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Parthi Update - September 16-18,
2004
16-09-2004
In the evening Bhagawan came out for Darshan and went inside the
interview room with some VIP’s. Beside our Bhajan group, there
was a group of youth sitting in whites with all their music
instruments. They were the Sundaram Bhajan Group singers from
Chennai. There was some meeting of all the Samithi convenors of
Tamilnadu at Prasanthinilayam on the 16th and 17th of this
month. Along with them, these Bhajan singers had also come.
Swami completed the interview and as He came out of the
interview room, He sent word for the Sundaram Bhajan group to
start their songs. Even as Bhagawan came and sat down on the
sofa, the first song began. What professional singing! Believe
it or not, it was a wonderful treat to our ears and heart. Song
after song flowed – so soothing and melodious. The voice was
very sweet and mellifluous, tunes were soul stirring and the
selection of songs itself was very good! We had Tamil, Kannada
and Hindi songs. All songs were about the glory of Lord Krishna!
What is more important is the participation of Swami in this
programme. As soon as Swami sat down, He asked one of them to
come forward. The person went forward with the card. It was a
brown colour card that looked very elegant and had the programme
details within. Swami opened the card and went through the
details and asked him a few questions. Then Swami asked them to
sing a particular song. They began that song. We enjoyed it
thoroughly. As they concluded the song or rather were in the
last few lines, Bhagawan opened the card again and selected
another song. As they completed the current song, He asked them
to sing the next song of His choice. Thus it went on, song after
song. Each time Bhagawan would see the card and ask them to sing
a particular song. Literally “Khuda Ki Pharmaish”. All
throughout, Swami kept the card with Him on His lap!! What a
gesture of Love and flow of compassion!
Throughout the programme, Swami kept giving Taalam (beat) and
there was a smile on His face, a loving smile acknowledging
their devotion and love for Him. It was a treat to all of us.
They sang from 3.45 p.m. to 4.30 p.m. Then Bhagawan asked them
to sing Bhajans. This too was a very thrilling experience!
Bhagawan retired by 5.15 p.m.
17-09-2004
We all assembled in the Mandir for evening Darshan. The Sundaram
Bhajan Group was again sitting in front. We hurriedly went and
took our place. Swami came and sat on the sofa and signaled for
the Sundaram boys to start their programme – part 2. Once again
the same experience. Very good songs. Not the usual one’s but
still very catchy, good beat, and very nice to hear. After they
sang a few songs, Bhagawan asked for our Music boys. Very
quickly, the music boys gathered in the front. Two of the music
boys were holding a card to seek for permission regarding music
programme the next day – for Ganesha Chaturthi. Bhagawan called
them forward, looked at the card and asked “What about now?”
The boys were taken by surprise. They said, “Swami group songs”.
Bhagawan said, “Sing Padyams (verses)”. Boys asked, “Swami,
stotrams?” Swami said, “No, sing Padyams”. The boys went back
and having no idea how to start, they began with the Ganesha
Stotrams that were actually meant for the next day! That is
Bhagawan!! Full of uncertainty and surprises! We just need to
take things as they come and enjoy the flow of His Love! The
music boys continued with stotram after stotram. Many
Gurupoornima Stotrams were chanted.
Meanwhile Swami spotted two of our young Music College singers.
They used to often render the Ramakatha songs in front of
Bhagawan. Swami asked them to sing the Rama Katha. It was a long
time since they had performed. I’m sure their hearts would have
beat faster than ever! They readily burst forth with the series
of Rama Katha songs. Swami was continuously looking and smiling
at them. That kept them going on smoothly. At the end there was
a loud applause!!
Bhagawan retired by 5.40 p.m.
18-09-2004
We wish you a very happy Ganesha Chaturthi! On this holy day,
Bhagawan came to Sai Kulwant Hall at 7:30 am and took His seat
in the portico. He called the V.C and asked him as to who would
speak. In fact boys had prepared a nice programme consisting of
group songs interspersed with commentary, dialogues, dance, etc.
revealing the inner significance of all the aspects of Ganesha
and the festival. But just like it happened during the
Krishnashtami festival, Swami asked for individual speakers.
There were no scheduled speakers and so the V.C with Swami’s
permission called research scholar Sri Deepak Anand to address
the gathering. Deepak Anand spoke about Swami being the One in
whom all names and forms of God resided. He narrated the
experience of one of our students who was blessed with the
literal physical company of Lord Ganesha, when he was in the
Institute.
Thereafter Swami blessed Sri Shashank Shah, a student of the
M.Phil programme in Management, to share his thoughts with the
audience. He spoke on the inner significance of the various
facets relating to Lord Ganesha. He also narrated the incident
where Bhagawan had blessed Swami Amritananda (a disciple of Sri
Ramana Maharishi) with a vision of Lord Ganesha in the interview
room many years ago. Swami Amritananda in his childhood days had
performed a very special Yajnam for Lord Ganesha. As per the
Sastras the benefit of this Yajnam was supposed to be the
Darshan of Lord Ganesha Himself. Reminding Swami Amritananda
about this, Swami asked him whether he had got the Darshan of
Lord Ganesha. When Amritananda answered in the negative,
Bhagawan gave him a vision of the golden hue Ganesha!!
The third speaker was Sri Bharat Kumar from the II MBA class
whom Swami blessed to speak. He spoke on the efficacy of
Namasmarana and his personal experience at Tirupati; how Swami
had miraculously helped him to have a very good Darshan of the
Lord within a very short time, with the help of a recommendation
letter of a Minister unknown to him, that mysteriously landed in
his hands on its own!
Finally the Vice Chancellor, Sri S.V.Giri addressed the
gathering speaking on the significance of the Ganesha festival.
After his talk, the Vice-Chancellor prayed to Bhagawan to give
His Divine Message. Swami nodded His approval. The table was
arranged and Bhagawan arose to give His benedictory Message to
all of us.
The highlights of the Discourse will come to you in my next
mail.
As the Discourse ended, Swami signaled for Prasadam
distribution. The entire Kulwant Hall was soon bustling with
activity. Boys moving all around distributing juicy red apples!
Meanwhile Swami called those boys who were ready with the
programme and asked them what it was all about. One of them
explained that they were going to talk about the inner
significance of all the aspects of Lord Ganesha relating it to
the Nava Vidha Bhakti. Hearing this Swami said that we must not
limit Lord Ganesha to Nava Vidha Bhakti, for Ganesha is above
all this. He is the Atmic Reality! The boys nodded and said that
they would incorporate this too in their presentation. Swami
said that we would have the presentation in the evening.
In the evening, Swami came around five past three and got down
on the dais but then went walking towards the interview room. He
was inside until 4.15 p.m. Then He came out, sat for some time
and finally called the boy to whom he had spoken in the morning.
Swami asked him as to what they were going to speak. The student
said that they were going to speak about Ganesha as the
transcendental reality. Bhagawan asked them to also mention that
Lord Ganesha is beyond the Pancha Bhootas too. With His
Blessings the programme began.
A song to start with. Then the first pair of anchorers began
their talk saying that though Lord Shiva and Vishnu had specific
pilgrimage centers for them, there is no village or town without
the temple of Lord Ganesha. Then they went on to say that the
real pilgrimage to Lord Ganesha was on the path of Nava Vidha
Bhakti. They explained the first two steps- Sravanam and
Keertanam. They said that both of these are relevant only if
done with total Bhavam (feelings). This was followed by a dance
by one of the students to the stotram ‘Ganesha Pancharatnamala’
in the recorded voice of Smt. M.S. Subbulakshmi (Mudakarata
Modakam Sada Vimukti Sadhakam…). Swami and all of us enjoyed the
dance.
Thereafter the next module had two boys discussing the inner
significance of the various physical features of Lord Ganesha.
One was a sculptor who complained that he was getting bored of
doing the same work every year. Make these idols in large
numbers and sell them. He did not gain any satisfaction from
this work. To this, his friend explains that any work done
mechanically without understanding its significance will lead to
despair.
He then goes on to explain the inner significance of every part
of the idol. To start with, the huge elephant head symbolizes
intelligence; the large ears indicate that Ganesha is ever ready
to hear to the pleas of His devotees. The goad in His hand is to
goad humanity to walk along the path of spirituality; the noose
in another hand is to catch people who are on the wrong path.
The missing tusk reminds us of the great sacrifice made by Lord
Ganesha in breaking off His tusk so as to allow the dictation of
the great epic Mahabharata without any interruption! The tiny
mouse symbolizes Tamas (ignorance). The mouse is a nocturnal
animal found only in dark and dirty places. Lord Ganesha has a
command over this Tamas and has mastered it. So Ganesha who has
Mooshika as His Vahana is the Master of ignorance and He dispels
ignorance in humanity.
Thus true Vishnu Smaranam is not only mechanical remembrance of
God, but also keeping the form of the Lord in mind, with full
knowledge of its inner significance. Further, when the elephant
moves in the forest he creates a path for other animals. Thus
the elephant is a path maker. Similarly Lord Ganesha is the path
maker. He sets the path for all of us and is a role model for
all the students and youth. Therefore, true Padasevanam is
following the path laid by the Lord. Walking in His footsteps
and living His message is true Padasevanam!
Thereafter, there was a stotram chant, followed by the next two
anchorers. They touched upon the next step of Archanam,
narrating the story of why the Durva grass is offered to Lord
Ganesha. Once when Mother Parvati and Lord Shiva were playing a
game, they appointed Nandi as the umpire. On completion of the
game, Mother Parvati was the winner but Nandi declared Lord Siva
as the winner. This outraged Mother Parvati and she cursed Nandi
with an incurable disease. Nandi went pleading to Mother and
told her that he had no choice other than declaring Lord Shiva
as the winner because He was his Master and he was the slave.
Impressed by the feelings of Nandi, Mother Parvati agreed to
take back her curse provided Nandi would offer what was
cherished by him most, to her son Ganesha. Durva grass – the
most precious item cherished by Nandi was offered to Ganesha.
This is how the practice continues even today. The inner
significance of this is that when we go to religious places we
have a tendency to offer things we do not like, to God. But in
reality, we should offer that which we like most, to our Lord,
as a Tyaga (sacrifice) similar to Nandi. As Bhagawan says we go
to Gaya and give up Bitter Gourd over there!!
In the Gita, Lord Krishna clearly elaborates on the practice of
Archanam, saying that what a devotee should truly offer to God
is the Patram (leaf) of the body, Pushpam (flower) of the mind,
Phalam (fruit) of the rewards of the actions and Toyam (sacred
water) of the tears of Bliss! Bhagawan goes one step further and
says, “Give Me all your bad qualities and I shall give you good
qualities in return”.
Thereafter there was a group song, “Sri Ganesha Shivuni Kumara
Shrutajana….”. A Telugu module followed this song.
This module expounded on Vandanam. It was full of humour. Two
‘so called’ Pandits are going around trying to give Discourses
on Lord Ganesha. When asked by a scholar to explain the meaning
of the verse, ‘Suklam Baradaram Vishnum….”, they go on to
explain that this verse is not meant to describe Ganesha but it
is about Sai students. Suklam Baradaram (wearing white clothes),
Vishnum (found everywhere, in India and even abroad), Sasivarnam
(the cool mark of white Vibhuti on their forehead), Chaturbhujam
(with two hands and two feet), Prasanna Vadanam (always
cheerful), Sarva Vighna Upa Shantaye (pacify their taste by
adding more salt to a saltless dish!)….(Laughter!!)
They go on to give one more explanation of this Sloka as
narrated by a washerman (dhobhi). Suklam Baradaram (white in
colour), Vishnum (found everywhere, wherever you see),
Sasivarnam (having a cool disposition), Chaturbhujam (with four
limbs), Prasanna Vadanam (always cheerful irrespective of being
patted or beaten), Sarva Vighna Upa Shantaye (O Ganesha, prays
the dhobhi, “please remove all obstacles in the way of my pet so
that it can peacefully complete it’s task”.)….This is the donkey
that is used by the washerman to carry the bundle of clothes!!
(Laughter!!)
Listening to all this, the scholar chides them for spreading all
this perverted meanings. He then goes on to explain the true
meaning of the Stotram as the One wearing white (pure) clothes,
Omnipresent, as cool as the moon, with four hands – ever ready
to help His devotees, ever Blissful with a pleasant smile on His
face, bestowing peace by removing all hurdles – He is none other
than Lord Ganesha Himself! We must offer our Vandanam to this
Lord.
Another student elaborated on Vandanam and Dasyam in English for
the benefit of the non-Telugu audience. In Vandanam, we join our
two hands representing the five Karmendriyas and the five
Jnanendriyas, keep it close to our heart and then bowing down
with humility, we offer all these to the Lord. This is true
Vandanam. True Daysam is when one offers help and service to
others with a feeling of compassion and amity and not with a
feeling of pity. We become a Dasa (servant) of the Lord in every
being!!
Then the boys sang another stotram and thereafter the aspect of
Sneham – friendship was very humorously depicted wherein, a
student is talking to his teacher about making Lord Ganesha as
his new friend as the exams were soon approaching. To this the
teacher corrects the student saying that this is the mistake we
all make. Friendship is not meant for this ‘give and take’. True
friendship must be related only to the Atmic bond. The student
then asks the teacher as to how one could cultivate this bond.
The teacher says that this can be done by loving God as one’s
true friend. It is only then that we will experience His Love.
The module culminated in the depiction from the Kathopanishad,
about the analogy of the human body and the chariot. The chariot
stands for the body, the five senses are like the five horses,
the reins stand for the mind, the charioteer is like the Buddhi
and the owner of the chariot is the Atma! This was illustrated
with the help of five boys acting as the horses with the rope of
the mind binding them together and another student acting as the
Buddhi controls the rope in his hand.
If the Buddhi has control over the rope of the mind, the senses
are under check. If not, the chariot of the body will be under
total chaos with each of the senses following their own way.
Thus making the senses subservient to the mind, the mind
subservient to the Buddhi and the Buddhi subservient to the
Atma, is true Atma Nivedanam (self-surrender).
Thereafter the boys communicated that Lord Vinayaka was the
supreme Atman itself and true Atma Nivedanam was surrendering
the individual self to the Supreme Self. Lord Vinayaka was even
beyond the Nava Vidha Bhakti and the Pancha Bhootas. He is the
supreme consciousness pervading the entire cosmos and it is to
Him that we have to offer ourselves in totality and attain the
supreme mergence. He is Vi + Nayaka – the one without a Master.
He is Gana + Pati – the Master of all the Ganas that represent
the ten Karmendriyas and Jnendriyas and the mind and the Buddhi.
One of the students explained the inner significance of Vidya,
which was not merely the secular knowledge, but Atmavidya – the
supreme wisdom and Lord Ganesha is the bestower of that supreme
wisdom.
Finally, praying to Bhagawan to cast at least one glance at us
so that we may acquire this supreme wisdom, the programme ended
with the Qawalli, “Ek Bar Yun Nazare Milakar Dekh Le Sai……….”
Bhagawan then asked the boys to sing some more group songs while
Prasadam was being distributed. Swami very lovingly called the
boy who danced and materialized a small idol of Lord Ganesha
made of gold, for him.
Swami sat for another 20 minutes and took Arati at 5.45 p.m. All
throughout the programme Bhagawan was smiling and expressing
great joy! This was a very satisfying experience for all of us.
Thus with the Blessings of the Divine Father we returned to the
Hostel to worship the Divine son in our wing altars.
The immersion ceremony is going to be on Monday and therefore
all boys are busy fabricating and decorating their palanquins
and chariots. We are awaiting the colourful and joyous ceremony
the day after!
Sairam
Posted by Azmeen Kasad on 20.09.2004
http://aumsairam108.tripod.com/ganesh04/parthi_update.htm
Ganesh Chaturthi Photogallery:
http://saibabalinks.org/pictures/2004/Sep18/2004.09.18.htm
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