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Story of Harischandra

~~OM~~

Harischandra was cursed by Vishwamitra. And Harischandra promised to deliver his son to Varuna, and he didn’t do it. And he was cursed, and he became so pained by the curse that he called all the Gurus and said, “Show me a way out. What shall I do?”

And the Gurus said, “There are five types of children. There is one begotten by the mother and father. There’s an adopted son. There’s one who is won as the spoils of war. There’s one who is attained through initiation, who becomes a child of the Guru, a member of the Guru’s family. And there is one who is bought and paid for, and sold by his parents. There are five kinds of children. So therefore king, you’ve got to sacrifice your son, go out in the kingdom and buy a son.”

The king said, “Excellent idea. Captain of the guard, go out in the kingdom and announce to anyone who is in dire straits if they want to sell their child, the king is purchasing. Name your price, I just can’t stand this pain any longer.” Now there was a poor brahmin named Ajigartha. And Ajigartha had three sons. And he said, “This poverty is so debilitating. I can’t feed my children. Better for me to sell one of the sons so that I can feed the other two. I take your offer.”

And then Ajigartha thought. He thought, “My oldest son is responsible to perform my funeral ceremony when I leave this earthly plane. So I can’t sell him. My youngest son is so innocent, I can’t sell him. So, I’m selling the middle son (whose name was Sunahshepa).”

Now the time for the sacrifice came. All the brahmins, all the Rishis, all the Gurus were sitting in the assembly and they bound Sunahshepa to the sacrificial pillar. And the executioner raised his sword above, and the child was calling so piteously. He said, “Please don’t slay me. I’m innocent, I didn’t do anything wrong. It’s the king’s duty to protect his citizens, I’m a citizen. Why would you slay an innocent citizen to protect your own self, for your own comfort? Is this the dharma of a king?”

The executioner said, “King, I’m putting down my sword, I can’t execute this child. It’s against my dharma as an executioner.” The brahmin father Ajigartha said, “King, double your payment and I’ll do it myself.” And all the Rishis, and all the brahmins, and all the Muni’s they said, “Booooooo!!!” And Ajigartha said, “It’s easy for you to condemn me, but nobody knows what the pains of poverty are really like.”

The father picked up the sword, the king agreed. The father raised the sword over the child and Vishwamitra stood up. Vishwamitra went over to Sunahshepa and he said, “I’m giving you initiation in the Bandhan Mukta Shukta, It’s in the first adhyaya of Rigveda. And this will free you from the bonds, it will liberate you from all bondage.”

Sunahshepa began to repeat after Vishwamitra, Ă¢â‚¬Å“Namo Mahabyo Namo Arbakebyyo . . .Ă¢â‚¬ï¿½ I bow to the Seers of past, I bow to the Seers of the present, I bow to the Seers of the future, I bow to all the unknown Seers, I bow to all the Divine beings everywhere, release me from bondage. And with that Varuna appeared and said, “The debt is paid, release the child.”

And so Shunahshepa was freed. And Sunahshepa said to the assembly of Rishis, “Now that I am free, who is my father?” And some said, “Go home with Ajigartha, he bought you.” And some said, “No, the king paid for you, so go home with the king.” Then Vasishta stood up and said, “Go home with Vishwamitra, he is your true father, he gave you initiation in the mantra that freed you from all bondage.”

And that was the story of the Muktan Bandhan Shukta.

Shree Maa, the Goddess of Kamakhya

~~OM~~

Question: I’ve heard that Shree Maa is associated with Kamakhya, will Swamiji comment.

Swamiji: She is the Goddess of Kamakhya. She is more than associated with Kamakhya, She is the soul of Kamakhya. And I want to tell a personal story if you don’t mind.

One day Maa was walking towards the boats, we were going to visit Umananda. Umananda is an island in the middle of the Brahmaputra. And a number of devotees were walking across the sandy beach down to the boats, to take the boat ride to the island on which stands a beautiful temple to Shiva. And the Brahmaputra is a great river. And this temple is submerged about four months of the year underneath the water, and then the other eight months of the year the water drains out, and as it drains out, the island appears. It’s an amazing temple!

We were walking maybe a dozen or more devotees with Shree Maa across the sandy beach down to where the boats were docked, and when we got about half way across the beach all the boat men came running up across the sand and started bowing down to Maa in the sand. And they were calling, “Mago Mago ashun ashun!” And they were saying, “Mother, You please come!”

And She led us down to the boats, and there were a couple of passengers sitting in the boats waiting for the boats to fill up so that the boat could leave. And the boat men said, “Uto, Ut, Ut, Ut, Ut, Ut! (Get out of the boat, Get out of the boat!) Make this empty, Shree Maa has come!” So I was looking at this in astonishment, because you know to get a rickshaw or boat is really an attainment. And here they were clearing the boats, Shree Maa has come.

So we sat down in the boat and as the boat man was rowing us towards the island Umananda, I struck a conversation with him. And I was speaking Bengali, he was answering in Assamese, and I had a friend, Paithi, who was translating where I got stuck. And he told a story of a day when there was a great storm on the Brahmaputra river. And Shree Maa was on the boat, on the steamer that goes between Gauhati, up the Brahmaputra, and it goes to Jorhat and many other towns along the river because the easiest way of communication was along the river. They don’t have so many highways, so they take the steamer, that was an accomplishment.

And when the storm hit the steamer, all the passengers were terrified and started screaming because there were waves and rocking, and everyone was afraid that the boat was going to go down and probably take them with it! And Shree Maa sat at the bow of the ship and started singing. And first, everybody looked at Her like She was nuts! And then the wind calmed down and it stopped raining and everybody sat down in a circle around her.

And ever since then She was known as the Goddess of Kamakhya. She became Shree Maa of Kamakhya. They all revered her with such esteem. And this was told to me by a boat man that I had never met, and he had no need to impress me. We were going to pay the fare no matter what.

So, that’s Shree Maa’s relation with Kamakhya. She did tapasya there. She spent many years on the mountain.

Kamakhya is a mountain on the edge of Gauhati city, and on the other side is the Brahmaputra river. There’s the temple of Kamakhya, and then there are several tirthas, other temples for other Goddesses. Just like Vaishno Devi is to North India, just like Meenakshi Devi is to South India, Kamakhya is to East India. It’s the most prominent Goddess temple in the region. And Shree Maa did tapasya there for many years, She’s very well known and very highly regarded.

So, that’s Her relationship with Kamakhya. Om Sam Saraswatyai Namaha. Namaste.

Sri Ramakrishna Arati

~~OM~~

Ramakrishna Sharanam, Ramakrishna Sharanam, Ramakrishna Sharanam, Sharanyae

Ramakrishna Sharanam, Ramakrishna Sharanam, Ramakrishna Sharanam, Sharanyae

Guru Sharanagathaham, Sharanagathaham, Sharanagathaham, Sharanagathaham, Sharanagathaham, Sharanyae

Ramakrishna Sharanam, Ramakrishna Sharanam, Ramakrishna Sharanam, Sharanyae

Ramakrishna Sharanam, Ramakrishna Sharanam, Ramakrishna Sharanam, Sharanyae

Guru Kripa Hi Kevalam, Kripa Hi Kevalam, Kripa Hi Kevalam,Kripa Hi Kevalam, Kripa Hi Kevalam, Sharanyae

Ramakrishna Sharanam, Ramakrishna Sharanam, Ramakrishna Sharanam, Sharanyae

Ramakrishna Sharanam, Ramakrishna Sharanam, Ramakrishna Sharanam, Sharanyae

Jai Jai Ramakrishna, Jai Jai Ramakrishna, Jai Jai Ramakrishna, Jai Jai Maa

Jai Jai Ramakrishna, Jai Jai Ramakrishna, Jai Jai Ramakrishna, Jai Jai Maa

Shree Maa on Energy and Consciousness

“If we love God with unconditional love, God teaches us in such a beautiful way. If we take one step towards God, God takes 10 steps towards us. Is it not beautiful? This is a delightful article about God’s unconditional love. …read more
 

Story of the Farmer and the Pundit

~~OM~~

There is the story of the farmer who heard the pundit discoursing on Gita in Sanskrit. The farmer was sitting in the back of the temple crying and crying, and the pundit went on and on and on, as pundits do. And at the end of his discourse, the hall was emptied, everyone went home, and the farmer was still sitting there crying and crying and crying.

And the pundit went up to the farmer and said, “Hey farmer, you’re obviously not a Sanskrit scholar, you probably didn’t understand a word that I said, how come you are crying?” And the farmer replied, “Your absolutely right Punditji. I didn’t understand one word that you said, but as you were speaking I saw Krishna standing on the chariot delivering the same discourse to Arjuna, and I couldn’t hold back my tears because the sight was so beautiful.”

Story of Gautam Muni and the Pot

~~OM~~ I’m going to tell you a story about a time where there was a great drought in all of India. Everyone was wanting for water. Except for Gautam Muni. […]

Gauri Mata on the Divine Mother

On one such occasion Gauri Mata said to the devotees, “In Durga Saptashati, the Divine Mother is described as “the most beneficent among the beneficent, the fulfiller of wishes.” The Divine Mother fulfills all the wishes of Her devotees. …read more
 

Shree Maa's Mother's Day Offering to Her Children

Listen to Shree Maa sing I Love You All

Read Shree Maa’s Mother’s Day message here –
Mother’s Day 2007

Satsang on Guru Gita


~~OM~~

Guru Gita: Satsang with Shree Maa and Swamiji

In the following profound and elevating conversation, Shree Maa and Swamiji translate and discuss a Bengali commentary on the Guru Gita.

Mother is translating from a book by Nirmalananda, who is a disciple of Swami Pranavanandaji from Bharat Seva Ashram.

Who is the Respected Guru and what kind of behavior does the Guru exemplify? What is the Guru’s intrinsic nature and what is the principle of the Guru?

Who is able to take refuge in the Guru and what is the effect of taking refuge in Guru?

What is seva to the Guru, what is an offering to the Guru, what is the song of the Guru, and what is the discipline of a disciple?

What is the highest fruit of devotion to Guru?

The answers to all these questions are found in the scripture called Guru Gita.

Commentaries on Sri Guru Gita come from the Vishvasaara Tantra. These are expansions of the Guru Gita. Also people speak of Rudrayamal Tantra. All Tantras speak of the highest principle of the Guru.

In both the Vedas and Vedanta, the position of the Guru is held in very high regard. But in the Tantra scriptures, they speak of the Guru’s position as being the very highest. In the path of Tantra, the principle of Guru is the highest principle of all.

Guru is both the Supreme Divinity with form and without form.

The Guru is Brahma, Vishnu and Maheswar. The Respected Guru is both the motivation for the highest truth and the attainment and realization of the highest truth. These are illuminated in all of the verses contained in the Guru Gita.

The foremost principle and discussion of the highest importance has been given by Sada Shiva. His first student was Parvati.

Guru Gita informs us by which sadhana, by what means, can someone who wears a body attain success.

Without a doubt, Shiva has illuminated these questions in this scripture. The path of the Guru is the king of all dharmas (king of all ideals of perfection – the Supreme). In order to attain prasad (consecrated offering) from the Guru, your birth, your past, your karma (what kind of activities you perform) are not required subjects. The ignorant, the lazy and those steeped in darkness (tamas) will not proceed in this path. They are not capable of achieving the understanding of the wisdom of the principles. They don’t have wisdom or desire knowledge of liberation.

It is incumbent upon all those who take refuge in the Guru to do so with their body, mind and speech.

Seva (selfless service as an expression of love) to the Guru, Puja, aaradhana is a disciple’s sadhana. Giving pleasure to the Guru is your sadhana, your worship.

Whoever is able to do atma samarpan (surrender of his or her own soul in equilibrium) to the Sri Guru’s Feet – giving up all their attachment – this is samadhi and siddhi (attainment of perfection). This is the path of the Guru.

The Guru is not a human being. The Guru is the Supreme Divinity made manifest. Because of this, we cannot look at our Guru as just a human being. This Guru principle is united with all pure qualities, beautiful attributes, the greatness of all purity. This is the authority that comes through the Guru.

If you can perceive these qualities in your Guru, you will not think of your Guru as a mere human being. The Guru is Bhagavan (Supreme Divinity).

All the qualities and all the attitudes, all the energies and all that is Infinite or eternal, all the wisdom that is inculcated – all these qualities are only reflected in God. That Godliness is reflected in the Guru. So we should not think of the Guru as a human being. We would think of the Guru as the emblem or representative of Supreme Divinity.

Where there is atma samarpan, the disciple becomes a mirror and there is union between Guru and disciple in a great radiant light. When there is a transfer of energy from Guru to disciple and surrender, there is a light that is incomparable to anything you can see with worldly eyes.

Trailinga Swami once locked himself in His room for three days. His disciple was very worried and wanted to see Swamiji. He went to the door and banged and banged and banged. Trailinga Swamiji said ‘Who are you?”

The disciple was full of his own ego self, and replied, “I am so and so”. He felt he was a real disciple, but he was not at that moment. There was no response from within. On the second day, the disciple went again and banged on the door and received the same question. Again he answered, “I am so and so”. Nothing happened. On third day, the disciple thought deeply and cried, “Why is the Guru doing this to me?”

Again he knocked on the door with reverence. Trailinga Swami asked, “Who are you?” The disciple replied, “You.” Trailinga Swamji opened the door.

The Guru-disciple relationship is very subtle. Atma samarpan has become a big market nowadays. The relationship between Guru and Disciple is truth. A truthful relationship means surrender. You will get everything with surrender.

Where is the individual form of God? Ishwara, God, the Supreme Soul, is everywhere, in every place. He is in the gross body, the subtle body, the modifications of the mind and unmanifest as well. How can the individual wearing a body grasp Supreme Divinity, find Him, touch Him with sensory knowledge? With our current perception, this is a very difficult issue.

There is a solution to this issue in Hindu Dharma. Scriptures say that He who understands Supreme Divinity, becomes Supreme Divinity. Who has refined the discipline of sadhana, becomes united with all the tendencies of sadhana, he understands the nature of the Supreme Divinity. That individual becomes a representative of Supreme Divinity.

A great example of that is Swamiji!!! This moment Swamiji does not need sadhana. He can go to the Himalayas and be by Himself. But to show the world, He is doing sadhana.

We are born, we learn how to walk, first we learn from our parents – how to walk, how to eat – step by step, our whole life is sadhana. In childhood we are learning how to be human. Now we are learning how to be with the soul. Without sadhana, we will never know.

The Supreme Divinity, the teacher, and the yogi who has attained divinity are all one.

The Yogi is actually a murti – the perceivable form of Supreme Divinity. All the true qualities of a Yogi are illuminated in reality.

We believe that according to the needs of the age, God Himself comes in an embodied form. That Supreme Divinity which is Infinite beyond conception takes a human form and takes birth in the mortal world.

He is undefeatable and that is the Supreme Divinity manifested amongst all the elements of existence.

When we do surrender our soul in equilibrium (atma samarpana), we receive Diksha. The first chapter of this experience is to receive a mantra in the ear, but that is only the first chapter. Om

Shree Maa blesses us all with Her joy!


Photo of the week – Mar 4 – Mar 10 2007
(Picture taken early 2007 at Devi Mandir, Napa, CA)

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Devi Mandir: comes complete with the world’s best pujaris and sadhus!


Photo of the week of Feb 25 – Mar 3 2007
(Taken on MahaShivaratri, Feb 15 2007 in front of Yajneshwar, at Devi Mandir, Napa, CA)

Check out our weekly blogs.

Who is Guru

Guru: The syllable Gu means darkness, Ru means light. The Supreme Divinity which destroys ignorance is verily the Guru, without a doubt. The Guru is Brahma, the Guru is Vishnu, […]

Blessings from Shree Maa for 2007 Sankalpa Participants

This has been a very eventful week for the sankalpa. The highlight was a wonderful note from Shree Maa blessing the sadhaks.
Shree Maa said (in an email)
Beloved Children,
I am thrilled with your sankalpa.
Earth Mother needs you. Keep going with Her. Earth Mother and you guys are not separate. All of you will get lots of blessings.
Alright! Arise! We are marching ahead with Earth Mother’s Flag!
I love you all.
Shree Maa
A lot of us, charged with the power of Maa’s words gave an extra push to do more this week. Our group’s grand total crossed 170,000 repetitions.

Some of the devotees organized a satsang in their home town, and began their practice with the group. Here is what the devotee had to say:
Many that we emailed expressed interest in joining the 2007 peace mantra sankalpa. Around ten joined us tonight for satsang. It was FUN! We discussed the Chandi Path, the mantra and mantra practice based on teachings and sharings from Swamiji, others in the on line group and our experiences. We did the sankalpa prayer, started the practice, sang araati and kirtan. The bhav was high and participants seemed inspired.

Hearing these experiences motivated our group and participants even more. Here are the individual totals as of this week (21 Jan 2007).

This is the total for those that preferred to do their sadhana at the fire

Name
Number of Mantras
Michael 3132
Janitri 1080
Total 4,212

and below are the counts for those of us that do the sadhana without a fire

Name
Number of Mantras
Babu 1296
Chris 2808
Debi 5076
Donna 1790
Durga 756
Egyirba 2160
Eric 7452
Gauri 3132
Henny 2700
Janitri 540
Jayadeva 4428
Julia 1620
Kalachandra 4536
Kaliananda 3888
Kamalaji 2916
Kanda 4320
Karen 4800
Marsha 324
Mausumi 2592
Michele 700
Morningsong 5400
Muktimaa 3564
Nirmalananda 700
Nanda 3360
Papia 648
Parvati 1080
Patty 4584
Prasana 3540
Prathibha 3665
Raghu 3564
Rick Veda 13176
Robin 1088
Rolf 2700
Rukmani 756
Sadhu Maa 1620
Sadhvi 4410
Sundari 2484
Shankari 1944
Surya 31050
Susan 1080
Usha 9828
Wendy 2656
Visveshwar 3780
Yogini 6480
Total 170,991

 

Holy Mother Delivers Message by Paul Logan

‘Holy Mother’ Delivers Message

By Paul Logan, Journal Staff Writer

Friday, November 10, 2000

A woman many believe to be one of the rarest individuals on earth “a living saint” has come to Albuquerque to share her love.

Shree Maa, “the respected Holy Mother,” said Thursday she is here because “I love to see my family. The whole universe is my family.”

Draped in layers of orange, red, gold and yellow clothing with beads around her neck and wrists, the graying, middle-aged Hindu holy woman with a gentle voice is about 5-feet, 5 inches tall and less than 100 pounds.

Maa said she has been enlightened since her birth in Assam, the northeast corner of India. Having enlightenment includes experiencing pure love and comprehending truth.

Sitting cross-legged on a couch at a Northeast Heights home, Maa said she attended an international yogi conference in Texas and is returning by motor home to California. Her home is a modest trailer in the mountains, about a half hour outside of Napa.

Maa said she has been sent “to perform God’s work in this world.”

Maa spends about nine months each year traveling throughout the world to share her teachings.

Instead of attracting followers, she said wants to show people of all faiths how “to build temples in their hearts and in their minds.”

Her assistant, Swami Satyananda Saraswati, or Swamiji, said a person’s every action can change a house into a temple. By respecting one’s actions, a person is paying attention to what he or she is doing.

“So any action that we do without selfishness can be a form of worship,” Swamiji said. “We can make divine everything that we do.”

During the interview, some of Maa’s devotees were chanting scriptures in Sanskrit in another room. Nearby, a coffee table had been converted into an altar with pictures and symbols from the world’s great religions, including Jesus, Buddha and Mary as well as flowers of every color and candles.

Swamiji said Maa adheres to the famous Indian proverb: “Just as many as there are individuals, so many are there paths to God.”

He said her programs are open to everyone and called them “unique” because “she makes worship fun.”

Maa said she offers those who attend three things: pure love, accepting everyone for what they are; inspiration, meaning she motivates each person to help make them better; and appreciation, recognizing every effort a person makes.

She met the late Mother Teresa, who some Catholics considered a living saint, years ago in Calcutta. Maa said she wanted to see her “because she is my family, also … I love her.”

Maa’s message includes being true to one’s self because then a person is without fear. With a clear conscience, a person’s heart is silent. “That,” she said, “is peace.”

Also:

  • Be simple. Many words burden the soul. Let the heart’s message be communicated through actions.
  • Be free. Leave selfishness behind. “People whose opinions are valued will love us for what we are, not for what we have,” she said.
  • Take refuge in God. One’s friends or relatives will not take a person to heaven. Salvation is gained through wisdom.
  • Cultivate wisdom. Learn from everyone, everywhere. Then use that knowledge, which brings one in harmony with the universe.
  • Develop discrimination. Pursue only those desires that will make one free.
  • Let actions manifest love. People want realization, liberation, to become enlightened. Do not think it is something different from doing for others as you would have them do for you,” she said.

WHEN: Today, 7 p.m., at Futures For Children building, 9600 Tennyson NE (332-4146); Saturday, 1 p.m., the home of Al and Dianne Lopez, 900 Avenida Cielito NE (255-4169); and Sunday, 1 p.m., again at Futures For Children

WHAT: Programs of meditation, singing, storytelling on Friday and Sunday; fire ceremony on Saturday

HOW MUCH: Free and open to everyone

Interview with Shree Maa in Sedona

Interview with Shree Maa at Sedona in 2006.

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Join Online Satsangha

Click HERE for online satsangha with Shree Maa and Swamiji. Class is held every day in the morning and evening at 7:30a (PST) and 8:00p (PST).

Miss a class or want to stream them on your devices? Please click HERE.

Jai Maa!

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