Day 185 – Don’t let past mistakes drain the energy of today
Mohanji lives his life very practically. He regularly says, “Before being spiritual, be practical.” I’ve been working with him now for over a year, which has given me the opportunity to become involved in many new activities, projects, and work, which I never would have thought of. These have been both great experiences to learn from, and also, in the process, opportunities wherein I’ve made many mistakes. I would even consider some of them as failures on a level, although following Mohanji’s lead, I know that unless we stop, nothing is really a failure. We have to get up and keep moving. This way, we would have learned something, and at least we’re taking steps forward.
I’m a person who likes to do something well, as best as I can, especially if I’ve been entrusted with responsibility. But sometimes, not everything goes to plan. There are difficulties issues, obstacles, or even mistakes. Previously, I would really take these to heart, and what that would mean is that I would be remembering what had happened for a long time, which means I would feel bad, and my motivation, self-esteem, and efficiency too would be affected. Temporarily.
It would take some time to accept that and then carry on. What’s natural is that it completely eclipses all of the accomplishments or progress that would have been made. Following Mohanji’s life, wherein he says that he’s made many mistakes in his lifetime, some of them have been repeated. But the important thing is to move on from those and take the lesson which you get because all of life is an experience. So, taking that lead from Mohanji, it’s learning to take each situation as it comes. We will all make mistakes. But what that does is it creates our present moment at that time, and if we want to be fully effective in that moment, this moment, then we have to let go of what’s happened, even if it’s a mistake, which we really didn’t like at the time, and we have to handle what’s in front of us now, today’s reality, as best we can, because that way, energy is not drained.
If we’re constantly thinking over what’s happened, what could have done, what could have happened better if only we did this, “If only I did that… What if I did this? I should have done this,” then all the energy is completely drained on that mental activity. By being with today, what today’s reality is, all the energies can be focused on the present, and I’ve found that this is incredibly important, especially if there’s something that needs to be corrected, because then you have the right frame of mind to find the solutions at that time.
Mohanji also says, “Be cool in all those situations. Think clearly. Take time, take each step. Remove emotions from the equation. Keep a cool head, so that thinking is more clear. Judgment is better, and then better decisions are made.”
This is an ongoing lesson for me.
Day 186 – With intensity comes quicker transformation
On the path of liberation or the path of the avadhoota, there is a breaking of patterns, habits, comfort zones, and all the constructs and bindings which stop us from experiencing true freedom. Mohanji is guiding people and helping people to cross over those patterns, break the chains, and begin to experience that true freedom from the mind and the senses.
A recent conversation with Mohanji and another, around the dinner table, gave a good example of a pattern that many people hold but can be completely unaware of. I certainly had this until he pointed it out to me in Bangalore, and it was related to food. Somebody had made a comment that in the rush to get to another place, they were eating now because they weren’t sure when they would eat again, but that meant overeating. This was an opportunity for Mohanji to show the mirror and he was sharing that many people are food-orientated, and many people overeat because of an inherent pattern of something that they’ve carried for a long time, especially, if in a previous life, there was a serious lack of food at some point. It would have left an impression, which could be connected to overeating. In some cases, this can be linked to poverty consciousness, or a lack, or not having something, so the compensation for that would be eating more and eating more. This could be something that is carried over into this life. But we still have that pattern, taking that as an example. If we don’t go across that, go beyond it, then that’s something that can be repeated again, especially something which held a deep impression, such as poverty consciousness.
In Bangalore, we would eat a lot, because the food was really good, but it would then also make us sluggish, dull, and tamasic. Mohanji also pointed out to me, at the time, that this is what was happening. It was really intense at the time. That’s also something that is interesting; I now find, spending more time with Mohanji, that sometimes he will deliver a message with intensity, to make sure it’s really felt by the person, so that transformation can happen when he shows the mirror, so that awareness can increase the awareness of that pattern, which then helps them to cross over that pattern.
The other option is if that pattern is too strong, or it’s too uncomfortable for somebody to address, then they’ll prefer to stay with that pattern rather than transform. I use this example of food because it’s something that’s common to all really, and when we speak about patterns, you might think, “Well, what type of pattern?” but this is one, food, overeating, overconsuming, it can be a sign of something else.
Mohanji is guiding people to break old patterns on all levels, even something such as food. Now I see him almost like a precision surgeon, he really can identify within the person what they need to address to help them cross over to help them take the next step. He’ll deliver that with exactly the right intensity to make sure that it’s really felt by the person, that they understand it, because only then can an opportunity for transformation arise.
|| JAI BRAHMARISHI MOHANJI ||
Edited & Published by – Testimonials Team, 1st January 2023
Disclaimer:
The views, opinions, and positions expressed by the authors and those providing comments on these blogs are theirs alone and do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions or positions of Mohanji, Mohanji Foundation, it’s members, employees or any other individual or entity associated with Mohanji or Mohanji Foundation. We make no representations as to accuracy, completeness, timeliness, suitability or validity of any information presented by individual authors and/or commenters on our blogs and will not be liable for any errors, omissions, or delays in this information or any losses, injuries or damages arising from its display or use.
We reserve the right to delete, edit, or alter in any manner we see fit blog entries or comments that we, in our sole discretion, deem to be obscene, offensive, defamatory, threatening, in violation of trademark, copyright or other laws, of an express commercial nature, or otherwise unacceptable.
Today is Datta Jayanti. It is the day that we pay our respects to Lord Dattatreya and His principles of non-violence, inclusivity, unconditional love, deep transformation and complete liberation. From the time of the great Avatar, Shripad Shri Vallabha, and up until today, Dattatreya has been continuously present through the forms of his Embodied Emanations. Indeed, up until the very end of this present era, of Kali Yuga, Dattatreya will continue to manifest Himself through the presence of Perfectly Enlightened Avadhootas in order to keep the flame of Sanatana Dharma burning on this Earth.
Lord Dattatreya is not like an ordinary soul that floats around the various dimensions of created existence before deciding to take another birth. He is rather an all-encompassing Principle – He is That which manifests the Truth of the Supreme Consciousness through a distinct signature that is designed to connect to sentient beings of a certain karmic constitution. Thus, in order for Datta to manifest, he sacrifices nothing of his own all-pervading, all-knowing and all-powerful stature; just like when we use a candle to light another candle, Lord Datta simply parts off a part of His own Nature and encases it within the five sheaths, or koshas, of manifested elemental existence. This is how those Sublime Beings that are known as Datta Avatars take birth in this world time and time again.
In this day and age, we have been blessed with the presence of Brahmarishi Mohanji. He is the first incarnation of Lord Dattatreya in history to fully modernise the Tradition by creating various methods, practices and platforms that allow people to connect their consciousness to the Supreme Consciousness of Lord Datta and his Tradition of spiritual perfection. The higher stations of this great Tradition will always remain the same and are unalterable. They are reached through the process of total dissolution – which is to be accomplished through gradual absorption into nirbija samadhi, which is that state where there is no-mind, no personality and no karmic pattern – a state of absolute interior silence that must, in order to be perfected, be seamlessly integrated into a natural benevolent life in the world. Now, in this day and age, Mohanji has provided a path for all pure and sincere beings to eventually reach this state from wherever they presently stand. This is a tremendous, unfathomable grace and blessing from the higher realms of existence.
The Datta Tradition
There is a reason why Mohanji has been sent at this present time. It is because we are approaching a time where a deep divide will manifest within the collective consciousness of humanity. Beings will either go one way or another – towards a future of continuous war, interspecies violence and technological slavery, or towards the eternal bliss of what is real and its expressions through unconditional love and selfless service.
As certain forces in the world, and the overall vibration of this Earth becomes denser, there will be less of a middle-ground between these two extremes of divine living and ignorant, violent, miserable existing. Brahmarishi Mohanji has been sent as a lifeboat from the higher realms – he has been sent as a hand for people to grasp onto in order to lift themselves up. The Tradition will always continue, and as long as there remains beings who long for Liberation, Avadhootas will be continually be sent to provide a path for them, to provide the necessary grace, power and guidance.
But there will perhaps be no Being that makes this path as easy and accessible as Mohanji has made it. Future Emanations of Lord Dattatreya, due to the times that we are heading into, will either remain hidden in complete or partial physical seclusion, working in the subtler realms, or they will manifest in such an unassuming, unexpected or apparently ordinary way that only those with an already highly refined and subtle spiritual perception will be able to recognise their true stature, and thus take their blessings.
Mohanji has appeared in a highly accessible form. He has travelled the entire world giving methods, teachings and blessing to all living and non-living beings continually on levels that may be entirely imperceptible to most people. No one that has come to him has been turned away. He has even allowed people of all kinds, without prior qualification, to touch his divine body and lotus feet, to hug him and take pictures, etc. This is unprecedented behaviour for an Avadhoota, and it is yet another sign that Mohanji has been sent as a helping hand, as a true ‘Friend of the World’, to allow as many people as possible to tie themselves to this Tradition, to begin building their foundations in the realms of spiritual perfection before it becomes a lot more difficult to do so in the times that our approaching.
The time to connect is now. Those who do not connect themselves to the Consciousness of Mohanji right now, with full love, sincerity and the genuine desire to become Liberated Beings will struggle to hang on to the Path and Tradition of Lord Dattatreya in the times that are to come. This is the Path of Fire, where we must continually be in the process of relinquishing, to the degree that we are capable, all patterns of personal karmic perception, thinking and acting in order to stay connected and merge ourselves into the Consciousness of the Higher Realms on ever-deepening levels. If we cannot do that, then when the Tradition ‘shakes its tree’ by triggering people’s egos and making them increasingly uncomfortable within their rigid, self-limiting prisons of conditioned thinking and perceiving, then such people will be thrown off unceremoniously.
It will never be as easy as it is now. The Path, the Tradition will be there. Lord Datta will be there. Sai Baba will be there. Mohanji, albeit in a subtler form, will be there. The helping hand will certainly be there. But it is now an undeniable fact – those of us who wish to hold on to that hand will have to do more.
Mundane karmic life is eternal – but it is unconscious and ultimately unfulfilling. The divine life is also eternal – but it is experienced consciously in, and as, the Sublime Light-Ocean of Sat Chit Ananda. The great Avadhoota, Brahmarishi Mohanji has provided a way for all beings to reach those illumined shores of perfection in one lifetime. May all sincere, worthy beings grasp onto his golden lotus feet whilst there is still time.
Edited & Published by – Testimonials Team, 7th December 2022
Disclaimer:
The views, opinions, and positions expressed by the authors and those providing comments on these blogs are theirs alone and do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions or positions of Mohanji, Mohanji Foundation, it’s members, employees or any other individual or entity associated with Mohanji or Mohanji Foundation. We make no representations as to accuracy, completeness, timeliness, suitability or validity of any information presented by individual authors and/or commenters on our blogs and will not be liable for any errors, omissions, or delays in this information or any losses, injuries or damages arising from its display or use.
We reserve the right to delete, edit, or alter in any manner we see fit blog entries or comments that we, in our sole discretion, deem to be obscene, offensive, defamatory, threatening, in violation of trademark, copyright or other laws, of an express commercial nature, or otherwise unacceptable.
Good morning, everybody. I hope you’re doing really well.
Yesterday I shared a story Mohanji had told me during one of our morning conversations, and this inspired me to look back through the archive of recordings that I have to see if there were any more useful stories that I could pick out to share with you.
I found a couple that I really liked from when I had recently arrived at the house. I was adapting to the fast pace of work. At that time, I found that once I thought I’d got a grip on handling tasks and managing my workload, I would have another task added. And then another one. Just as I was becoming comfortable, there would be more and more to do, as still happens even now.
Usually, the conversation would begin like this: “Greenwood, I was thinking, it could be a good idea if you…”, followed by something else. And I knew that meant, “Here’s your chance to work something off.” Before meeting Mohanji, I was very connected, and still am, to the Swamis of the Skanda Vale community. They told me stories about how the Guru, the Master, operates. The disciples would always be given task after task to break comfort zones. Mohanji said that breaking comfort zones creates the space for liberation because then a pattern or habit is dropped off.
In one of those recordings I found, he was explaining that the strength of a master is his silence. A master might not be what we usually think of as a master, but someone who has mastery over their mind and of their senses. Thus, they have mastery over their thoughts, desires, inclinations, and tendencies, which means they have mastery over karma, or they have a lack of karma. When there’s a lack of karma, we become masters because we’re running the show, rather than karma running the show. Karma is unfulfilled desires, what’s driving us into action within life.
And in that audio, he was sharing that a connection should be more than physical; it should be non-physical, beyond the form, the appearance, and the expressions. I was talking to Mohanji, and Jelena was there too. Mohanji said that the Master you are connected to will always give you work for karmic cleansing. So, we may think it’s a normal thing, something very ordinary or just a task, but they see much more. They are orienting tasks and people based on what is good for them to do so that something is changed, something’s broken, something’s transformed.
He told the story of a man, which highlights the misunderstanding that some people can have about that. That man was a very lazy man. He said to himself, “I can’t stay in this marriage anymore. I can’t be doing this; I need to go. I’ll go to the ashram; I’ll become a Swami.” So, he simply left his wife and children and went to the ashram. He was sitting there for some time. Then the Guru came and asked him, “Why are you here?” And he told him, “I’ve decided to renounce”. The Guru replied, “Okay, good, no problem. But if you are here, you have to do some work, or you have to pay for your time here. These are the only options that you have here.” The man thought about it, and said, “Well, I don’t have money, so I’ll do some work.” The Guru said, “Okay, good enough. We’ll start tomorrow.”
So, the next day, the man was sitting there in the morning, he was meditating. Well, not exactly meditating; he was probably just sitting and thinking. But he sat there, so nobody disturbed him. Then one of the other disciples of the Guru came with a bucket and a mop, broomsticks, cleaning stuff, and said, “Here you go. It’s your turn to clean the toilets.” Obviously, he was a bit shocked at this. He said, “What? To clean the toilets?! No, no, no, I’m practicing meditation here. I’m meditating. I’m becoming a Swami.” The disciple said, “No, no, that’s okay. That’s good. Maybe later then, but everybody works here. So, you have to clean the toilet. This is what the Guru said.” The man protested really strongly. He didn’t like that. He said, “I can’t do this. I didn’t even clean the toilet in my own house. How can I clean the toilets here?” The other disciple insisted, “Well, this is what the Guru said you are to do.” After that, the man decided to leave.
Mohanji said that this is what many seekers are like. They orient themselves in a way that suits an idea, rather than actually wanting to do the work needed for breaking comfort zones, transformation and liberation. He said that the Guru would tell you to do tough work to destroy comfort zones, and when they’re destroyed, then immediately that’s when the liberation takes place. There’s a space that’s created where moments of liberation can happen.
I was thinking about this, from my time of coming here until now, because it’s very much been that experience for the whole time. The work that’s being given, all the tasks which have been made available, I’ve obviously taken because I want to contribute, serve, and do what I can.
So, we were saying that the Guru or the Master gives that opportunity through tasks and activities, so it’s possible through that extreme action to reach a state where the mind is no longer concerned with all the things which it is used to and things naturally start to drop off.
Mohanji shared another story from a book written by Upasni Maharaj, the disciple of Shirdi Sai Baba. Shirdi Sai Baba transferred all his powers to him. So, one man had come to him in a state of distress because he lost his children, his sons, and his marriage as well. He came looking for solace from the Master. And he was thinking, “I’ve just gone through all this trouble, and now I’ve come here, this man has given me work to do.” After some time passed and the man completed the given work, the Master kept giving more tasks. After some time, the Master asked him, “So how are you feeling now? Are you feeling any better?” The man said, “Well, actually, now when you mentioned it, I’ve had no time to think.” The Master said, “Very good. This means you’re stabilizing.”
So, what happens through extreme action is that you reach a state of elevation, like a helicopter that raises you up. This is how he described it. The lower activities, habits, inclinations just start dropping off. Through extreme action, there’s no time to think.
When I think back to the actions I was doing at the start, and now as well, most of the tests have put me in a situation where I can break through my resistance. For example, I was very reluctant and resistant to speaking in public about my experiences, even though I can do it. I’d learned how to do that; I spent many years practising it during my professional career. But it wasn’t something that came. Naturally, there was always resistance, and there still is now, but not so much.
Therefore, all the tasks and activities have always come with some type of test or resistance to push myself to break a comfort zone. But now, having that understanding that everything that’s given is for the better helps the process. Sometimes, I feel that the mind wants to make excuses, “Why do I need to do this? Do I really need to do that? Maybe I don’t need to do this?” But I always catch it. I always manage not to let those thoughts or states become too strong. I just try to keep it simple in a way, knowing that whatever tasks and activities are here are actually opportunities for me to work through something.
I hope you enjoyed this and have a great day ahead.
Day 46 Lesson – Positive action will always face obstacles
Good morning, everybody.
This morning was a quieter morning for the house. Mohanji’s parents left the other day to return to Palakkad for some time to spend the New Year there. So there are fewer people here now in the house, and the routines are slightly shifting.
This morning, I spoke to Mohanji about somebody who’s doing great work, really positive and selfless work, not directly connected to the platforms, but Mohanji is supporting them. And they’ve met with hurdles in the work that they do. For some reason, everything that they had planned has been difficult to complete. Many obstacles have stopped or hindered the progress. Every time momentum had started gaining; there would be another challenge, which meant, what they intended to do by a certain time last year, hasn’t been possible. Some situations have even affected the people working on the project, too.
I was asking about this, how can you suddenly get so many challenges in doing something which is really positive. It was an interesting discussion. Mohanji said it’s no joke. When there’s something positive happening, there will always be obstacles. He said you could take the life of Jesus, Krishna, or even Rama. They faced tremendous challenges.
From what I understood from the conversation, we can all expect the same. It won’t be easy if we’re trying to do something positive in the world. I feel this is why he always places a strong emphasis on conviction and determination. Because first, we need to believe in what we’re doing and then have the determination to see that through to the end. Otherwise, these things can affect us; our activities might weaken and maybe also stop.
I was thinking about this because when we first came back to the house, the planes suddenly started flying right across the house after one of the trips, which means it makes recording here very difficult. Even now still, I have to stop because there’ll be a plane flying across the house. Mohanji has to do this too when he is recording the podcast, his morning messages for the 4 am Club or any video.
It wasn’t like this before. They’ve actually changed the flight paths. So, when we spoke about this, he said that this is also how negativity can work. Not outrightly direct, but creating problems and obstacles.
I wondered if it was the same for other people because sometimes, when they begin to connect to something positive, that can also bring challenges in their life. I know from personal experience that when I connected to Mohanji initially, and even still today, there have been difficulties that came up. Since being here, for example, I’ve had real trouble with my skin for months now. When I first connected to Mohanji, there were some mental and health disturbances too.
I know many people have had similar experiences. I was speaking to an Acharya a few weeks back about the same thing. So, it isn’t a feel-good thing sometimes. I asked Mohanji why that is. He explained that this path (his path or our path) is the path of liberation. It takes people out of long-held patterns, suppressions, and things like this, giving them real freedom. So, when people begin to connect to Mohanji, many blockages can begin to clear for them; all the clutter that has accumulated over time, in this life and maybe even other lifetimes, begins to be dissolved and destroyed. This can present itself in our life in various ways; it can take any form.
I mentioned in a previous recording that this is not completely a ‘feel good’ path of spirituality. It is a real transformation that takes place. The number of people who benefitted from connecting to Mohanji still amazes me to this day, just as learning that these types of things happen when they connect, too.
He also said before that his capacity is probably much, much more. So, the more people connect and the more people who can connect, he’ll be able to share the same with them. Or, speaking more correctly, when people begin to connect to Mohanji’s frequency, then that cleansing can happen, blockages can start being removed.
So, for me, this was a good reminder that when we attempt to perform positive activities, there can be obstacles. And there probably will always be obstacles. We should keep focusing on the main aim and purpose. That way, if anything comes, should we find any obstacles, we can always take a detour or take a slight change of direction.
Thank you for listening, and I hope you have a great day ahead.
|| JAI BRAHMARISHI MOHANJI||
Edited & Published by – Testimonials Team, 1st August 2021
Disclaimer:
The views, opinions, and positions expressed by the authors and those providing comments on these blogs are theirs alone and do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions or positions of Mohanji, Mohanji Foundation, it’s members, employees or any other individual or entity associated with Mohanji or Mohanji Foundation. We make no representations as to accuracy, completeness, timeliness, suitability or validity of any information presented by individual authors and/or commenters on our blogs and will not be liable for any errors, omissions, or delays in this information or any losses, injuries or damages arising from its display or use.
We reserve the right to delete, edit, or alter in any manner we see fit blog entries or comments that we, in our sole discretion, deem to be obscene, offensive, defamatory, threatening, in violation of trademark, copyright or other laws, of an express commercial nature, or otherwise unacceptable.
On the 18th of June, I received a message from Kishore that Mohanji has asked to do Mai-Tri for Mr Gopalakrishnan, who was critically ill and undergoing unbearable pain while in the hospital.
I understood, if Mohanji has given direct instruction, it must be really important and urgent. Hence I did the Mai-Tri session immediately.
I didn’t know much about Mr Gopalakrishnan. However, Kishore mentioned that Mohanji respects and loves him a lot and calls him Appa (means Father in Tamil).
During the Mai-Tri session, I had the vision that truly amazed me; it blew my mind.
I saw all his forefathers in his heart centre, getting Mohanji’s golden light and then dissolving. The pain that Appa was experiencing was the collective pain of his forefathers, which had kept some of them still bound, not attaining complete release. Appa had come forward to take that pain, and with Mohanji’s grace, all of them were merging into light.
I understood that Mohanji allowed Appa to be an instrument for the liberation of his forefathers in his journey towards the eternal light. I had no doubt that Mohanji will take him to light whenever he exits, while in this process, each of his forefathers was also being released to light. One by one, each one!
After I completed the session, I said to myself, “How amazing is that!” Mohanji guided me during the session to continue his Mai-Tri, and I discussed with Kishore, and we listed out five different Mai-Tri Practitioners to do Mai-Tri every day for five days.
After the session, I shared this vision with Mohanji. Of course, Mohanji allowed me to witness this; he knows everything, but telling him was my expression of gratitude for this beautiful opportunity to witness another of his grand actions.
When I wrote to Mohanji and described my vision to him, he said, “Indeed.” As he had already guided during the session, verbally also, he advised continuing the healing for a few days.
Mohanji also wrote to me more about Appa, which really took me by surprise and then the vision became even clearer. So let me narrate Mohanji’s words here.
“He was my father in another life. He was a King, and I was the Prince in waiting in that life. I was quite disinterested in having to rule but had to take it on when he died. He loved me a lot but, being the King, was very reserved and couldn’t express his love for me.In this life, ever since he met me, he was showering me with love, and he is an evolved man. He knows about our past life together; I am completing a son’s responsibility in this life. He has no children. His only son died when he was a student.”
This explanation made it very clear why through this phase of Appa’s journey, Mohanji was actually allowing his entire lineage, ancestors to be released! Mohanji was performing his duty of a son!
After that, the daily healings continued.
Today, on 23rd June, exactly on the 5th day of healing, I received a message from Kishore, same time in the morning, that Appa has moved on to eternal lights. At that moment, I witnessed a glimpse of King Dashrath and Shree Ram! (The epitome of love between a father and son).
I saw Mohanji holding Appa’s hand and taking him to complete brightness!
In less than seven days, Appa had accomplished closure of more than seven lifetimes. Only through Mohanji’s grace!
As a mere Mai-Tri instrument, I witnessed this beautiful journey of final release and the eternal bond of a loving father and dutiful son.
May Appa, Mr Gopalakrishnan’s soul, rest in peace in the embrace of the pure and bright light. Thank you, Mohanji, for your grace and blessing to experience yet another amazing truth of life through the beautiful and powerful journey of Mai-Tri.
|| JAI BRAHMARISHI MOHANJI||
Edited & Published by – Testimonials Team, 25th June 2021
Disclaimer:
The views, opinions, and positions expressed by the authors and those providing comments on these blogs are theirs alone and do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions or positions of Mohanji, Mohanji Foundation, it’s members, employees or any other individual or entity associated with Mohanji or Mohanji Foundation. We make no representations as to accuracy, completeness, timeliness, suitability or validity of any information presented by individual authors and/or commenters on our blogs and will not be liable for any errors, omissions, or delays in this information or any losses, injuries or damages arising from its display or use.
We reserve the right to delete, edit, or alter in any manner we see fit blog entries or comments that we, in our sole discretion, deem to be obscene, offensive, defamatory, threatening, in violation of trademark, copyright or other laws, of an express commercial nature, or otherwise unacceptable.
Good morning, everybody. I hope you’re doing well today.
Spending this time with Mohanji has given me an opportunity to observe all the varieties of people, situations and events that come to him to handle. There’s a mixture of these, and he’s looking after many things a day.
A lot of them is helping resolve situations, problems and troubles for people. I’d say this is by far the largest percentage of people that are coming to Mohanji. They are looking for some kind of solution. Many come to him because they’ve reached a dead end. They want a problem to be fixed, whether it’s about work, or losing a job (either themselves or someone in the family), or there’s a health complication (with a family member or themselves), or there’s a marriage and relationship problem or, for example, someone has acquired a lot of debt, and now they want Mohanji to fix it, make it go away.
It’s various situations like this, and I’m giving examples of general categories rather than any actual specifics. But, when there’s a problem, they’d like Mohanji to help. I say this with no judgment. It’s a reality and my observation of what I can see here.
I also see that the people already have developed expectations; they have an idea of how Mohanji will help them and what he’ll do. If this isn’t possible, if it’s not as they expect, then they can be just as quick to criticise, as they were to ask for help in the first place, when they thought it was available, or that something was going to happen for them. So, it’s a real transactional connection.
Then some other people are really committed and want to cut across the cycle of birth and death. They understand that there is a path that Mohanji is showing, the path that can bring liberation from this circus of life: birth after birth, the same patterns, life after life. They stay. Some people within the family have been with Mohanji for many years, which I really admire and respect because they’ve been steady for over ten years, maybe even more.
Then, there are others who may have reached certain positions or heights. Then, for some reason, maybe their expectations exceeded that purpose; they’ve also left too.
Like this, there is a mixture of people. I feel that the main difference is in their purpose and why they’re connecting to Mohanji, whether they’re coming with expectations or coming with more awareness and acceptance of what’s being provided.
I’m saying this because we recently had a session on karma in the Bootcamp hosted by the ‘Invest in Awareness’ team. Mohanji explained really well that what we experience in this life is the result of our hard-earned karma, i.e. what we’ve learned from the past, mixed with some of our lineage or family karma. But essentially, we have a karmic roadmap. Sometimes, we lose sight of this. This means that everything we are experiencing in life is actually the result of all our activities that have happened before – all the good experiences and all the bad experiences. Whether we are aware of it or not is a different question, but we’ve earned it.
What Mohanji has provided is this platform through which we can serve and help change that. But I think people find it easier not to think of this and then blame others. Some people even blame Mohanji or other masters when actually it’s got nothing to do with them because it’s our karma or the person’s karma that’s at play.
But what I can see from Mohanji is that he always does what he can, as he openly says. I’m a witness to almost daily events of someone’s transformation or a resolution in someone’s life. But of course, he says that he has to respect karma. If people are connecting to him deeply, then he is already doing what he can. He can’t remove karma, but what he can do is reduce the intensity. As I understand that, it means that when I’m connected to him – if anything is happening in my life, both the good and the bad situations, it probably would have been much worse and serious if I wasn’t connected to him.
So that’s the observation for today. I wanted to share that – through Mohanji – there is a path to liberation, which some people have set as their purpose. Then, there’s also a mixture of people who are coming for the quick fix solutions for the problems of life.
But I know, from Mohanji’s point of view, all are accepted, all are welcome. As he says, he does his job. No one goes empty-handed.
I hope you have a great day and speak to you soon.
Day 34 Lesson – What more can I do?
Good morning, everybody.
Today, I’ll share more details about Mohanji’s style and approach to work. I think many people listening to this would have heard Mohanji say that as soon as he wakes up, he asks himself, “What else can I do for the world?” Being with him now, I can say that he’s never really satisfied with things as they are; he always wants to do more. He believes that more can be done, and he explores this constantly.
This is why the majority of our morning conversations revolve around that topic. What else can we do? What more can we do? And that’s not just me; I just happened to be there sitting in front of him – it’s the collectivewe. It’s the Foundation; it’s everybody involved, all the teams, all the heads of the organisations, all the various platforms, such as Ammucare, Act4Hunger, Invest in Awareness, or World Consciousness Alliance.
Since spending my time here, I’ve realised that many of the ideas and initiatives we see are all coming from Mohanji, even some of the tasks which I need to complete. He openly asked me, “Why do I have to give you all these ideas? Why aren’t you thinking?” Today, was an example of this.
Someone must have shared a video with him, a really touching and moving video about a poor homeless man. In the video, a lady gave him some money, and at that moment, she lost her wedding ring. The ring dropped into the cup that he was collecting money in. When he emptied the cup, he found it and had a flashback, he remembered her.
So, he went looking for her, to see if he could give the ring back. He passed a pawn shop. It’s one of those shops where you can exchange rings, electronics, or other expensive goods for money. So he had a dilemma. He went in, he presented the ring, and the man offered, I think, $4,000. So, the homeless man could have gotten the money, but he decided to keep looking for the lady. Eventually, he found her. Then this lady started a crowdfunding campaign out of thankfulness. The campaign raised a substantial amount of money, which she donated to him. It was much more than the ring was worth.
So this was the video. Mohanji asked, “Can we make videos like this? Can we get videos going?” Again, “Is it only me that’s thinking of these ideas?”
This was a small example of how he’s living what he says daily, and it’s an inspiration. He’s looking for what more we can do to improve, what more can we do to develop ideas. Because when we do that, when we move with what we have, enhance it, add to it, we have the potential to reach more people.
For Mohanji, this is constant; this is the way he is, which is a real inspiration. Even though he’s in his 50s, he shares the same enthusiasm as somebody in their 20s, always looking for something new. In the boot camp for the corporate program, we’ve spoken about the different types of people, categorising them into six broad categories. The first category is the type of people who have no vision, no plan, and no motivation to do much really. So they just live; they exist. Then, at the opposite end of the spectrum are people who have a plan, have a vision, have the will, have determination, and deliver it. But they don’t stop there. They’re always looking for what more they can do.
For myself, I’ve noticed that in my past, and even now sometimes, that once I’ve achieved something, I’ll have the will or the desire to achieve it, but once it’s been completed, then I’ll almost stop, I would rest. But what I’ve begun to learn, especially since being in Mohanji’s energy, is that this leads to stagnation. It can lead to lethargy and even inertia.
Now, it’s a constant process of developing that attitude towards – “What more can we do?” So I’m thinking, what more can I do with these responsibilities that I have because there are always ways to enhance and improve what I’m doing.
In my previous work as well, I’d often become dissatisfied once I’d reach a position. Then generally, my workday would be very mechanical. You know, I just do the same thing, day in, day out. So there wouldn’t be many variations for improvement, even though the work was varied.
Now, looking back, I realised that that’s when my self-esteem would start to become affected. Because there was no more progress, it was the same thing day in, day out. I didn’t really have the attitude of “What more can I do to improve.”
But observing Mohanji it’s been an inspiration because he’s showing through his life and how he works that there’s always more that we can do with what we have, no matter how small the improvement. So, if we’ve got something to do, we can keep exploring it. We can look at all the dimensions and all the possibilities so that we can create a freshness to it, a freshness to the task or responsibility, and then it keeps growing.
I think this is really important to understand and practice because it can bring new motivation to the work. This can be really important across all the platforms because if everybody had the attitude of, “What more can I do, what can I change today, what small improvements can we make”, we would move very far, we’d be reaching the lives and the hearts of many more people around the world.
To put this into practice amongst my team, we’ve implemented a small routine, which everybody will pick up every morning. Once we’ve spent time with ourselves, done our morning practice, we sit for 10 or 20 minutes, assess all the work and all the responsibilities we have that day. Then each of us will think of new ideas and new ways to improve what we’re doing. So, I’m excited to see what change comes from this. Maybe it’s something that you want to try out and give a go, too.
Thank you for listening, and I hope you have a great day ahead.
|| JAI BRAHMARISHI MOHANJI ||
Edited & Published by – Testimonials Team, 20th June 2021
Disclaimer:
The views, opinions, and positions expressed by the authors and those providing comments on these blogs are theirs alone and do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions or positions of Mohanji, Mohanji Foundation, it’s members, employees or any other individual or entity associated with Mohanji or Mohanji Foundation. We make no representations as to accuracy, completeness, timeliness, suitability or validity of any information presented by individual authors and/or commenters on our blogs and will not be liable for any errors, omissions, or delays in this information or any losses, injuries or damages arising from its display or use.
We reserve the right to delete, edit, or alter in any manner we see fit blog entries or comments that we, in our sole discretion, deem to be obscene, offensive, defamatory, threatening, in violation of trademark, copyright or other laws, of an express commercial nature, or otherwise unacceptable.
I ask myself this question from time to time. I ask myself because the more time I spend with Mohanji, the less I know. Trying to understand Mohanji is like trying to hold water in a clenched fist. I honestly don’t think it’s possible to understand Mohanji until we become him, and I could record many messages on this topic.
Today, I wanted to pose this question to all of you – Who is Mohanji? I also wanted to give you a sense of who he is from what I can see in front of me.
Without a doubt, Mohanji is Mohanji. We cannot compare him with anyone else living now, or anyone else who lived before. His relevance to the world is now, and he is active in many ways. I can only perceive the terrestrial dimension of Mohanji, but I know from listening to the experiences of others who can see the subtle work that he is active in many ways. There are many testimonials from people about that. One day, we may be able to piece this jigsaw together to understand truly.
Additional Message
Yesterday, he reminded me that everyone who connects with him is well protected and looked after and that we should always stand by those who we love and who love us, no matter what, especially during these challenging times.
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Good morning, everybody. I hope you’re doing really well. This morning, I wanted to start with a question. And this question is, who is Mohanji?
Now, you can probably take some time to think about that. And I’m sure, if we were sharing our insights in a discussion, Mohanji would be different for all of us. Ever since I started living with him, managing his time, calendar, schedule, etc., it’s evident that people connect to Mohanji in many different ways, and see him in many different varieties. And for me personally, it’s something that I ask myself from time to time; who is this man called Mohanji? And I can honestly say that the more time I spend with him, the less I know. And that’s a fact. I’ll explain that.
Mohanji himself is very clear about who he is. He is Mohanji, and that’s it. He’s a friend to the world, and he’s not in competition with anybody. He’s not trying to be anybody else. His job is simply to be available to people. He’s definitely not asking anybody to worship him. I’ve been here with Mohanji every day for seven months now; I can say that with full confidence.
And actually, he’s pretty self-sufficient. I mean, we all brought him here, and we bring him food, tea, and that type of thing. But actually, he doesn’t need anybody; he’d be quite able to function on his own. And from morning till night, in fact, sometimes probably also through the night, he’s responding to people. He is guiding them; he’s helping them. And he’s giving clarity. And when he gives advice, there’s absolute clarity; it covers the length, the height, the width, the breadth, everything.
An example of that was when Ammucare had a campaign to raise money to buy a bicycle for an ice-cream seller. The man was the sole provider for his family. He had children, he had a wife and was selling ice cream from a small wooden box, and he was getting old and having to haul it around. So they wanted to buy him one of those bicycles with a refrigerator box on top of it, and they were raising money.
So, I gave some money for this, and I happened to say to Mohanji in a conversation ‘Oh this came up, I gave some money’. He responded, “Did you think more about it?” As I watched him, he said, “Did you think more about what would really help that family?” I didn’t quite understand. He said he heard about this, and he contacted the team to provide clothes for the women in the family, some education for the kids, and support, food and materials for the wife and the house. I couldn’t believe that really. Not only did he consider that this man was under a lot of stress, (he had this box, he needed a bike so he could do more of his work), but he recognised the fact that if the stress of the family situation wasn’t removed, it would be incredibly difficult for him to start anew and get going.
So Mohanji took away all that step by step, making sure there’s education, making sure there’s food, making sure there are clothes. So, when he sees a situation, he looks at everything. It’s incredible! I hope one day, my vision can expand to include all those types of things.
And he is humble, as well. He’s very stable. He’s like a rock; no matter what situation arises, no matter what happens, he is unflinching. One of the things which I really admire in Mohanji is that he stands by people, and he lives what he says, “Never let go of those that you love, and that love you. Stand by them no matter what.” And he does do this.
As I schedule his time and appointments, I can see that he’s fully benevolent, day in day out. He is here for the world. In fact, the only things I’ve seen him take for himself during the day are two modest meals, some fruits in the afternoon, and maybe some tea in the morning. Apart from that, he’s always giving.
My interactions with Mohanji are very practical; he’s like a mentor to me. I haven’t had many visions or elaborate spiritual experiences, and my focus is really business-oriented. So, he gives me fantastic advice from the business point of view. At one point, he was running five countries for a shipping company. Thus, he had a vision, leadership skills and management skills, and that’s what we’re bringing into the corporate program that we’re developing to take to companies from the Foundation.
When Mohanji and I talk, I know that in the periphery, much more is happening from Mohanji. For example, as I’m speaking with him, Mai-Tri sessions are happening worldwide with his presence; Mohanji Transformation Method (MTM) is taking place, where he’s doing immense work, even clearing whole lineages for people. Some people have even messaged to say that they’ve felt his presence in their homes. All this happens as I sit in front of him in conversation, and he relays messages to me. So, even though he’s there, I can see him in front of me, he is everywhere else as well at the same time.
Deep down, I know that when I’m sitting next to him, and when I’m looking at him, when I look into his eyes, inside my heart, I feel that here in front of me is someone or some presence that is established in something much higher than I could ever know or comprehend, at this point of time.
And how do I know that? Well, I can only speak from my own experience since being connected to him; I know from my own transformation. Because I’d say, I’m completely different now than two years ago. And how do I know? It’s quite easy when I look back and say what I’ve lost. I’ve lost anger. Rarely do I have jealousy now. I no longer hate anyone. All the grudges that I had have dissolved; all those hangovers of relationships have long gone now. I’ve also lost some blindness, having lived quite an insensitive life before, treating people poorly, even eating meat and causing suffering to animals. So, so many things.
So now, I know there’s something there, which I can’t tangibly see, but I just try and keep it very simple for myself. I know, and others have told me that it can be very easy to be misled by Mohanji as the form, a walking, eating, talking, sleeping, pooping being rather than what he actually is or what he represents.
So, I try to do simple things, which many people have advised before as well. I follow the basics; that’s having faith and patience. I think that’s what Sai Baba said, as well: a strong conviction that the guru whom you are learning from knows what’s right for your journey, as he’s a reflection of your inner self. And I don’t expect much or ask for anything personal in nature because I know that if I’m asking for something, it’s probably coming from my mind, and it’s what the mind needs, rather than what he can truly give me. You know, it’s like asking for a tuk-tuk when he can truly give you a Rolls Royce. The best gift I can give him is to try and live the teachings as best as I can. Those are the simple rules that I try and follow so that I don’t get too misled by the form that’s in front of me.
I know many other people connect to him in different ways. I think we classify them in roughly four groups. So, firstly, you have the people who are connected through Bhakti and devotion. They worship through songs, drawings, paintings; it’s really an emotional heart connection. Then, the Jnana people – connect to his knowledge and his teachings. Thirdly, the Karma Yoga people – connect to serving and his activities which he’s doing in the world. Finally, there are the Raja Yogis – those connected deeply to his consciousness.
So, Mohanji is Mohanji. And, he said to me that he’s not a person. If we think of him as a person, we’re missing out on a lot. Because he’s the Tradition, he’s a living projection of the Tradition of Liberation. All Masters in one, yet very distinctly Mohanji. And that’s his relevance in the world. And he cares and loves everyone that’s connected to him. And he protects them all.
A few months back, I wanted to start reading Sripada Srivallabha Charitamrutam. And before I did, I asked for Mohanji’s blessing. He said to me: ‘Oh, it’s good, good that you’re reading that. You’ll understand me more after reading.’ So I thought: ‘Oh, great. I’ll learn something more about Mohanji.’ And I read the book. And it’s incredible; it’s a fantastic book. I advise anyone who has the interest to read it. It’s the story of the first incarnation of Dattatreya.
However, after reading that book, I can confidently say that I know about Mohanji less than I did before reading it. And day-to-day, I know even less.
So that’s the message for today. I hope it reaches you well, and I hope you have a great day ahead.
|| JAI BRAHMARISHI MOHANJI||
Edited & Published by – Testimonials Team, 2nd February 2021
Disclaimer:
The views, opinions, and positions expressed by the authors and those providing comments on these blogs are theirs alone and do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions or positions of Mohanji, Mohanji Foundation, it’s members, employees or any other individual or entity associated with Mohanji or Mohanji Foundation. We make no representations as to accuracy, completeness, timeliness, suitability or validity of any information presented by individual authors and/or commenters on our blogs and will not be liable for any errors, omissions, or delays in this information or any losses, injuries or damages arising from its display or use.
We reserve the right to delete, edit, or alter in any manner we see fit blog entries or comments that we, in our sole discretion, deem to be obscene, offensive, defamatory, threatening, in violation of trademark, copyright or other laws, of an express commercial nature, or otherwise unacceptable.
Surrendering at the lotus feet of Lord Datta, who is also known as “Girnar Raja” – the king of the Mountain Girnar, I am beginning my story of “Journey to Girnar with Mohanji”.
More ancient than the Himalayas is Mount Girnar – the mountain that symbolizes “a Guru is always on top of the world”. Lord Dattatreya, the Adi Guru of Dattatreya Tradition, is believed to have meditated at the peak of this mountain for over 12,000 years. Many devotees of Lord Datta climb up Mount Girnar throughout the year to get a glimpse of the benevolent Guru, Dattatreya. It is said that to reach the peak of the mountain and to have the darshan of his (Lord Dattatreya) holy footprints, one should have a lot of determination, dedication, surrender, and utmost faith. One should follow the same path as his Guru, in the same direction, and only then can he reach the destination. Lord Dattatreya is present here protecting all his devotees.
I had travelled to India in Jan 2020 to attend a retreat with Mohanji, spend some time with my parents, and to attend a cousin’s wedding. I was going to be in India for some more time, and while I was there, I tried to spend as much time as I could, being around Mohanji. In late January 2020, the Bhumi Puja of the ‘Home for Seniors’ land was happening in Thiruvannamalai, and I was so fortunate to attend the ceremony and to be able to meet Mohanji there.
A few days after returning from Thiruvannamalai, I heard about a short trip that Mohanji was making to Mount Girnar, to the temple of Lord Datta. I had not heard about this mountain and Lord Datta’s temple before. I had no idea what it takes to go there! But as soon as I heard about it, a calling from my heart came to travel with Mohanji to Mount Girnar. A wet blanket was soon thrown over my excitement when I heard that going to Lord Datta’s temple on top of the mountain means climbing up 9999 steps and down the same too!
I shivered with the reality check. I didn’t think I could do this as I am not very fit physically. I gave up the idea. That’s when I got a message from Rajesh saying “You are coming to Girnar. Jo Dar Gaya Samjho Woh Mar Gaya.” (The one who is scared, is dead). His words were motivating enough, and I felt as if these words were coming from Mohanji! So, I decided to take the journey! On top of that, Rajesh assured me about the possibility of using the doli service, where you can be carried up rather than walk. I decided I would go to Girnar and take a doli.
I reached Junagadh in the afternoon of February 11th. Several people from Mohanji family had already arrived there, and I was taken to the beautiful Gorakhnath Ashram overlooking Mount Girnar. After lunch, Ruchika and I went around feeding cows around the Gorakhnath Ashram Later, after Mohanji arrived, all of us gathered in his room. Mohanji was very happy to see all of us. I noticed that the swelling on Mohanji’s left foot had not reduced (which was there since the Thiruvannamalai event). Seeing all of us worrying about his foot pain, Mohanji very lovingly told us, “You are all Mai-Tri Practitioners. So why don’t you do Mai-Tri to this body? To the body only, not to Mohanji!” It’s beyond our imagination to heal Mohanji’s body, but we realized that to keep our worrying mind at rest, Mohanji was giving us this opportunity. In my heart, I was praying to Datta to relieve this physical pain from Mohanji’s foot.
Mount Girnar
We had a small satsang with Mohanji about Girnar and the plan to climb in the night so as to reach the top by early morning for aarati at 5:30 am. Rajesh Kamath mentioned that I wanted to take a doli as it was difficult for me to climb. Mohanji immediately said, “Shinde has to climb, she will climb, it’s her sadhana”. This was a command from my Guru, and I bowed down to this and said, “Yes Baba, all your grace, your will”.
As Mohanji reminded us all, “A visit to Girnar is not an ordinary journey. It is a surrender and commitment to the Tradition. Unless you have deep commitment and conviction, you may not be in this land. In fact, there is no better place, more powerful and more relevant than Girnar for a true spiritualist in the path of the Avadhootas (total dissolution). We aren’t talking about enlightenment or even the Path of the Siddhas here – this is much beyond human realms or thinking. Even today, the nine Naths and 84 Siddhas visit Girnar in sookshma form, chant and pray for the darshan of Lord Dattatreya who continues to guide them. Grace alone can bring an individual to this land. Grace and surrender alone will help one complete this holy pilgrimage. Jai Gurudev Datta!”
After the empowering satsang with Mohanji, we got ready to start our climb to Mount Girnar. Along with me, Ruchika, Sonia, Hemkant and his wife Shilpa were ready too. After attending the aarati at Gorakhnath temple and dinner, we started our walk around 9 pm. We took blessings from the idols of Lord Datta and Hanuman at the bottom of Girnar and started climbing from there.
We had no idea about what the climbing path would be like, or how long it will take. We all carried a stick, a bottle of water, and chanting Lord Datta’s name, we kept on climbing. As we picked up our pace, a couple of people fell behind. As I was walking, I felt that there were Masters from above looking at us. I could feel their energy around us.
Walking up the steep steps wasn’t easy for me. My knees hurt, and my legs felt weak to move. I had to take frequent stops to sit down and then kept on walking. At some point, all of us met up again, and we sat down at that point to meditate for a few minutes and then continued walking. As we were walking, another elderly couple joined us. As we were climbing, I spoke to them about Mohanji, Mohanji’s mission, liberation and gave a brief of his teachings, too.
At some point during our walk, we noticed that George had arrived. He was walking very fast, chanting “Jai Gurudeva Datta, Hari Om Tat-Sat” loudly. When he saw us, he hugged us and kept on walking. Seeing the energetic George walking with such speed, chanting loudly, I felt a sudden surge of energy in my own body. He reminded me of Lord Hanuman, who was empowered because of his faith and devotion. Hemkant started walking fast, ahead with George. The rest of us were walking at our own pace, Shilpa and I were together, walking, talking, resting. It was not so easy, and the body would give up. In those moments, I thought of Mohanji and Lord Datta and reminded myself that this is my path; this is my destination; this is the goal – to reach Datta, I have to do it.
Surrendering each step to Lord Datta, I kept walking. Something in me started telling me, “keep walking.” Slowly, the energy started flowing and I could climb with lesser effort.
After some time, I saw that Hemkant was resting because of severe pain in his knee, and Shilpa was with him. George went ahead. I could not wait with Hemkant because the inner voice said, “keep walking”. I kept walking, and another old couple were walking along too. We sent a balm for Hemkant that the couple had with them through some people going down, and we kept on walking ahead.
After 3000 steps, we reached the Neminath Tirthankar temple along with the elderly couple.
Following a brief rest, I started climbing up again alone. It was pitch dark. I had no torch. The couple were still resting behind, but I kept walking even in the darkness. I could feel the pull of some divine energy which was making me walk. I didn’t know the path, but I kept on walking. When I felt tired, I would feel a sudden surge of energy as soon as I surrendered to Mohanji and Dattatreya. After a while, I heard Mohanji and his group coming behind us, Mohanji in a doli. I looked back at them, and I wanted to go towards Mohanji. Mohanji saw me and said, “Shinde don’t come back, keep walking, and go ahead”. Now, I was walking with even more energy and joy knowing that Mohanji and the group are walking just behind me. I had no more fear, no more pain; I started climbing higher and higher. With each step, I was surrendering and climbing.
It was dark everywhere and pin-drop silence. Not a single soul to be seen. I was just taking each step slowly and going up with complete faith. After the 5000th step, I reached Ambaji’s temple. The doors of the temple were closed, and I did not know what to do. Mohanji’s words “keep walking” were always ringing in my head. So, I got up from the temple and started climbing again. Through ups and downs, amidst the dark in the silent path, walking continuously, finally I reached the Gorakhnath temple at around 7000 steps. At this point, the only sound was the sound of the wind blowing; hard-hitting, strong and cold. I also knew there were wild animals in those mountains, which I could not see or hear. I felt the presence of some Masters above me, walking along with me. It was not that I was walking alone. Datta Guru Mohanji was watching over me and that was the reason for this huge surge of energy coursing through my body, making me walk. I remembered only these two things while walking.
At one point, the steps go down, and then they take off to go to the ultimate, Guru Shikhar – the peak. Climbing these steep steps towards the peak, I suddenly felt there were no thoughts. There was only emptiness. I had only two thoughts in my mind, to reach Guru Shikhar and be at the Datta temple before the aarati and to keep walking.
I was walking like a daredevil, without any fear of the solitude or darkness. Suddenly at one point, my stick slipped from my hand and went down somewhere in the dark. It can be quite a discomfort being without a stick in the darkness. I started chanting and climbing down slowly. Maybe after 50 steps or so, I saw my stick! It was stuck to something, and I had spotted it even in the dark. I picked up the stick, thanked Mohanji and Datta and started walking again with focus. At times, the fear of walking alone came to mind, but at those times, I felt the Masters watching over me and Mohanji’s presence with me, protecting me. My fear vanished with this understanding. I remembered Mohanji’s words, “keep walking” and so I kept walking.
The final part of climbing was very steep, but I didn’t even realize how I climbed that part. Finally, I saw a flag and the top of Guru Shikhar, the top of the temple and I started climbing further. It was getting even windier at the top, and I felt that I might fall. After climbing carefully, I reached the top, and I saw George sitting just below the Datta temple. He guided me to go further up near the temple, and when I reached there, I saw Rajesh Kamath and DB. It was 4 am (Brahma Muhurtha) when I reached the Datta temple.
I walked up and touched the temple; now was the time to sit down! At that point, I had an immense surge of energy in me, and I wasn’t feeling cold or wind beat. Rajesh forced me to wear my jacket and then I sat down. It was as if Mohanji acted like my mother, making sure I was protected from the cold wind. As soon as I put on my jacket and sat, intense pain started in my stomach centre near the navel, going back to my spine, like some pull, it was very painful. I didn’t know what it was and I started crying out to Datta. Rajesh helped me lie down and to rest completely, and soon I felt better. Datta’s healing energy had taken my pain away in minutes!
After about half an hour, Mohanji and the rest of the group arrived too. As soon as Mohanji saw me, he said, “Ah, Shinde, you are already there”. I said “Baba, all your love and grace” and I bowed down to him.
We were waiting for the temple to open at 5:30 am for the aarati. While the slight delay was happening, Sonia and Ruchika arrived. Then after the temple opened, while we were going inside, Hemkant and Shilpa arrived too. The entire Mohanji family was inside the temple just in time for the aarati. Mohanji ensured that everyone was there together with him.
Lord Dattatreya
This was the great divine grace of Datta.
Just before the aarati, while I was standing behind Mohanji, he said to Ananth who was there in the front, “You know this Shinde, she can talk about liberation in three minutes”. I blushed because I realized that Mohanji heard my conversation with the couple while we were walking about our Tradition, Masters, liberation etc. Mohanji reminded me once again that he is always listening to us.
Soon aarati started. It was such a powerful and divine moment to attend the Datta aarati in the physical presence of Mohanji. I couldn’t believe myself; I was physically there receiving this grace!!! I was speechless, completely merged with the divine grace of Mohanji and Datta. Time had stopped for me at that moment. So far, it was one of the greatest moments of my life.
After aarati, we went around the Lord Dattatreya’s idol inside the temple, had a good darshan and came out.
After the 7-8 hours long sadhana of climbing up, the descent was joyful. Yes, Mohanji ensured that the descent was joyful. Sonia, Ruchika and I started climbing down together, talking laughing, eating, our legs were flying with joy! Such satisfaction, such contentment!
We had many interesting incidents during our walk down, like meeting some strange people. We went to Gorakhnath temple, heard the inspiring story of the priest there who had left his banker job to serve in the temple. We then reached the Ambaji temple where we had darshan of the divine Mother and finally decided to sit down for some time to take rest. We were feeling as if we were flying, and we felt so light. We laughed at small things. On our way down, we met an old man looking like a yogi. He told us so many stories of Mount Girnar. We kept walking down, enjoying our journey together. After a while, we saw some monkeys and gave them watermelon. Then, from nowhere, a person started walking with us even after we said we didn’t need any help; he just wanted to accompany us. In between an old mother wanted some food for her children and we bought some food for her. Finally, in the mix of laughing, sitting, and walking, we reached the bottom of Mount Girnar and arrived at the Gorakhnath ashram. We offered food and some money to the person who had been walking with us all this time.
The next day, before leaving Girnar, we met Mohanji to express our gratitude and take his blessings. Again, Mohanji said to me, “Why do you need a doli, when you have this body?” He explained to me what a beautiful gift we have as this body and its importance. I was in deep gratitude, and tears rolled down my cheeks. Everything that happened the day before was only by the grace of my Datta, Guru Mohanji.
After returning from Girnar, I felt Mohanji was Lord Datta and daily did the Swami Samarth Datta aarati. However, Mohanji fulfilled every desire of mine within a few days. Mahesh Bhalero sang a new Girnar Datta aarati to Mohanji. I was overjoyed and now I do the Mohanji datta aarati every day.
On my return to Bangalore, I also visited Devi Amma to give her Ganga water from Varanasi and some tamil books and spoke about the Girnar trip with Mohanji. Devi Amma said, “You have shed many lifetimes karmic baggage by climbing Girnar with Mohanji.” Then I understood what Mohanji had meant when he said, “It’s your sadhana.” It meant shedding karmic baggage.
Visiting Girnar had not been on my bucket list. Not even a thought had been there, at least not in my conscious mind. But it all just happened with the grace of Datta and the miracle of my Guru Mohanji. Even today, when I look back, I get goose bumps. How did it happen?
The truth is that the journey to Girnar happens only with complete faith and devotion, the grace of Dattatreya, and Datta Guru Mohanji, who carries you ahead.
This yatra (pilgrimage) to Girnar with Mohanji will remain close to my heart forever.
At the lotus feet of GURUDEVADATTA MOHANJI!
|| JAI BRAHMARISHI MOHANJI||
Edited & Published by – Testimonials Team, 7th January 2021
Disclaimer:
The views, opinions, and positions expressed by the authors and those providing comments on these blogs are theirs alone and do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions or positions of Mohanji, Mohanji Foundation, it’s members, employees or any other individual or entity associated with Mohanji or Mohanji Foundation. We make no representations as to accuracy, completeness, timeliness, suitability or validity of any information presented by individual authors and/or commenters on our blogs and will not be liable for any errors, omissions, or delays in this information or any losses, injuries or damages arising from its display or use.
We reserve the right to delete, edit, or alter in any manner we see fit blog entries or comments that we, in our sole discretion, deem to be obscene, offensive, defamatory, threatening, in violation of trademark, copyright or other laws, of an express commercial nature, or otherwise unacceptable.
Since childhood, I have often heard these phrases, “To err is human, to forgive divine and yet another one, “Forgive and forget”. Pondering on these two statements, I felt that I could forgive but never forget. It seemed simple. The minute an incident of the past came to my mind, the person who did it to me appeared in my inner eye along with the situation. So, I felt I could never forget.
Recently, there were a few incidents that hurt and saddened me, causing immense stress, disappointments, upheaval, sadness, anger etc. You name the emotion, and I felt all that. I felt it was the end. It felt as though things would never lookup. I would die a lonely, sad soul. All that changed through something that Mohanji did and as usual, ‘He walked with me!’
I heard about the Forgiveness Process that my Guru Mohanji had given to the world. Even then, my first thought which I jokingly shared with someone was, I am prepared to do anything as an Acharya, but I am not ready to forgive. The pain and wounds were fresh, and I felt it was not easy. It was indeed my mind fooling me.
As an Acharya, what I had learnt and knew deep within was that I had to forgive and move on. Mohanji always said, “Forgiveness leads to freedom.”
Slowly with all my other practices, I realised forgiveness, letting go and moving on towards my purpose was the top priority. Soon, I got a wonderful opportunity to practise the Forgiveness Process that was recorded in Mohanji’s voice. Now, my interest was piqued. Whatever Mohanji did was always for my highest good. I was eager to unhook and forgive each and everything. My heart soon craved for the freedom that Mohanji always spoke about.
Finally, I got to do the process as it was offered to all the Acharyas for a week. I did not want to miss the opportunity and so did it all the seven days, although it is not necessary. Needless to say, I was left speechless and awed.
The first time, it was as though I was in the world of Harry Potter, with Mohanji using a magic wand to remove all the memories from within me that were deeply embedded and dissolve them. What was surprising was that during the process, neither did I remember the people nor the situations. All that I remembered was that I had gone through varied emotions such as anger, hatred, jealousy, guilt, regrets and so on. I felt unappreciated and betrayed. Being a perfectionist, whatever I did was never good enough. So, a sense of unworthiness too seemed to linger.
As Mohanji guided me lovingly through the process in a soothing voice, I was able to unburden myself and soar high for a few minutes with him. I understood with clarity the purpose I was born for, and I visualised my Master holding my hand and guiding me forward, leaving all the unwanted impressions, patterns, and karma behind. As we soared higher and higher, he gently sent me ahead and stayed behind to guide other souls lovingly. This really showed the liberated existence of a Master.
This happened on most of the days that I did the process. The whole process would start with bouts of crying, and my heart would feel so heavy each time, I felt it would burst. I have never ever cried like this before. Soon it would cease, and a feeling of lightness would cover me. I would then follow Mohanji faithfully on my journey.
This entire process of forgiveness showed me my purpose. I realised my purpose is to serve the world with unconditional love, kindness and compassion. This made me so free and accepting of my situation in life.
Later, thinking about the process, I realised that this Forgiveness Process was not an ordinary, guided process. With each word, the Master was working on me. He was operating from a different frequency, and all that I was expected to do was follow the instructions. As usual, he did his job. He cleared layers of muck that I’d collected over lifetimes. Another strange thing was that although I got to do the process, even if I was delayed and didn’t do it at the same time every day, I’d start feeling the emotions exactly at that time.
I was under the impression that it would be easy and with a session or two, I’d be fine. But I can tell you that this process is such a precious gift, it continues to keep you in awareness and helps you to let go of the situations that you may come across in your day to day life. It is life-transforming, indeed!
Not only that, I suddenly realised that what I was holding on to, playing the victim and thinking I could never forgive disappeared. I was able to accept the situations and move on. How did that happen? As layers of impressions were getting cleared, I was able to accept myself unconditionally with my weaknesses and strengths and totally forgive myself. Once I accepted myself, forgave myself, it was automatically reflected on the outside; the forgiveness of others, the situations and the surroundings became easy.
The pain, the scars of the situation and the people who caused it did not matter because, with Mohanji’s guidance, I chose freedom, I chose acceptance of myself, I chose to love myself, and I chose the path of liberation.
|| JAI BRAHMARISHI MOHANJI||
Edited & Published by – Testimonials Team, 5th November 2020
Disclaimer:
The views, opinions, and positions expressed by the authors and those providing comments on these blogs are theirs alone and do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions or positions of Mohanji, Mohanji Foundation, it’s members, employees or any other individual or entity associated with Mohanji or Mohanji Foundation. We make no representations as to accuracy, completeness, timeliness, suitability or validity of any information presented by individual authors and/or commenters on our blogs and will not be liable for any errors, omissions, or delays in this information or any losses, injuries or damages arising from its display or use.
We reserve the right to delete, edit, or alter in any manner we see fit blog entries or comments that we, in our sole discretion, deem to be obscene, offensive, defamatory, threatening, in violation of trademark, copyright or other laws, of an express commercial nature, or otherwise unacceptable.
I am no writer, but some things need to be said, so I pray that I can do justice to these important issues. This blog is about the spiritual giants who have, and are still walking among us.
For starters, there are 5 things that I know, without a doubt, about authentic spiritual Masters:
Their love is unconditional.
Their message is the same across the board.
They all work together for our benefit, whether they are still with us, or whether they have left their physical forms.
They each have a unique and different flavor, and their practices differ, but their goal is always to liberate us and rid us of our illusions.
We have no idea of how they operate in the subtle dimensions, the unseen world – we shouldn’t even try to understand their workings.
Once there is a ‘soul readiness’ in a person, a Master will cross his/her path, no doubt. This is the greatest blessing we can receive, and we need to realize this fully and have the necessary reverence and gratitude for this boon.
Very often, a Master appears when life has almost defeated us, when we are at the lowest point in our lives, when we are sufficiently disillusioned with the world and its toys – its empty seductions and its impermanence. At such times, we are stripped of most of our pretenses. This is also the time where the channels are open for a Master to reach our innermost recesses, and to do their work within our beings.
All of the above sounds so wonderful and it is, but alas, our ingrained weaknesses, fears and prejudices can ruin the incredible blessing of meeting an enlightened being and receiving the benefits of such a connection.
In 1992, absolutely every aspect of my life was in a state of complete collapse and desperation. In the search for affordable healing for my body, I met my spiritual Master, Mataji Narayani. There is so much detail about her and about my time with her, which is a beautiful story, but the purpose of this writing is not so much about that. What I will say on that, in short, is that she invited my son Hein and me to live in her ashram. She opened her arms, took us in, loved and protected us as only the Holy Mother can do.
Mataji Narayani
It’s noteworthy to mention here, that my entire family was horrified. It was not a traditional religious path and they were convinced that I was on a slippery road to hell. Mataji lovingly wrote a letter to each family member, explaining (on their level), what I was doing there, assuring them that I was safe. I frankly didn’t give a damn about their opinion. My attitude about that is important, which will become clear later in the blog. Let me just say that Mataji Narayani saved my life and that of my wonderful son Hein.
About my son Hein; this world was not for him. It didn’t welcome him as it does the high performing conformists. During a conversation with him in 2011, he expressed desperation regarding living life on this earth. A mother knows her child, and I knew that underneath this confused exterior, lay a pot of gold, but it was hidden and static. I knew without a doubt that I couldn’t help him any more than I have, and I didn’t know how to further help him. Once again, the universe conspired to rescue us.
One day, on social media, a friend suggested that I contact a man called Mohanji, and talk to him about my Hein. Long story short, Hein went to meet Mohanji who was living in Oman at the time. It was déjà vu – here was my son, at a desperate time, meeting his spiritual Master, just as I did in 1992!
My joy was overwhelming because I knew from personal experience that Hein would be okay. There was also the added gift for Hein, of having a father that he didn’t have growing up. But alas, I fell into an erroneous trap – the trap of prejudice, of comparison and above all, of lending out my ears. At this time, Hein was in India, which was fine with me. He wanted to be close to Mohanji. At the same time, some of Mohanji’s devotees had decided to leave Mohanji’s fold. I started receiving information from many parts of the world, that Mohanji was treating my son with great disrespect and harshness. Well, that is a mother’s soft-spot, and I was horrified and exceedingly angry (just as my family was when I met Mataji – painfully ironic, that)!
I also fell into the trap of comparing my Master with Hein’s Master. Their styles and paths were so different. Mataji was the Divine Feminine, all softness and nurturing. Exactly what I needed. In contrast (superficially), Mohanji is the Divine Masculine, all fire, and brimstone. Exactly what Hein needed! But I didn’t want to see that! (Here, please refer to point no. 4 at the start of the blog), to fully realize my folly.
While I was dancing in and with my prejudices and misunderstandings, Mohanji was quietly honing the underlying gold in my son. Every year, Hein would visit South Africa to renew his passport to work in India, and every year, I could see more and more of the divinity coming to the fore. His quiet love, his wonderful wisdom, and above all, his absolute surrender to his Master, Mohanji. It would surely be an understatement to say that I’m so grateful to Mohanji and I am so sorry that I let my doubts get the better of me. To witness the transformation of my son, completely wipes out all the doubts I harboured regarding Mohanji.
We are all free to stay with, or leave a Master, to accept or reject a certain path, but let us do it respectfully. Above all, let’s keep our doubts and judgements to ourselves. The adage, ‘what’s good for the goose, is good for the gander,’ does not apply here. Let us allow everyone to follow their own hearts without our interference! This is an admonition to myself more than anything else!
We need to tread lightly and carefully on this subtle and mysterious journey to liberation. As stated before, we know so little of how these enlightened beings operate.
Finally, to Mohanji’s devotees and all others who have found their spiritual teacher, power on in faith and surrender, and let no-one shake your conviction.
|| JAI BRAHMARISHI MOHANJI||
Compiled, Edited & Published by – Testimonials Team, 2nd December 2019
Disclaimer:
The views, opinions, and positions expressed by the authors and those providing comments on these blogs are theirs alone and do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions or positions of Mohanji, Mohanji Foundation, it’s members, employees or any other individual or entity associated with Mohanji or Mohanji Foundation. We make no representations as to accuracy, completeness, timeliness, suitability or validity of any information presented by individual authors and/or commenters on our blogs and will not be liable for any errors, omissions, or delays in this information or any losses, injuries or damages arising from its display or use.
We reserve the right to delete, edit, or alter in any manner we see fit blog entries or comments that we, in our sole discretion, deem to be obscene, offensive, defamatory, threatening, in violation of trademark, copyright or other laws, of an express commercial nature, or otherwise unacceptable.
Tradition never leaves us…once we embrace the tradition
With the Grace and blessings of our Master would like to share some key insights and hidden messages in the amazing blog “Born from the fire.”
This story awakens my understanding and throws light on many aspects of the eternal truths of our tradition. This truly opens one’s eyes..
Tradition never leaves us…once we embrace the tradition; it takes care of us always through time and space, through lifetimes which is an eternal promise. Atmananda Chaithanaya who is Aghora Baba himself found and met Rama Shastri. Rama who was living his life compassionately and doing his business ethically could easily recognize His Gurudeva. It was his well-kept purity of inner space that allowed him that instant recognition. In today’s business world, due to greed for profits, most people never take care of their inner space and contaminate them unconsciously. Business also can be done in a pure way which benefits everyone. This is a great lesson to be learned. The advantage of being pure within is the gift of the “true eyes” to see.
When Atmanandaji gave money to Aruna the second time to fetch some sweets from Rama’s shop, He was very much aware that Rama would not be in the shop and that his granddaughter would readily accept the money for the sweets. The hidden message was that Atamanadji knew that Panduranga’s journey was about to get over and after eating the sweets, Panduranga’s last desire would be fulfilled and he would breathe his last. To cut Panduranga’s last karmic bond Atmananda himself gave money to Aruna for sweets. There are two aspects to it. The same morning, Rama Shastri had delivered sweets and food as usual.. Atmananda could have saved some sweets for Panduranga. He did not. Instead He chose to spend money from his pocket and buy more. In a way, as I understand, Atmananda fulfilled two debts at the same time. 1. He paid for the services rendered by the pious Rama Shastri. (There were no sweets in his shop. Atmananda materialized the sweets and also paid for it). Secondly, he indirectly paid Panduranga also, for his services, through the final fulfillment of his deep desire for sweets. And this also can be looked at as a kind of Dakshina or a gift of money a father might give to his son who is embarking on a long journey. Even though physical cash was not given, this can be considered as dakshina.
He is everything, yet he is nothing. Non-conformity in its perfection!
On the other hand Aruna’s mind didn’t understand the logic behind Atmananda’s action of sending him to fetch the sweets but he never questioned his Master. He never asked “ Why “. A perfect sign of our tradition. The all-knowing master is never questioned and the ego, intellect and mind is totally surrendered at the feet of the master. His wish is the disciple’s command. We must also understand that a thought indeed sprouted in the mind of Aruna as to “WHY” which itself showed that he has indeed miles to go in surrender. Atmananda perhaps wanted to prove this aspect to Aruna too. That is probably why he chose Aruna for this errand. Atmananda was also about to leave his body. If Aruna does not shed his last remnants of resistance now, he may have to come back again into the birth-death cycle. A golden lesson indeed!
Aghora Baba represents Shiva, Vishnu & Shakti Bhaav. These are the three main aspects that constitutes three major paths of Hinduism. Shivaite path, Vaishnavaite path and the Shakti path (The goddess). (This is not Shaktipat, the transfer of energy from a guru to a disciple) In other words, Aghora Baba represented the whole Hinduism. The Shiva Bhaav was evident from his face and appearance, celestial fragrance emitting from his body represented the Vishnu Bhaav, His action of carrying a skull always in His hand and dancing naked on the burning pyre along with His group portrayed His Kali Bhaav. So, he represented the whole aspects of Hinduism in its totality. He is everything, yet he is nothing. Non-conformity in its perfection!
It takes deep devotion and clear and clean inner space. The rest is grace.
Aghora Baba used to dance naked and be with naked women. People accused him of promoting prostitution and indulging in all kinds of bad habits but Aghora Baba represents “The Source ” and One who is the source Himself is beyond any expressions, impressions and cannot be put into any frame of morality. In fact with His own life, he was mocking at the fragile morality of the villagers, who wear masks of morality at convenience. Deep fear held them back from attacking the powerful Baba head on. This is also another mirror to the society. A challenge to be fearless! Living in burial ground, that too with His disciples, fire rituals in funeral fire, dancing in fire etc signifies, total denial of any norms and total control over fear of all kinds. Modern man may call it insanity. But, Babaji’s life is more of a bold statement towards the fragile, fearful and tamasic society.
Aghora Baba is fearsome to the society. But, when he touched the young Rama Shastri, he had motherly love and kindness. He was kindness incarnate. This is a far cry from what the society thought of him (as a drunkard, womanizer and a mad man). Society gave him fears and Babaji removed his fears. Another sign of our tradition! General society often condition minds. It sows seeds of fears. A true guru removes all fears and instills faith and devotion instead. This was the transformation that Rama Shastri experienced. Inner purity was all that mattered for the blessings to flow.
Later years proved the selflessness of Rama Shastri and Babaji came back to bless him as Atmananda. And he was also blessed with the recognition of the familiar fragrance. There are many occasions in life where mind does not permit recognition when the action takes place. This takes grace. And Rama had sufficient grace to have this recognition. It takes deep devotion and clear and clean inner space. The rest is grace.
His all actions are purpose bound, just like his words. There is nothing wasted, even a breath.
Atmananda is unassuming, ordinary to public eyes, but extra ordinary to those who have uncontaminated inner space. This is typical of any Datta Guru. He has amazing siddhis, but will never display them for his benefit or to create an impression. His all actions are purpose bound, just like his words. There is nothing wasted, even a breath. This is a golden lesson for life. Waste nothing in life, everything is precious and god given. There is absolute clarity in thoughts, words and action. But, never interferes in karmic flow of others. Again, this is typical of our tradition. Every words or actions of his have multiple purposes. His visit to the place where we see him in this story has two or three different reasons. Panduranga’s fulfillment, death, Rama Shastri’s fulfillment, Aruna’s education, clearing karmic debts as well as promises etc. What we can perceive with our limited understanding is just the tip of the iceberg of the reality on which great saints operate. A great eye opener indeed!
Inner purity is all that matters for the blessings to flow.
The Shopkeeper’s uncle represented mindset of those people who look at life in a superficial way, they judge people immediately based on outward appearances and habits. They never care to go beyond the deceptive outward appearances sometimes taken by Higher Entities to distract people. They lose heavily in life.
The shopkeeper’s mother portrayed a mentality of a meek housewife who is neutral, influenced by both positivity and negativity time and again, a regular person full of fears. She is a typical housewife who has no voice of her own and is always afraid to leave her comfort zone, even if it costs the ultimate truth. Her conforming nature to the approved norms of the society despite evidences of truth otherwise.
The other lesson we can learn is that NEVER judge a Master from a worldly point of view and through other peoples opinion. Always listen to your heart and your own truth. Other’s words could be terribly deceptive.
Experiences With Mohanji 