Speeches of HH Sri Ganapathy Sachchidananda Swamiji – March 6, 2014 – Rameshwaram
Speech in the morning
Jaya Guru Datta
(Conch shells were offered by devotees to Sri Swamiji at Rameswaram. They were worshipped and blessed by Sri Swamiji.)
This prasadam from Swamiji will be placed at a counter outside. Whoever wishes to obtain it for their home may go in a queue and purchase it. Do not crowd there all at once. Once all conch shells are exhausted, if you still wish to have one conch shell, you come to me. I will blow in your ear. If you hear the sound of a conch shell, that means you have devotion. If you only hear the sound of oof air, then, you have no devotion. Take the conch shell home. It is a tradition that when you visit Rameswaram, you take home one conch shell per home, not one conch shell per person. So, it is first come first served. We have lots of conch shells.
Appaji will perform abhishekam to Siva and will return. I will be here till the afternoon or even evening 5 PM until all devotees receive prokshanam (sprinkling of holy water on the head) from me. Those who have completed their turn may go have lunch and come back to sit here if you wish.
The holy water kept at Mysore ashram consists of water from all the seven seas, from all the seven continents, and all 24 holy rivers and their tributaries. The extraordinary feature is that in spite of the mixture of water from so many different sources, there is no fungus formed in it. Once sea water is added, it normally develops fungus. Surprisingly here, it remains crystal clear. Even scientists are amazed. The water is kept in a large clear glass container with a faucet. We take a small amount at the times of abhishekam. Sometimes some devotees request some for a special purpose. Swamiji keeps adding to it. Not a single germ is detected in the water even after lab tests. It is pure as if it is water from Ganga brought directly from the Himalayas. It is pure water from the matted locks of Lord Siva. It is pure sacred water from the feet of Lord Vishnu. It is the water from the Kapala of Lord Brahma. It is the Trimurti Ganga. It is called Datta Ganga. We are using that Datta Ganga for all important rituals like Kumbhabhishekams and Kalasa installations. Our children are used to the procedure. It is followed without fail. We add a few drops of this holy water. Whether I instruct them or not, they add that water. Yesterday during abhishekam at the temple a little bit of that water was given to the priest to use for abhishekam. It is water from Ganga brought from Kasi.
Generally the water is brought from Kasi. Sand is taken from Rameswaram to Kasi to be mixed in the Ganga waters. Lord Siva here is given abhishekam with Ganga water brought from Kasi. Then the Ganga water is taken and abhishekam is performed to Lord Sachchidanandeswara in Mysore. That will complete the pilgrimage, your pilgrimage. Swamiji has no requirement to go on any pilgrimage. All this is done for your benefit. Your pilgrimage is important for Swamiji. Swamiji has come here for your sake. Without any flaw, that you all should merge with Lord Siva and Lord Vishnu, Swamiji has taken up this pilgrimage. This is not for me.
Now the holy water from Mysore that is free from fungus is here. Any scientist will vouch for the fact the when the water of ten rivers and sea water are mixed, certainly fungus will grow. We have kept that water now for 19 years, since the trip to Manasarovar by Swamiji in 1995. There is no trace of any fungus. It is said that vacuum packing will protect from fungus. But we have not restricted the air flow. It is not kept in a sealed bottle. Daily before Sri Chakra Puja that is performed in Swamiji’s private quarters, Swamiji observes and checks the purity of the water. Whether ill or well, Swamiji compulsorily performs abhishekam to his Saligramas at his personal puja altar.
One day Hanuman teased me. Why do you daily check for fungus? You yourself have fungus now. The moment he said that, I began to cough. I asked him why he is punishing me, who am without blame, just for checking the purity of the water. One should never question the purity of Ganga water. Even Lord Siva will suffer punishment if he questions or doubts it. Lord Vishnu also will not be spared from punishment if he doubts the purity of Ganga that emerges from His feet and from Siva’s head.
Such power and energy the water from Ganga has. If one spits into Ganga or in any manner contaminates it, all types of sins will accrue to such a person. If the body is unclean, you are allowed to take water from the river in a container and clean yourself elsewhere. There is an exemption for that. But you should not clean yourself in the river. Take a bucket of water and wash yourself and cleanse yourself of all dirt and filth before entering the holy waters. You must never take soap and scrubs and wash yourself in the river. You must not spit in the water or make the water dirty with the filth from your body. Many people do this. Many are ignorant. They do it unknowingly. Now you know. So do not do such things in the future. Be very careful. When you dump your dirt in the holy river and wash your clothes or sacred thread in the holy water, does it bring you spiritual merit? No. It brings you sin instead. That is why you are required to take a bucket of water from the river and wash yourself where the soiled water gets soaked into the ground, before stepping into the sacred river. If you do that, you avoid earning sin. Otherwise, simply take a dip and chant Om Namassivaya. You may go home and take a bath if you wish. Then there is no wrong. Or, simply sprinkle water on your head. That is sufficient. Then you do no wrong. Who is forcing you to bathe in the river? Nobody. Take a glass of water from the river and use it to add to your bath water to bathe with it later.
Ganga water is very pure and sacred. Never make it dirty. It is not good. Just take a dip in the water three times, chanting Namassivaya. Then come back. Go to your room and take a bath. You bathe outside the river. Not inside the river. You do wrong unknowingly. Then it is forgiven. Swamiji has forgiven you. Now you are like newborn babies. Datta babies. You are new children. You must instruct others. Only instruct those who will listen to you. Otherwise, you will get slapped. Others get angry when they are told. It is better to keep quiet rather than invite wrath from others. You all listen to me. That is why I am giving you advice. When you visit any holy river or sacred pond, follow these instructions. You must not take soap into the river or pond. You can take that same water in a bucket to your room and bathe there. That is not wrong. So, please be protected by following this discipline. These are all very subtle and sensitive principles of Dharma. Dharma stipulations are very minute. One must be extremely careful in following them. You must not get caught in the complicated rules and commit sin. It is good to be careful.
Observe the ants or small insects. They are very busy. Their children, their families, they may be just recently married. Some ants are going for food. Some ants are going for fighting. Some ants are looking for a house. Some ants are dealing with some big problems, such as some fire or some big accident. They have to move from one tree to another tree or another forest. They must rush. They are in great tension. Some are nicely walking as couples. Then what happens? Some human beings, marching left right left right, stamp on them and crush them under the feet. What happens to the ant? It is not fully dead. One is half dead. Or the husband is dead and the wife, who is left living, grieves. Oh, we just got married. Now this tragedy has occurred, it cries. It does not curse the human beings. It only says one thing. You are dying. So, go ahead and die. But be born again only as an ant, but not as a human being. We don’t wish for liberation. But, if there is rebirth, let us be born again only as ants. Not as human beings. Human beings are killing so many ants.
Do you realize how many families you are destroying? It is the same case with mosquitoes. Two mosquitoes approach you very busily. They eagerly look forward to drinking your blood which is full of vitamins, since you would have consumed a lot of coffee and tea and so on. Mercilessly you swat the mosquito and kill it and feel very satisfied. What happens to the surviving mosquito? Oh, what happened, my dear? It cries. But the dying mosquito certainly curses you. It says, in the next birth, you will be a mosquito and I will be a human being and I will swat you dead. I declare that I will take revenge by killing you. If I fail to kill you, I will at least infect you with disease-causing germs. Watch out! That is why the older generation always finds explanations for mishaps, saying, who knows whom you had hurt in your previous lives? But you deny hurting anyone or scolding anyone. But, side by side, a lot of calculations are going on like this.
Sometimes, while performing abhishekam, some fly falls into the sacred water to be used for the ritual. It gets wet. It is made to climb onto a Tulasi leaf. It is kept outside to dry. Then, after it dries up and flies away, only then, I continue with the ritual with a feeling of relief. Otherwise, I don’t. Even when I offer flowers, I examine each one before gently placing it on the deity. If I notice any insect, I set the flower aside. I cannot protect the creature. It has to take care of itself. God protects it. One should be careful in choosing flowers for worship.
In Telugu there is a very nice song with many questions. Emi seturaa linga? What am I to do, O Lord Siva? When I bring milk from a cow to do abhishekam for you, the calf says that it has contaminated the milk with its saliva. When I bring water from the river Ganga to perform abhishekam for you, the fish and the frogs in the water declare that they have contaminated the water with their saliva and filth from their bodies. When I try to offer white flowers in worship, the bees claim that they have already tasted the honey from those flowers, and have contaminated them with their saliva. What is left for me to offer you that is pure, O Lord Siva? I am helpless. I will merely offer my obeisance and chant Namassivaya. I can only chant your name. I am unable to avoid incurring sin by offering impure materials. What can I do? That is why I say, just offer your prostrations and name chanting.
When priests perform yajna/homa, they incur a lot of sin because in the pieces of wood that they offer to Fire, there are many living creatures inside those sticks. That is why after the performance of the rituals, the priests have to do other austerities to atone for the sins incurred. That is the reason that we have to offer generous gratuity to the priests for performing worship on our behalf. They accumulate a lot of sin through these procedures by causing harm to countless living creatures. Homa is not merely chanting Swaha Swaha. All the ritviks who participate in the yajna also accumulate sin. That is why Yatiswaras refrain from offering Purnahuti. I caution Bala Swamiji not to offer Purnahuti, and suggest that he has others do it instead. Yes. You are performing yajna. But you must chant the Gayatri Japa to purify yourself afterwards. Many learned persons refuse to perform Yajna for this reason. Many are afraid of even performing priestly duties because they lack the power to protect themselves from all the sins that they accept from devotees in the form of gratuity offered to them. Accepting gratuity is a form of transferring the sins of devotees onto themselves. Receiving money from devotees is not a benefit at all.
Those who perform yajnas must keep firm faith in Sadguru. They must perform proper karmas. They must make proper offerings to the deities to protect themselves from earning a lot of sin during the process by inadvertently killing many innocent living creatures. I tell the children, my Datta devotees, Do Sandhya Vandana, do fire worship, honor and respect your parents, place faith in Sadguru, and complete your studies with earnestness. But it does not register in their heads. They just while away their time, interested only in getting married and having children, like animals. What is the use? I scold because they are my children. That is what gives me the right to scold them. Otherwise, I have no authority to chide them.
You think being a priest is child’s play? Just ringing the bell without feeling any devotion? Just doing some mechanical ritual, collecting salary, and focusing only on what is placed in the plate, counting how much people have given as gratuity. You are bundling up for yourselves a great amount of sin, do you realize? That money is saturated with sin. You have to have immense faith and devotion as you offer worship to God. If you do so, your sins and the sins of those who gave you money, both will get washed away. But if I say this, they do not understand it at all. In the morning they work as priests. In the afternoon, they wear pants and go off to the movies. They treat their work as a mere duty. I tell them repeatedly that it is their responsibility. I will not take their share. Those who do homa, must chant the Gayatri mantra at least a thousand times that same day. Only then the sin will go away. The ones who sponsor the homa will also be freed of their sins if you do so. I tell them so many times how important it is to do these atonements. Until now, I kept saying, we will incur the blame. But now I say, you will receive the blame. How long will I share your sins? I keep faith in you that you will chant the Gayatri Mantra. I urge you to learn to do fire worship. You are so lazy. You are ready to eat 10 idlis, and watch movies, but you are unwilling to chant the Gayatri Mantra. How much sin you are accumulating! You are taking the sins of others upon yourselves also. To be born as a brahmin is so special. The Veda boys, the brahmin boys, please pay attention. Sekhar, and your students, please pay attention to these words. It is such a blessing to be born as a brahmin. Realize the value of it.
Is it raining? No wonder. Timely rains occur only when brahmins chant their mantras. I have never declared this before. Now I am stating it as a fact. I am urging you to be disciplined. The God of Rain Varuna is applauding me. That is enough for me. I do not need your applause. With Varuna as witness, I am declaring. Do not underestimate the value of a brahmin. How fortunate you are! You are having darshan of wonderful young brahmacharis every day. Some amongst them are truly dedicated. I am not saying that all of them are phone addicts. Only 80 per cent of them are that way. 20 per cent are great souls who are dedicated and committed to the core. I live for their sake. If Appaji is unwell, at once they perform japa and penance. They have so much love for me. They even give up food. The Veda pundits are there. The Veda master will not sleep if Swamiji is unwell. He conducts along with his students who obey his instructions, japa and yajna every time it is Swamiji’s birth star on any particular day. He gets very busy. My Guru should be well. My Guru should succeed in His plans. That is his only concern. How many people have that type of dedication to Guru? Do japa in Swamiji’s name with the mantra given to you by Guru. You must do it. It benefits you and the Guru. Do not waste time. As you age, it will be difficult to do it. The mind will begin to waver with age. You must do this now when you are able to do it. Visit holy shrines. Have darshan of the deities. In Swamiji’s name do Sankalpa and perform worship. That is enough. All the merit will spread to the entire world. If Guru is well, the entire creation will be well. The blessings of compassion will flood you. That is real devotion to Guru. Offer everything to Guru. That is what Guru Gita teaches us. Whatever temple you visit, whatever prayer you offer, conclude with the prayer that Guru should be well. Always remember and chant the mantra given by Guru. Keep chanting it always. While you are speaking, doing work, and traveling, the chanting must continue inside.
There is no need to sit in one place to do japa. Whatever work you are engaged in, internally keep chanting the Guru mantra. Whether you are eating or talking, or using the bathroom, it does not matter. Keep chanting the mantra with every single breath. With every inhalation and exhalation, chant the mantra. When you are awake, you must chant more briskly because while you are asleep so many breaths worth of chanting you miss. You must compensate for it. So double your chanting. For each breath do twice. That is ajapa japa. While driving, eating idlis, chant, Namassivaya, Draam, Om Sri Krishna, like that, make it a habit. Effortlessly you must chant. Then it will work like a tranquilizer. Whatever troubles you face, family troubles, health troubles, any type of troubles, nothing will cause you pain. It will act like anesthesia. You must think. I am born as a human being now. I do my duty. He, God will do His duty. By selfish desire, I have taken this human body. I must suffer my karma. No one else is responsible for this karma. Not even Sadguru. There is no chance for any escape.
You must face your karma yourself. Sadguru will help but will not take your karma. That is what Siva Purana says. These are not my words. You memorize your mantra, any mantra, or what Sadguru has given you. That is your passport. That is your code word. Do not worry about this birth as a human being. You are all lucky to be human beings. Swamiji is giving you training always. Do not get fed up. Do not feel disappointed. Be happy. We will see. If anything happens in your family or your body, it does not matter. Simply chant Namassivaya. Nothing is permanent. Your body is also not permanent. Body will vanish. It is only work. I created my karma. I want to face it. It is self-created by my own fault. Don’t blame others. Face happily. How much happiness there is. If you have made mistakes, no need to tell it out loud. Internally acknowledge, and accept the punishment. Once you suffer, you are then free. If you escape, the punishment keeps following you. Your karma keeps following you. So many problems will join and chase after you, like so many saitans (evil spirits). They form a queue. You finish them off. Then no saitan will follow you. You will be left to be yourself to merge with Siva. It is so wonderful to have a clean chit. You must obtain such a certificate. But you do not brag about it. Then you become a clean cheat.
This rain has come to test the Chennai devotees. Please leave them alone. Come later. Do not test them now. If there are holes in the canopy, I will blame them. Please spare them.
All that I have spoken are all words of Lord Siva.
At the end of the battle, Rama gave a lecture. Till then, everyone had doubts about Rama. Why this situation occurred to Sita? Rama explained that this Sita is an illusory Sita, not the real Sita. Ravana had to be punished. Sita was Ravana’s daughter. Once Sita entered the Fire, the original Sita emerged. Rama cleared the doubts of everyone, including Hanuman, Sugriva, Angada, Vibheeshana, and so many others. It was natural for them to have doubts.
Swamiji asked a question the other day. Many have attempted to answer it. I am very happy. Now Swamiji solves the puzzle.
I am happy that so many people paid attention to Swamiji’s question and have responded with their explanations. I am now untying the knot.
A huge function took place without the presence of Hanuman. This was a very happy occasion for Rama, who had been grief-stricken for a whole year. Hanuman was of great help to Rama. He was the one who found Sita and had actually traveled to Lanka and back. Hanuman was of immense help to Rama in innumerable ways. Yet, Hanuman was made to be absent during the celebration. Why?
There is a business understanding between Vishnu and Siva. If Vishnu incarnates as Rama, Siva promised that He would serve Vishnu by being His servant. So Siva took birth as Hanuman. Hanuman has all the qualities of a servant. But in the end he experienced a bit of an ego that when Rama and Lakshmana fell unconscious, he was the one to revive them by bringing the Sanjeevini herb. Rama noticed this arrogance in Hanuman. He resolved to remove it. Sita was seated by the sea. It was almost time for the consecration. She was seated towards the west and was facing east as she quickly and playfully began building a Siva Linga out of sand. That way east and west became balanced. Siva Linga occupying the east and Sita occupying the west were properly balanced. But north and south were not balanced since both Rama and Hanuman were occupying the south. As a result an earthquake or a fire catastrophe was going to occur. Rama could sense this. Should I now send Hanuman to fly up north to fetch a Siva Lingam? All the priests are advising that the consecration of a Siva Lingam here would wipe out the sin of my having killed Ravana. Ravana was a devotee of Siva. His death has made Siva very angry. All the angry spirits are now chasing after the killer of Ravana. They need to be driven away. The solution is to install a Siva Lingam and offer it worship. A powerful Siva Linga must be brought for the consecration. Hanuman is the right candidate to bring such a Siva Lingam, Rama thought.
Rama knew that Hanuman was of the aspect of Siva. But He cannot say it out loud. Hanuman will not agree openly. Rama always spoke of Himself only as the son of Dasaratha, and never proclaimed to the world that He was Vishnu. That being the case, how will Hanuman declare publicly that He is Siva? Hanuman always thought within himself that he was none other than Lord Siva. Rama cannot announce that fact to the world that Hanuman is Lord Siva and further build up the ego of Hanuman. The ego that had already found a place in him had to be destroyed first and foremost.
The other concern now is the issue of restoring balance. Vishnu, as Rama is now placed in the south. If Siva, as Hanuman is placed in the north for the time being, the north and south directions will also get balanced. Then the earth will remain steady. A calamity will be averted. This can be scientifically understood. For this purpose, Rama dispatched Hanuman to travel north. The rest of the story is known to all of you. Hanuman went. He brought back the Siva Lingam. By the time he returned, the consecration ceremony was completed here.
No one paid attention to Hanuman when he returned with the Siva Lingam. He himself announced his return and was in a fit of rage that a mere sand Siva Linga was installed when he had brought the mighty Siva Linga all the way from the north. Hanuman became furious at his lord. Rama consoled him and said, don’t get angry. Because the auspicious time had come, we had to do the necessary procedure and hence we have installed the sand Siva Linga. Simply remove the sand Siva Linga and let us replace it with the special one that you have brought.
Hanuman in his arrogance felt that the sand Siva Lingam did not deserve to be touched by his hands. He tried to displace it with his tail. No matter how hard he tried, in spite of his very best efforts to move the sand Siva Lingam, it simply would not budge even by a hair breadth. He even wrestled with it and still he could not move it. Hanuman must have watched the wrestling shows on television in America. He pulled, and losing balance fell into the ocean. He got up and returned to try again to displace the sand Siva Lingam. Desperate and feeling helpless, Hanuman was puzzled that while he himself was Siva, why the Siva Lingam was not cooperating with his efforts. Now Siva was in the form of Hanuman. The Siva Lingam is the Universal Form of Lord Siva. Hanuman realized then that just like Rama claiming to be a mortal, he too must think of himself only as Hanuman, the son of Wind god and not as the Almighty Lord Siva. Until then he was proud of his being the aspect of Lord Siva. Now that little flaw in him was removed by Rama. Rama now felt that further testing of Hanuman’s strength or his further humiliation was not required. He pacified Hanuman by saying that the Siva Lingam brought by Hanuman would also be consecrated and this Siva Lingam would be viewed and worshiped by Him and the devotees, first. Rama consecrated and offered worship to the Siva Linga brought by Hanuman.
First, He removed Hanuman’s ego. Now He declared to the world that a devotee is superior to the Lord Himself. Rama was filled with compassion towards Hanuman.
This is the answer to the question. Many people had sent emails. Many have touched upon this point and struggled to answer the question. But no one thought of the issue of restoring balance upon the earth. Who would have thought of balance and weight, kilograms and so forth? Even in Rama’s days these things existed. So, I will touch my own feet, since no one else qualified for the pada sparsa (touching of the divine feet of Guru) by giving the correct answer.
God Varuna is so obedient. He heeded Swamiji’s request and left. In Swamiji’s life there were so many instances when the Rain god respected Swamiji’s wish and postponed his downpours. It happened in Regidi, when there was no shelter and thousands had gathered, and the stage was flooded. Looking at the heavy rains, the drummer refused to play afraid that the drums would get ruined, the electrician refused to connect the wires afraid of electric shock. Swamiji insisted that the concert should begin at 7 PM sharp. He addressed the rain god and invited him to the concert. Varuna promptly retired. The concert took place. Swamiji only placed a coconut as offering to the god of Rain.
The time of concert at Addanki and again at Hyderabad during the Raga Sagara concert with 80,000-100,000 listeners in the audience, and at many other instances, the rain god cooperated. Swamiji plays with electronic equipment. Rain god helps my devotees. The musicians packed up and removed the equipment from the stage all in mere 10 minutes, where it took hours and days to set it all up. By the time the mangalam just finished, the rain burst forth, while the photographers were still on the stage taking pictures.
It is such miracles that you should share with others. You instead, talk about finding lost sandals, or Swamiji curing your cold. Another claims that by Swamiji’s miracle he lost his sandals and along with it all his misfortunes. Some devotees are happy that their torn sandals are stolen by Swamiji’s grace. Such a miracle, one claims, that one sandal is broken and another matching sandal is miraculously found. Some save their sandals inside their prasadam bags. Sometimes in place of a sandal, in the dark they pick up dried cow dung. Some store their sandals safe inside a bag and keep their focus on the sandals throughout the bhajan session, checking frequently to see if they are still there.
Om Namassivaya. Why do you keep looking inside your bag? While I closed my eyes absorbed in listening to the bhajans, I felt like someone placed a hand in my bag, and that is why I am checking, confesses another devotee.
Now we will perform abhishekam and prokshanam will be done.
Sri Guru Datta
Speech in the afternoon
Jaya Guru Datta
This present event, truly, this powerful situation, this pilgrimage, is totally a result of either the immense grace of Lord Siva, or your strong devotion; that what was denied even at Sivaratri, is now showered upon you. Swamiji gave a promise in Kasi that He would take you all to Rameswaram. He has now fulfilled that promise. These days Swamiji does not make any promises. He does not tell anyone even inadvertently, that He will visit their homes. He simply goes, if He wishes. He does not give a word ahead of time. You will forget Swamiji’s words. But He never forgets a word given, even in several lifetimes.
There is a couple in Tiruvaroor. Swamiji had accidentally given them a word a long time ago that He would visit their home. Now they are in their late eighties and approaching ninety years and are waiting still, without giving up their lives, for Swamiji to visit their home. They have refused to move to an old age home, to a hostel, or to live with relatives as recommended by relatives because their health is failing. Their eye sight is poor. Their hearing is gone. But they are waiting for Swamiji to visit them in their own home as per His promise. They have given instructions to the family members that should they die, their bodies should not be cremated or buried, but preserved in oil because, when Swamiji comes, He will tell them to get up and they will certainly come back to life to receive Him, will perform Pada Puja and will sleep again. They have assured them that Swamiji will certainly keep His promise. That is how strong their faith in Guru is.
Some people have faith but their mind wavers. They doubt that Swamiji will keep His word. Or they try to save Swamiji the trouble of visiting their home and wish that He would not come and avoid incurring the strain. That will also close the chapter. We have to be careful with our wishes. It is better not to entertain desires. It is better to go to the hill, climb it, and have darshan of the deity who is atop the hill. It is wrong to invite the Lord to your home along with the hill. It is a big hill. You must not have the hill come to your home. You must go to the hill and walk around it. You must consider Swamiji’s age, His energy level, His convenience, and His prior plans. We must not upset them. We must not cause obstructions to His plans.
You must not demand that your wishes should be satisfied. If you force it, then He will never come again. You should pray for the strength to bear your difficulties. You must not demand, “If you decide, you can do it. You have the power. Why won’t you solve my problems?” If you speak like that and challenge His powers, He will simply smile. You must first gauge whether your devotion is strong enough to demand that such powers should be expended upon you. You are not exceptional devotees like Sakkubai. You are ordinary devotees. You speak about old age, illness, and so on. The same human frailties you see in Swamiji also. When you do notice His extraordinary powers, you must not demand that they should be used for your benefit. It is wrong to ask like that.
You must rise to the level of being satisfied with just seeing Guru, being in His presence, and chanting His name. In this sacred pilgrimage center I am giving you this instruction. Rise to that level.
As householders, yes, you have to mingle with the family. You have to entertain the children and make them laugh. But do not get too deeply involved with such things. That life does not come with you. Only Swamiji goes with you. Those people will forget all those situations. Once their needs are satisfied, they will begin to blame you. They will call you names with no compunction. Remember that no relationship endures for very long. All are selfish. Sadguru alone renders help throughout with total unselfishness. We create issues for ourselves. Sadguru often refrains from even giving advice. But if he does, there is no greater good fortune than that.
Sadguru gives you the ability to get things done. He gets things done through you. You are nothing. You are only the bead. He is the thread. People are all like different beads. One is made of plastic, one is a ruby, one is a gemstone, one is glass, and one is a pure diamond. All are of different kinds. You are all gems, nine gems, or plastic gems, or glass gems, or other precious stones. Swamiji called you gems. You feel flattered. In the end, it is just thread and beads. The thread accepts all kinds of beads. It does not differentiate. God wears the garland. Sadguru alone is the thread. He threads you and offers you as a decoration to Mother Nature. You must not feel arrogant that you are an amethyst, nor should you cry that you are only a plastic bead. Just accept yourself as you are, diamond, plastic or glass. You are still going to decorate Him. Whether original or fake, your aim is to be a part of the garland.
Some have gone for lunch and some have skipped a meal today. In a place of pilgrimage, food is not so important. Something to fill your stomach and keep it going. You can have full meals at home. Here, it is just to keep yourself going. Here you get some tea. It is not to your taste. It is too sweet and watery. But something hot is nice to have. You adjust to the taste and ask for a second cup. Earlier you complained. But after you paid for it, you try and enjoy it.
Many take dips in the holy water chanting Namassivaya and come out without even getting their head wet. They justify that Swamiji has said that sprinkling some water on the head is sufficient. They feel convinced that they will get the spiritual merit regardless. The sacred water is too cold and too muddy to go for another dip. They wish they could go back and do justice. But they compromise. No one is sure whether they will get another chance to visit this place. What the future holds, no one knows. People leave with doubts. Some good friend of Swamiji will then assure that she watched and assures that they did fully take a dip and not to worry. Then they feel relieved at receiving the assurance. They ask the person if she really saw. Then she confesses that remained in her room and never went near the water. Then the doubt lingers whether the hair got fully wet with the dip or not. Finally after going back to the room, they put their head under the faucet, shake the hair loose and get it all wet, and finally feel satisfied. Many people have done this. It is the same story with Teertham. People struggle and argue, and fight with the priest to get some holy Teertham at the temple. They can happily drink it. Instead, they simply touch it to the lips and make a huge slurping sound. But not a drop goes in. It drips down the elbow. They smear the liquid all over the face and make faces. Some apply the remaining liquid on the head and it gets all sticky. Sometimes coconut water and the five nectars (panchamritam) are mixed in the water. Finally when they sit down in the temple premises, flies begin to swarm all around them. People get all confused and bothered when they visit temples. I had such experiences when I was young. They once gave coconut water and not realizing that, I poured it on my head. It became all sticky. I speak from personal experience. Such things you cannot learn from books. Okay, assuming that it was not experienced by me, the fact is that I can enter into anyone I choose, and share their experiences as if I were that person. Transmigration of souls (parakaya pravesam) can occur at any time. It is also possible that I could be the fly that lands on such persons. Is that not true? You can never be sure.
You go to the temple and complete your rituals. You are hungry. They give you half a coconut. You call all the children. You look around and making sure that there is no one close by, you smash the coconut on the ground and make small pieces and distribute to everyone. Then you put a piece in your mouth and it tastes awful. The coconut is rotten. Why is this so bad? The wife asks. Did you offer to God a rotten coconut? No, I gave a good coconut. That idiotic priest switched the coconuts and gave me back a rotten half. This is not from our coconut. They take ownership of the coconut as if they grew the coconut themselves, having watered the tree for years. It was a store-bought coconut after all. The children are complaining of the bad taste. They cannot even spit it out because they are inside the temple and will be reprimanded if they spit there. They have to hold it inside their mouths. They feel like throwing up. This is temple experience. I make my offering (samarpayami).
Sri Guru Datta
Speech in the evening during bhajan session – March 6, 2014 – Rameshwaram
Jaya Guru Datta
Like yesterday, my voice is not okay. It sounds as if it is coming from inside a pot. The voice is good but sounds as if it is coming out of a bottle. It is not clear like the sound from a bucket. Chembu (pot) voice is like Shambhu linga, Siva’s favorite kind of voice.
Siva likes both a cold voice and a hot voice. He likes both hot and cold. He has five faces representing the five principles. Ganga (water) ever resides on His head. His third eye is Fire. Air is also He. He likes Wind. He is Hanuman in the aspect of Air. He is all-pervasive like space. He likes ether a lot. Siva and His devotees like the earth since it is the basis, the foundation. Siva represents Fire, Air, Ether, Earth, and Water. That is why He has five faces. He is everywhere. He is omnipresent. He is omniscient. Whatever we do He knows. Even our thoughts He knows since He is in all elements. He is in everything, and is everywhere. Everything is He. He is Nada (divine all-pervasive sound) (naandaan in Tamil language – it is I alone). You cannot be without Him or be separate from Him. The five elements are always witnessing everything. Be careful. Do not do any wrong. Do not commit mistakes. Everything He knows without a doubt. Such is Lord Siva.
Yesterday Swamiji sang a very nice Telugu Bhajan. It is like the history of Siva. All our bhajans are extraordinary. I am Brahman. You are also Brahman. He is also Brahman. We are all Brahman. There is only one Brahman. So many different faces. So many different feelings. But only one Brahman.
Bhajan: Unnadi okade Sivudegaa –
Siva alone exists, without a doubt. The one and only one in existence is Siva and none other than Siva, for sure.
The one who exists in me is Siva. The one who exists in you is Siva. The one who exists in me, in you, and in everyone else is Siva and Siva alone, without a doubt.
The life force that moves within me is the life-giving air that fills the atmosphere. It is that same air that fills the sky that becomes the life energy in all.
The digestive fire within me appears as the glowing light that spreads everywhere on the outside. That outside light is the digestive fire that exists in all.
The earth, water, and space are both inside me and outside me. When all the five elements are none other than Siva, how can there be anything other than Siva inside me?
Why say that Siva exists within me? In truth, I am Siva Himself. It is Siva alone who exists as I, you, and everything else.
Vishnu, Brahma, and the Mother Goddess are all none other than Siva. The past and the future are Siva. The one who transcends Time is Siva and Siva alone.
The one knower of Truth is Siva alone. The ultimate goal of consciousness is Siva and Siva alone. Sat- chit- and ananda – are none other than Siva since Siva alone exists.
Lord Ramanatha, Lord Viswanatha. How beautiful is this bhajan! This bhajan alone suffices for you to earn a Ph.D. This gives the complete spiritual description of Lord Siva.
Each bhajan is not just a bhajan. It is a message to the devotees. These are all high potency medicinal pills. Bhajans are different. Only divine names – Vitthala Panduranga, Namassivaya, Jai jai Ram, Sriram. Swamiji’s bhajans are entirely different. Each bhajan gives a powerful spiritual lesson. Singing divine names of God is Bhajans. But through this medium Swamiji gives spiritual lessons. Some intellectual people get bored with just the chanting of names. It is only like entertainment with different melodies and rhythms. Each bhajan of Swamiji’s is different. In childhood Swamiji thought about the needs of the future generations. So only in the first line He uses the divine names of God. Then the following stanzas give different meaning. They teach about different aspects of God. They gives the teachings of the Upanishads, which declare that God is one.
We mix different types of foods in our meals. But once they get into the stomach, it all becomes one. The tastes are different. Sweet is different. Hot is different. Dosa is different. Masala is different. There are six different tastes in our food. But finally inside the stomach, which is like a flour mill, they all get mixed like inside a blender or a mixie. This is a big, agitating mixie. It is a wonderful mixie. It separates the six tastes and water also in different ways. You may drink juice, coffee, tea or any beverage, including black tea, but the urine you put out is always the same color. I am not suggesting that you collect and examine it. Do not worry whether you are passing juice. Some people worry about what happened to the valuable juice that they drank. What a wonderful mixie is there in our stomach!
It separates and sends to different sections the liquids and the solids. Which scientist can create such a mixie? What brand is this? An American brand? London brand? Whatever food you eat, the mixie accepts, sweets, or whatever. It decides in certain people that the sugar level is high. In some people the spice level is high. It decides and gives stomach pain. So many workers/volunteers are inside our stomach. Different foods are introduced, rotis, rice, laddoo balls, some people drink only juice. Different volunteers are working inside. God is very great. He has made the stomach soundproof. Otherwise it will make so many different loud sounds, whirr, grrr, fusion, orchestra. What a wonder this machine is! No one can replicate this. Sometimes there is a failure. Some flour mills suffer a failure. But, this stomach flour mill does not fail. It accepts whatever you feed it. It works all night. It suffers. If there is an overload, there is a stomach ache, a bitter taste, and some pills have to be swallowed.
Eat in moderation. Speak in moderation. Sleep in moderation. You do everything in excess. Be calm. Not B.Com, B.Sc, Ph. D. or B.A. Learn to be calm. Stay within limits. To digest the food you eat, you must exercise. Walk, do treadmill, swim, morning and evening pace up and down inside the house, keep Swamiji’s photo in the middle and go around it one thousand times. It is a good way of exercising. Then you may go and drink some juice. No problem. Climb stairs. Come down. Be careful, do it slowly, do it without hurting your heart.
When I first came here, they warned me that I have to climb stairs. I told them that I like stairs very much. It will allow me to eat more. Swamiji has to go up three floors. No Problem. Do you think I am an old man? Sometimes I may choose to appear like an old man. Even Lord Siva sometimes looks like an old man. Does He not? It is my will and wish. Sometimes I will appear like an old man and sometimes I will be like a very small, young boy. Okay? It is in my hands. It is in my control. No problem. I will climb three floors. I do not require a lift. Even in Mysore ashram, many times I do not use the lift. I may gasp but I insist on climbing because if I do, then I can eat a laddoo. I control my food intake myself. Others need not control. But when ask for a sweet, you must give me. I know when I can eat one. At such times you try to restrict my diet. You should not do it. You offer me treats at inappropriate times. I know my stomach and my problems. Today I may eat one Masala Dosa. Tomorrow I may eat three, because I would have walked a lot. You must expend whatever is inside. If you stock it, what happens? Problems. It is horrible. Those who sit next to you will have problems with bad smell and sounds. Their neighbors will also face their own problems because of the ones sitting beside them. Those who remain at a distance are spared. Those who are at a lower level suffer the most because all this travels downwards. Am I not allowed to speak of this?
(some ladies come late, enter the crowded hall packed with audiences seated on the floor and make their way to the middle of the hall). Yes, ladies, go ahead and step all over the people. Balance yourselves by placing your hands on the smooth bald heads. Feel free to support yourselves on people’s heads. They are nice and soft. Go ahead and walk on top of them. Enjoy yourselves. See, how they are boldly intruding! No problem. The people are soft and warm. Help yourselves. Walk all over them.
One fellow wanted to attend an overnight Ramayana discourse in the village. He asked his wife. This is a Telugu joke I will narrate.
The wife scolded him.
“You go to sleep by 9 PM. How will you keep awake the whole night? Keep quiet and go to sleep.”
“But, they are bringing a woman dancer from the city and I wish to go see the dance. I definitely want to go. I saw her riding into the village in the horse carriage. I want to see her dance.”
“You have had your eyeful already. What more is there to see?”
“I could only see her long braid. I did not get a good look at her. I want to go.”
“You are well into your middle age and still you have such dirty ideas. Go, you useless fellow. Have your dinner and go.”
She fed him a sumptuous meal. He ate his fill.
“It is cold.”
“Okay, take a blanket. But bring it back. Don’t lose it there.”
“Bye, I will see you in the morning.”
“Okay, go quickly.”
It was already past 10 PM. As expected, when he got there, already people were snoring here and there. Villagers go to sleep even by 6 PM. This man went near a Peepal tree and he found the place where there was a paved platform. It was crowded. He managed to find a spot that was quite warm. He sat and watched for a while and then fell asleep under his blanket. In the morning some people went around waking up all the sleeping villagers. This man also got woken up by the poking stick. He took his blanket and went home. The wife asked him how the Ramayana discourse was.
“Oh, what to tell you? I watched it for a while. And then you know what happened? That Ramayana became awfully heavy. The entire night it was like a tremendous dead weight that I had to carry.”
In the dark, another hefty fellow came and sat down on this sleeping man. The man who was fast asleep did not wake up. He bore that heavy weight on top of him that entire night.
The villager, who had no inkling as to what Ramayana is, came away with the impression that night, that Ramayana is as heavy as a huge buffalo.
I am sorry. I cannot tell you this story in Tamil.
We are all like that villager. We know nothing. Everybody said something. So we also repeated the words. They said to do abhishekam. So we also came pushing in the queue. We also poured water. They gave water. There was a white stone. We dumped the water on it. That is all you know. Ignorant people. What can you do?
This bhajan is so wonderful. Siva is inside me. Siva is inside you. It is the same Siva who is in both of us. The life force inside me is Siva. This vast expanse of air is Siva. Everything we see is Siva. Everyone’s life is Siva. The fire of digestion within us all is Siva. If that fire of digestion is absent, we have no life. That Siva does whatever is required to keep us alive by working inside our stomachs. Siva is water. Siva is space. The one inside me is Siva. The one outside me is Siva. There can never be anything that is disgusting because all that exists is Siva. How can I say that Siva exists only in me? The one who exists inside you is also Siva. Only Siva exists. Vishnu, Brahma, Mother Goddess, the five elements, the one who is above and beyond Time, the one who is Truth, Bliss, Consciousness, and everything is Siva. What appears in three different forms or principles is none other than Siva. All the different worlds are pervaded by Siva.
Like a ball that has no starting point or an ending point, Siva is endless and beginning-less. Poor ball, it keeps getting hit with a bat from this side to that side and from that side to this side countless times. We all sit and watch with amusement. But the air that is inside that ball as Siva, travels from this side to that side and from that side to this side innumerable times. Sometimes I feel so sorry for that cricket ball. Lord Siva is suffering so many blows while we sit and clap. 13 smart people are watched by 13 lakhs of foolish people, a paying audience watching endlessly, as if obsessed. What a wonder!
The English meaning for this bhajan is given in Bhajana Yoga.
Don’t miss dattapeetham Facebook page. Don’t miss puttugam Facebook page. What is this? Is this an advertisement? No. I am giving you a caution in your life. You are missing something in your life. It is there in Telugu as Datta Mata page. In Tamil also there is Tamil/Malayalam page of Puttugam. In your life, what is correct, you are missing. You do not miss new movies. But, Sadguru’s precious words you are missing. Your lives are wasted. Sometimes I feel so sorry that you are wasting way your lives. You think you thought of something new. But Swamiji would have addressed that issue and answered it a long time ago. But you would not have seen the message. He is teaching in very small words. The entire Bhajana Yogam is in Facebook. Swamiji will take one line from somewhere and he will give a beautiful explanation for it in simple words. But you are missing, missing, missing, missing, by not following Swamiji on Facebook. What can I do? You never miss a cup of coffee or drinking tea, you never miss eating a dosa. You never miss a chance to quarrel. You never miss getting upset or doing anything else. But you miss your Sadguru’s teachings. You think that it is no problem to miss that. You give yourselves exemption for that. You give excuses, I have no phone, no laptop, no time to watch the MMS, What can I do?
Go to the next world. There I will question you, in the form of God of Death, Yama. Do you say that you had time and facilities for everything else, but not for this? Everything else is important for you, but not this? Every day so many villagers are viewing these messages. They see them daily. All these people sitting around me, are only masters of eating. They are only ready for meals. They do not miss a meal on a single day. Even when they are sick, they will drink at least soup. But they will not miss any intake of food. O masters of meals, at least from now on, do not miss Swamiji’s messages. It takes only a few seconds to read the messages. There is no charge for seeing them. Just spend a few seconds. That is enough. But, you gluttons, you do not view them. Swamiji takes so much effort to collect beautiful photographs, and to prepare the messages. Only 400 are my true devotees. I will take them with me to Vaikuntha (abode of God). I will not leave them. Most people will go to the world of Death, the Yama Loka. I know that. I may visit if I have time. I don’t know. Otherwise I will not. It is a pity. At least now, learn to see them. Get help from your children. Have your children read them out to you. The meaning of the bhajans is packed in those messages shown on Facebook. Little, little pieces of important advice are given.
Bhajan: Gangai konda Sivane
Bhajan: Sambhum kinkara
Bhajan: Om Ayim Hreem Sreem Siva Rama Anagha
Thyagaraja Swami has declared in a keertana that in the 22 wells at Rameswaram Temple all the innumerable holy waters are present. If you have bathed in them, you have acquired all the merit of bathing in all holy waters. It is not necessary to go to Dhanushkoti. If you go it is good. If you do not go also it is good.
If Adoni devotees are here, please perform Anagha Vratam when Sri Bala Swamiji comes to your ashram. Fulfill your promise of support for Jayalakshmipuram, without fail. In America there will be a Kriya Yoga Conference held at Jesus Datta Retreat Center in June from 19-22.
Yesterday the abhishekam was being performed to Lord Ramanatha Swami at the temple. Swamiji was present there. Kailasam descended there. Many devotees attended. Mantras were being chanted. We were all in the world of Siva. But, 5 or 6 flies would not leave us alone. They troubled us without giving any respite. They left Siva alone and focused only on the sandal paste on my forehead. That paste is not even sweet. I suffered a lot. I tried to chase them away without making it appear too obvious, but they would not budge. One fly in particular insisted on sitting on the tip of my nose. I had to wave at it to make it fly away. But it refused to leave. Why it chose my nose in particular, when there were hundreds of thousands of noses available for it, I could not understand. I am just explaining to you that for every living creature, its own concerns are of the utmost importance. Just then a cockroach appeared. A man was seriously engaged in doing Japa of Siva’s mantra. It went and tickled his feet. Ayyappan and I were observing this cockroach. We could not control our laughter. The mantra chanting was in progress. The abhishekam was going on in full swing. Kailasa, the abode of Lord Siva had come down to earth. Swamiji was absorbed in internal meditation. But two cockroaches that kept going in and coming out were extremely busy causing havoc amidst the people who sat chanting mantras. I could sense their happiness and gratitude towards Swamiji that because of Swamiji’s visit today they got access to a lot of milk and the five nectars used in the abhishekam. For an entire week they can feast to their heart’s content because the place is not going to get any cleaning for a week.
The flies were busy. The cockroaches were busy. Our eyes were not fixed on Siva. They were concentrating on these insects because we were afraid that they may come towards us. If they come, they will not harm us, but if I abruptly move, the others will get alarmed. What was there for me to pray for, of Lord Siva? I prayed that the cockroach be distanced from me. That is what I prayed for. The next second it simply vanished. I then felt that it was not really a cockroach but Nandiswara who had come there in that form. Having concluded thus, I believed also that all the flies were also forms of Nandiswara and other members of Siva’s entourage. There was milk there. There were the panchamritas there. There were many mouths with remnants of snacks on the lips. Instead of sitting on those, the flies insisted on landing on me. I had applied camphor, fragrance, and holy ash of Dattatreya. No insect should come anywhere near me because of all these substances applied on me. They are all like poison to the insects. They cannot withstand those strong aromas. I began to wonder what in me was attracting them. Then I decided that perhaps I myself am very sweet and that is why they are all coming to me.
So many affairs happened there during the abhishekam. You all might have wondered how the ritual went. In between all this, Swamiji was looking to see if the devotees had arrived, whether they went in the queue, and whether they had darshan. There were so many concerns. I questioned myself whether I had come to attend Siva’s abhishekam or to be immersed in so many other pressing issues.
I concluded that every living creature has its own serious concerns. Now it is our serious concern. It is 10 PM. It is time for dinner. That is the next busy concern for everyone. Yesterday’s ceremony was really eventful. This concludes the Purana of the flies.
Sri Guru Datta