Speech of HH Sri Ganapathy Sachchidananda Swamiji – June 18, 2016 – Melbourne, Australia
Compiled by Archana Penukonda
Jaya Guru Datta
Sri Guru Datta
Sri Maha Ganapataye Namah
Sri Saraswatyai Namah
Sri Padavallabha Narasimha Saraswati
Sri Guru Dattatreyaya Namah
Jai Veer Hanuman ki…Jai!
Normally, I speak in an Indian language, unless it is absolutely necessary to speak in English. I know a little bit of all languages, but don’t know any language entirely. So far the children of Bala Datta sang very well. I am very happy about the bhajans they sang. They need a little improvement. In Bala Datta in Dallas, USA, started with just three children, today there are 800-1000 children. During weekends and holidays, the children aren’t spending time watching TV or going to the movies or going out to play. These children also excel in their studies. The parents of these children got together and got the big Ashrama built there. It is worth more than Rs. 200 crore. It’s a very special place in the USA. 20,000 people showed up during Kumbhabhishekam (consecration) last year. The place is even attracting Christians. Students from Christian schools are also approaching with a desire to join Bala Datta classes. We place a lot of importance on speaking the mother tongue there, whether it is Kannada, Tamil, Telugu or Hindi. Everyone speaks in his/her mother tongue. There are classes to teach these languages. A lot of children attend these classes regularly. They are getting good practice attending satsangs. They speak very politely. They used to sing like this before, but now with practice, they sing really well. They are nearly ready to sing these bhajans in competitions. They are all middle class people. There are no millionaires. They have regular jobs. It is only now that some millionaires are joining. Otherwise, it is only regular middle-class people. This is creating history in America.
This Gnana Bodha Sabha, Datta Yoga Center, Hanuman temple is like an epic. There’s a nice website too. All my children there are computer professionals, all ordinary people. All of them settled there in the US recently. The Indians there are so happy, they feel as if India has been brought and placed there. They love Swamiji so much. There is so much devotion among devotees in America. The children there sing bhajans so well. They are studying Bhagavad Gita, Mahabharata and other scriptures. Wonderful Bala Datta. It all started with Bala Datta in Dallas. There were Ashrams in Pittsburgh and Baton Rouge. That was enough. But, devotees were asking to start an Ashram in Dallas as well. I asked them to start Bala Datta first to see how it goes. The Bala Datta program started. It is progressing now at such great speed that it is hard to stop. Everyone makes small donations and that in itself is very satisfying. Everyone donates 1% of his/her income. We didn’t ask anyone to do anything. There were no restrictions, we didn’t plead or ask anyone. On their own, believing that Swamiji was a family member, they came forward. They felt Swamiji was doing something for them that was giving them peace of mind. That peace of mind was all they needed. Money was not important, peace of mind was important. They felt they had hope and protection. They got a spiritual Guru. Money comes and goes, but Guru was essential in life. They wanted a Guru, they wanted the Guru’s power and energy in their lives.
It is enough to have a Guru in life. Money is not important. Desires and difficulties are another name for samsara (worldly life). Until we die, there are health issues – small operations, big operations etc. But, we need spirituality. Everything else comes and goes. The body is always ridden with some problem. There’s a new operation or some new anxieties each month. An eye problem, a tooth problem, some nose problem, some stomach problem, some problem with the spine, some ear problem, the body is always full of problems. The daughter didn’t have children, a son didn’t get married, another son didn’t find a job – it’s always worries about these things. A home is full of sorrows. There are always sorrows and the body is always ailing. Completion of one treatment indicates it is time for the next. My mother-in-law is unwell, my daughter-in-law is unwell, or my daughter is unwell or my son is unwell, this son getting operated on, or my son is in the ICU. There is a constant onslaught of these things. There is no peace. It is problem after problem. There are sorrows and ailments. When can we get a break to enter into spirituality? When can we get spirituality? We are always absorbed in these other worries. Constantly. So, will that situation get better? No. We may be happy in the morning and by night, it is sorrows again. We go to bed moaning in pain. We can’t sleep. We pop sleeping pills. There is always fear, fear of debt, fear of pain, or fear of others. We try to sleep with that anxiety, but can’t sleep with peace. Some people have learned this secret. They have learned that this is their karma. They learned that their own desires have led to this. Indians are slowly learning that this will haunt them till they die. They are gradually gaining awareness. What is the purpose of our existence? What do we need to acquire? Buy this house, sell that house, or buy another house. This is all we worry about. We leave some debt behind so our children also have to worry about it. There is no peace. When do we learn good qualities? When do we learn to sacrifice?
We should give to the one who has given all these things to us. Who gave us this energy? You must give this energy back to God. That is real spirituality. You can’t do anything about this – there is no peace, no happiness. You want real happiness. You want real truth. In the meantime, you believe in God, believe in the light. That is the purpose of our birth. We are not here for the problems. How many people have gone and been forgotten. Grandfather, grand mother, great grandfather, great great grandfather, are all dead. They all died in grief. Do you want to meet the same fate? You got a Guru. Now, when you die, you must die peacefully. You must die happily. You must leave this body happily. What is the need to leave the body in grief? You have a diamond you must use. You must use your Sadguru well. Even on garbage cans they write, “use me”. But we don’t want to use. We throw our garbage next to the garbage bin. Lazy fellows. You walk to the garbage can and throw the garbage next to the bin. You are supposed to pick up the garbage if it accidentally falls outside the bin, but you walk away like it is none of your business. This is our weakness.
If someone is doing a Satsang, you ignore and walk away because it is not Lata Mangaeshkar singing. That is how we are becoming. We want film songs. What do the bhajans mean? It’s not a drama. The names of God are sung in different ways. As you do this, it accrues to your merit of doing japa. Our chanting of God’s names should become effortless like our breath (ajapa japa). If we sing the various bhajans, we will automatically be singing the divine names of God. Why are there hundreds of thousands of songs? Just so we can sing a variety of songs. Then, we get the merit of chanting God’s names. That is why we sing bhajans in groups. Each person in a group bhajan session gets the merit of chanting the total number of chants sung collectively by the group. Each person gets the merit. So, if 40 people are singing the Hanuman Chalisa, each person gets the merit of all 40. That is why collectively singing praises of God has been done since ancient times in all religions, not just in Hinduism. People gather together and pray. Each person gets the collective energy from it. If a thousand people chant “Sri Rama”, each one gets the merit of chanting it a thousand times. That is why everyone should participate in group bhajans, because we get the merit of the collective chant. The power of singing the glories of God is very great. There is so much energy in it. All sorrows are removed. Singing the glories of God is penance. That is why we keep chanting the names of God. We are all practicing everyday. It is not enough to just hear lectures all day. You must sing bhajans too. You must try to follow the advice given in Bhakti Mala. It is available in all languages. After every bhajan session, read something from the Bhakti Mala. Read a page from the life history (of Swamiji).
All the devotees in Australia have come together to make this miracle happen. I am very happy. You’ve been bold. There was a little problem and we felt bad about it. There were uncertainties around acquiring the land, constructing the building etc. But we are here now. The devotees helped every step of the way. Even people that didn’t know Swamiji helped. I am very happy. Even though we had some disappointments along the way, we overcame those victoriously. This land is good, it is large. There is plenty of parking space. We learned that there is a good Indian community. Bring all your friends. Let the Telugu Association know. Knock on the door of every Telugu household. All your sins will be destroyed. You must spread the glory of Lord Datta. All other religions go door to door and spread the word. Invite them to the temple you are constructing. Some of them may be afraid that you are asking for money. Tell them that it is completely up to them if they want to give money later, but the goal is to gather people. It is always small drops of water that make a mighty ocean. Don’t ignore it because it is just a drop. Every drop counts. Some may give, some may criticize, some may be suspicious. But, we need this temple in Australia. You’ve made this temple possible in Swamiji’s lifetime. I’m very happy. Telugu, Tamil, Kannada devotees have all gathered. There are some English speaking devotees as well. The name itself is Little River. What a nice name it is. I am very happy that we got this place here. You all worked really hard. Please try to clear the loan as soon as possible. In Dallas, they cleared the loan for each stage before they moved to the next stage of development. The temple started with a shed at Dallas. The temple started in a shed in Pittsburgh too. Same in Canada. They are building a big temple in London, that first started in a shed. For five years, we were in a shed. After clearing all the loans, we built a big temple. It was a 10-year loan that was cleared quickly within 5 years. Devotees, even the ones who had just started working, gave away all their bonuses and benefits. You must increase your count. They had this many people in Dallas too, to start with. There were just about 10-12 families only. When I asked them to do Satsangs, they would wonder how, with such few families. Today, the place is overcrowded. It is very nice. Like the hotel owner Sachin Garg here, there are 2-3 people there. There are some in London too. The story seems to be repeating in all the places. It is very surprising that this place has come up. We wanted a center in Melbourne and we are here today. If we had planned Sydney, we would have done Sydney, but we planned for Melbourne. But, the Sydney people did not mind at all. It doesn’t matter which city it is; they are supporting it. There are many people joining the satsangs in Sydney. In the beginning, they were worried that there were barely any people. I asked them to forge ahead regardless assuring that people would join. Now, they see it themselves. We should take charge and stand up for it. At least one person should step forward. If one person steps forward, everyone follows. Everyone is afraid to start. If you resolve to start first, everyone will follow. Don’t wait for others to start, you start first and others will follow.
I am very happy. You’ve given me a great gift for my birthday. It’s a good present for the golden jubilee celebration of the Ashrama. It is a historical event for Australia. This is the Gnana Bodha Sabha, Datta Center here. We have many programs. We have Kriya Yoga, Pujas and many different kinds of programs. Later on, we’ll give the programs one by one. We don’t want them all at the same time. We want to surprise. There’ll be a surprise each month. Don’t let go of this opportunity. Don’t stay away thinking you’ll be asked for money. I will give you money if you wish. You must never think like that. Why can’t you give me back whatever I have given you? Who’s giving you all this? God is. I am God’s son. So, why can’t you give me back what God gave you? If you don’t, you will incur expense after expense along with interest. But if you donate here to the Guru, you will be able to save all expenses. This is the truth. I am not trying to scare you. Everyone had this experience. You’ve seen for yourselves what happens when you don’t give to Swamiji. That should not happen to you. I don’t want that happening to you even if you don’t donate. What can be done if you don’t give? We’ll just pray that God gives you good charitable qualities. There will be no anger at all. In fact, there’ll be more affection showered on them. Why? Because in order to increase their generosity, I will place more focus on them. Once they acquire the quality of generosity, my class is over successfully. Then, you will be blessed. What is the use of dying without that quality of sacrifice? You must learn to sacrifice, at least a little. Why do we offer money while taking mangala-arati? Because offering money is like offering flowers. We shouldn’t take arati just like that. We search for change and keep it handy before we take arati. It is like offering flowers to God as we get God’s blessings in return.
Such a big area here, it is beautiful. Even youngsters have come together to help. You’ve been obstinate to do this.
Jaya Guru Datta.
May God bless you.