All World
Gayatri Pariwar

Deeksha gave direction

The light of the stars had begun to fade in the east. The darkness had begun to lift slowly and the birds had woken up and started their chirping. Shriram began to spread his mat in the Pooja room. Sitting on it, he started his Sandhyavandan by chanting ‘Apavitraha

pavitro vaa | sarvavastham  gatoapivaa…’.

Mahamana Madan Mohan Malaviyaji had taught him the rituals of Sandhyavandan during Mantra deeksha. He had also said that sandhyavandan had to be done twice a day. The time, place and rituals were explained then and the words of Malaviyaji had become ingrained in Shriram’s memory. With the passage of time, this routine became a natural part of life. Amongst the places considered best in scriptures for doing sandhyavandan are holy places, banks of  rivers, sacred lakes, mountain caves, mountain tops, solitary gardens, temples and one’s own house. Shriram used to do sandhyavandan in a temple situated on the outskirts of the village. After his father’s demise, he began to do it at home. One room of the sprawling house was set apart for this purpose. The door of the room opened to the east. There was a small Tulsi plant outside. He would sit facing east for the worship. For Arghya (offering of water to the Sun), he would go to the Tulsi plant, bow to the Sun and offer water in such a way that it would fall only in the bed of the plant.
When he used to do sandhyavandan in the temple, there was no need to go out for offering arghya. Now that he had started worshipping at home, at the behest of his mother, he had to go out of the room to offer the arghya. The time of worship was chosen with the same care as was given to the place of worship. He always tried to adhere to that time. In the morning, it would start just before sunrise and in the evening, it was just before sunset.

Shriram would get up at four in the morning. It took him an hour to complete the daily chores. He drew water from the well in the house. There would be light from a lantern, so it was not difficult. Most people in the house would wake up by then, yet Shriram would take care that he did not create any noise with his activities that would disturb others. No one would even be aware of his activities.
Once the Sandhya began, he would become completely involved in his Japa and meditation. It would take him forty minutes to complete the worship, but even in this short time, he would become completely engrossed. To chant one mala (108 times) of Gayatri Mantra and meditate on the rising golden Sun took about six minutes. With practice, it could be completed in about four minutes. There was a slight possibility of a wrong count in this method of meditating based on duration of the japa. Shriram would do five malas of Japa in the morning and two malas of japa in the evening. He would be so engrossed that there was no chance of a mistake. Overall, the morning and evening worship together took about an hour. The process of Dhyan-Dharana continued even after that.

Historic moments

It was the day of Vasanta Panchami of Vikrama Samvat 1983. According to the English calendar, it was 18th January 1926. Shriram was about fifteen then. He was doing his early morning Sandhya and was completely absorbed in his Japa. He was seated in Sukhasana and only his lips were moving. No sound was being made. Japa was in Upanshu state (where the lips move and the voice chords move but no sound is produced). In the silent japa where even the lips don’t move, the time taken is more and there is also a chance of missing the japa. Hence, Malaviyaji had preferred upanshu japa. To this was added the meditation of the Sun rising in the east. With the eyes closed, the horizon that can be seen in between the eyebrows is the mountain on which the Sun rises. This place between the eyebrows is like two mountains meeting and a new light dawning there.

With the rising Sun, the golden light started spreading in the consciousness of Shriram. He was overwhelmed by this expanse of nature. This light was spreading in the body, mind, soul, intellect, and still deeper planes that exist beyond them. Just as darkness retreats at the onset of dawn, this light was pushing out the weariness in the consciousness and filling a new exhilaration in its place. The freshness of the morning was being felt in every part of the body. This experience was deepening with the meditation of the golden Sun.

It is difficult to say which state of japa and dhyan was prevailing at the moment of which the incident is described in the following lines. As is found in the spiritual texts, this is what is known as the state of Manolaya (dissolution of the mind). In this state, the mind becomes completely still, steady, quiet and vacant. Yogic scriptures have described such a state of mind as ‘Nirvat nishkamp deepshikha’.  The flame of a Deepak (lamp) becomes steady in the absence of wind; in the same way the vacillating mind, in the absence of desires, becomes steady. According to some yogis, this is the state of deep meditation.

The manifestation of an effulgent apparition

Shriram was sitting on his mat and was in a state of Manolaya or Samadhi. He was reaching the last stage of his Jap. When the Jap was completed, he offered the Jap to Savita and was sitting with folded hands. Just then a flash of dazzling light lit up the room. The light was bright but it was cooling. It was as if the light has the brightness of the Sun and the coolness of the Moon.

When the light flashed, it was as if a thousand suns rose together. When the dazzle subsided, a gentle figure appeared. He had long hair, thin but radiant body. The form looked thin and emaciated, but the apparition had effulgence and strength in equal measure. The body was naked and looked as if it was made of steel. There was a bright aura around the body and it also appeared that it was covered with snow at some places. Shriram was delighted to see the figure. His mind felt comforted. The fear that existed a moment before had vanished. Looking at the figure, Shriram’s mind was filled with joy. He ardently wished to get up and bow to the figure. The ritual of pradakshina in the sandhya was pending. The Divine figure read the thoughts of Shriram and indicated to him to remain seated. Shriram looked at the figure intently as if Savita had appeared in the form of a Divine Rishi.

The figure came closer. It did not appear that the figure moved forward; instead it appeared that the distance between the two had reduced. The figure came so close that Shriram could stretch his hand and touch the figure’s feet. Shriram’s head bowed on its own at the feet of the Divine figure and the latter, in turn, placed his hand on Shriram’s head as a sign of blessing. The touch set off indescribable vibrations in the entire body. The seers have tried in vain to explain this kind of experience in thousand ways and have ultimately given up. The Upanishads have explained it saying – “Those that hear (ears) cannot speak and those that speak (mouth) cannot hear”. Kabir sang it as “Goonge keri sarkaraa….” (Like the dumb, one can taste it, but cannot explain the taste.)

The time appeared to have come to a stop

The touch opened up a whole new world in front of Shriram. In that world, there was no need of speech; time had come to a standstill and the space had no boundaries. In that experience, transcending time and space, the guiding angelic power took him on a tour of his previous lives. This tour was accomplished not by dipping into memory, but by entering the world of pure consciousness. As he entered that world, Shriram experienced as if he was in Varanasi. It is difficult to call that feeling as an experience. He was in Varanasi in a form that was completely different from the Shriram sitting in the room. He found himself in a strange form, but the world was not new. Being strange, it still had an air of naturalness to the point that Shriram was feeling that he was the lead actor in the drama that was unfolding.

In one scene, he saw Swami Ramanand going to Kashi Ghat for his bath. There was someone lying on the steps hoping to get Deeksha from Swamiji. He had tried to get initiated into Deeksha earlier, but the disciples had sent him back saying that the lower castes did not deserve a Deeksha of Ram-nam from an enlightened Guru. If they wished they could chant on their own. That ‘someone’ was Saint Kabir. Shriram was seeing all this unfolding as he was sitting in the room. He saw himself lying on the steps. Swami Ramanand came to the Kashighat at dawn for his bath. Kabir had rolled himself up in such a way that he was not visible. Swamiji right foot touched Kabir and he realized that he had stepped on someone. With this realization, he exclaimed ‘Ram, Ram’. Kabir immediately got up and holding onto Swamiji’s legs, said “I have been blessed today Lord. I have received Gurumantra”.
After this incident, Swami Ramanand formally initiated Kabir and accepted him as a disciple. The scholars, priests and others opposed this vehemently. Swamiji was called a betrayer of Dharma. This did not have any impact on him.

Kabir earned his livelihood by weaving cloth. Once sufficient cloth was woven, Kabir himself went to sell it. He would not set any price. He took whatever price was given for the cloth and would come back. Yet he never suffered losses. While leading a life of a house-holder, he preached to those who came to him in search of knowledge. Shriram saw an incident where about 10 people were gathered around Kabir. The subject of discussion was not limited to just spirituality, but extended to home, family, society and other day to day events. In one such satsang, someone asked Kabir – “You lead a very happy family life. What is the secret?” Kabir sat silent for a moment and then called out his wife Loi and said, “Loi, it is getting dark here. Please get a lamp.” The onlookers were surprised. It was mid-day. The sun was blazing bright in the sky. Even the place where they were seated was well-lit. They were even more surprised when Loi got a lighted lamp and placed it on a small stool near Kabir and went back. Kabir explained – “When there is such trust between the two partners, the family lives happily. Loi also knew that there was no need for the lamp. But without raising a question, she followed my request silently.”

The family had a limited income and there was a constant stream of visitors. The guests were always treated well. They lived in poverty. Kabir’s son Kamaal grew up. He was fully aware of the poverty in the house. He focused on business and agriculture. Kabir insisted on purity and honest means of earning in that field also. He initiated his son into practical spirituality and was given noble Sanskaras.