Speech of HH Sri Ganapathy Sachchidananda Swamiji during bhajan evening on second day of Sri Devi Navaratri Celebrations – September 26, 2014 – Mysore
Jaya Guru Datta
Unmarried students who are regular participants and winners of bhajan competitions should encourage other youngsters to do likewise.
Dummy students will be there in some classrooms to create interest in others in taking certain courses. Their presence in the classroom gives confidence to others, although they are not bona fide students.
The singers with good voices will be selected to sing chorus with Appaji. They can sit on the stage and sing with Appaji. Prize winners only will get preference. Swamiji is granting this boon to humble singers. A selection process will take place. A strong Bhajan group should continue even in the absence of Appaji. It should not be that unless Appaji or Bala Swamiji is present, there is no other proper bhajan group to conduct vibrant bhajans in any ashram.
Chennai group and some other groups feel superior to even the Mysore bhajan group. They even laugh at the Mysore group. Arrogance should not increase in bhajan singers. All are Swamiji’s granddaughters. You must remain humble. You should not look at the camera when you sing on stage. Sing naturally. In cinemas, only when the eyes have to be shown for a particular expression, the actors are asked to look into the camera. Not otherwise.
People here go their different ways. Some wander off to get food. Some are called away for some practice. And then, there is no one to sing bhajans. Sometimes, if I make a special request, some bhajan singers will oblige to come and sing. I am losing heart. Mysore children should develop their interest and skill. We have to strengthen bhajan singing. More practice you do, the better the quality of your singing. Repeat old bhajans. New is born from the old. Do not always be choosing only new bhajans. I have spoken my heart.
Some new singers have approached Swamiji asking to sing in the chorus. I refused them permission because they have never bothered to participate in any bhajan competitions.
Bhajan: Tripura maalineem vande
Daily, for years, Swamiji has been sharing with devotees, the stories about Mother Goddess. Never say. “Oh I have heard this before.” You must understand and be able to tell others the stories. Stories about liberation should be listened to, properly understood, and practiced in daily life. It is Sravana tapas/penance of listening. Then Mananam/pondering over should follow. Then mathanam/churning the topic internally should be done. We forget the stories we listen to. Or we question their veracity and dismiss them as fables. We do not keep recollecting the stories to really digest their spiritual essence.
We must carefully listen, to properly understand the stories about Mother Goddess. Lord Dattatreya Himself has declared that one, who dismisses these glories as useless and made up stories, will become a useless low class degenerate, like the wood-working carpenter of the Kalinga kingdom. To explain this point, Lord Dattatreya narrated the following story to Parasurama.
A famous carpenter lived in the Kalinga kingdom. Don’t be surprised that I am referring to a carpenter as a special artisan. If timber is cut wrong, then you lose a lot of wood. How the wood is cut and carved requires skill.
To get recognition for their art, artists present special pieces of their work to the rich and to the royalty.
Even a janitor has skills displayed in his work. Not everyone can clean a bathroom or floors perfectly. Even a dishwasher has to show perfection. When some people wash dishes, the black soot remains at the bottom, or grains of rice will still be sticking to the inside of the pan. Even making a bed requires skill and care. The sleeper should be able to pull up the blanket effortlessly. If in the middle of the night he has to get up to reach for the blanket, if he has to get out of bed, unfold, and then spread it to cover himself, he will by then become completely awake and his sleep is spoiled. Neela folds the sheet in such a way that it is easy for Swamiji to cover Himself. If someone else makes Swamiji’s bed, it becomes very obvious, by the inconvenience felt.
Those who make beds at once when they get out of bed will succeed in life. Those who leave an unmade bed as it is will suffer from poverty. Bed is god. Sheets and pillows must be washed frequently. Many do not even wash their dinner plates. They merely wipe a plate with a napkin. Such ones will die of hunger or disease. We must wash our own plates and bed sheets without burdening others with our work. The floors must be swept frequently and the dirt properly disposed of. Many people sweep the floor or front porch and push the dirt in front of the neighbor’s door. They then complain about the municipality workers whose work it is to take away our garbage. Those who do cleaning services should be recognized and rewarded. They are taking away our dirt and mess. These are dharma sutras.
In the kingdom of Kalinga, there lived a carpenter by name Kavala. He was a great artisan who carved wonderful sculptures. He made a living selling his works of art. Once, he made some especially beautiful wooden images and gifted them to the king of Kalinga. Highly pleased, the king honored the carpenter with lavish gifts. The carpenter became very wealthy. He even gave up his art. He was a pious soul, who frequently listened to the words of wisdom spoken by some scholars. But, he could not understand the meaning of what was being said. Once, a scholar was reading aloud from the scriptures. The carpenter went up to him and said, “Sir, I have been listening to your words but I am unable to follow the meaning. Would you kindly explain to me the spiritual message in words that I can understand?” The scholar felt pleased with the question and spoke about spirituality. He said, “He, who sees only the one soul that resides in all, will live his life free from any difficulties. Only good things will happen to him. In the end he will attain liberation.” The scholar received gratuity for his explanation, since the carpenter was very rich.
The carpenter did not understand these words. He felt that if God alone resided in all, then, he himself was God and there was no need for him to respect, revere, or worship any other gods or deities. He therefore decided not to engage in any noble deeds or charities. Treating his body as the ultimate instrument for pleasure, he indulged in excessive luxuries, sensual pleasures, and perished in the end.
We prostrate to deities or Guru, and go around the temple or a holy tree with our mind wandering elsewhere. It is like wrestling with air. No benefit is gained by mechanically offering prostrations or performing rituals without understanding, without paying attention, and without any devotion.
You should not tell an ignorant person, “God is in you also. Your body is itself a temple.” Misunderstandings occur and lead to pitfalls. He will then become arrogant and will torment others. One, who cannot understand small details, cannot jump to the highest philosophy. Many people foolishly wish for a shortcut to liberation. Why take the long route of Karma? Give us the direct route, they demand from Guru. A fake Janani will never know the Truth. A mature disciple will be sought by a Guru himself because he would be eager to teach him spirituality.
Everything should not be told to everyone. It should not be expected that everyone would understand everything all at once. Only when the disciple has become sufficiently mature he should be given initiation. Until the Guru decides that it is the right time to teach, the disciples have to wait patiently and eagerly. Even good things taught when the mind is yet undeveloped, will only cause ill effects.
Brahma, having completed his act of Creation, became absorbed in meditation again. Mother Tripura asked him, “Why have you stopped Creation?” Brahma replied, “Mother, by your intention, I was able to create. But I do not have the power to sustain whatever has been created.” Then the Mother of the Universe thought about Vishnu. “What is your command, Mother?” asked Vishnu. “I want you to preserve and nourish whatever Brahma has created,” Mother said. As per Her command, Vishnu began preserving and providing for the Creation to remain sustained. With Creation and Preservation, the world became totally filled and overcrowded. As a result, there was no room for further creation. Everyone had numerous children. Population exploded. There was no death. There were plenty of resources. There was no devotion. Demonic traits increased. Then the creatures began fighting with one another.
Seeing this chaos caused by feelings of anger and jealousy amongst the living beings, Mother thought about Siva and commanded Siva to begin his act of destruction. She instructed him to destroy and then give liberation to the souls. Siva commenced his act of destruction by opening his third eye, which completely burned to ashes whatever had been created by Brahma. Siva began destruction with volcanoes, hurricanes, and diseases. Siva did like Hanuman. Hanuman was sent to find Sita. He returned not only having found Sita but he burnt Lanka as well.
Seeing all that he had created getting annihilated thus, Brahma prayed to Mother Parashakti, “Mother, it pains me to see Siva destroying in an instant all the worlds which I have created. I pray to you to create the god of Death, Mrityu, in the aspect of Rudra, so that creatures will die gradually by giving up their bodies. When Mother created Mrityu accordingly, in the aspect of Rudra, Death shed tears saying, “I cannot do this killing.” Brahma collected those tears in his cupped palms and sprinkled them on the earth. Those drops turned into diseases and helped Death in his job of reducing the population of living creatures. The system of gradual decay and death was put in place. Even today new diseases are still emerging. People now die gradually after exhausting all family financial resources. Fathers depart from this world giving a begging bowl to their sons. Many of Swamiji’s devotees have now become wise. They insist that no fortune should be wasted on their medical bills. Some amount of relief from pain and suffering is okay. But artificially prolonging the life of the aged truly puts a burden on families.
The sudden death of a loved one upsets people. But if someone gets bed ridden, people get tired quickly of serving the ill and wait eagerly for the person to die.
Pleased with this sequence of Creation, Sustenance, and Destruction, following a steady pattern, Mother Tripura appeared before the Trinity. Her body consisted of three colors. Her form, with twelve shoulders, ten heads, and twenty five eyes filled the entire sky. She held in her hands a water pot, a rosary, a conch shell, a mace, a lotus, the Sudarshana disc, a deer, a spear, an axe, and a skull.
The Trinity showered their praises upon her. They also confessed to her that they were tired. Hearing their words, intending to give them some rest and respite, Tripura Devi created three female forms out of her body. They are Vani, Lakshmi, and Gowri. Tripura Devi is the mother of the three mothers. The three were accepted by Brahma, Vishnu, and Maheshwara respectively. Mother Parashakti Herself performed their three marriages.
Having obtained their spouses, the Trinity no longer suffered from any fatigue, and carried on their functions of Creation, Sustenance, and Destruction tirelessly and uninterruptedly.
Accompanied by these energies, the Trinity was happy performing the assigned duties. Siva shared half his body with Gowri and also wore Ganga on his head. Brahma kept Vani on his tongue.
Bhajan: Oyamma mayamma tripurasundari
O mother Tripurasundari, who is the fortunate one who is able to see you or get close to you? You are the consort of Siva. You reside deep within him. Siva’s entourage blocks the entry indoors to all outsiders. It is next to impossible to penetrate into the inner chambers. Only he, who places Guru’s feet on the head, is able to enjoy your glorious vision in the divine inner chambers of Siva.
Bhajan: Rajarajeswari raja kireete
Mother showers Her grace on those who are unselfish and fully surrender at her feet.
The above episode describes the power of Mother Tripura. Those who listen to this story will have all their wishes fulfilled. They will lead healthy, comfortable, and happy lives. Those who understand the principle of Mother Tripura will cross this ocean of Samsara/worldliness. The graceful deeds of Mother Goddess should be shared only with devotees, and never with atheists.
“O Parasurama, I advise you to always remain in contemplation of Tripura Devi. It will lead you to liberation,” was the instruction given by Lord Dattatreya to Parasurama.
Sri Guru Datta