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Nisargadatta Maharaj - Talking of Gurus Grace

by Aalif Surti T he relationship between the aspirant and the guru is truly special, as can be seen in these personal stories of their gurus benediction that many of our readers have shared with us Teaching no-thing In the summer of 1989, I was invited to Yogaville, Swami Satchidanandas ashram in Buckingham, Virginia, USA to perf orm comedy as my alter ego, Swami Beyondananda. Although I had heard that Gurudev had a great sense of humour and loved to laugh, this was a bit intimidating. Af ter all, here I was perf orming shtick wearing (in those days) a rainbow clown wig in f ront of a genuine swami. My wif e Trudy and I arrived a day or two early, and took a tour of the Lotus Shrine. T he Lotus Shrine is a beautif ul temple, dedicated to celebrating the truth in every religion. T he slogan above the entrance says: One truth, many paths. So as not to exclude anyone, the Shrine even has a section honouring atheism. (Hey, just because you dont believe in God doesnt mean that God doesnt believe in you!) T he f irst night, we attended a satsang with Swami Satchidananda and it put a smile on my f ace just to be in his presence. At one point, Gurudev said something that gave me an idea. He was talking about enlightenment and said: If you want to be enlightened, you must desire nothing. Now, at that time, I had manuf actured and was selling f unny, colourf ul, playf ul boxes of nothing. I had an entire routine developed around the concept that this box was the ultimate enlightenment product because nothing was guaranteed to solve all your problems instantly. With just a little bit of trepidation, I did the nothing bit during my perf ormance and watched Swami Satchidananda laugh uproariously. Af ter the show, I presented him with a box of Nothing to help him gain enlightenment. We all laughed, and as you can see f rom the photo, Gurudev clearly gave Nothing his stamp of approval. Fast f orward f ive years, and I receive a call f rom Yogaville. A huge event was being planned f or December 1994 to celebrate Gurudevs 80th birthday. Would I be willing to come to specif ically do my nothing routine at the celebration? My answer was yes, and I joined a slew of musicians and other celebrities to honour a being who dedicated his public lif e to f inding and creating common ground among all spiritual pathsand reminding us all that happiness is an inside job. In keeping with the spirit of joy and laughter, a f arce f ield was inadvertently created. T he speaker right bef ore me was Dr Dean Ornish, f amous f or his very successf ul programme f or treating heart disease. Dr Ornish, as I recall, was a pretty serious guy who had no idea what I was going to say. He told his own story of how his lif e was transf ormed by meeting Sri Gurudev. When he was still in school, he went through a period of deep depression, and someone took him to meet Swami Satchidananda. When I told Gurudev that I was seeking happiness, Dr Ornish recalled, he gently laughed and said, Nothing will make you happy. T hat insight changed my lif e. And then I was on, pitching my Nothing box! What a set up! I sold a lot of boxes of Nothing that night. Although we have long since run out of boxes of Nothing to sell, Gurudevs message still resonates. Nothing, no thing can make us happy. Happiness is a condition that, like Spirit, transcends circumstance. For years, the photo of Gurudev, Trudy and I, and Nothing, graced my sales table at perf ormances. Today, it sits in f ront of my computer so I am reminded and inspired each time I sit down to write.

I didnt know Gurudev well, at least not personally. I wasnt what you would call a devotee. But I recall a being who loved poetry and word play, who loved lif e and lived joy. May his memory inspire us to f ind cause f or celebration instead of separation, and f ind our happiness not f rom what does or doesnt happen in our lives, but f rom the deep well of joy that is the Source of wellness. Steve Bhaerman Steve Bhaerman aka Swami Beyondananda is humorist and author of a new book, Swami f or Precedent: A 7-Step Plan to Heal the Body Politic and Cure Electile Dysf unction. Website: www.wakeuplaughing.com. Diamonds of grace I was 25, a Stanf ord graduate and PhD student. I was a scientist, an academic. I thought I understood it all. Or most of it, anyway. And then I entered His room, in a f ar of f corner of the world, 7000 miles f rom home, as a river worshipped as the Mother Goddess f lowed past. His eyes pierced the thin veil of understanding I thought I had. His presence caused the very f abric of the world I knew to unravel. His words revealed to me, f or the f irst time, the Truth of existence. A wave of the purest love, light, peace and bliss washed over my entire being, penetrating through the skin, into the nucleus of every cell. T he wave washed through the recesses of my heart, healing in an instant pain which had f estered there f or years. T he ocean of his divine light washed through my brain, making a mockery of the education I thought I had, tearing to shreds the truth I had been taught. It washed through the very core of my being, bringing every sense, perception, thought, f eeling, and emotion to a standstill. I had been raised to believe that God could not be seen or f elt. T he God of my religion did not, ever, incarnate in f orm. We were taught that God was a f ormless, nameless, unknowable, omnipotent Force to be f eared. T hen, suddenly, unexpectedly, I was f ace to f ace with the Divine in the f orm of a simple, humble Indian saint, draped in orange robes with divine love and light streaming f rom every pore of his being. It was a f act that even the scientist in me could not ref ute. T he divinity of his presence was tangible, palpable, unmistakable and undeniable. T his realisation that I was in the presence of God belied everything Id ever been taught, everything Id heard, everything Id read. Yet it was truer than the very f act of my own existence. It was truer than the blue of the sky or the green of the leaves. I was miles f rom the home I had always known, f rom my f amily, f rom the world I had made my own. Yet as I stood on the banks of Mother Ganga, listening to Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswati sing, carrying us on the wings of his voice to God, suddenly nothing else mattered. To be here, on these sacred banks, to have His divine darshan that cradled my spirit and soul was all that mattered. But how could you take sanyas? people ask. Youre so young. Or: How could you leave everything behind? Dont you ever miss America? Dont you miss the comf ort and lif e you had there? When one is walking empty-handed on the beach, one is f requently drawn to the pretty seashells or rocks on the sand and one might even bend down to pick some up. But if one were walking with pearls in ones hands, one would never even notice the seashells or rocks, let alone bend down to collect them. My Guru has poured diamonds into my hands, of truth, peace, serenity, bliss, and union with God. How could I bemoan the lack of rocks in my lif e? How could I miss the days of collecting scattered seashells when my hands are now overf lowing with the diamonds of His grace? Sadhvi Bhagwati, Rishikesh Guide and transformer Despite my eagerness, I could not f ind the real path towards spirituality until I came in contact with an engineer through work. He initiated my wif e and I into the art of listening the voice of silence (shabad) that is ever present within. T he experiences that f ollowed were totally new f or us, and took us beyond physical boundaries into spheres where we experienced rare visions, colours, lights, sounds and at times, a state of nothingness.

We had an opportunity to meet the Guru, T hakar Singh Maharaj, head of the Ruhani Satsang Society. Maharaj provided teachings of listening to the sound of silence called shabad or dhun. Meetings with Maharaj enabled us to hear without external ears, and the shabad became melodious, intense and regular. We also underwent transf ormations so that anger subsided, f eelings of internal power were enhanced, stress diminished and ef f iciency at work improved. My wif e and I continued with morning and evening meditation, and f elt incomplete the day we missed either session. My wif e has advanced greatly and is able to read auras and discern the character of a person by just looking at him. Remembering the Guru and living spiritually resolved problems not only in personal lif e but also on the work f ront. T he Guru is protector, guide, initiator and transf ormer f or me. In the past seven years, miracles have happened ef f ortlessly through his grace. I do not know where I have reached on the spiritual journey. T he Guru knows and guides us to higher levels based on our seriousness and devotion. T he journey continues. S.K. Dodeja, via email Flower of divine love I can never f orget my f irst meeting with Pujya Ma in 1978. I questioned her about yoga, Vedanta and meditation and was surprised and disappointed when she interjected: But have you f orgotten Jesus Christ? Her insight into Christs lif e and teachings was so original and f ascinating that I was soon converted. Pujya Ma explained: We should never give up the religion into which we have been born through destiny. We come to acceptance and understanding of other f aiths through sincerely practising our own. God is One, and ultimately all religions are paths to the same destination. Students of Pujya Ma come f rom dif f erent backgrounds, and cannot be called disciples, nor does Pujya Ma claim to be a spiritual teacher. When I addressed her as guru, she replied: I am neither worthy to become a guru, nor do I wish to be one. Rather join me in humble obeisance, and let us go to the Lords door together. Pujya Ma has never asked me to give up anythingpossessions, money, f amily, or adopt any strict discipline. We are all f ree to question whatever we hear or read. All Pujya Ma has ever taken f rom me is my accumulated tension, hypocrisy, self ishness, concepts and delusions. T he only rules at the Arpana Ashram in Haryana are that everyone should attend daily prayer meetings, share mealtimes and work f ulltime. Even these simple injunctions are not enf orced, because Pujya Ma says that only discipline imposed f rom within provides an atmosphere conducive to spiritual growth. Pujya Mas philosophy is that anyone can practise spirituality. She calls this the playway method. She af f irms that there are no boundaries between the spiritual and the mundane. Our lives must ref lect the Truth in every aspect of our work and dealings with others. Pujya Ma has given us the opportunity to serve those less f ortunate. Health and community services have taken root in villages around our centres in Haryana and Himachal Pradesh. She tells us: You are the real benef iciaries, because they have given you this opportunity to become better human beings. Our only wage is the happiness we get f rom serving the Lord. Years ago, Ma asked me to take up the garden as my responsibility. How painf ul it was f or Pujya Ma, an expert gardener herself , to see my f umbling attempts in the garden. Yet she never told me how to work, but gave me books and tools and a f ree hand. She told me the garden was my guru. Simultaneously, she was clearing my doubts, planting a seed in an aspirants heart, and f ostering its slow growth within; clearing the weeds of complexes, and nurturing humane qualities. Pujya Ma explains that guru and disciple have to become one in spirit, united in the perf ormance of action towards the common goal. When we conjoin our energies with those of a guru, and her words become mantras, we automatically receive spiritual knowledge and learn its practical aspect. T hrough Mas grace, the Guru and Goal are truly one. Mark Henderson-Begg, Karnal Guiding light

Dispeller of darkness, Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev lit a lamp in my path. When the f ire of my longing doesnt burn bright, Sadhguru is always there. Once, a f ew Isha Yoga volunteers gathered around Sadhguru under a tree. As he illustrated his childhood memories of climbing trees and swaying in deep meditation, my mind wandered of f . All this is f ine but how is it possible f or me? Abruptly he looked at me and said: Sue, why dont you climb this tree? Caught unawares, I gingerly took small steps. Laughing at my apprehension he said: Go up f urther. Sensing my hesitation, he exclaimed: Oh this is how she pursues the spiritual path also. Every step I took up towards the top of the tree, whatever I f elt, he ref lected. Every doubt, every conf usion vehemently surf aced in my mind and was instantly pierced with or without his words. As I descended f rom the tree, I could f eel those limitations just vanishing within me and I was drenched in humble gratitude. T he rock of ignorance that I have slumbered upon has sprung into wakef ulness by the grace of my Guru. Sue Shewale, Isha Foundation, via email Subtle transmission Married into a conservative f amily, with my children in boarding school, lif e was lonely. My mind turned inwards and my urge to know the Self became intense. Around this time I met Swami Purnanandji, a renowned Raj Yogi and spiritual healer f rom Satna, Madhya Pradesh. Sadhana with Swamiji was ef f ortless yoga. I was to sit at a set time in a clean empty room f or one hour in the morning and evening. Swamiji gave me mud f rom the banks of the Ganga to make a low platf orm to sit upon with copper wire f ixed to it. In this way, he imparted knowledge to me f rom a distance of 45 km, not through words but in a subtle f orm. His teaching was so ef f ective that in a f ew months I experienced savikalpa and nirvikalpa samadhi. But, he said, this is not the end. One must practise to be in total awareness at every moment. Af ter this my whole attitude towards lif e changed. I dealt with the world and f ulf illed my duties, but none of it had any impact on me. I realised this when my husband passed away suddenly. I was in total awareness with the blessing of Swamiji. I consoled my children and made arrangements f or the last rites. T hough Swamiji is no more, he is ever with me. He reminds me that a capable guru can lead disciples to truth only as long as they have the intense desire to know. Girirajkumari Kushwaha, Vadodara T he way within You do your best and accept the results gracef ullythis is the teaching of my satguru Yogiraj Sri Sri Mangeshda, whom we af f ectionately call Dada. A direct disciple of Mahavatar Babaji, Dada does not like to advertise this, as he wants people to come to him only to gain knowledge of Kriya Yoga. Dada moves around like an ordinary human being, clad in a pair of jeans, teaching us how to incorporate spirituality in day-to-day lif e. I had tried various paths in spirituality but I resisted change and f elt f rustrated. All my learning came together in a subtle f orm the day Dada entered my lif e. Together with meditation, alternative healing, self recognition and development programme, a residential programme How to be Happy where he teaches how to live happily moment to moment, and initiation into Kriya Yoga, Dada turned me f rom a discontented person into a true seeker. With the practice of Kriya Yoga and regular meditation, I have embarked on a journey within the self with my satguru as guide and mentor. In this journey, the destination is not as important as walking on the path, and with Dada f irmly by my side, guiding me at each breath, the path promises to be interesting. Jaya Laungani, Mumbai Merging with Mother I came to Mother Shivaa f eeling very small, threatened, f illed with f ear and a sense of loss. From the f irst time I met Mother, I knew I was in the presence of Light. Soon, I realised that being in her presence, being guided by her, is the process of illumination. Her being manif ests beauty and love in everyone who is touched by her grace. Every time she guides us in meditation, I f eel the transf ormational power of that

grace. Its touch changes everything. Absence becomes presence, an idea becomes experience, a question becomes an answer, f ragments coalesce to f orm a whole. In meditation, Mothers grace is the current that leads everyone towards ever-deeper awareness. Flowing in it, and with it, my being held by hers, the drop merges with its source. Outside the meditative state, I am a drop again. But I am neither separate nor small. Everything of the sea is in a drop. Mothers grace has enabled me to live in this awareness. It has enabled me to breathe again, to hear the silence at the end of each breath, the inf initesimal pause that holds eternity. Ranu Sharma, new delhi A beautiful life For years I had been leading a hectic lif e, but things f elt imperf ect. T hen I met someone who transf ormed my spirita gentle, humble, gracef ul, sof t-spoken bundle of treasureMeena Om. A soothing voice, which acted as a balm to the bruised soul, compassionate eyes that melted the darkest suspicions, and an inspiring persona that brought hope and a spirit of wanting to achieve the impossible. She f ascinated me. How could someone claim: Lif e is beautif ul, lets make it more beautif ul, or that: T he only sin we commit is we do not live lif e f ully? Never has Meenaji in the seven years that I have known her f orced me to do what she says or even tried to mould my individuality. Where on earth would I f ind a person who is so content in her communion with the Supreme that when she says: I will be happy if you f ind happiness elsewhere, because f or me it means one less person to nurture, I see a caref ree Suf i streak in her, her divine unconditional love an equal mixture of love and severity, much like Nature. As I ref lect on her radical inf luence in my lif e, I see how slowly, gently and with supreme wisdom, she cut my being to transf orm me. Meenaji is a ref lection of the supreme cosmic intelligence. She has helped me surmount so many challenges that today, shared secrets bond me and the universe, and I have the wisdom to smile and announce: Lif e is beautif ul, lets make it more beautif ul. Anjali Anubhuti Kalia, new delhi Self as guru I started my spiritual journey 18 years ago. Beginning with meditation and pranayam, I longed f or a guru, hoping f or a trigger f or f aster progress. I got a boost practising reiki, and began reading books on spirituality and attended several workshops like C.E.T., Art of Living, Rebirthing, Self -hypnosis, and so on. My desire f or a guru increased in intensity. For a time, I was able to study with dif f erent gurus, even taking diksha f rom one, but those associations came to an end due to the imperf ections I perceived in my teachers and their organisations. I now wonder about the need f or a diksha guru. A guru who is needy himself and to f ulf il his needs has to be manipulative and partial, cannot be a true guide. T he true guide lies within each of us. We know what good qualities we should have. All we need is to practise them and the rest comes as a by-product. All the goodies of not only the spiritual path but the material world as well will then ef f ortlessly f low into our lives. Despite my negative experiences, I do not have any good or ill f eelings towards anyone. I believe that both these emotions are two sides of the same coin. I live this lif e not with grace f rom a guru but with my own grace. Ramesh Shani, Mumbai Practice made perfect When I was 15 somebody gave me a copy of Osho Times and that motivated me to read and understand Osho. Reading him at that tender age has given me a deeper understanding of lif e, pain, suf f ering, hatred and anger. I couldnt complete my graduation but because of practising Oshos teachings, self -conf idence arose in me. Af ter imbibing Osho I can say that my anger has reduced by 80 per cent. T he method that has worked f or me is watching. If anger is arising I stop my activities and watch it: breathe out, go away, wash your f ace, do

some gibberish. Af ter some time, the intensity of anger goes down. If I had poured it on somebody I would have lost that person. I have tried it rigorously f or two years. Practising what I read f rom Osho is my workshop; I work on myself . For example, Ive heard Osho say it takes 21 days f or the mind to change a habit. To experiment, I started putting my handkerchief in the lef t pocket instead of the right. Really, it took 21 days f or my hand not to go to the right pocket automaticallycomplete transf ormation. Democrat by heart and dictator by the brainI have learned this f rom Osho by a rigorous commitment. Rajesh Agrawal, Delhi Guru as mother I cannot dream of lif e without my sadguru, Swami Satchidananda of Anandashram in Kanhangad, Kerala. His lif e is his teaching. Whenever I f eel depressed, I remember his words: You are not alone. Surrender to the Divine. T hy Will be done. Once when I requested him to write his autobiography, he ref used, saying: I have not attained anything. Swamiji takes care of his disciples like a mother taking care of her newborn baby. He f orgets his body and works hard. He treats everyone alike and is a real communist in that sense. His mere presence is rejuvenating. Swamiji cannot tolerate his devotees suf f ering. In his compassion, he helps them overcome any dif f iculty. When one asks f or his blessings, he says: Papas (his gurus) blessings. He is still serving his departed masters, Swami Ramdas (Papa) and Mata Krishnabai. When I saw him the last time, he told me not to see him in his photo or as physical f orm, but to see him in everything and to commune with him in my heart. With this, he is taking me f rom the unreal to the real. V. Sreelakshmi, Trivandrum Inner voice Sheikh Farid said: Vassi Rab hiyaliye, Bahar kya dhoondey,(God resides within, why search outside?). T hese days, f ollowing a guru seems to be the badge one needs to be part of the spiritual club. Else you may be cast as an impoverished soul not on any path and unworthy of interest. We operate our spiritual lives with a herd mentality, going by the growing number of gurus, yajnas, mantras, Kundalini awakeners and so on, in the spiritual marketplace. We are mesmerised by miracles. We weave f iction into f acts to add the required zing to our experiences when we recount them to f riends. Af ter all, we must have experiences to show f or the path we have chosen. If one examines all the spoken and written words on the subject, God resides within us, and Godrealisation or self -realisation will only come with inward searching. T hen it must be reasonable to expect the guru to take us to that goal within. For me, that guru is our own inner voice. Call it conscience, or the watcher, or what you will. T he inward Guru leads, and becomes f or methat which tells right f rom wrong, guides my actions, with whom I debate my indecisions, unf olds the truth, moves me to compassion, makes me think, sublimates my evil thoughts in rightf ulness, moves me to understanding, builds relationships and teaches me how to hold them, brims with joy at natures mystery, moves me to serve and pray, and creates peacef ulness in my meditation. T hat is my Guru, teacher, guidewithin me, of me, who really makes the me in me. Usha Partap Singh, New Delhi Precious gift I took sanyas at an Osho Meditation Camp in 1998. Af ter a f ew months of regular meditation, my entire lif estyle changed and I f elt myself become wiser, happier, more aware. But something was missing. My search f or a living master ended when I met Osho Siddhartha. I attended the Osho Dhara Dhyan Samadhi programme at Osho Gangotri Dham in Chitwan, Nepal. T he f irst three days f ocused on ananda pragya (wisdom to live blissf ully) based on the Buddhas eightf old path with science of spiritualism given by Paramguru Osho, modif ied and f ramed by Osho Siddhartha. Here I got sutras, tips, and samyak drishti to lead a blissf ul personal, prof essional and social lif e. I was not the same person.

On the eighth day of the programme, I got initiated into what is called anhad deeksha or naam daan and was introduced to one dimension of GodOmkaar. I was f illed with tears and every cell of my body was in gratitude towards my guru. It was then that I understood Meera: Vastu amolak di mere Sadguru, (my Sadguru has given me a precious gif t). Swami Antar Daulat (Karunesh Kumar), Dhanbad A new life In 2000 my wif e signed up f or the Art of Living course. I ended up attending it instead of her and then encouraged her to do it as well. Some months later, we visited the Ashram (the AOL international ashram located 21 km f rom Bangalore) and bumped into our AOL teacher there. She insisted that we stay back f or the pooja, but we decided to give it a skip. T hough spiritually inclined since childhood, rituals put me of f , and we had visited the Ashram more out of curiosity than f or any specif ic purpose in any case. T he next trip to the Ashram was in early 2001. As we were wandering around, we came to the place where Guruji (Sri Sri Ravi Shankar) was giving darshan. It was the f irst time I was in his presence. He gazed into my eyes and asked: Are you happy? T he gaze was deep, penetrating; there was something magical in those eyes. And then something happened! I couldnt say I wasnt happy even though I was going through health and prof essional problems. Since that day, my problems have vanished, even health problems that had dogged me since 1991 diminished by the regular practice of Sudarshan Kriya. Finances suddenly started to look up, and I am doing well prof essionally now. T hings that used to bother me earlier, no longer do. It is as if I am living a new lif e. And all this just by being graced by his look, I never had to state anything explicitly to him. I never had to ask himall changes were gradual. We started visiting the Ashram just to be in his presence. We did the advanced AOL courses and started organising regular satsangs. Today, we f eel his presence everywhere and in everything we do. I have never heard Guruji say: I am God, worship me. It is always: If I am God, so are you, recognise the divinity in everyone. We are truly blessed to be touched by the grace of an enlightened soul. Raj Waghray, Bangalore Darkness disappears Many questions remained unanswered in my mind through my lif e, as I grew up, got a good education and got married. I read a lot on positive thinking and spirituality. Yet I searched f or a guru who would put things in the right perspective. T hen something happened that jolted me out of my comf ort zone. At this time, I read Spirituality Made Simple by Vikas Malkani. Everything seemed to sort itself out, as if the dark clouds had disappeared. One day, I was surf ing T V channels and saw the name Vikas Malkani in a programme. I f elt a connection and wanted to explore f urther. Finding out that he lived close by, I started attending his weekly satsangs. As the weeks rolled by, things started changing f or me. Now I realise what it means when they say that when the student is ready, the master will arrive. Dr Bina Nangia, new delhi