Swami Shreeji

Volume 4, Issue 3 Satsang Times April 30, 2014 Happy Birthday Bapa!

In the small villages of Gujarat, during summer time, one would find many In this issue: youths surrounding Yogi Bapa like bees surround flowers. It was because of

Bapa’s tender care and motherly love that many youths were naturally and  Happy Birthday Bapa! divinely attracted towards him. Even though these villages were devoid of  Power of Chanting basic facilities, the youths would neglect alluring material pleasures and choose to spend time with Bapa. Washing utensils, cleaning bathrooms,  The Greatness of Mantra rendering mundane services were some of the activities that these youths opted to do with their time. Bapa had a divine vision. When young people  Spring Shibir 2014- At a were feeling dejected by societies, institutions, schools, parents and others, Glance Bapa saw potential in them: potential to live a spiritual life and guide others on the same path. For Bapa, youths were his heart and their vibrant energy  Homage to Dr. Sanandbhai Saheb was the means to spread the true upasana of Lord SwamiNarayan and lead many on the path of spirituality.

Divine Days: Bapa knew that it was the youth that would spread the divine message of Lord

SwamiNarayan. In order to enlighten them, Bapa started a weekly youth  May 5: Hariprasad assembly in every town and continuously endeavored for its success. In the Swamiji’s Birthday beginning, it was very hard to convince youths to join this assembly, so on many occasions, the leaders would be disappointed. Bapa wrote hundreds of  May 19: Bapu’s letters to rejuvenate their hope, consolidate their faith, and give courage. Bapa Birthday regularly inquired about their progress and diligently read each report that was  May 25: Yogi Bapa’s sent to him. It is because of his meticulous efforts and vision that thousands of Birthday youth centers worldwide are flourishing today and several inspired youths walk on the path of spirituality.

Note from the Editor: Bapa’s love towards youths was pure, nurturing, tender and without any Please contact us at expectations. In spite of making repeated mistakes, Bapa accepted them [email protected], without being upset or showing dejection. Due to a lack of proper hygiene, or Bapa never allowed anyone to eat out in restaurants. Many youths would still [email protected] go outside to eat ‘bhajiya’ (type of fried snacks). When Bapa would come to with any feedback. know, and instead of rebuking them, he would request the saints in cooking From Chicago, seva to make bhajiyas. Then he would lovingly serve to everyone, and even Richa Shah’s force them to eat more and more. Due to Bapa’s such gestures, the young Jay SwamiNarayan people would introspect on their actions, and their love towards Bapa increased even more. Mahant Swamiji often says that Bapa was a university of such virtues. Virtues like tolerance, compassion, patience, gratitude, respect, and humility were flowing through Bapa’s each action and word. Just as a sunflower would naturally and effortlessly lean towards the sun, a display of such divine qualities was natural and effortless for Bapa. Even though Bapa had studied till only Grade 6, young adults with high educational degrees and exceptional academic backgrounds were also drawn to him.

One time when Bapa was in Akshar Deri in Gondal, a cigarette dropped on his orange cloth from a devotee’s pocket. Bapa saw it but didn’t utter a single word. Instead, he picked up the cigarette, looked at it and put it aside. Not even a small change on his facial linings was noticeable. Without losing his temper, Bapa persevered day and night for devotees to eradicate their bad vices. On one occasion, Bapa was beaten up so badly for allowing a devotee to eat little cocaine. The reason was that the devotee was having severe Satsang Times, Volume 4, Issue 3 temper, Bapa persevered day and night for devotees to eradicate their bad vices. On one occasion, Bapa was beaten up so badly for allowing a devotee to eat little cocaine. The reason was that the devotee was having severe withdrawal symptoms, and he pleaded Bapa for it. When that devotee saw Bapa take on the beating without uttering a single word in defense or blaming him, he vowed to not indulge in any intoxicating drugs. Bapa’s focus was to purify mankind and he used all applicable methods to do so. Many times, devotees may have gotten tired, but Bapa’s efforts had no end. Bapa’s such loving actions of compassion would dramatically change the behavior of devotees. His spontaneous love and contagious smile had won the hearts of millions. As a result, there were not a hundred, but thousands of devotees were drawn to follow him. In all of Bapa’s missions, Kakaji’s name could not be unnoticed. Kajaji was the pioneer in explaining Yogi Bapa’ greatness. Without Kakaji, everyone took Bapa to be a very simple saint. But Kakaji expounded his true glory. He laid the foundation by explaining the greatness of Bapa, and then Bapa laid down the bricks, which in turn became big buildings later on. Where Bapa had planted seeds, Kakaji made sure to nurture them and eventually they grew into big trees that provided shade and comfort to so many. Kothari Swami, Prem Swami, Doctor Swami, Das Swami, Saheb Dada, Haribhai Saheb, Ashwinbhai Saheb, Shantibhai, Dr. Sanandbhai, Ratibai, Dr. VS, Poonambhai, Barrister, Harshabhai, Bapu, etc. were the culmination of these efforts.

On the occasion of Bapa’s birthday on the 12th day of the dark half of Vaisakh (May 25), we pray to Dinkar Uncle and gunatit saints that we acquire such virtues so as to glorify Bapa. We imbibe the principles of Yogi Gita, which Bapa practiced throughout his life, in our life. We transcend maya in the form of material pleasures and lead the mission of Bapa to make ourselves Brahmroop.

The Power of Chanting In the last canto of the Shreemad Bhagavad, Sage VedVyaas described the predictions and prophecies about the dark times for the present age of Kali Yuga. It would be surprising to know that even though these predictions were written at least 5000 years ago (the age of Kali Yuga), they appear so accurate today. Only some of them are described below. The complete list can be found in the second chapter of the 12th canto.

1. Due to the powerful influence of Kali, religion, truthfulness, cleanliness, tolerance, mercy, physical strength, duration of life, and memory will diminish day by day (12.2.1). 2. Wealth will be the measure of man’s good behavior, fine qualities and a good birth. Justice will be favorable to one who has power (12.2.2). 3. Men and women will live together merely because of superficial attraction. Also, the one who knows and applies the techniques of deception will be successful in a business (12.2.3). 4. One who is very good in argument and juggling words would be considered a learned scholar (12.2.4). 5. A person will be judged unholy if he doesn’t have money. Hypocrites will be revered as virtuous men ; (12.2.5). 6. Religion will be observed only for the sake of reputation. One will be called an expert if he can maintain the family. The truthful person will be one who is audacious (12.2.6). 7. The political power will be gained by the one who, among any of his social class, shows himself to be the strongest. The earth will become crowded with corrupt people (12.2.7). 8. People will experience frequent droughts. Harassed by famine and excessive taxes, they will turn to eating leaves, roots, flesh, wild honey, fruits, flowers and seeds (12.2.8) 9. The citizen will suffer greatly from cold, wind, heat, rain, and snow. Quarrels, hunger, thirst, diseases and anxiety will be frequently experienced by many (12.2.9) 10. The life span of human beings will be 50 years. 11. Men will no longer protect their elderly parents. 2

Satsang Times, Volume 4, Issue 3

12. Men will develop hatred for each other even for a few coins.

However, despite all these negative prophecies, there is one good thing in the Kali Yuga, which Vyaasji mentioned in the verse 51 of the 3rd chapter of the 12th canto. He said, “Although Kali Yuga is an ocean of faults, there is still one good quality about this age: Simply by chanting the name of Lord Krishna, one can become free from material bondages and be promoted to the transcendental kingdom.” (Translation from Indiadivine.org)

This is very similar to what has said in the talk 1/154 of . By chanting the SwamiNarayan mantra, one becomes Brahmroop and transcends maya. In this age of Kali, under the guidance of Dinkar Uncle, we have the best opportunity to chant the name of God. Let’s take the maximum advantage of it by chanting the great mantra of “SwamiNarayan” for at least 2 hours a day as Dinkar Uncle suggested.

The Greatness of SwamiNarayan Mantra- from P.P. Dinkar Uncle’s discourses The SwamiNarayan mantra is a powerful mantra. Our scriptures have described over 70 million different mantras . Whatever deity we chant the mantra for; it brings us closer to that deity. There are also some mantras to harm others. They have negative vibrations attached to them. These negative mantras would not affect us because we are shielded by the SwamiNarayan mantra. If someone throws a rock towards us in the open field, we will get hurt. But, if there is a wall in between us, we will be safe. The SwamiNarayan mantra is like an invisible wall, which protects us from adversities. Kakaji would chant a lot. He would chant while driving from Bombay to Vidyanagar. From Tardeo he would start and never get tired. Even in USA, when we went on trips, he would chant. So it became a habit to us as well, and we started chanting as well. And now we all have started chanting for at least 2 hours per day.

The 70 million mantras can be divided in two parts: some are for the past deities and some are for the present. For example, the SuryaNarayan's mantra is of a present deity, since the sun is present now. The mantras of present deities are powerful because god communion saints or deities, who are present, constantly infuse power in them. Somebody asked Tulsidas if he had seen Lord Rama. Tulsidas said yes. The devotee also expressed his desire to see Lord Rama. Tulsidas thought he shouldn't say he was the form of Lord Rama because upon hearing such answer, the devotee's faith would waver. So he answered differently. Tulsidas said, “You will find Lord Rama in a person who has no desire for money or women.” Tulsidas, himself, was of such caliber. The devotee understood the hidden message that by having darshan of Tulsidas, he was having the darshan of Lord Rama! The moment the devotee realized that, he saw Lord Rama in Tulsidas. Some people may think, Maharaj granted samadhi (trance) to many people during His time, why can’t we have samadhi today? Maharaj gave samadhi to many people during his time, but only Gunatitanand Swami was able to spread the real greatness of Lord SwamiNarayan. If we have indomitable faith, then regardless of if we chant the mantra with open or close eyes, we can get samadhi. When we are at a restaurant, do we go with a doubtful mind thinking they will not accept 100 dollar bills? Some bills are fake; still we don’t doubt its value. If we doubt it, we wouldn’t be able to use it. Similarly, if we chant with a doubtful mind, we don't get the full effect of dhun.

Right now, we are all sitting here and suppose, a man comes from that door with a Black cobra in his hand. We would run away, because we don’t have full conviction in Maharaj and the mantra. It happened to Yogi Bapa. A cobra bit him. Some devotees suggested taking him to the hospital to get proper medical treatment. wanted to prove the power of SwamiNarayan mantra and asked devotees to take him to Akshar Deri. 3

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“Let us pray so that the effect of poison wanes” Shastriji Maharaj said. After a few hours of chanting, surprisingly, the effect of poison subsided. The Cobra bite didn't affect him at all. Once, Kakaji was sitting under a tree giving discourses. The snake charmer brought a green poisonous snake and put it on Kakaji. Everyone near Kakaji ran. Kakaji was steady and calm. Kakaji truly believed that God is all doers. Kakaji believed that the controller of the snake is my Maharaj. After some times, the snake moved away. Seeing this, the snake charmer also came to get Kakaji to get his blessings. The SwamiNarayan mantra is very powerful. Is there a reason for us to run from the snakes? If God doesn't want them to bite, then even if 6-7 snakes come, none would touch us. If we elevate ourselves to such understanding, we shall be at peace and nothing wrong would happen to us. The gunatit saints have this confidence and even we can build this confidence .The way to build this confidence is to chant with trust in the mantra.

Furthermore, the mantra should be chanted for well-being of others protecting other and we must not abuse this mantra. This mantra can make us Brahmroop. Chanting is the best method to become Bhramroop. Chanting with total honestly and pure heart can elevate us beyond maya. No matter how many bad thoughts or vices we have, but if we chant, all bad vices will be eradicated and we will attain the inner peace. The more we depend on the mantra, the happier we would be. Further, we must always believe that God would never do anything that is not for our betterment. But when any issue comes in our life we always complain to God but we must consider that as a stepping stone and should take it positively.

There is a story of a king and a minister. The minister was theist and the king was atheist. The minister firmly believed, ‘Everything happens for a reason, and it happens only by the will of God for his betterment.’ One time, while eating sugarcane, the king cut his finger which caused too much bleeding. The minister said, “Whatever happens, it happens for good.” Upon hearing these words, the king became furious and he ordered his soldiers to arrest the minister and put him in the jail. He further instructed not to give him food, water, etc. till he died. Incensed with anger, he decided to go for hunting. He had some people backing him up. He saw a very nice deer and tried to capture it alive. He left all his men behind. The minister in the jail was doing dhun so he was not feeling hungry or thirsty. After some time, the king became hungry and thirsty. In search of water and food, he arrived in the area ruled by the wild people. These wild people were looking for someone of a high name to offer to their God, so they captured him. They tied him to a tree with a rope to a tree until morning. The whole night king was under fear of getting killed, while the minister in the jail was fearlessly chanting. The next morning, the leader came to prepare the king for sacrifice. However, the priest saw his bandage. The rule is that when you sacrifice someone, that person should be without any cut. The Priest started yelling within the group to see who made the mistake and meanwhile the King escaped. The king realized that the minister was right that everything happened for good. Had he have not cut on the finger, he would have died. As soon as he reached to the palace, the king released the minister and apologized him for the mistake. While eating lunch, the king narrated the whole story to the minister. Then, the king asked a question, “What good has happened to you by spending the whole night in jail staying hungry, thirsty, etc.?” The minister replied, "Whenever you go outside I always give you company. I would have always followed you and I wouldn't have gotten lost. You have the cut and you would have been saved but what about me, I had no cut.” Therefore it was better that I stayed here. But when we are in this type of situation, do we think this way?

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Satsang Times, Volume 4, Issue 3

Spring Shibir 2014- At a Glance- Emily Rider

Every year, our satsang family assembles together for a weekend retreat. It is truly a time well spent in service, learning, sharing, instilling values to our youth, and practicing devotion. This year's spring shibir (seminar) was extra special. Fagan Vad Ekadashi marked Day 1, which meant we began with purified intentions and inner strength.

This year's theme was How to Become Brahmaroop. We were graced with 5 of Gunatitanand Swami's talks that P. P. Bharatbhai had selected. These 5 talks explained the different ways we can elevate into the Brahmaroop state. Not only were we shown which talks reveal how to liberate to Akshardhaam, but we were given great in- depth explanations by fellow devotees from different viewpoints. We were essentially given a step-by-step guide on how to attain a treasure so rare and so precious, that our minds cannot fully comprehend. The weekend was perfectly packaged and conveniently placed right into our laps; it was poured right into our cups - and all we had to do was enjoy!

Here is a summary of the divine nectar that was given so lovingly over the shibir weekend:

• Chapter 1, talk 154: Always chant the SwamiNarayan mantra. By doing so, we become Brahmaroop as well as being able to overcome time, karma, and maya.

• Chapter 3, talk 12: Have unshakable faith that Lord SwamiNarayan is Supreme and that our gunatit Saint, Dinkar Uncle, is Brahmaroop - stay in his association so that we forever remain in God's service. By having such firm conviction, we also become Brahmaroop.

• Chapter 3, talk 33: We will definitely become Brahmaroop by being completely and totally honest with our satpurush. Attach to him with affection and develop full trust in him.

• Chapter 4, talk 140: Our jiva becomes Brahmaroop when we describe devotees' virtues; never their faults. (Dinkar Uncle explained that it is best to talk about devotees positive qualities to others, not directly to that devotee. This way, that devotee will hear, via 3rd party, the nice things you have said about them and will have a greater liking toward your sincerity).

• Chapter 5, talk 29: Believe yourself to be Brahmaroop right now, from the bottom of your heart. Because the quicker you do, the sooner God accepts and protects you as His own precious devotee.

With our Dinkar Uncle's grace, I pray that we can all effortlessly imbibe these talks into our daily lives. I pray that we ALL elevate to the highest degree, to the Brahmaroop state in this very life.

Homage to Dr.Sanandbhai Saheb At many places in , Maharaj has praised the brave nature of devotees. In Loya 3, He has praised Mamaiyo, and Meramal, two Kathi devotees of the village Gundali for their bravery. Furthermore, in Vachanamrut Loya 2, Maharaj placed His holy feet on the chests of devotees who had inclination of courage. Moreover, Maharaj chose Kathiyaawara as His spiritual hub and stayed among brave Kathis indicating his love for such devotess. A few days ago, we experienced a loss of such brave devotee, Dr. Sanandbhai of Anoopam mission in Vidyanagar. Giving up his physical body, he returned to Akshardham on April 22, 2014. He has narrated many of his divine experiences with Kakaji in ‘Jevaa Me Nirkhyaa Re’, a book describing devotees’ personal 5

Satsang Times, Volume 4, Issue 3 experiences with Kakaji. He has also stayed at Waukegan Mandir for a few days and has praised the environment of Waukegan Mandir. He has said, “In a country like America, Waukegan temple is even better than many Indian temples! There is no maya here; there are always discourses, bhajan and bhakti. Kakaji is present here in America through the Waukegan temple.” When Sahebji and brothers were in college, as per Yogi Bapa’s wish, Kakaji used to frequently visit Vidyanagar to guide them. Dr. Santbhai often accompanied Kakaji during these times. The railway station was in Anand, so often they would go from Vidhyanagar to Anand on bicycle. If anyone would try to overtake them, Dr. Sanandbhai would grab him by the shirt collar and say, “Do you know whom you are bypassing? He is a Brahmaswaroop saint! Never bypass Kakaji, otherwise I will beat you up!” If someone from his town would come and question him, “Why are you becoming a sadhak? Get married!” He would dramatically take a bunch of grass, burn it, and threaten to burn the whole town similarly. It reminds us the incidence of Maharaj, when He asked Gunatitanand Swami, “Did you burn your home when you left it to become a sadhu?” Gunatitanand Swami had no attachment, but just to follow Bhagwan’s command, he turned around and went back to burn the house. and Nityaanand Swami had to ask Maharaj, “He will really do it! Please stop him.” Dr. Sanandbhai had firm conviction towards his Guru and was resolute toward his goal to become brahmroop. His brave nature has helped him tremendously to achieve his goal. Recently, we celebrated his 75th birthday along with Rati Kaka and VS Patel. He was never interested in his birthday celebration. Once, someone mentioned his birthday and he just got up and left the town! The fact that he attended his 75th birthday was a big surprise and was a Maharaj’s divine plan since it was to be His last birthday. We still witness his brave nature on many occasions. During his birthday, he had a mala in his hand and when he saw Jyotiben sitting on the other side, he said, “We are doing this mala for all these devotess, you sanctify this mala!” Every day, during his morning pooja, he would remember devotees that are in his long list, and pray for their well beings. Even during the last few days of illness, he didn’t forget to pray for us. We pray to Dr. Sanandbhai to bless us with virtues of indomitable faith, courage, respect, care and love for each other. Jay SwamiNarayan!

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