BABA IS CONTROLLER OF ALL
Professor Narke gives an excellent analysis of the four margas, namely, Yoga, Karma, Jnana and Bhakti, and points out how yoga and karma margas were not those prescribed by Baba, nor even the Jnana marga, that is, if it is taken as consisting in an intellectual effort to understand the Upanishads and Brahma Sutras or a study of the Self. That was not Baba’s method or aim.
Baba renounced all attachments after being a master of everything that this world and other worlds have to offer, by reason of his wonderful siddhis and power. Therefore, his vairagya was real vairagya and Baba’s continued and perpetual activity to serve the public was Nishkamya karma. But, as for the margas, the professor points out that bhakti marga was the main plank of Baba as of other saints.
Now what are its features, and what is its goal? First, Guru bhakti, and next serving and loving the Guru and God are its chief features. Baba stressed the importance of devotion to one’s Guru and treating him as God in, through, and as, the Guru, and identifying the Guru with god, that forms Baba'’ bhakti marga. The professor's analysis is fairly right, though he was not very successful in following Baba as God for his own purpose. Intellectualism is admirable in certain respects, but, for the purpose of actual life, the habit of viewing everything from the intellectual stand-point weakens one’s power to adopt Baba’s method of identifying the Guru with god and plunging boldly with full faith in every world of his into the course that Baba may point out. What Dixit and others with greater faith could do was not possible for a highly trained intellectual. The professor notes that Baba, whom everybody considered to be a Mohammedan had such great reverence for Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, as the professor himself was not able to feel or exhibit. But the professor was an orthodox Hindu in many respects of the intellectual type. He was studying Yoga Vasishta, a highly philosophical work, which many find very difficult, if not possible, to understand. About his study of Yoga Vasishta, Baba had sometime to say, There are portions even in Yoga Vasishta which would enable once to get into intimate contact with God and be absorbed in him. When the professor was reading a passage apparently of the above sort, Baba told him to give him Rs. 15 dakshina. The professor pleaded his impecuniosity saying, ‘Baba, you know I have no money. Why do you ask me for Rs. 15 dakshina?’ Baba said, ‘Yes, I know it. But you are reading an excellent book now. Get me Rs. 15 dakshina from that’. The professor knew that he should study that special portion of Yoga Vasishta which refers to 15 elements of which one’s personality is made up, and present them to Baba in his own heart, as his Antaryami. That is, he should get laya in Baba. But this was only an intellectual perception. The professor was sufficiently orthodox to carry on, (or to get carried on) the usual worship of sacred images of Avatars at his own house. But this does not lead one very far in achieving the goal of laya.
Baba gave this professor sufficient opportunities to get a proper appreciation of himself. In 1916, when plague was rife at Shirdi, the usual prasada or naivedya of halwa had not been brought to the Dwarakamayee. The Baba asked Narke to go and get the sweetmeat from the Halwayi’s shop. So, Narke went and told the wife of the sweetmeat merchant of Baba’s order. She then pointed to the corpse of her husband, who had died of plague, and that Narke might take the sweetmeat from the almirah. He took it, but he was trembling all the time, for fear he might catch the infection and others eating it might catch the infection if that was given as prasad. But as he approached Baba, Baba said, ‘You think you will live if you are away from Shirdi. That is not so. Whosoever is destined to be struck, will be struck. Whosoever is to die will die. Whosoever is to be caressed will be caressed’. The halwa was given as Baba’s prasad, and no one caught plague.
So, Narke realised the wonderful knowledge Baba had over sources of danger, and the way he controlled danger from plague, and guided people aright, a knowledge which ordinary human beings did not posses. Baba was obviously superhuman, that is, Divine. Baba knew where cholera was at Shirdi and how it could be controlled. He had lepers about him who massaged his legs. He could evidently keep off and control leprosy infection. Udhi was usually put into the mouth of sick people, and the leper by the side of Baba sometimes took the udhi from the fire and distributed it, and all accepted it from the hands of the leper. Yet no harm resulted. So, Narke had ample opportunities to see and learn about Baba’s divine knowledge and divine control. But he never attained even a fraction of that intense faith and self-forgetfulness and that intense love which characterised the Ankita children of Baba like H.S. Dixit, Purandhare, and others.
Written by: HH Pujyasri B. V. Narasimha Swamiji
Professor Narke gives an excellent analysis of the four margas, namely, Yoga, Karma, Jnana and Bhakti, and points out how yoga and karma margas were not those prescribed by Baba, nor even the Jnana marga, that is, if it is taken as consisting in an intellectual effort to understand the Upanishads and Brahma Sutras or a study of the Self. That was not Baba’s method or aim.
Baba renounced all attachments after being a master of everything that this world and other worlds have to offer, by reason of his wonderful siddhis and power. Therefore, his vairagya was real vairagya and Baba’s continued and perpetual activity to serve the public was Nishkamya karma. But, as for the margas, the professor points out that bhakti marga was the main plank of Baba as of other saints.
Now what are its features, and what is its goal? First, Guru bhakti, and next serving and loving the Guru and God are its chief features. Baba stressed the importance of devotion to one’s Guru and treating him as God in, through, and as, the Guru, and identifying the Guru with god, that forms Baba'’ bhakti marga. The professor's analysis is fairly right, though he was not very successful in following Baba as God for his own purpose. Intellectualism is admirable in certain respects, but, for the purpose of actual life, the habit of viewing everything from the intellectual stand-point weakens one’s power to adopt Baba’s method of identifying the Guru with god and plunging boldly with full faith in every world of his into the course that Baba may point out. What Dixit and others with greater faith could do was not possible for a highly trained intellectual. The professor notes that Baba, whom everybody considered to be a Mohammedan had such great reverence for Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, as the professor himself was not able to feel or exhibit. But the professor was an orthodox Hindu in many respects of the intellectual type. He was studying Yoga Vasishta, a highly philosophical work, which many find very difficult, if not possible, to understand. About his study of Yoga Vasishta, Baba had sometime to say, There are portions even in Yoga Vasishta which would enable once to get into intimate contact with God and be absorbed in him. When the professor was reading a passage apparently of the above sort, Baba told him to give him Rs. 15 dakshina. The professor pleaded his impecuniosity saying, ‘Baba, you know I have no money. Why do you ask me for Rs. 15 dakshina?’ Baba said, ‘Yes, I know it. But you are reading an excellent book now. Get me Rs. 15 dakshina from that’. The professor knew that he should study that special portion of Yoga Vasishta which refers to 15 elements of which one’s personality is made up, and present them to Baba in his own heart, as his Antaryami. That is, he should get laya in Baba. But this was only an intellectual perception. The professor was sufficiently orthodox to carry on, (or to get carried on) the usual worship of sacred images of Avatars at his own house. But this does not lead one very far in achieving the goal of laya.
Baba gave this professor sufficient opportunities to get a proper appreciation of himself. In 1916, when plague was rife at Shirdi, the usual prasada or naivedya of halwa had not been brought to the Dwarakamayee. The Baba asked Narke to go and get the sweetmeat from the Halwayi’s shop. So, Narke went and told the wife of the sweetmeat merchant of Baba’s order. She then pointed to the corpse of her husband, who had died of plague, and that Narke might take the sweetmeat from the almirah. He took it, but he was trembling all the time, for fear he might catch the infection and others eating it might catch the infection if that was given as prasad. But as he approached Baba, Baba said, ‘You think you will live if you are away from Shirdi. That is not so. Whosoever is destined to be struck, will be struck. Whosoever is to die will die. Whosoever is to be caressed will be caressed’. The halwa was given as Baba’s prasad, and no one caught plague.
So, Narke realised the wonderful knowledge Baba had over sources of danger, and the way he controlled danger from plague, and guided people aright, a knowledge which ordinary human beings did not posses. Baba was obviously superhuman, that is, Divine. Baba knew where cholera was at Shirdi and how it could be controlled. He had lepers about him who massaged his legs. He could evidently keep off and control leprosy infection. Udhi was usually put into the mouth of sick people, and the leper by the side of Baba sometimes took the udhi from the fire and distributed it, and all accepted it from the hands of the leper. Yet no harm resulted. So, Narke had ample opportunities to see and learn about Baba’s divine knowledge and divine control. But he never attained even a fraction of that intense faith and self-forgetfulness and that intense love which characterised the Ankita children of Baba like H.S. Dixit, Purandhare, and others.
Written by: HH Pujyasri B. V. Narasimha Swamiji
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