The Paathi sings the Bani of Swami Ji Maharaj from the book: Saar Bachan Sangrah, ppg 137-138
Satsang karath bahut din beethe,
Ab tho chod puraani baath.
Satsang karath bahut din beethe,
Ab tho chod puraani baath.
THIS IS THE BANI of Param Sant Satguru Swami Ji Maharaj. Before taking up the Bani, I pray at the feet of my Masters, Som-Ajaib, Who have made this person fit for doing this seva. If I had not got the fortune of listening to the Bani and Satsang of Somanath Baba Ji, I also would be wandering, here and there, wearing saffron clothes. I was very fortunate that, at a very young age of twenty-one years, I got the benefit of His Satsang.
Within one and a half months that I heard that Satsang, I had such strong pangs of separation that I left everything and went to the Bangalore ashram. And then, I went there and I did seva at the ashram. It was His infinite Grace that He showered on me, which transformed my life. I had the benefit of His physical Darshan only for three years. And, after that, He left His Sharir, He left His body, and then, I continued in the ashram for about five years. But, I did not feel that love and affection there.
Thereafter, I spent time in the hills also. I spent about five years there doing meditation. But, I did not get the same peace and solace that I had at the feet of my Master.
Around eleven years after Baba Ji left His body, I got the benefit of the company of Sant Ajaib Singh Ji. I got His Grace and I could have His Darshan after about eleven years. So, I got His Darshan two years after Baba Ji left His sharir. But, I had to stay away for about nearly ten years. And, I could then attend His Satsangs only around eleven years later. Then, Sant Ji told me that I had to continue to stay in Andhra, and the ‘saplings, the seeds, that were sown by Baba Somanath Ji’, I would have to go there and water them.
During that time, I was quite fed up with staying here in south India, and I wanted to return to north India to where my house was. But, Sant Ji told me, “No.” He said I should continue and stay here. For nearly forty-five minutes, Sant Ji explained, and He told me about this.
When I think back and I recollect this memory of mine, my soul trembles, even today when I kept crying at His feet, and He kept telling me that I should be going and doing the seva in Andhra. Like on the very first day that I had the Darshan of Somanath Baba Ji. I bowed down to Him. And I completely lost my bearings when I bowed down to Him.
Similarly, with Sant Ji also, His feet were down, and after all that He had explained to me, I bowed down at His feet, and I had the same pleasure of taking His Darshan like that. Then, on the last day of that program in Bombay also, He explained for about half an hour to me, and He told me to go. And, it was not only that He asked me to come here, but He helped me spiritually, and He helped me in all kinds of physical and material ways also. And, He helped me to establish here. He told me to do Satsang, and it is His Grace only that brings me here, and that I'm able to speak, going forward, on the greatness of the Masters.
So, it is only with the Grace of these two great Masters that this servant is capable of doing a little bit of seva. And this servant does not have any other attributes or virtues. It is only the Grace of these two great Masters. When I give initiation also, it is surrendering that soul at the feet of those two great Masters, and They are doing it here, manifested through me. And the amount of Grace that They've showered on me, while I continue in this form, I will never be able to forget that great amount of Grace that They have showered on me.
So, this is the Bani of Swami Ji Maharaj. In this Bani, Swami Ji Maharaj is trying to awaken satsangis, like us, who have lost their way. He explains in this Bani, “You have been listening to Satsang for such a long time. Now, you at least leave your old habit.” Because, if Satsang is not impacting you, if you are not bringing about a change, or getting transformed, with the Satsang then, by taking initiation also, you are not making any change in yourself.
Masters always talk for our benefit, and They always explain that in Their Satsangs. So, therefore, it is very necessary for us to walk on that Path and follow Their Teachings. In this Bani, Swami Ji Maharaj has, very intricately, explained and made it clear, “satsangis, who are listening to Satsang, if they are not bringing about a transformation within themselves, then all of this is of no use to them.” Because, ordinarily, going about our occupation, livelihood, taking care of our children, families — and doing all of those things — are also being done by everyone else.
So, if we are coming here, listening to Satsang, and we are not bringing about our transformation, we are not spending time doing that devotion, then what is the point of doing all of this? So, this is a very good Bani of Swami Ji Maharaj. We should listen to it very carefully.
Kab lag karo kutilatha guru se,
Ab tho guru ko lo pehichaan.
Swami Ji Maharaj explains, “How long are you going to keep a slyness with your Master? How long are you going to have that duality and maintain an outwardly façade with your Master? At least, recognize Him now. He is your only support.” And if you, genuinely, have love and affection at His feet, then He is going to help you in this world. He's going to help you accomplish all of the physical, material things that you are pursuing, and He is also going to give His Darshan at the time of your death, and take your soul upwards, towards God Almighty, and keep you in a better place.
All your family members are going to leave you here at the time of death. It is only a Master Who is going to fulfill His promise of staying with you in this life and beyond, after death, also.
So, Swami Ji Maharaj says, “If you have such a Friend, Who is fulfilling His promise of staying with you here, and later, after your death also, then why aren't you being true to Him?”
Guru ko tum maanush mat jaano,
Ve hai satpurush ki jaan.
Jaise taise man samjhaavo,
Dhar partheeth karo un dhyaan.
He says, “Don't understand the Master as a human being. He is the love of God Almighty. He is a loving child of God Almighty, Who takes care of every wish of His. So, do not understand Him as a human being. Have faith in Him and follow His Teachings and instructions, and then, see for yourself, how much Grace He is showering and how deep that Grace is.”
Jaise taise man samjhaavo,
Dhar partheeth karo un dhyaan.
Daya mehar se bachan sunavae,
Ve hai pooran purush anaam.
Any which way you can, you try to convince your mind, because the mind is always trying to get you away from your devotion and make you wander here. The mind is an element of Kal, he is an agent of Kal, and he has been clearly instructed that, under any circumstances, the soul should not leave the compound of Kal. And the mind is doing so, very lovingly, and attending to the wishes of Kal. So, any which way you can, try and explain to the mind, and bring the mind to do Simran and Dhyan.
Today, both the mind and the soul are wandering, and they are lost. So, once, with the Simran and Dhyan, when the mind understands it's ‘true self’, then it will come back on the Path and help to go to God Almighty.
The jiva is lost in the wandering, in this falsehood, in all of this illusion, and the Saints are taking pity on the soul because They want the soul to also enjoy the same bliss and enjoyment that They are having today. But, the mind is continuously deluding us and is trying to keep us away from our devotion. So, don't listen to the mind. Listen to the Teachings of the Master and do your devotion.
Dharee deh maanush ki guru ne,
Jyon thyon tera kare kalyaan.
He says, “The Saints have pure souls that have come into this world on the instructions of God Almighty. And They are trying Their best and using all means to save the souls and get them back to God Almighty.” The souls, who have been liberated, the souls, who have got salvation and have reached the level of Par Brahm*, such souls are instructed to go into this world and help the others to get their salvation.
* In a subsequent conversation with Babaji He explains that Souls Who have crossed Par Brahm are in the form of Shabd in the region of Dayal. After being taken up to Sach Khand and receiving the Darshan of Sat Purush, Sat Purush Par Brahm or Bhanwar Gupha, to go back into the world, ordained as Saints, to connect the souls with the Shabd, and They remain in those regions until all of Their initiates’ souls are redeemed.
They are pure souls and they are ready souls and they don't have any love or affection for all these worldly attachments and material things. Their love is already at the feet of God Almighty and their Masters. So, whatever they are teaching us, and whatever they are instructing us, listen to that, and explain that to your mind because that is for your benefit.
Dharee deh maanush ki guru ne,
Jyon thyon tera kare kalyaan.
Seva kar pooja kar unaki,
Unahi ko guru nanak jaaan.
They have come to liberate the souls any which way possible and They are following the instructions of God Almighty, all of Them, whether it is Guru Nanak, or it is Paltu Sahib, or it is so many other Saints, or Kabir Sahib, all of Them are the same. So, They have assumed different names for the different times that They have come into this world. But, They are all the same. And the same strength is working, the same pole is working, through all of Them, and that is the Shabd of God Almighty.
Saints never oppose each other. They always have love and affection for each other. Sometimes, there may even be three or four Saints at the same time, but They always have love and affection for each other. Saints, at all times, are always in this world. Kabir Sahib says, “If Saints were not there, then this world would have burned.”
So, Saints, at all times, are always there. Sometimes, They show Themselves. Sometimes, They remain hidden. There are many Saints Who are hidden. They have not shown Themselves to the world. They have gone to Sat Lok-Sach Khand, but They do not have the directions of God Almighty, or Their Masters, to show Themselves to the world. So, only when They have the instructions of Their Masters, or God Almighty, will They show themselves to the world and preach. Otherwise, They remain out of the sight of the world.
There are several disciples of the Masters Who go to Sach Khand, but They are quiet and They do not talk about that to anybody. Because They are so much in Their bliss of God Almighty and Their Masters, They are so much happy in that state, that They do not like to go around the world, undertake all of the hardships of preaching and explaining to the others. It is very difficult to preach. It is very difficult to go from place to place and try to explain to people and liberate souls, take their karmas, and then, go and give an account to Kal and settle those karmas, and do all of those things. It is very difficult. And nobody, of his own will, is interested in doing this. It is only on the directions of Their Masters that They undertake to do all of this. And They are continuously praying at the feet of Their Master that He should call Them back, as soon as possible. They would like to be at the feet of Their Master and not be away from Him. They are within the Word of the Master and, as soon as the Master calls Them back, They leave everything as it is, and go back to Their Masters.
So, Swami Ji Maharaj says, “Whatever They tell you, it is for your benefit. They wish that you be happy and you enjoy the same bliss that They have got.” And how will you be happy and how will you be at peace? That you will have by going and following the Teachings of the Masters.
Vohee kabeer vohee satnaam,
Sab santan ko vahee pichaan.
He says, “It is the same Sound Current that came in the form of Kabir Sahib. And it is the same Current, which is there in God Almighty.” So, it is the same Sound Current everywhere. It is the same Sound Current, which manifests in the form of Saints, and comes into this world on the directions of Sat Purush and tries to awaken the souls like you and others, like you and me, and give them salvation and take them back.
Tera kaaz unhi se hoga,
Mat bhatake tu taj abhimaan.
Swami Ji Maharaj says, “If your work is going to be done here, then it is only going to be done with the Grace of your Master. So, do not carry any ill will about your Master in your mind. And do your devotion at His feet.”
Chooke mat avsar ab paaya,
Badkar in se koyi na milaan.
You have been given this God-given opportunity. So, don't miss on this opportunity. Follow the instructions of your Masters. With a lot of your good deeds, God Almighty has given you the company of the Masters. Swami Ji Maharaj says, “You will not get a higher power than the Master to take you out of this, so don't lose this opportunity. And this opportunity doesn't keep coming again and again.”
It is with great fortune that you have the company of the Masters and you are at the feet of your Master. So, don't lose this God-sent opportunity. If you don't follow the instructions and, in this life itself, you don't have your love and affection at the feet of your Master, and you don't get salvation, then you will have to come again, perhaps, in a human life form and, again, settle the deeds that you have built up for yourself. And, again, do this work, and then, get salvation.
Saints never like to leave their initiate behind. They never leave the soul behind. Once the soul is initiated, They will always take the soul. But, the deeds that the soul has built up, that has to be accounted for. Kal meets the Master and he asks for an account of all of those deeds, which the disciple has done, of that Master. He asks the Master, “Either You settle it Yourself, or You ask that disciple to settle it.”
Therefore, you should follow the instructions of the Masters, and you should keep your life pure. You should keep your body and your mind pure. Because, by keeping your body and mind pure, and following Their instructions, you will get a lot of benefit. And this is done by doing your Bhajan Simran. The more and more Bhajan Simran that you do, it will make your mind and body purer.
Jo ab ke tu guru se chooka,
Tho barmegaa chaaro khaan.
Phir aise guru mile na kabahee,
Maan maan tu abahee maan.
Swami Ji Maharaj says, “If you lose this opportunity, there are many souls that come, listen to Satsang, but then they do not come to the Master.” So, He is addressing such souls and saying that, if you miss that opportunity that your Master has given and God Almighty has given you, then you will go back in the chaurasi. Your protection is being done by your Master. And, if you miss that opportunity, there is no one who is going to be protecting you here.
Even Baba Somanath Ji, he spent nearly twenty-five years doing austerities, and japa, tapas, and pranayamas and all of that. And he had a lot of mystical powers also, as a result. But, he did not have peace. It was only when he got initiated by Sawan Singh Ji Maharaj and he went to Sat Lok-Sach Khand, that he got the peace.
Even Sant Ajaib Singh Ji had initiation of Two Words and he had gone to Brahm also, and he had also got a lot of mystical powers. But, he also did not have peace. It was only when he was initiated by Kirpal Singh Ji Maharaj, that he went to Sach Khand-Sat Lok, and he got peace.
So, all the rishis, munis, with all their tapas and all of the other austerities, at best, they can go up to Brahm. They can get mystical powers. They can get all of those things but, they will be, at best, going to Brahm. But, they will not get salvation and they will not able to get out of this cycle. By doing all the japas, tapas, and doing all of the pranayamas, and such other austerities, all of these people have been able to get very limited success, and they have been able to get mystical powers, but have not been able to get salvation out of this cycle. It is because they have not had the fortune of having a fully-attained Master Who has been able to give them initiation and get them salvation.
Therefore, Swami Ji Maharaj says, “It is with great fortune that you have got a fully-attained Master, a Saint Who is behind you and Who is giving you His Teachings for your salvation.” So, don't miss this opportunity.
When the Master is taking His disciple, the soul, and He's going up in the higher planes, then even gods and goddesses come, and they also plead with the Master to take them also with Him. Then Masters tell them, “If you want to go up, then you have to go back to a human life, and then, you have to do devotion. Then, you can go like this.”
From any of the planes in the middle, the Masters do not take the souls up, because those souls have only progressed because of their austerities, only to that level. So, they cannot take them beyond that. Therefore, Masters say, “This human form, which has been given to us, we are, indeed, fortunate to get this, because even gods and goddesses are wanting to have this form.” So, Swami Ji Maharaj says, “We are indeed fortunate that we have got a living Master. And, therefore, we should follow the Teachings of that Master.”
Pad pad pothee gaa gaa saakhee,
Kyon man mein tu dharatha maan.
Isee maan ne kwaar kiyaa hai,
Yehi maan ab karathaa haan.
Swami Ji Maharaj says, “By reading books, one cannot get salvation.” People feel that, if they read the four Vedas, the six Shastras, or the eighteen Puranas, and the Bhagavad Gita, and they attain that knowledge, then that gives them salvation. But, Swami Ji Maharaj says that that is not possible. By reading like that and gaining that intellectual mileage out of it, you are only building up your ego. And, it is only for getting rid of that ego that we are making all of these endeavors so that we can get rid of it and get salvation. By reading books and doing all of that, one is doing the reverse.
Tha the pyaare kahoo bhujaayi,
Yeh isthiganaa bhali na jaan.
Jaldi karo kapat ko chodo,
Sardhaa bhaav bhadavo aan.
Swami Ji Maharaj says, “Leave your slyness. Be the same as you are portraying yourself within. Don't try to portray yourself differently, whereas, you are different within. And assume humility, and assume love and compassion in your behavior.” So, Swami Ji Maharaj says that you should do that. Shed off this slyness of yours, and assume faith. Get faith in the Master and get devotion. Build your devotion and build your faith, so that you can progress on this Path.
Ithane par man kahaa na maane,
Tho phir apanee tu hi jaan.
Swami Ji Maharaj says, “After explaining so much to all of you, if you are still not following, then you please take care of yourself, because the loss will be yours. There is nothing for the Master to lose.” In Satsangs, They try to explain all of this for your benefit. Now, if you're not following Their Teaching and making it a part of your life, then you are only losing as a result.
Ithane par man kahaa na maane,
Tho phir apanee tu hi jaan.
Sir par tere hukam kaal ka,
Thaa the man teraa nahi maan.
Swami Ji Maharaj says, “After all of this explanation, if you still do not follow, and the Teachings of the Masters are not being inculcated in your life and brought about in your life, then you should understand that this is the Grace of Kal that is working on you. And, you’re working within the realm of Kal, and you're listening to Kal.” You are doing all of this under his influence because the mind is very strong. It gets very strong. And every time you listen to a Satsang and go back, you again go back to your own way, and the mind has you wandering. So, these are all the deceits of Kal.
Sir par tere hukam kaal ka,
Thaa the man teraa nahi maan.
Ek baath jaani ham bhai,
Hai tu badka b-e-maan.
Swami Ji Maharaj says, “After all these Satsangs, if you have not followed the instructions, if you are not doing as has been instructed and taught to you by your Masters, then I understand that you are under your mind, and you are under the influence of Kal, and you are, yourself, a deceitful person. You are saying one thing, and you are not being true to yourself.”
Ek baath jaani ham bhai,
Hai tu badka b-e-maan.
Lagaa rahegaa sang mein guru ke,
Sahaj sahaj saayad man maan.
Swami Ji Maharaj says, “If you are not listening to Satsangs, or if you're listening to Satsangs and not bringing about changes in your life, then you are an unfaithful person. You have no conscience. But, never mind, even in that situation, continue listening to Satsangs because it will, gradually, work on you!”
So, even He gets angry. He says, "If you are unfaithful and you have no conscience, but you're still listening to Satsangs, you’re just continuing to be present, at least listening to the Satsangs then, one day or the other, God Almighty will shower His Grace on you and you will start understanding that, and you will start following it.” So, if you are at it and you continue to listen to Satsangs, then God Almighty knows that He may shower Grace someday on you, that some Teaching of the Master strikes you, and that is able to bring about a transformation. But, if someone doesn't even listen to Satsangs, he doesn't even go there, he doesn't do any Bhajan Simran, then how will he ever transform?
Lagaa rahegaa sang mein guru ke,
Sahaj sahaj saayad man maan.
Radhaswami kahein bhujaayee,
Aise jeev hoy hairaan.
Swami Ji Maharaj says, “If we do not listen to the Teachings of the Master, and we continue to remain under the influence of the mind, we will continue to remain sad in this world because we carry all the anxieties of the world.” And then, illnesses make their house in our body, as a result, because we are so attached to all these material things, and to our attachments and our relationships. And so, we continue to remain sad in that situation.
We see all our family members also, passing away, but even then, it doesn't move us to think that, one day even, we are going to pass away like that. But, we continue to be under the influence of the mind, and we continue to wander around.
Somanath Baba Ji used to talk about these two temporary pangs of separation that we, generally, get influenced by. One is, after eating food, where we feel, “Okay, no more food.” And, the second is when we lead some departed soul to the cemetery, we go and, either bury the body, or we take him to the cemetery and burn the body. At that time, when we are carrying that body to the cemetery, we all get this pang of separation. We all realize that everything is untrue. This world is not true. We have to leave it one day. But then, once we are back from the cemetery, then it's back to normal. After that then, someone goes to drink his sorrow away, or someone goes and has a cup of coffee, to kind of forget all of this. And then, it's all forgotten. We always feel that that person passed away because he had a heart attack, or someone passed away because he had cancer, but nothing of that is going to happen to me!
But, Mahatmas say, “Everyone is on the same road, and everyone's head is being held by Kal. He can pick us up anytime. We never know what time he will pick us up.”
Lagaa rahegaa sang mein guru ke,
Sahaj sahaj saayad man maan.
Radhaswami kahein bhujaayee,
Aise jeev hoy hairaan.
Closing Talk 15 Jan 2017– Morning
This Breath Is Priceless — We Never Know When This Breath Will Stop
THIS FIFTEEN-DAY MEDITATION PROGRAM has now come to an end. All of you have come from far away and you have all spent your precious time here. You’ve left your valuable work at home and you have come here. And you have done meditation and you have strengthened my arms in that, and I pray to Baba Ji that He showers His Grace on you.
The same way that you have been meditating here, you should, when you go back home, you should listen to Satsang. Of any Master is okay. You can listen to the Satsang of any Master. So, listen to Satsangs. And, every day, spend time doing your Bhajan Simran. So, it is very important that we do our Bhajan Simran. With each breath, we have been given this very valuable time, this time that has been given to us. And, with each breath, we should remember our Master and God Almighty. This breath is priceless, and we never know when this breath will stop. So, we have to make the most of this opportunity during this time given to us. If we listen to our Masters and we do our Bhajan Simran every day, and we listen to Satsang every day, then, at the time of our death, our Master will definitely come. And He will come very gladly and He will be happy to take us away.
So, I wish that you go back and do your work. I don't wish that you get away from your personal work. But, you have spent your money and left all of that and come here to do your meditation. So, like that, when you go back, you should carry on and continue doing your meditation.
Now, when you are here for these fifteen days, maybe someone would have felt hurt for something, some seva that a sevadar has done, or not done, or for something said by him. So, on his behalf, or on their behalf, I beg forgiveness from all of you.
You should carry this love and affection back home, and then, with the same love and affection, you should do your Bhajan at home.
Radhaswami