Are we near to or far from the Lord?

Are we near  to or far from the Lord?

The Lord is near to us every moment and under all circumstances. To whatever we tell Him He will surely listen, even if we express something mentally. We have to call out aloud for one living far, for one near to whisper but for one who is always residing in the heart it is enough to think once.Let us therefore  tell him our anguishes, aspirations , desires unreservedly, every thought in your heart, good or bad. He in turn will acquaint us with His  unthinkable, ever unknown, charming and soul-stirring Lilas. He is always anxious to do us good .Try to feel Him in the heart and to see Him in all faces you see. Everything is known to Him. He recognizes all our wants and responds as soon as we raise our cry for help. Behold everything as the Lord’s, then there are no feelings of otherness and our whole life becomes an act of worship, a song of praise. When we meditate upon Him, worship and take His Name He enters our hearts and makes ashes of our sins accumulated in countless lifetimes. May we have the firm belief that He is very near us and won’t leave us alone for one minute. Our bodies are His property, He feels, acts and thinks through them. We are mere spectators, only the Lord acts.

Lord Krishna said (Gita VIII, verse 14) “He who constantly thinks of Me without any other thought I am easily reached by him who is thus ceaselessly attached to me.”

The very day when we begin to feel the Lord as our own child or father, moving with us in our own house, His mysterious hand of love and mercy is felt by us at every step in our life. Vaishnavas of Ragamarga  feel themselves closely related to Him, have not the least awe or distant reverence. to be  It is love which takes to Him. By dearly loving Him and taking shelter in His Name alone some day or the other all efforts will be successful. Real Bhaktas never care about keeping their individuality or giving it up but surrender to the will of God and allow Him to make use of it in any way He likes. Who feels  the Lord’s presence near cannot commit evil acts nor is disturbed or depressed, but finds himself diving and swimming in divine grace in  His companionship as unfailing friend. Sin and misery will attack only when one loses the belief that he resides in us and is always anxious to do us good.

The Lord lives in everything but so much behind the screen, and is playing so many tricks, that one who wants  to catch Him cannot succeed. He created the Jivas after His own image to reflect His beauty and they reflect it truly in their Aprakrita bodies(non material). The Lord sits in everybody’s heart and in everything in the creation, being the Chit Sakti (life principle) in them all.Once the consciousness or heart of the Jiva becomes pure it sees immediately the Lord reflected in it. The Jivas, residing in a body have their origin in the consciousness of the Supreme Lord. In the beginning was only God, self-contained in His own bliss. Then he willed to be many and became so many Jivas or individual souls. The souls never change, only the physical casing, given by Maya, changes in the evolutionary process spread over millions of years through the mineral, vegetable and animal kingdom. Even in animal stages the Jivas had to take birth in 84 Lakhs of species by heredity, natural selection and environment until at last the human form was gained which has some resemblance to the Lord. The living soul is intrinsically linked with the Lord and yet at the same time not the same as God (achintya bheda abheda) . We are one with and different from Him. When the Lord wished to taste His own Rasa He created Jivas as so many vessels to contain His Rasa. When this Rasa is made enjoyable it is called PREMA.

Choose any one of the  5 main forms of superior love (Rasa) for you. They  are: Santi – peaceful, heart filled with love and joy; Dasya – one pleases the Lord in all possible ways of service; Sakhya: one moves with the Lord as friend on equal terms; Vatsalya – one looks upon and cares for the Lord as a beloved child;  Sringara or Madhura-Rasa – the devotee regards the Lord as lover, lover and beloved become one.

Rupa Goswami described in Bhakti Rasamrita Sindhu Rasa as follows:  “When the heart melts due to Lord’s presence in it, when the mind upto the deepest layers of unconsciousness has become moist, then the always inherent Love for God exalts into a Rasa which gives immense pleasure to the beloved Lord”.

When true love awakens in the heart then the Lord is no longer considered as God but looked upon as most intimate, as owns own. In that moment when the mind, Ego,  body is totally surrendered to the Lord one realises oneness with Him. The Lord becomes a slave of a Bhakta who totally surrenders. When we are absorbed in Him then He too will reciprocate our love to the fullest extent and make us His own. Complete surrender of one’s will leads to Samadhi or union with Him. Strong must be hope and faith. Certainly the Lord will show His favour.

The Lord moves about those who always think alone of Him and take His Name. The more we repeat His Name the nearer we come to Him. When the transcendental Name is worshipped it spreads by itself its glory within the devotees heart. Is the devotee united with Him he spends days and nights in singing His praises and hearing His glory, is not conscious of the external world. Sometimes he laughs, weeps, cries, dances. Through the excessive joy he gets horripulation, sits motionless. Treasure one particular Name and form of Him as your own and never leave him. Become His dearest. All He wants from us is that we become enlisted in His service, have absolutely selfless devotion and live resigned to His will.The more we repeat His Name the nearer we come to Him.Constant remembrance of Him means forgetting the world and its attractions. He may hide from us but remains always near, He does not leave us, for a Jiva who is deserted by Him would at once perish. Firmly believe that He will show His favour, be kind, reveal His presence and play with you. Beware: His grace demands complete dependence, full submission and total surrender. On that day when all our activities, mental, physical are centred  in God and His service can it be said that we are totally devoted to Him. A devotee who always dwells in God must enjoy His bliss. He will always have a divine Aura and bloom in his face, his eyes sparkle and glitter in divine effulgence. He radiates joy allround, has no attachments to sensual objects.

The highest stage of union with God cannot be realized by thought and is possible only in a state of ecstasy in which the soul transcends its own thought, loses itself in Paramatma and becomes one with Him. But the outer shell – the body and Ego- awareness – has to die. Forget all thoughts of the world. Adhere to Him, to whom you have offered your heart, withdraw your attachment to other objects, fix it upon your Lord and remain firmly attached to Him. Unless the entire heart is given and you  are absolutely selfless, Prema will not come.

Lord Haranath revealed: “You can never know why I came to this world. Who says that I am only in this world and not at the same time in others also, doing some work there? If you think me not of your own you will cause me pain. I belong to all and everyone appears to be Mine. If the desire for Krishna is great in you make it stronger and still stronger. The only price by which He can be purchased is earnest desire. May our Lord ordain that we can always shed tears with His Name on our lips. The happiness that there is in Name has no parallel. It is very sweet, very sweet. It has no like of it even in final emancipation. Tears are like swirls in the stream of love, hence they are so deep. If you can accumulate this treasure He will soon be yours. You are my only hope. I have none else to call my own. You are my living certificates to convince the world of  who and what I am. When I accepted you I will not leave you, even if you leave me. I am your property and shall feel much if you abuse your deposited, entrusted property. Rest assured that I shall be watching over you always though you may not see Me. My pleasures and pains are mixed with yours. I am yours and will ever be so. You are my life, my everything. You don’t know what high price I paid to get you.”

As long as we identify ourselves with the body and live entangled in worldly pleasures we are far away from the Lord. Spiritual effort cannot attain fruition as long as the Ego-sense persists and we depend on own exertions, own individual power. The Ego must be rooted out. The more one empties itself from egoism the more the heart will be filled with God. His grace is always there, only the Ego prevents Jivas from taking advantage of it. This life is not our own. Protect it carefully as His and never forget this.

Ruth Baur
12.12.2014

THE AVATAR KUSUMA HARANATH

THE AVATAR KUSUMA HARANATH

(1865 – 1927)

Lord Haranath compared Avatars to Comets who come to the earth to bring spiritual awakening and to transform the souls to a level of living their lives  charged with divine love and will come again and again as long as Jeevas keep them in memory. An Avatar remains near and gives fruits but when forgotten he goes far away from us.. Prophets, saints etc. are constantly coming but they cannot make love to Jivas. For that purpose the Lord Himself has to come. He comes to redeem millions of  people and His influence lasts forever. When the Lord decides to take a human garb He behaves just like an ordinary human being to all intents and purposes but in Him time and space limits do not exist. By His illusive power He makes us think that He is an ordinary being. Lord Haranath kept His divine powers and glory in the background to freely  mix and mingle with all. By display of His divine powers closeness, friendship and love would have contracted.  Lord Krishna manifested occasionally His divine powers but was considered by the vast majority  as  a human being with extraordinary skills and talents. Very few can recognize an Avatar when He comes to live in our midst and still fewer realise Him though living very near or moving in His company.

In His Avatar as Kusum Haranath He chose the life of an householder and acted like an ordinary human being, hiding away His infinitude, perfection and omnipresence. He served in a Dharmartha office in remote Kashmir, was as father not much attached to home. The divine element in Him which ran till about His middle age came to dominate His career. With the veil drawn aside the Avatar Haranath began to shine in all His splendour.He gave Darshan as Lord Rama, Krishna, Kali, Jagannath, Christ, resurrected dead people back to life, multiplied food etc. In later life He leapt into tremendous activity, scattering light , love, mercy  amongst the hundreds  and  thousands that began to flock around Him.

He admitted in clear unmistakable language that He is an Avatar who came down to earth to extricate mankind from the clutches of sin, to lessen their load of suffering by transferring it on to His shoulders, and to finally instil pure love into their hearts. The diffusion of Prema amongst Jivas has been the mission of His Life. He accomplished it so mysteriously and silently that by keeping company or opening correspondence with Him, even for a short time, people become imbued with love for God, unaware of how it happened. He was perpetually giving Himself, sharing the lives of His finite creatures, bearing with them the whole burden of their sinful wanderings and sorrows without which they cannot be made perfect. Willingly He took upon Himself diseases, sorrows and sufferings of humanity and asked all to lay their burdens of sins on Him. He said:”Many a time have I come to this world. No sooner did I come here you occupied my heart. I will not leave you, even if I leave this body. Don’t be anxious. You are my fathers, mothers and dear ones. I want your love. You have attracted me from a great distance. This, my play (Leela), has neither beginning  nor  end, never goes out of line and no human effort can make it swerve. If you don’t hear from me don’t conclude that you have slipped out of my mind. I have divested my heart of its hidden treasure – PREMA – for you. Keep it carefully secreted in your heart. Again and again shall I come into this world *, thus shall we meet together. Again shall we change the scene and begin a new play. Separation will be only for a moment. When I allowed myself to be bound where lies the necessity of strings? Once you take hold of me keep holding on, remembering that this is the Lord’s play. I am knocking at every door. The time will come when I shall knock at yours. I have  come  to serve the Lord and I am doing it. God is my only judge. Krishna has made me a public servant. He is always at my back to guide and correct me. If I forget in any way the part I have come to play He will prompt me to it. I have nothing to gain or lose here for myself. Everything belongs to Him. All that is required of me it to live resigned to His will. I have come half-way to meet you without your serious trying to reach me. The more you desire to have me the more will I pull you up to me. When you feel a yearning for me why  sit  idle? Run off for God, try to get him with a soul pining for the Lord of your heart. It is not too late. Make haste! Let us not belong to those who forget Him and stop calling Him with diminished faith.”

The Lord is Rasa (activated bliss). In order to taste His own Rasa in all its phases He created the Jivas and  used  them as  vessels to contain this Rasa, which, when made enjoyable, is called Prema. In the beginning the Lord was all alone, self-contained in His bliss. Then He willed to become many and became so many Jeevas or individual souls. The souls are unchanging, only their physical casing is. It  is only Prema which rises a Jiva to the same platform with the Lord.  Every Jiva is a divine channel through which should flow  divine love, bliss, wisdom but  the channel is blocked by holding the body  for the self and identifying ourselves with this perishable body. If a Jiva is able to excite this Rasa which is within himself and forms the root of his existence into activity and he is turns it into Prema sure to get direct response from the Lord. Man’s only glory is that he is born of divine parentage once along with the birth of the creation which entitles us to the wealth of Prema which is the exclusive property of the Lord. The life of this universe is God and we live not only in Him but also for Him. The Lord  as Antaryamin (indwelling divinity) is sitting in the heart of every Jiva, silently controlling all their actions. We are responsible for what we are and wish to be. We did not come here to satisfy the cravings of our flesh nor to gratify our passions but to serve God as His servants and to do His biddings. All our misery here arises because we forgot our real home, our divine parentage and that God is awaiting us to return to Him.

As soon as the Ego (identification with the body) is gone the obstruction to the flow of divine grace is removed. The self unfolds when the Ego brakes and disappears. Once self-realisation is attained the Ego loses its significance. Those who don’t seek God will not find true awareness of the soul. They will continue to identify the soul with the body and from this delusion be enslaved by every kind of desire and attachment. The Lord is the only reality, all else  false. Everything in the universe is ever swinging – the only point still and calm are His Lotosfeet. His play  is eternal, beyond time, space and causation. It is a game of joy with the whole universe as its stage. He is the Being forever shining in the innermost region of the soul. Krishna said  to Uddhava:”it does not matter whether a man knows that I am infinite, glorious, majestic or about all other qualities. Let him worship me with all his heart and simply think of me as being his own, his sole support and he shall be the greatest of my Bhaktas.”

We think that we act but it is only the Lord who  acts, not even a leave moves without His will.  We have no free will. As long as we are self-seeking, materialistic and live forgetful of the Lord Maya controls  us. Sadly most indulge in their sensual pleasures that only degrade them, make them wretched. Man becomes unwittingly a murderer of his own Atma, his true destiny. Being attached to his body he devolves and wanders the dreadful catacomb of Samsara. It is not our religion that hinders us to reach out to Him, it is our want of love for Him, our selfish aims and the rewards we expect to reap out of our actions. The moment we become inclined to love and adore God for His own sake and generate longing in our hearts to get Him, feel our life to be void without Him, we become Vaishnavas in its truest sense. As long as the Ego persists spiritual effort won’t give results, even the slightest assertion of the Ego-sense frustrates all progress made. Have full faith in His motiveless, infinite grace and take complete shelter in Him. He is near us every moment under all circumstances and is sure to listen even if we express ourselves mentally. For one who is far off one must call aloud, for one close whisper reaches him. But for one who is always in the heart it is enough to just think of Him.

Lord Haranath revealed to us:”This time I descended out of causeless mercy. I came whether you called me or not  and .will not leave you even if I leave this body. I have appeared to give you the only treasure of my heart  - my Name -and hope you will receive if affectionately and keep it carefully. I want your love. The price I paid to get you is indeed very very heavy. If you shun me or forsake me  altogether I cannot afford to forget or lose you. You are all mine, you cannot realise how dear and valuable you all are to me. I am now your property and shall feel much if you do abuse your entrusted property.” In one of His letters to  a devotee he wrote :” What greater penance is there but Name? His Name is infinitely more fruitful than sacrifices, austerities, penances as it is always pure, being one with the Lord. Even once uttered it has the power to blow away such a heap of sins as no Jiva could ever dream of accumulating throughout an entire lifespan. The whole world is my theatre. I have been incarnating in many shapes from the beginning of creation. Don’t waste time to know me. If at all you are able to catch me at any time do not leave Name, it generates love and love (aimless, selfless, causeless) leads to the Lord of love. Ceaselessly churn the ocean of the divine Name. The more you are immersed  in  Nama Japa the nearer shall you  come to Him. Firmly believe that He will show His favour, be kind and reveal His presence”. Constant waiting with intense longing for  the Lord’s arrival is a sign of a true devotee, it should be always his mental attitude. The Lord’s Name is Kali’s sacrifice for us Jivas. Would we ever be able without this sacrifice to catch the otherwise uncatchable one?

The one supreme purpose of Lord Kusum Haranath’s descend was and is to make man God-minded by sowing the seeds of His own Name into their hearts which will grow by His blessings into the tree of devotion and bear Prema fruits. Once our hearts are  completely pure He Himself makes them His abode. He will draw the soul to Himself like a magnet.

9^th November 2014

Ruth Baur

*- Page 1 -Lord Krishna said to Muchukunda (Srimad Bhagavatam) “You might count the dust specks on this earth if you are born several times but you cannot count the number of my births, names and attributes.”

Hurry up THERE IS NO TIME TO LOSE

Hurry  up, there is no time to lose

The relationship which we have established with our Lord is the result of great merits. Let us never give up this opportunity as once lost it will not return . We are very fortunate as He Himself is pulling us by  the hand. Don’t leave His hand. He is waiting, yearning for us full of hope in us. Once we are His, this false play will not attract us any longer. Hope and faith must be strong. When the heart is pure, stainless  and sufficiently broad our Lord of Love makes it to  His abode. The entire heart and soul must be given, nothing less will do. Ardour in worship is the chief characteristic or mark of devotion of love of God. Worship should be both, external and internal. We should devote ourselves entirely in body, mind, words to His service and surrender our  will  to Him, place ourselves as willing  tool in His hands, make Him a very close and most dear relation. How much is our power that we can reach Him by dint of  own effort? Rather call Him to come out down to you.

Lord  Haranath said “This is the age of spontaneous love. You are very fortunate as Krishna is pulling you by the hand and gives assistance. Don’t leave my hand. I am waiting with full hope in you.” If we totally surrender  to Him this false play will no longer attract us. Surrender means giving up one’s individuality, one’s likes and dislikes. When devotion deepens absolute self-forgetfulness comes. This is called Bhava. As long as we work with the attitude that we are doing the work we can’t expect His grace, for then egoism comes in and the free flow of divine grace is blocked.

Now is the play of causeless mercy. Did you call me  asked Lord Haranath. “ I have come myself, whether you called or not. I have come  half-way to meet you without your serious trying to reach me. Remain always mad in Name and taste its sweetness. All your bonds He has loosened and is calling “come running towards me. Certainly I will lead you by your hand. Only love is my nature. Don’t fritter away the precious time in any way.” May we always feel  His presence, have Him in mind, immersed in love for Him. Lord Kusuma Haranath has made our Sadhana very easy for us. He infuses super-spiritual  vigour  in the hearts of His followers, always keeps a watchful  eye on everyone, especially on those who totally depend on Him. He never allows His followers to go astray. The moment we return to Him He takes us into His embrace, forgetting all our immoralities. He knows so many ways of love, has such diverse means of making us weep or smile.

Doors are being fixed and closed one by one against those who are  deemed unfit to enter to the Treasury which had no enclosure 400 years back. Can a person who never took Lord’s Name, never remembered Him, suddenly, in the hour of death think of  Him? This is Kali Yuga. In this  age  Japat Sidhi, Japat Siddhi, Japat Siddhi . In this Kali Yuga there is no alternative to chanting the Lord’s Name. As the storm blows away the clouds so does Lord’s Name dispel all clouds of worldliness.

Whoever chants incessantly Lord’s Name and becomes mad after Him attains love for Him very soon. Then the Name itself spreads His glories within the devotees heart. There is no other means of totally braking  karmic ties than the recitation of Lord’s sweet Name. Almost all insurmountable obstacles can be overcome by Japa Sadhana alone. We need inner purification. Unless one does Nama Japa he can never become  absolutely pure . From Name alone all kinds of impure vibrations are neutralized, closeness to the Lord is established and  we get love and devotion.

Make hay while the sun shines ,march on while there is still time! Don’t be attracted to transitory earthly things , they cause only pain. Don’t forget Him with whom our connection is eternal, don’t regard Him as stranger.The Lord is delighted beyond measure if we can act our part well. Various are His rewards  after  our performance – this is called evolution. It is not proper to idle away ones time with paltry worldly concerns. Use the time in meditation, solitude and   in the company of Bhaktas talking about the Lord. Offer yourself, all deeds, words, thoughts to Him.  Time is flying daily. Who knows how many more days are left? Become constantly meeker and meeker and hold His tenderest feet in your heart while remembering me speak of me to Him. Show love without the least reserve. His love is not temporary, it is abiding and ever fresh. Abjure impatience, practice forbearance. Don’t out Him out of mind because He is out of sight. Pass your days in ceaseless contemplation of His Name and His love. A fire, unless constantly fanned, becomes covered with ash. Similarly dross gathers on us unless the Lords words are constantly discussed. The creeper of devotion should be daily drenched with the water of hearing and singing Lord’s praise.The mind must become firm, full of faith and hope that the Lord will be merciful. With a joyous mind increase the longing for Him.The more intense the yearning the sooner we shall get Him. This ardency should never be curbed. No other price can buy Him. Yearn more and more and never give up the Name. Then He will be with us and play with us. Man make the Lord suffer in endless ways. For His Bhaktas He undergoes immense sufferings even though they don’t  pray for His help. There is none so kind and full of bliss as He is. For the short time you are connected to this world don’t forget Him with whom our connection is eternal. Things of the world make us forget the truth. When we forget Him, the ever-merciful, in order to bring us back to our senses, sends us some diseases or bereavements in order that we may be roused to our true state. Only if todays deeds are pure will tomorrows destiny be favourable.Those who don’t seek the Lord will never find true awareness of the Atma but will continue to identify themselves with the body, enslaved by every kind of desire and attachment.

 Lord Haranath said:

“A day will come when everyone will understand the importance of what I said but then it will be too late. There is no time to  waste  in  smiling smiles of falsehood. Still there is time. It would do if we are careful  from now on, again I say be careful now. Move on still faster. This is my only desire and final request (Lord Kusum Haranath’s World Message  1925) I care not to see your merits  or demerits,  I love you because it is my nature to love. If the divine spark – love for Me – is generated in your heart then and then only I am vindicated . Consider me as your own. Keep a little love for me in the corner of your heart. Love me like your child or younger brother, father or friend. I will return your love a thousand-fold. It is the Lord’s desire that everyone should become totally pure and be His companion. One cannot say whether this human life can be had again. Who always sits on the lap of the Lord has no worries, no fear. This life is not your own, protect it carefully as His.

A day will come when everyone will realize what religion means. On that day the sense organs will refuse to do their work. The possessor of those organs will have his dear relations, friends, his home arranged on one side and on the other the dreadful messenger of death warning him in harsh voice to prepare for a hasty departure. On that day you will be utterly helpless. It is therefore advisable to do what is necessary before that day arrives. No one knows when it comes. We came with nothing and go with nothing. Only virtues will accompany us – so earn them at any cost. Pass the limited time here trying to obtain double promotion for the life to come. Let us not be much attached to anything of this place. All ties of the world are rotten.

R.B. September 2014

The cursive script are quotations of Lord Haranath ex different letters to His devotees