March 2009 Annual Subscription Rs. 60 HONOURING SHASTRIJI MAHARAJ February 2009 In 1949, Atladara, thousands of devotees ho- noured Brahmaswarup Shastriji Maharaj on his 85th birthday by celebrating his Suvarna Tula. The devotees devoutly weighed Shastriji Ma- haraj against sugar crystals and then weighed the sugar crystals against gold. To commemorate the 60th anniversary of this historic occasion, on 2 February 2009, the devotees of Atladara re-enacted it in the pres- ence of Pramukh Swami Maharaj. Weighing scales were set up under the same neem tree (above) where the original celebration took place. On one side a murti of Shastriji Maharaj was placed and on the other side sugar crystals. Devotees dressed in the traditions of that period joyfully hailed the glory of Shastriji Maharaj. Swamishri also participated in the celebration by placing sugar crystals on the scales. Then, on Sunday, 8 February 2009, the occasion was celebrated on the main assembly stage, and again Swamishri, the sadhus and devotees honoured Shastriji Maharaj (inset). March 2009, Vol. 32 No. 3 CONTENTS FIRST WORD 4 Bhagwan Swaminarayan The Vaishnava tradition in Hinduism Personal Magnetism Maharaj’s divine murti... believes that God manifests on earth in four 7 Sanatan Dharma ways: (1) through his avatars (vibhav) in Worshipping the Charanarvind of God times of spiritual darkness, (2) through his Ancient tradition of Sanatan Dharma... properly consecrated murti (archa) in 8 Bhagwan Swaminarayan mandirs, (3) within the hearts of all beings as The Sacred Charanarvind of Shriji Maharaj their inner controller (antaryamin) and (4) in Darshan to paramhansas and devotees... the form of a guru or bona fide sadhu. 10 Sanatan Dharma The principle that God takes a human or The Sixteen Sacred Signs other forms to liberate countless souls and Significance and benefits of meditation... 12 Bhagwan Swaminarayan destroy evil is called avatarvad. Avatar means Bhagwan Swaminarayan’s ‘one who descends’. The approximate word in Adornments English is ‘incarnation’. It, however, does not How Shriji Maharaj dressed... exactly reflect the meaning of avatar, because 17 Philosophy – Swaminarayan Vedanta The Kena Upanishad the Hindus believe that though God himself The Secret to the Source of All Energy takes a living form and shows all the physical God is the all-doer... traits, he is totally divine. 22 Vicharan Bhagwan Swaminarayan manifested on Pramukh Swami Maharaj’s Vicharan earth (1781-1830 CE) for the ultimate moksha 25 BAPS News ■ Silver Jubilee Celebrations of BAPS of countless souls. His personal form was the Swaminarayan Chhatralay, Atladara locus of infinite divinity, beauty and bliss that ■ Mass Vedic Mahapuja Ceremony, was experienced by countless aspirants and Ahmedabad the non-initiated. His presence transformed, ■ APC Vidyanagar Annual Day, Anand induced samadhi and inner peace, brought joy, and strengthened morality and faith in the Website: www.swaminarayan.org E-mail: [email protected] lives of thousands. This issue celebrates the divinity and per- Founder: HDH Pramukh Swami Maharaj Editor: Sadhu Swayamprakashdas sonal magnetism of Bhagwan Swaminarayan Contributors: Sadhu Vivekjivandas, Sadhu Amrutvijaydas on his birth anniversary on Chaitra sud 9 (3 Designer: Sadhu Shrijiswarupdas Published & Printed by:Swaminarayan Aksharpith, April). The articles describe how his form Shahibaug, Ahmedabad–380 004. India. impacted the aspirants, the importance of his SUBSCRIPTION RATES Outside India (By Air Mail) India holy feet that were attributed with the 16 holy RupeesPounds US Dollars Rupees signs and the clothes he wore, which are 1 Year 400 6 10 60 2 Years 800 12 20 110 believed to be sacred and respected by devo- 3 Years 1200 18 30 160 tees. ◆ BHAGWAN SWAMINARAYAN Personal Magnetism Incidents from the life of Shriji Maharaj t was neither day nor night; mind that I have not been able to for- simply, dusk. Shriji Maharaj get them.” Iwas astride Manki, his That child was the legendary mare, trotting on the main street poet and literary giant of Gujarat, in Gadhada. His sadhus, parshads Kavishvar Dalpatram. The occasion and devotees were singing bha- marked his first and last darshan of jans while they followed Shriji Maharaj. But amazingly, even him. The procession ter- after 70 years, during which his life minated at Dada was filled and impacted with so Khachar’s house, where a many varied mundane incidents, his group of Shrimali Brah- experience of Shriji Maharaj’s dar- mins were awaiting for shan was fresh and vivid. From this Maharaj’s darshan. one can surmise the magnetic per- They had gathered for sonality of Shriji Maharaj. an annual occasion The famous Gujarati to commemorate poet Nanalal, the son of the death anniver- Dalpatram, opines about sary of a kin. On Maharaj’s divine, arrest- learning that God ing personality, “The was present here, Swaminarayan Sampradaya they had decided to come to has got at one go a slew of religious Dada Khachar’s house. Shriji Maharaj saw the wealth like the Vachanamrut, Shikshapatri, and Brahmins and dismounted. He gave his mare’s traditions of dharma, poets, sadgurus, festivals charge to Bhaguji and said, “Bhaguji, feed the and celebrations. All these are a great fortune mare.” Then Maharaj sat on a cushioned seat on for the Sampradaya and the country. But if they the verandah of the east-facing room of Dada’s were to be placed on one (weighing) pan and house. He welcomed and honoured the Brah- another thing put on the other, then the latter mins with a smile as they entered the assembly. would come down. And that thing was present The Brahmins were pleased. Some even took when the seeds of the Sampradaya were being the vows of initiation and became his disciples. sown. Today, we do not have that thing, but at Among the group was an eight-year-old that time it was priceless. That thing was Shriji Brahmin boy. He had seen and heard Maharaj Maharaj’s personal magnetism. His saint-poets dismount from Manki and say, “Bhaguji, feed have described it on many occasions and many the mare.” The occasion left a deep impression times” (Kavishvar Dalpatram Part 1). on him. Decades later, when the boy had Truly, Shriji Maharaj’s personality inspired a reached his twilight years, at 78 years, he stat- unique attraction and cast a spell. Wherever he ed, “The gesture and words of Bhagwan Swami- went, people swarmed to him like bees to flow- narayan left such an indelible impression in my ers. So many became mentally lost and 4 Swaminarayan Bliss ◆ March 2009 absorbed in his divine presence. tary darshan of Maharaj worked a miracle in his Adharanand Swami, a disciple of Sadguru life. He became a satsangi after Maharaj con- Muktanand Swami, describes Shriji Maharaj’s cluded his mortal stay. Later, he developed personality in his work, Haricharitramrut Sagar, detachment for mundane things and became a “After fixing one’s mind on one part of God’s murti sadhu at the hands of Acharya Raghuvirji one cannot fix it on another.” If one wanted to Maharaj. He was named Sadhu Madhusudan- shift one’s gaze from Shri Hari’s eyes to his nose, das. Every year, during chaturmas (four then it would be like moving the Himalayas. Such months), he performed austerities by surviving was the divine beauty and magnetism of his form. on only one fruit for the whole day (Shri The devotees became overwhelmed and felt ful- Haricharitrachintamani. 3.212). filled by his form, from head to toe. Premanand Once, while Maharaj was travelling on Swami and the other saint-poets have written horseback, he stopped by the Utavali river near hundreds of bhajans describing his form. Barvala for his horse to quench its thirst. At that One might think that such descriptions of time Radha, the wife of Vashram Luvana, and Maharaj’s overwhelming beauty by the Dayabhai Sutar’s mother came to fill their water paramhansas may be idealistic or expressions of pots. On seeing Maharaj they were attracted by emotional tides. But such inferences could be his divinity. Once the mare finished drinking proved wrong through many testimonies and Shriji Maharaj trotted off to Gadhada. The incidents that have been recorded in Satsang. women too left their water pots by the river There are no hyperboles, ornamentations or side and followed Maharaj to Gadhada on foot. wrong descriptions. The paramhansas have praised Maharaj to Once, Shriji Maharaj arrived at the village of be a ‘mine of beauty’. Just as one who digs a Unza. He camped by the village pond. Later, mine keeps on finding jewels, likewise the while he was discoursing to an assembly, paramhansas, who were literary giants, kept on Nityanand Swami, Parmanand Swami, discovering different facets of Maharaj’s divine Mahanubhavanand Swami and others came. form and described them. The three had not taken sadhu diksha at the In 1804 CE (Samvat 1860) Shriji Maharaj time. When Nityanand Swami saw Shriji visited the village of Memka. The young poet, Maharaj’s teeth he felt, “Such a set of teeth can- Gaja Gadhvi, had accompanired Ajabhai Patel not be that of an ordinary human being. He is for Maharaj’s darshan. Shri Hari had finished truly a God.” From that point onwards firm his morning bathing ritual and was coming out faith dawned upon Nityanand Swami. He was of the river. On seeing his gait Gaja Gadhvi was given sadhu diksha by Maharaj in the village of convinced that Maharaj is God. He felt that no Meghpur (Shri Haricharitrachintamani. 3.394). one could walk in such a manner other than Shano Bhagat was an aspirant born and bred God. Gaja Gadhvi gave up his householder’s life in Bhadra. On one occasion he had gone to the to be initiated as a sadhu by Shri Hari.