I had to put this down in writing as I realised that it was a play of consciousness. Let me start by giving a bit of background. I had bought a Bhagvad Gita about 15 years ago from ISKCON by Swami Prabhupada, and then someone had taken it and not returned it - who I do not recollect. A thought used to always play at the back of my mind that I need to read the Bhagvad Gita and I should find time to go and get one. But somehow this never happened over the passage of time.
Yesterday, after meditation, as usual I was going home when the car halted at the Kherwadi signal. The traffic stops at this signal for quite some time. I was listening to Osho's discourse on the Ashtavakra Gita with my eyes closed when i heard a knocking on the window. I saw someone with books and I assumed that it was one of those hawkers who peddle pirated novels and I ignored him. After a few moments, the gentleman gain knocked on the window and I looked up at his face and noticed he was in a tonsured state, then I looked at his face and he was happily smiling and gesturing for me to lower the window. It was around 7.30pm and twilight had set in - on lowering the window I noticed he had the saffron robes of an ISKCON disciple. Once I lowered the window he thrust a book into my hands through the window and told me give whatever donation i thought fit. I looked at the book and noticed it was the Bhagvad Gita in complete detail by Shrimad Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada! I thought that I would donate Rs. 500 and put my hand into my pocket to bring out my wallet. By this time the signal had gone green, and Bharat had started moving forward. The ISKCON disciple told Bharat to drive slowly and started running alongside the car - he told me, "Sir, give my Rs. 500 as donation" - the exact amount which I had thought of! I gave him the money and he thrust his entire stock of Bhagvad Gita - 3 in English and 1 in Hindi into my hands and told me take them all. He asked for my visiting card which was in my bag, but the traffic behind had started creating a racket - hooting away in impatience! As I started opening my bag, he gave me a piece of paper and a pen and asked me to write down my cell number, which I did. As I gave him his pen and paper he said, "go with Krishna, we will get in touch with you."
Just a small incident, but I realised that it was a play of consciousness and the extra books have been given to me to distribute to whosover wants them.
Hare Krishna Hare Rama
Jai Baba Swami
Friday, April 5, 2013
Thursday, April 4, 2013
Murti Darshan - Dandi Ashram
I had told our Acharya on Monday April 1 to inform the Ashram that five of us would be visiting the Ashram on Wednesday, 3rd April, 2013. There were last minute cancellations and additions and ultimately seven of us left for Dandi utilising the full sitting capacity of the SUV. I had requested our Acharya to inform the Ashram that the sadhaks would be 6, but with one last minute addition it was seven of us who ultimately left for Dandi at 6.30am. As usual I took my mother's blessings and prayed to Swamiji for a safe to and fro journey. I picked up Bharati (her first visit to the Ashram) from outside her residence at Shivaji Park at 6.30am, then waited for Haren and his wife Bina near the Milan subway on the western express highway. They joined us at at about 6.50am and then we left for Borivali for our next pick-up. During the conversation, I lost track of which flyover I was to halt after at Borivali and inadvertently crossed the Borivali National Park flyover and stopped. I realised something was amiss and called Deepali, and by the time she joined us post the mix-up it was around 7.20pm. Deepali and her husband, Niteen got in and then our last pick-up was at Fountain Hotel signal - Bhushan we picked up at around 7.30am and then once we were packed to capacity we left for the ashram.
There was a lot of traffic along the way, and as I zig-zagged through the heavy vehicle traffic, listening to Ashtavakra Gita discourse by Osho, we still made pretty decent time and halted at Sugar and Spice for breakfast about 60 km from Navsari. It was 9.30am when we halted for breakfast. After breakfast of idli sambar and chutney washed down with a cup of tea, we left for the Ashram. The rest of the journey took us another 40 minutes and we reached the Ashram at 10.40am. I requested everybody to leave their mobile phones in the car itself, registered at the gate and then went to the office. The first timers wanted to see the library which is where the Madhuchaitanya Editorial Board meetings are held. After that we went for Murti darshan.
Around 11.15am we paid our obeisance to the beautiful energy statue which is slated to move to Rajkot Ashram on 15th April. The statue is beautiful and alive with a golden sheen and is in a sitting position. The Gurushaktidham has two statues now and the energy flow was palpable and very strong. As I sat down for meditation praying for universal peace and brotherhood, I lost count of time. My whole spine was being washed with cold energy, the palms had a whirring sensation at the center and the finger tips were tingling with raw energy. As I sent my consciousness outside into the open, I could clearly hear the 'miaow' of a peacock far in the distance, the incessant chatter of a variety of birds with the background sound of waves hitting the sea shore. The entire symphony of natures' music was very soothing, helping in the meditative process. The thoughts had slowed down, with significant intervals of thoughtlessness. The peace in that energy zone is to be experienced to be believed. I sincerely pray that everyone gets a chance to go there and enjoy the flow of consciousness.
By the time I got out of the meditative state it had passed 12.30 in the afternoon, I bowed down and paid my obeisance as I respectfully back-tracked to the exit, with my eyes constantly facing the energy statues. I left and met my fellow seekers outside - as we were told that there was still some time for the 'bhojan prasad' to be served, I told them that we could visit the 'gaushala' and see the kitchen garden. We took a stroll round the garden where there were chikoo's growing on a lot of chikoo trees plus brinjawls which were growing. We went from the rear and and came back into the Ashram lawns where I saw Rocky, the labrador lazing in the heat - I went and gave him a good scratching on his back, stomach, head, and neck - he just lay back enjoying with a look in his eyes which said "don't stop, keep scratching"!! After a few minutes I left him to his lazing and went to collect the coupons for the bhojan prasad, which I found had already been collected by Bhushan. We went inside and partook of the bhojan, which was dal kichdi and a potato vegetable made in curry with a glass of cooling butter milk.
After the tasty meal, I washed the plate and spoon and kept it back after drying it with the napkin. There was a sadhak who did not know that the plates had to be washed and out of his ignorance he had dropped it into the dustbin - Bhushan helped him remove it and then he washed it and placed it in the dining hall.
It was extremely hot - probably touching 40 deg celcius around 1.15pm. I told Bhushan that I was going to sit at the lake side. Haren and I went to the lake, Haren lay down on the ground in the shade of a palm tree and I went and sat on the bench facing the lake and the sea. This has been my favourite spot at the Ashram since my first 3 day stay during the sevadhari shibir in May 2009. I find tremendous peace at that spot. I sat there in a meditative posture closed my eyes and started going inwards, after sometime I started chanting 'Om' silently and to my pleasant surprise, With each 'Om' a strong cold sea breeze bathed me from head to toe. I was wondering whether this was happening or just a coincidence - so I stopped the 'Omkar'. The strong cold breeze also stopped and started coming in a milder fashion at inconsistent intervals. After a few minutes I started chanting 'Om' again and the same cold sea breeze started washing over me to the accompaniment of 'Om' - not only that my entire being became cold from inside and my 'nabhi' region had become ice cold. I could not feel the heat beating down on my body as the whole body had become cold from inside. I was in a state of pure bliss for about half an hour, after which I opened my eyes as it was time to leave because Deepali had to attend a 6.30pm class at Dadar.
Haren was still enjoying his post lunch siesta, so I went to where Deepali, Niteen and Bhushan were sitting and asked where the others were - they told me they were sitting in the shade. I told them I will call them as it was time to leave - I found them sitting in the Gurushaktidham - I requested the sevadhari to request them to come as it was time to leave. As they came out I paid my respects to both the energy statues with a silent prayer and as I turned around I noticed that Deepali and gang were coming for Murti darshan. Haren was following from behind. As he went for Murti darshan I told Bharati and Bina to sit apart and enjoy and experience the consciousness at the lake side. They went and sat together in the shade of a palm tree - they had not sat for more than a minute when Haren came hurrying back - stopped and went back to fetch his bag - I guess Paramatma wanted his wife and Bharati to enjoy more of the lakeside peace!! He came back 3-4 minutes later giving both Bina and Bharati 5-6 minutes of silence.
Around 2.15pm we left the Ashram and stopped at Babaswami Multimedia to pick up some Samarpan Meditation introduction books which Prabha Rao had requested me to get. From there we went to Baba Dham as Deepali and her brother wanted vibrated water. I went into the office said hello to Harsh and requested him for two bottles of vibrated water. After that went into the meditation hall and sat for 5-10 minutes engrossed within myself. Got up, went back to the office to register the names of the persons requesting the bottles and the reason why it was wanted. After that we took our prasad and left. By the time we left the Dham it was 3.15pm. I told Deepali that if she had to catch her class we would have to go non-stop with no snack breaks. Everybody agreed - I had estimated that we should reach Dahisar toll booth by 5.45pm, when Bharati said that with traffic it may be difficult. I told her that if our will-power is strong the universe will conspire to see that our wish is fulfilled. Everybody agree, and believe me we reached Fountain at 5.30pm, where Bhushan got off, Dahisar toll booth at 5.40pm, dropped everybody one by one and dropped Deepali at Dadar station at 6.25pm and reached home at exactly 6.30pm - which is the time I had told folks at home I would be returning by. The whole trip happened with Pujya Swamiji's infinite Grace, for which we are all eternally thankful. Jai Baba Swami
There was a lot of traffic along the way, and as I zig-zagged through the heavy vehicle traffic, listening to Ashtavakra Gita discourse by Osho, we still made pretty decent time and halted at Sugar and Spice for breakfast about 60 km from Navsari. It was 9.30am when we halted for breakfast. After breakfast of idli sambar and chutney washed down with a cup of tea, we left for the Ashram. The rest of the journey took us another 40 minutes and we reached the Ashram at 10.40am. I requested everybody to leave their mobile phones in the car itself, registered at the gate and then went to the office. The first timers wanted to see the library which is where the Madhuchaitanya Editorial Board meetings are held. After that we went for Murti darshan.
Around 11.15am we paid our obeisance to the beautiful energy statue which is slated to move to Rajkot Ashram on 15th April. The statue is beautiful and alive with a golden sheen and is in a sitting position. The Gurushaktidham has two statues now and the energy flow was palpable and very strong. As I sat down for meditation praying for universal peace and brotherhood, I lost count of time. My whole spine was being washed with cold energy, the palms had a whirring sensation at the center and the finger tips were tingling with raw energy. As I sent my consciousness outside into the open, I could clearly hear the 'miaow' of a peacock far in the distance, the incessant chatter of a variety of birds with the background sound of waves hitting the sea shore. The entire symphony of natures' music was very soothing, helping in the meditative process. The thoughts had slowed down, with significant intervals of thoughtlessness. The peace in that energy zone is to be experienced to be believed. I sincerely pray that everyone gets a chance to go there and enjoy the flow of consciousness.
By the time I got out of the meditative state it had passed 12.30 in the afternoon, I bowed down and paid my obeisance as I respectfully back-tracked to the exit, with my eyes constantly facing the energy statues. I left and met my fellow seekers outside - as we were told that there was still some time for the 'bhojan prasad' to be served, I told them that we could visit the 'gaushala' and see the kitchen garden. We took a stroll round the garden where there were chikoo's growing on a lot of chikoo trees plus brinjawls which were growing. We went from the rear and and came back into the Ashram lawns where I saw Rocky, the labrador lazing in the heat - I went and gave him a good scratching on his back, stomach, head, and neck - he just lay back enjoying with a look in his eyes which said "don't stop, keep scratching"!! After a few minutes I left him to his lazing and went to collect the coupons for the bhojan prasad, which I found had already been collected by Bhushan. We went inside and partook of the bhojan, which was dal kichdi and a potato vegetable made in curry with a glass of cooling butter milk.
After the tasty meal, I washed the plate and spoon and kept it back after drying it with the napkin. There was a sadhak who did not know that the plates had to be washed and out of his ignorance he had dropped it into the dustbin - Bhushan helped him remove it and then he washed it and placed it in the dining hall.
It was extremely hot - probably touching 40 deg celcius around 1.15pm. I told Bhushan that I was going to sit at the lake side. Haren and I went to the lake, Haren lay down on the ground in the shade of a palm tree and I went and sat on the bench facing the lake and the sea. This has been my favourite spot at the Ashram since my first 3 day stay during the sevadhari shibir in May 2009. I find tremendous peace at that spot. I sat there in a meditative posture closed my eyes and started going inwards, after sometime I started chanting 'Om' silently and to my pleasant surprise, With each 'Om' a strong cold sea breeze bathed me from head to toe. I was wondering whether this was happening or just a coincidence - so I stopped the 'Omkar'. The strong cold breeze also stopped and started coming in a milder fashion at inconsistent intervals. After a few minutes I started chanting 'Om' again and the same cold sea breeze started washing over me to the accompaniment of 'Om' - not only that my entire being became cold from inside and my 'nabhi' region had become ice cold. I could not feel the heat beating down on my body as the whole body had become cold from inside. I was in a state of pure bliss for about half an hour, after which I opened my eyes as it was time to leave because Deepali had to attend a 6.30pm class at Dadar.
Haren was still enjoying his post lunch siesta, so I went to where Deepali, Niteen and Bhushan were sitting and asked where the others were - they told me they were sitting in the shade. I told them I will call them as it was time to leave - I found them sitting in the Gurushaktidham - I requested the sevadhari to request them to come as it was time to leave. As they came out I paid my respects to both the energy statues with a silent prayer and as I turned around I noticed that Deepali and gang were coming for Murti darshan. Haren was following from behind. As he went for Murti darshan I told Bharati and Bina to sit apart and enjoy and experience the consciousness at the lake side. They went and sat together in the shade of a palm tree - they had not sat for more than a minute when Haren came hurrying back - stopped and went back to fetch his bag - I guess Paramatma wanted his wife and Bharati to enjoy more of the lakeside peace!! He came back 3-4 minutes later giving both Bina and Bharati 5-6 minutes of silence.
Around 2.15pm we left the Ashram and stopped at Babaswami Multimedia to pick up some Samarpan Meditation introduction books which Prabha Rao had requested me to get. From there we went to Baba Dham as Deepali and her brother wanted vibrated water. I went into the office said hello to Harsh and requested him for two bottles of vibrated water. After that went into the meditation hall and sat for 5-10 minutes engrossed within myself. Got up, went back to the office to register the names of the persons requesting the bottles and the reason why it was wanted. After that we took our prasad and left. By the time we left the Dham it was 3.15pm. I told Deepali that if she had to catch her class we would have to go non-stop with no snack breaks. Everybody agreed - I had estimated that we should reach Dahisar toll booth by 5.45pm, when Bharati said that with traffic it may be difficult. I told her that if our will-power is strong the universe will conspire to see that our wish is fulfilled. Everybody agree, and believe me we reached Fountain at 5.30pm, where Bhushan got off, Dahisar toll booth at 5.40pm, dropped everybody one by one and dropped Deepali at Dadar station at 6.25pm and reached home at exactly 6.30pm - which is the time I had told folks at home I would be returning by. The whole trip happened with Pujya Swamiji's infinite Grace, for which we are all eternally thankful. Jai Baba Swami
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
