Guru,Garlic and Grihashuddhi

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Dear Members,

I received an email from one member who has posed these two questions, let me answer it for everyone's benefit.

1. I don't have any Guru. Can i take Baba as my Guru and do the Chanting of the mantra.

 

It is the Guru who takes His disciples when they are ready! You can ofcourse, worship Shirdi Sai Baba and He will offer his guidance and guide you to your Moksha Guru or will Himself present before you as your Moksha Guru. You can ofcourse chant His mantra too.His mantra of "Om Sai Sree Sai Jaya Jaya Sai" is very powerful as it was ordained by Him to be the Taraka Mantra to invoke His grace soon.

His other mantras include a plethora of Sai Gayathri mantras,Om sai Ram/krishna,Om sai, Om sainathaaya Namaha,etc.

3. I want to read Guru Charitra. Some person mentioned in one of the sites in internet when we are reading Guru Charitra we should not eat non-veg including egg. Any way we are not eating Non-Veg. But he also mentioned that one should not eat Onion & Garlic also while doing Parayan. Is it so?

 

Onions and garlic induce passion and heat below the navel and this might create some sexual and erotic feelings for the person doing the parayana and create a "bhanga"(break in concentration or worse still even the parayana). Soall these niyamas are given to protect the devotee from such obstacles.

Focusing on reading Gurucharitra without bothering or making much ado about such rules will be beneficial as it is like "majoring on minors". The goal is to read, experience the bliss,dive deep into the glory of Gurutwam, abosorb the essence, mull over the advices and morals and shed tears of Ananda and mudita. Let not onions and garlics spoilt this!

Just think thus hypothetically(Excuse my commonplace example, I give such examples to make people understand):

A lovelorn Romeo boy is approached by a beautiful girl whom he proposes. the girl says to him "I will marry you if you stop from eating onions and garlics for a month" What will the boy do?

Will he say?-"Hell no! Iam gonna stick eating onions and garlics and marry the uglybum next door"

No he will not say thus. He will go overboard to prove his love for that girl and maybe say "I will give up onions and garlics for my life"(whether he sticks to that promise even after 7 years of his marriage is to be seen as human love is fragile)

Divine love for Sri Guru will mean something more than this Romeo's love for his Juliet!Dont you think so?-For a few days of abstinence from onions and garlics (and sex) will not the rewards be great?.

We do some good rarely even in this we are besot with such doubts and fears. This is verily Ghorakaliyuga!

(P.S. Let me tell you here that Iam not against eating garlics or onions, they both are great ayurvedic herbs)

3. We cannot read Sai Charitra in Periods? i am not reading but some of my friends are reading and going to Baba temples also. When i asked they told me, Baba told that, he is a Fakir so we can do the puja even in periods & i don't know how to say (before 11th day when the person dies-AUNTU OR MAILA we will tell in TELUGU). I hope you understood what i am asking?

 

Yes, very good question and hence Im taking this to the main forum and answering.

 

Sai Baba is not a simple Fakir whom you see on the roads carrying a small charcoal bowl and pouring sambrani in it and smoking the shopfloors for 25 paise(now these "fakirs" have started demanding 10 rupees minimum).

 

Sai Baba is not even an Auliya as one American lady put it. I hold a special relationship with Baba, thus I know something here.

Saibaba was and is a pir-o-murhseeda(the equivalent of an Avatara Purusha of the Hindus). His powers and influence is beyond imagination. He controls the 14 planes of animate and inanimate existence.

"Whether you are before me or at far off place, whatever you do and think will be known to me." He used to tell the devotees who visited him, their past, present and future. This is called Ruthambara Prajna in Yoga Shastra. This is found in saints in a limited capacity. But Baba's power was limitless, covering the entire world and beyond imagination.

Though he was brought up by a Muslim, His Gurudeva(for the world) was Venkusa and He was brought up in the strict Hindu tradition too. Ofcourse, the barriers of strictness,tradition and confirmity do not bar an Avatara Purusha.

But this does not mean, the disciples are not bound by rules and can lead a libertine life imitating Him.

Let me give you an example here:(This story was also posted by my dear Friend Harsha in his forum)

Once Murthybhedananda Guru was going on His Sanchara in the Konaseema area and his disciples were following him. On the way, the esteemed Guru came across a pot of fresh country liquor. The Guru immediately lifted the pot and drank the liquor. The disciples, without waiting for any instruction from their Guru, imitated their Guru by drinking liquor. The Guru observed His disciples and said nothing.

A little later, he came across a pot of hot molten lead(Skandalam). The Guru immediately lifted the pot and drank the boiling liquid.

He then looked at his disciples mockingly and smiled at them.What could the poor disciples do? They just watched him and fell on His feet!!

The important point to note here is that the disciples should always do what the Guru `says' and not what the Guru `does'.

If one arrogates oneself and assumes to be equal to a great Avadhuta like Sri Dattatreya or an Avadhutha Yogi Samraat like Shirdi Sai Baba and tries to imitate them rather than following their instructions as detailed in Dattatreya Samhita, Guru Charitra, Sai Sat charitra, Sai Bodhini(an old marathi text published by Dasganuji) and other Sai litreature.

Guror Paadam Sparshaayennithyam Na thu Masthakam!

--Touch the Guru's feet daily not his head!!

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Baba has never said anyone to do puja when they are unclean, if they have read some modern book by an "enlightened sai guru" , then I cannot really help pity them.Many learned people used to come to Baba and discuss with him the Shastra. (Hindu religious discipline). One Nanasahib Chandorkar was Collector of the district and was expert in Sanskrit language as well as Hindu scriptures. He had lot of miraculous experiences of Baba. He used to adore Baba. Baba was authority on the Hindu religious sciences. Baba would explain Bhagwat Geeta to Nanasahib Chandorkar and many others. He used to explain Quoran to Muslims. Baba's teaching were of the Sarvatmakata siddhantham(everybody is a part of the God), service and the ethics.

Baba used to encourage people to not break their traditions and worship Him in their loving fashion, he finally even agreed to be smeared with Chandan and adorned with Kumkuma and flowers much against the sufi tradition. If Baba was considered a great Hindu Yogi, He was a perfect Sufi, if a perfect sufi He was the greatest Satchidanda Yogi.

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Many read the eleven sayings of Baba as His teachings! Those were just His assurances.

His 10 teachings come in the chapter Brahmagnaana in the sai sat charita.

Below is the story:

A very rich man Gulzar was residing near Malegaon. On hearing about the powers and leelas of Sai Baba, he decided to go to Shrdi to get Brahma Jnana from Baba. He engaged a tonga for the journey. After reaching Shirdi, he approached Baba, and asked him to teach him Brahma Jnana without delay, as he had engaged a tonga for the journey. Baba told him, "Friend, do not get worried. I will show you Brahman just now. All my transactions are for cash only and no account. All who come to me are with selfish desires. Very few ask for Brahma Jnana like you." So saying, Baba diverted the topic. He called for a boy and asked him to get five rupees as loan from Nandu Marwadi. The boy returned after sometime stating that the house was locked. Baba sent him to some other house, with the same result. He sent him to two more places, but without success. Then Baba looked at Gulzar who had come for Brahma Jnana and said, "There are fifty currency notes of five rupees denomination in your pocket. Attaining Brahma Jnana urgently is not materialistic. I have been sending the boy to get a loan of five rupees, with the intention that you should observe. You did not volunteer to give that five rupees to me, that too as a loan,even though you have a lot of money. Such a miser cannot understand Brahma Jnana. You were in a hurry because, if there was delay the tongawala would charge you more."

Baba then added, Oh friend! Brahma Jnana means realisation of Self (Atma). There is no difference between Atma and God. If you want to realise Atma in your body, then you have to surrender to God the following five things: (1) five pranas (2) five senses (3) mind (4) intellect and (5) ego. All these are inside a person. It is easy to surrender the enternal things. But to surrender those which are inside a person is very difficult. It is like walking on the edge of a sharp knife. Those who cannot surrender even the external things are deemed to be fully under delusion. Such persons cannot understand the five inside matters.

A person who wants Self-realisation or Atma Jnana, should be careful in the following matters:

1. A strong desire should be there for moksha or freedom from worldly matters.

2. One should have detachment from all things of this world and also desires about the other world ( paraloka ).

3. All the senses of a man are accustomed to seeing external things only. One should make these senses see the self or Atma.

4. When he cannot divert his mind from bad and undesirable things and not be able to control his mind, he cannot get Atma-Sakshatkara even if he gets Jnana.

5. One should always speak the truth under all circumstances and remain a bachelor.

6. Man should choose only that which will do him good and not that which gives him pleasure. Worldly matters give pleasure. Spiritual matters do him good. Instead of going for temporary or momentary pleasures, one should prefer spiritual matters only, which do good to him.

7. Man should have under control, the mind and sensory organs. If he goes for pleasures, the senses also will keep the mind occupied with these matters and there will not be any room for spiritual matters.

8. He must keep his mind pure. He should do his duties in a proper and satisfactory way, without expecting reward for his actions. Then the mind will be pure. Knowledge comes out from a purified mind and increases detachment, leading to self-realisation. Unless greed, delusions and desires are removed, man cannot get Jnana.

9. If all the above-mentioned thing are practised rigorously he will achieve results. After this stage, the need for a `Guru' arises. A Guru should be one who has attained Atma-Jnana, otherwise no useful purpose will be served.

10. The first eight are one's own efforts. To this, if the help of a Sadguru is also there, then God's blessings will also be there. Knowledge of the Vedas, or riches or great intelligence will not get us Atma-Jnana."

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Now your query talks of Shuddi and whether during the puruti or dahana maila(delivery or death period of uncleanness) or during the periods, one can worship Sai Baba?

First, The point innuendo here is that Worship is something which is internal--True very true! But how many people can really go deep and pure and do it?.

If one has risen to the level of Bhaktha Meera and can remain eternally pure,vimala,achala and with athyantha bhakthi for Shirdi sai baba then one can do.(But Meera will never do such worship for even Her favourite lord krishna as She would not want the slightest disrespect for Her Lord from Her side, it simply is not possible)

Second, The ladies do such things because only because they are either lazy, or impatient or want to prove a point they are liberated(liberation does not come from such gimmicks).

Third, the etherical-spiritual implications of ashuddhi are not known to such "modern ladies". What happens to the sookshma shareera during periods?Will it emnate a fragrance? Just a clean bath using dettol or other antiseptic liquid cannot clean the inner-etheric body. Have these ladies risen above such boundaries of different koshas in the body--then they dont need to worship anyone... they have become Pragnaanayoginis and worship has to be done for them!

Fourth, opposing shastras for the sake of opposing, for the sake of modernity and scientific arguments is self defeating and frustrating to say the least when many things are not corrcetly understood and emotions play a great role in such perceptive thinking.

Rest, i leave it to those ladies and Baba to decide the right course.

Baba's marga is not an easy marga, though it looks initially like a path of roses , He throws thorns Himself to test. Caveat! Caveat!

Then a day will come when you will remember the thorns, the roses and my message in this forum.

 

Yours yogically,

Shreeram Balijepalli