Speech of HH Sri Ganapathy Sachchidananda Swamiji – evening – July 30, 2015 – Frisco, TX USA
Jai veera Hanuman ki Jai
First I must offer puja to my devotees. Only then Harati (to Hanuman) may be performed. This daily puja of scolding is required. What is the topic for scolding? Tomorrow is Guru Day, it is Guru Purnima. We have so many Days. Father’s Day, Mother’s Day, Children’s Day, Husband’s Day, Wife’s Day and so on. Why not also have Guru’s Day? This custom was developed eons ago. These other customs are all very recent.
Full moon is Guru Purnima Day. Guru is always like the full moon. Cool, with great medicinal value in his rays. Healing Rays. Always full of Amrita/nectar of immortality. Stand in front of the moon to understand and experience the beneficial moonlight. What medicines you draw from the rays of the moon, no words are there to express. The happiness derived from the moon’s rays is indescribable. All the poisonous blood inside gets purified. Eye problems get cured. Blood vessels get cleaned with moonlight. It is an exercise. The sun’s rays give D vitamin. Moon’s rays give multivitamins. Those who do not see the full moon every month, or experience the moon’s rays regularly, are like beasts or buffaloes. They are fools. You know scientifically the energy of moonlight.
Guru Purnima is celebrated as Vyasa Purnima. Vyasa appears as the full moon and he gives Jnana/spiritual wisdom. Never use Guru for petty worldly uses. Report important events to Him as if you are informing a family elder. But do not keep on asking Him questions always. Only pray for peace of mind. You leave that, and ask for all other things. He gives, by satisfying all your worldly desires. But you still do not experience peace. In the end you feel shy to ask Guru for peace of mind. Ignorance and ego are the two main human problems. Ask. He will definitely bless you. Ask for a bag first, and then you begin to acquire things. Getting things first without having a bag to carry the stuff is foolish. You will end up spilling all the items. You will not be able to take them with you.
Asking for boons is useless. Ask for Atma Jnana/enlightenment. That is the real reason for this birth. That is the real destination. We must reach the goal for which we have taken this human birth, not keep going around in circles, remaining right here. Slowly, step by step you must climb. Sadguru’s grace is the ladder.
You people ask for only worldly benefits. Like a Mixie Blender, you keep going round and round and yet remain right where you are. Each year you must grow. Guru leaves eventually. If you grow up, then He takes you with Him. Many decades go by. But most of the devotees show no improvement, even very senior devotees. Miracles and glories of Swamiji they speak about and sing about. That is okay. But what about your Atma/Soul? What about your Karma? You ignore it. Worldly desires. Yes. Nothing wrong in asking for fulfillment of worldly desires. You want children. You want them to become IAS officers. You want them to get married and have children. All that is okay. Swamiji fulfills. But, what about you? What improvement has it afforded you? You ask. Swamiji gives. No problem, nothing wrong in asking for worldly things.
How did you change after ten years or twenty years of following Swamiji? Have your habits improved? Has your Jnana improved? What have you gained by your association with Sadguru? The only thing you seem to have gained is weight. You weighed a few pounds less before. Now you have gained more weight. You have gained marriage, children, job, and marriages of children and their children. That is the only uplift you see in your life. You keep changing houses and jobs. May be better, bigger houses and better jobs. Okay. All these things have to do with the body. We need these things. Okay. All these we do need.
But along with it, you must think about, “What about me? What about my next birth? What about God? Sadguru? Knowledge? Doing puja daily as a routine is okay. But what about me? All is well by Swamiji’s grace. I am happy. Yes. But after ten days my happy feeling disappears. Again there is depression. Again after 3-4 days I am happy. It is always up and down. Mood is always changing.”
How much effort for yourself do you put in? Good time to celebrate Guru Purnima tomorrow. It is a very important day. Participate in all the programs. At 3:30 PM you begin the 24 hour nonstop Hanuman Chalisa Parayana. Swamiji will inaugurate the program. He remains on the premises throughout. In the end also He will join you. He will come and spend time with you often. Many questions are asked by so many people. During those 24 hours is it okay to use the toilet? Are we allowed to eat? Yes. Definitely you must not suppress nature’s calls. You must attend to them. Food and beverages will be supplied. How to take bath? Do this like a penance. When you travel, during a flight you do not sleep. You do not take a bath. Excitement keeps you awake whether you are going to India or returning from India.
The passenger sitting next to you kicks you sometimes. He snores, or keeps drinking alcohol. The air conditioning bothers you. Somebody sneezes. The neighbor coughs. You have to keep watching your bags to make sure they are not gone. Babies will be crying with earache. Everybody stares at the parents of the crying child as if they themselves have no kids, as if it is a crime to have babies who cry. Those parents then get irritated, and since they cannot show it on you, they slap their kids. Like a railway station or a bus station, it is a lot of commotion. You have to carry your own luggage. There is some comfort and also it is like hell. You cannot sleep.
You imagine that tomorrow you are going to be on Hanuman’s flight. Endure all the experiences with that attitude tomorrow. In a limited time we have to come up with a large chanting count that Swamiji has to report to Hanuman.
This scolding will be continued tomorrow. A second topic will be taken up.
Sri Guru Datta
Compiled by Smt Hira Duvvuri