Gunatit-Bhav ma réhéta Thava
Dear Sadhakos,
We have began what is perceived to be an impossible mission to achieve a state of Akshardham ni Samadhi and worship of Parabrahm Purushottam Narayan whilst living in a world dominated by crude natural forces, and maya known as Prakruti Purush and remaining in a state of consciousness known as gunatit-samadhi such that it governs our convictions, emotions and actions, ensuring we utilise them only for the worship of the Lord, also that we utilise our fundamental natures of satvagurn, tamogurn and rajogurn only when required. In order to attain such a samadhi, we have begun this sadhana by the grace of Yogiji-Maharaj.
It was Yogi-Maharaj’s mission to establish a ‘super-human’ race whose whole lives would be controlled and safeguarded by the power of God, this is known as the Mahamanav Brahm-niyantrit Samaj. We have been honoured to be made a member of such a samaj, thus we should take up our responsibilities in order to repay our debt to Maharaj and Yogiji Maharaj.
Always remain aware and rejoice in the thought that “I belong to Yogi Bapa – I belong to the Lord” ……
“I am Gunatit”. All the souls of this world and beyond are inanimate and inert where as I have been blessed by the sambandh of Maharaj and my body and soul are full of vitality and life. We are on the path of achieving purification of our souls. We have been selected by our Guruhari who will only relent when such purification has been achieved and we have attained the state of Gunatit-Bhav. That is His solemn vow according to the last sermon in Chapter one of the Swami-ni Vato.
Thus we should live each and every moment with total awareness and vigilance of our responsibilities. Bapa used to say ‘Jéni pasé hoy jokham, jadavvu jatan kariné’ – this means that those who have something precious should ensure it’s safe-keeping. Thus nothing should influence us such that it leads us away from the Lord. According to Vachnamrut G. I. 58, there are three major types of negative influences know as kusang. These are influences of our physical self, our companions and our inner beliefs.
Déha no Kusang – negative influences of the physical self. Our body and mind cause us to act in a certain way simply because we wish to do so. After filtering such thoughts to ascertain whether or not such actions would be regarded as worship of the Lord, we carry on regardless. Thus we commit offences of man, swad, snéha, lobh or kam. To participate in thoughts which hinder our worship and devotion towards the Lord, and to not disregard them is déha no kusang. Maharaj has shown how to overcome this in Vachnamrut G.I.58. By telling ourselves the following: ‘I belong to the Gunatit Sant, I am his humble disciple. Thus how can I submit to such negative thoughts, let alone act upon them? If I succumb to negative influences and act on them, then how will I be able to face my guru?’ In this way, we should fight off the demons of the mind and remain alert. Just as the lion catches the goat and holds it in its clutches, we should grasp such negative thoughts and disregard them. Thus discard such thoughts by convincing ourselves that such behaviour is not befitting until such thoughts are never evoked again.
Satsang no Kusang – negative influences of friends, companions and peers. We should avoid the company of those who are ‘under process’ – i.e. have not been purified as they will be going through various stages in their sadhana and may influence us negatively. It is better to seek the friendship of:
- Those who constantly practice mahatmya
- Those who constantly practice the ‘panchvartman’ – (i.e. non-lust, non-covetousness, non-taste, non-attachment and non-pride) to a greater degree than ourselves.
- Those who abide by Agna and Upasana – agna is to accept one and all as Brahm–roop and upasana is to serve the Lord and his devotees with mahatmya.
If one maintains friendship with such a sadhu then the satsang no kusang will not be an impediment. One must also avoid any literature or scriptures which may have a negative influence.
Karan no Kusang – our own inner-most beliefs which are so ingrained that they have become fused with our soul. They provoke thoughts which would lead us to act in a manner which is contradictory to our convictions and beliefs and take offence of others. Maharaj has revealed that the way to avoid this is to remain humble and serve the Gunatit Swaroopwho is himself the servant of the Lord and to constantly look for virtues in everyone and everything. As the degree of observing the virtues increases, so does the purification of our inner-most beliefs.
Thus we should never take manushyabhav in the Swami Swaroop Santos by conceding to our own negative thoughts which state: “The swaroop is just like me, he is prone to breach the panchvishay, i.e. man, swad, snéha, lobh, kam. He is genuinely intrigued and attracted by the panchvishay but as He is a swaroop, I must accept that his interest in them is superficial!” One who gives in to these negative influences of the mind (man no kusang) will never be redeemed. But if they endeavour to view the whole situation with a positive perspective and think along the lines of “Whatever the swaroop does, every move he makes, every word he speaks, every thought he conceives are in tune with the commands and wishes of the Lord. Every thing He does is for the goodwill of a ‘chaitanya’ – and although His actions appear inappropriate to me, this is simply to test me”.
If we sincerely believe this, repent and do séva as commanded by our guru then even the most solid and impenetrable inner-beliefs will be dissolved and purified such that we will attain the virtuous qualities of non-pride, non-taste, non-attachment, non-covetousness, non-lust (nirmani, nirswadi, nirsnéhi, nirlobhi and nishkami) and remain constantly in Gunatit-Bhav as described in Vach. Kariyani 12.
We will become what we perceive the Swami Swaroop Santos to be. The Swaroopos have vowed and pledged that it is their mission that we should all reach the spiritual summit of Gunatit–Bhav. Hence let us prepare ourselves and make a firm resolution to do or die, marching on with zeal. When thoughts arise which do not lend themselves to enhance our service and devotion to the Lord, then they should be discarded immediately, telling ourself, “Wicked thoughts, you will destroy all that I have strived to achieve!!”. Thus considering these thoughts as an enemy, we should discard them and only conceive thoughts which are in tune with the Lord’s commands and wishes and entertain them with the whole body, mind and soul.Gradually, we will gain strength and whilst remaining immersed in maya we will not be overpowered by it. In this way you will acquire the power, capacity and energy of a mahamanav living submerged in Akshardham whilst living in the midst of maya.