to anyone else and rather start to ask the question within himself. He slapped him to answer the fact that “question is verily spirituality” and that the answer to the question is not spirituality. The answer to the question is an experience.

All our true mahans and Gurus never disclosed the answers and that they encourage to find the answers ourselves and they provide a path to find the answers. So when we try to decipher the answers, we have to define the purpose of life in our own light and get the Mahans help to define it the right way.

So what is purpose of life? It is very simple and we need not go and refer the shastras for it. Everybody in this world is seeking happiness right from a thief to saint chase happiness. But the path they take to find happiness is different. Some attain it while some are still searching. So let’s try to find out that happiness and the source of happiness. Let’s define happiness from our daily lives. We generally love things because we derive happiness by enjoying those things. Here Mahatmas give a beautiful interpretation that the dearest to one is one’s self. For everybody their self is what they love more than anything else. Since we love ourselves and we derive happiness through it, mahatmas say that happiness in our own self and nothing else. Spiritual journey is not towards north or south, but it a journey towards the self which is verily the innermost. So we need to find that happiness within us and that is verily the reason why all the Vedas and Puranas finally take us to the where we originated from which is our self, which is our happiness and which is our nature. So we are now mistaken by the precept that by my accruing more and more possessions one’s happiness is bound to increase. So why are we intrinsically greedy right from a sinner to saint. A saint wants to attain the higher levels of happiness and a sinner wants more possessions and so he pillages. So why are we greedy? It is truly because people are under the notion that happiness can be multiplied to infinity. Happiness has no bounds. We go through pain in the process of deriving happiness which according to the normal mortals is infinite. Seeking is desire and that is what is forcing us into desire and we know intrinsically that we can get connected to the infinite happiness and that is why we strive hard. We think happiness is outside and hence we are avaricious. Greed arises from the fact that we can get to higher happiness and that the mistaken notion of more possessions results in more happiness. We see people dying around us but we cannot imagine our death because intuitively we know that we are immortal. We know that we are beyond time. People need to realize that they are the embodiment of happiness.

In the state of deep sleep, we enjoy the bliss beyond all the extraneous things. Happiness is derived from deep sleep. SO what do we possess in deep state? Nothing! But we love that deep sleep which goes us to show that adding possessions is not going to increase our happiness. In deep sleep when there are zero assets we derive maximum happiness. So from our experience, more possessions leads to more happiness is disproved and that is verily why all scriptures say “Sanyasae sarvatha sukam”. The path of sanyasa is not to renounce anything but to leave the notion of owning possessions. When possessions have to come it will come but when it has to go, it will go and the take away point is that one should go not cling to these worldly assets. One just keeps watching what is coming and going. Sanyasa means mental acceptance of what is coming and going and to be a witness to all these with a faith that somebody above is taking care of all the mortals. When the lord can take care of all big phenomena’s like sun rise, to take care of the lives of Jivas is a small thing for the lord.  When there is somebody who is ready to take care of all our burdens, let us just leave it to him and let us do our job efficiently. This means that we need to take all the physical efforts and let us mentally leave all burdens to the lord. By doing this we enjoy the present moment to the fullest. Once we start to enjoy the present moment then we do not tend to worry about past and future. When we perform the path of bhakti intrinsically, all the bhaktas do not worry and it is to be said that the path of bhakti is not escapism and that only worrying is escapism from the purpose of life. The purpose of life is to lead a happy life and attain the lord’s feet. We need to remember that we have to go back to the source.

The satsang ended with prayers and Namasankirtan.

Dec 10: Tukkaram and Samarth Ramadas

10 Dec 2010 Leave a Comment

by namadwaar in Telecon Satsangs

Our Guru Maharaj says that there is a constant battle between the Lord and the Jivas. The Lord keeps following the Jivas to take us unto him. But we, being who we are do not desire to be caught in the clutches of the Lord and hence keep running away from the Lord. The Lord being astute and sagacious than the normal mortals devised an easy way to catch these normal mortals. He placed traps very frequently in such a way that one cannot escape them. The traps are none other than the Sadhus themselves. The Lord has caught the Jivas through these Mahans and their divine satsangs. We are in this trap finally and now being a recipient of the sadhu’s grace and thanks to the Lord’s compassion for leading us unto the sadhus. Sadhus are verily the extended hands of the Lord to catch the jivas unto them.

Our Guru Maharaj says that there is one difference between the Lord and the Sadguru. If one goes to a Sadhu’s sanctum and puts forth his desire to talk about the Sadhu to everyone, the Sadhu would deny his request and instead request him to talk about the Lord to everyone. On the other hand the Lord would not be interested to hear about him and ask his devotee to sing praises of the Mahans and to extol their divine glories. It is a fact that it is easy to comprehend the Lord but very difficult to fathom the Mahan. The glories of the Lord can be told by Mahatmas only since they keep reveling in the bliss of bhakti and devotion to the Lord all the time through their divine hymns and divine experiences and expositions.  It is verily the Lord who can understand the Mahatmas. The Lord unfortunately is tight-lipped and hence it is impossible to perceive the Mahatmas. Our Guru Maharaj preaches the precept to everyone that one should not try to interpret a Mahatma by one’s intellect and instead believe his actions are for the welfare of the normal mortals.

Sant Ekanath extols the greatness of a Guru by saying that a Guru is verily a mother and a father.

“Guru Maatha Guru Pitha  Guru Amuchi Kuladevatha
Gora Patatha Sankatae Guru Rakshim Makemputae
Kaaya Vacha Aani Mana Guru Charanim Arpana
Ekajanarjanim charana Guru Eka Janardhana

I offer all my actions through my words, body and mind to the holy feet of my Sadguru, sings Sant Ekanath in his above Abhang. He says that he fails to see any difference between the Lord Janardhana and his Sadguru.

Sant Ekanath spent all his lifetime doing service to his sadguru Janardhana Swami. The Sadguru was very compassionate to him and decided to bestow the darshan of his Lord Dattareya. One day Janardhanaswami felt guilty for not having given anything to this attendant devotee of his. He was wonderstruck that this young fellow had nothing to ask of him. So, he himself decided to bestow darshan of his Upasana Murti, Lord Dattatreya, on the selfless Ekanath. He asked Lord Dattatreya to give darshan to Ekanath when the latter returned from his morning bath in the river. The next day when Ekanath stepped out of the river Godavari he found Lord Dattatreya under the nearby tree. Since one should not be disrespectful to God he prostrated before this Lord and circumambulated the Lord. Lord Dattatreya blessed him by placing His Feet on Ekanath’s head. Ekanath then returned home.

Here, at home Janardhanaswami was restless. He walked up and down awaiting Ekanath’s return. He kept rehearsing as to how he should handle the stunned Ekanath. It was not going to be darshan in a dream but a real one, just as one person sees another. Janardhanaswami thought, “Anyone who has darshan of the Lord would swoon. Ekanath would be in bliss. Full of joy he would come running and narrate the darshan breathlessly. I must calm him down.” But Ekanath returned home and carried on with his work as usual! The Guru waited for Ekanath to come and describe the darshan in an excited tone. But Ekanath did not! The surprised Janardhanaswami called his upasana devata and asked him, “Did you not give darshan to Ekanath?” Lord Dattatreya said, “I did! Just you had asked me I gave him darshan as he returned from his bath in the river”. The astounded Guru called the devotee. “How can you be so calm? Have you not had darshan of Lord Dattatreya this morning?” Ekanath simply replied, “I never desired this! Only if I considered someone other than you as God should I feel ecstatic! Since I consider you as God there is no new darshan of God to be had anywhere else. I never desired for it nor does this surprise me. I desire only you!”  “Ekajanarjanim charana Guru Eka Janardhana” – Sant Ekanath said that his Guru is verily his is Lord.  There is no difference between the Lord and the sadguru.  It is verily the Lord who sends the Mahans to rule the Jivas and liberate them eventually akin to how in a democratic country people elect their leader.

It is verily a Sadguru who grants liberation to the Jivas. Samartha Ramadas in one of his Abhangs sings that a Sadguru brings Lord Rama in front of his eyes. The life-history of Sabari is a classic example to substantiate this precept, where her Sadguru said that the person representing the Rama Naam will one day come in front of her and it is true that Sabari experienced it. Rama was indeed “Sabari Moksha Sakshibhuta”, which connotes that Lord Rama witnessed the Sabari’s liberation and the Moksha was bestowed on her by her Guru, Mathanga Maharishi. Such is the glory of a Sadguru and it is verily he who can bestow liberation to the Jivas.

After the wonderful exposition on the greatness of a Sadguru by Sri Narayananji fromBoston, Sri Zivanji fromChicagolectured on the greatness of a Mahan with excerpts from life-history of Samartha Ramadas and Sant Tukkaram.

It is only a mother who goes through all trials and tribulations to bring up a child. When the child grows up, the father proudly acknowledges his son to the world. A guru is akin to a mother since he absolves all the ignorance and makes him pure and pristine to reach the holy feet of the Lord.

How can a normal mortal identify a Jeevan Mukta? It is not possible for him to identify a Jeevan Mukta. Even the shastras, which is our reference to everything, fails to give a specific criteria or indications for identifying a Mahan. The way the Mahans conducted themselves is totally different from one another. We cannot call someone as a Mahan if he proclaims that he has seen god. One can only experience the god and not perceive him directly.  No one can actually mark the date as to when they experienced the Lord because the Lord resides in each one of the mortals and it only due to sheer ignorance of the normal mortals that one is unable to experience the Lord. Mahans on the other hand have torn apart their personal traits and merged with the Lord directly.

Once upon a time, there lived a king called Chatrapati Shivaji who was the ruler of what is now known as the state ofMaharashtra. One of his main objectives was to establish Hinduism across the state.  He was given blessed with the power of Tapas by his Guru Samartha Ramadas and he was trying to establish the Hindu religion in the state ofMaharashtrausing this benediction in his reign. It is interesting to see how Shivaji met his Guru, Samartha Ramadas.

Chatrapati Shivaji was once resting on the banks of a river on his way back from a hard-fought battle. He found peepul leaves with divine hymns on Lord Rama inscribed on them floating down the river. He read them and realized that the kirtans must have flowed out of a great Mahatma who has experience Lord Rama. One can realize if a kirtan or a sloka or a hymn has flowed out of a great Mahatma through the divine grace of the Lord or has been composed by a man by mere reading itself.  Shivaji traced back the leaves that were floating down the river and reached
Sanjanghat where Samarta Ramdas resided.  Shivaji shed off his attire and clad in simple clothing prostrated unto the holy feet of this Mahatma. The Mahatma welcomed Shivaji warmly as if he awaited his visit.  He offered a seat to Shivaji and the Mahatma asked him to have his food with them.  The king said that he was not by himself since he was returning from a battle. He had requested his battalion to stay away while he had the darshan of the Mahatma. Samarta Ramdas assured him that he was cognizant of the fact that the king would be accompanied by his entire army.  He said that food will be served to all including the elephants and the horses.  Shivaji humbly consented to the request.  The Mahatma then instructed his disciple to remove the huge boulder that covered the cave nearby and the sight that caught his eyes astounded Shivaji. The cave contained huge amount of various kinds of dishes that was more than adequate to provide a sumptuous meal for the king and his battalion. The King and his huge army had a great food. We all know that one should never question a Guru, but the flabbergasted King politely said that it was not possible for him, in spite of being a King to prepare this amount of food for a large number of people and humbly asked the Mahatmas as to how has this been made possible by the him.

Samarta Ramdas replied to the King’s question by saying “a Mahatma by name Tukkaram dwells in Dehu Roadand asked him to go and place his question before him and that he will give you the explanation.”  The king then left the divine abode of Samartha Ramadas after paying his reverence. Upon returning to his Kingdom, Shivaji forgot his meeting with Tukkaram, as he had to attend to various issues in his Kingdom. Many years passed by. One day while travelling with his army he found a signboard ‘Dehu Road’ inscribed in it. He immediately recollected his meeting with Samarta Ramdas and his words about Tukkaram. He proceeded staright to Dehu Roadand enquired Tukkaram. The people in Dehu Roadsaid, ” Tukkaram is a great Mahatma who is always immersed in singing the praises of Lord Hari and said that one can find him sitting on the mud pyol of a small hut which is his divine abode. “

Shivaji, stopping his army at a distance, walked all alone to the home of Sant Tukkaram who was poverty stricken. He was playing the ‘tamboora’, sitting on the mud pyol of his hut and was singing the glories of Lord Sri Hari.  Shivaji bowed down to him and humbly introduced himself. Tukkaram said, ” Oh! You are the great Chatrapati Shivaji. I am glad to meet you have you here and offered him a seat and requested him to have his food with him.”  Shivaji, said, ” Oh! Master! I have not come alone and I have left my battalion some miles away. “Tukkaram replied saying the he is very well aware that a king does not come alone and assured him that there is enough for all!”  Shivaji was aghast. Tukkaram lived in a small hut made of mud walls and his children wore torn clothes. There were only a few mud pots inside the hut. The roof had lots of holes and hence the sun’s rays were streaming inside the hut through them. Tukkaram then went inside and brought some wheat flour. He gave a pinch of it to Shivaji and to his huge army, including the elephants and the horses. No sooner has  every one of them  consumed the small pinch of wheat flour than they felt satiated that it seemed as if they would not need any food for  the next couple of days.

Shivaji thought to himself, ‘Samarta Ramdas being a single person, provided us all with a real sumptuous meal. But on the other hand Tukkaram being a householder living in utter poverty, gave just a pinch of wheat flour and it filled everyone providing nourishment for several days. Astounded by this miracle, he then hesitatingly and humbly asked Tukkaram as to how this has been possible by him. Tukkaram at once replied saying that there is a great Mahatma by name Samarta Ramdas and asked him to go to him and that he will provide an explanation for his question.
What does one need to decipher from this? It is not possible for a normal person to understand a Mahan. One needs to realize that only a Mahatma can understand another Mahatma. The way in which a Mahan is introduced to this world is only by another Mahan either in their lifetime or after their lifespan.

It is only by the ordinance of the Lord that one will have the divine association of a Mahatma.

The satsang ended with prayers and Namasankirtan.