Birthday of UG – Talk with GG - 6

 I further continued: “Today being UG’s birthday, I would like to know what you understood about UG”.

Venkat: “After Jillellamudi Amma passed away, a few of her followers joined UG. Nellore doctor and his son were among them”.

Me: “Oh really! It is but normal. Ordinary people only require emotional support but not the truth. Those in quest of truth do not change their Gurus in this way. Keeping it aside, what did UG say about Amma?”

Venkat: “I do not know. May be Mr. Chandrasekhar is aware of it.”

Me: “I spoke with him in the past. Do you know him?”

Venkat: “Yes. I also spoke with him. He conducts video meetings. I attended a few of those. I noticed something strange. After a great soul passes away, their disciples shift to other gurus. Bharadwaja left Jillellamudi after Amma’s passing away. Many of her disciples moved to Arunachalam. A few resorted to UG. After Ramana Maharshi passed away, his disciples too moved away from the place.”

Me: “But Chalam remained there.”

Venkat: “Chalam and Sowris were a lot attracted to UG. They often quoted that when UG walked, he looked like Lord Shiva himself.”

Me: “If yes, why did they not follow UG? Sowris also paved her own way and moved forward but did not follow UG. Chandrasekhar also mentioned that UG whenever he visited India, would travel to Arunachalam from Bangalore just to see Chalam”.

Venkat: “Talaiyar Khan was a devotee of Ramana Maharshi. She built an ashram right next to the mountain in Arunachalam. The mountain was visible from her terrace. She offered the ashram to UG begging him to settle in the place.

UG said he’d convert the place into a prostitution centre within a day. Talaiyar Khan was astonished at the words. UG did not accept the ashram. Khan passed away at the very place. Her grave is still there.”

I asked: “Why did UG say that?”

Venkat: “I do not know. He sometimes used such impolite language.”

Me: “Didn’t UG criticize all Gurus?”

Venkat: “Yes he did. He used the meanest of curses. Not only that – many nadi astrologers approached him to research on his previous births.”

Me: “I had heard about it. What did they infer?”

Venkat: “In one of his previous births, UG was a disciple of Sri Ramanujacharya and one among current UG-followers was a Saiva then. During the clashes between Vaishnavas and Shaivas in the olden days, this duo of friends sorted out the issues and set up peace. Nadi astrology predicted that this was the reason they both met in this life as well. Goddess Bhuvaneshwari mostly said these words about UG in the Nadi: “He is my child. His mind is very lofty. “

Me: “Looks good.”

Venkat: “There used to be a woman named Syamala, who was a follower of UG. She passed away before UG in an accident. UG would always ask ‘Why did Syamala die like that?’. Even before his death, he posed the same question many times.”

Me: “Really? UG remained in US while his wife was returning to India. Even when she was facing psychological issues and passed away, he stayed back in Europe. He did not regret those actions. Why would such a person react so intensely when one among his followers passed away? Of course, he doesn’t like the term ‘followers’ but we can use it for better understanding.”

Venkat: “I do not know. But he regretted sleeping with a Jewish woman once during his stay in Europe. Maybe he disconnected with his wife as a remorse.”

I laughed and said “Why? There is no relation between the two incidents. Why did he have to disconnect with his wife for having a one night stand with a Jewish woman? Isn’t it wrong? If this practice was to be followed, majority of men on Earth would have to separate from their wives. And many women may have to separate from their spouses as well. “

Venkat: “I do not know the explanation.”

Me: “It means there were a few topics beyond his understanding as well. Can this be inferred from the points you mentioned?”

Venkat: “Maybe. Before his death, a Goddess in white appeared and offered him: ‘Do you want me to extend your life-span? Do you want to live longer? If you want me to, I can increase your days’. UG replied with a firm: ‘No. I do not wish to stay any longer’. “

Me: “I have never heard of this. If UG was dead after this, how did the world know about this incident? Who was the third person who was present at that time? Who let it out to the world?”

Venkat: “UG did not die immediately after that. This happened a few days before his actual demise. He let the word out.”

Me: “As per my knowledge, he slipped while trying to pick up a bucket in the bathroom, fell down and fractured his leg. It was the second time this happened. He stopped eating after this incident and invited death willingly. He passed away a week or two later. Did the Goddess appear during this time-period?”

Venkat: “I am not sure. But many miracles happened in his presence. UG cured a few cancer cases as well. He would place his hand on the head of the person suffering from cancer for about half an hour. The person would be cured of cancer. But he did not do this to everybody.”

Me: “Why?”

Venkat: “I do not know.”

Me: “He died in Italy, right?”

Venkat: “Yes”

Me: “Mahesh Bhatt was present during his time of death. He even performed UG’s final rituals.”

My daughter, who was listening to the discussion, mentioned, “Pooja Bhatt posted UG’s photo yesterday with a message – ‘The father my father never had’. “

Me: “Yes. Their family has immense devotion towards UG.”

Venkat: “Mahesh Bhatt was a stout devotee of UG. Even UG mingled very casually with him. Spirits appeared to UG wherever he was. Even snakes surrounded him. Once, UG was very angry about some issue. It is said that Jiddu Krishnamurthy travelled to him in astral form and told him ‘Cool down Old man’. This angered UG further and he went on abusing Jiddu through the day.”

Me: “Jillellamudi Amma also said ‘Get him to me for once’. Mr. Chandrasekhar and Sri Pada tried their best to get UG to Jillellamudi but it never happened.”

Venkat: “When somebody complained to Amma that Jiddu was cursing all Gurus, she replied ‘Uppu (Salt) would come to take over Jiddu (Oil)’. UG’s surname was Uppuluru! A few years later, UG started cursing Jiddu.”

I remained silent and thought “Uppu took Jiddu to task and got rid of him. Now who should take over to get rid of Uppu?”

Venkat continued: “UG described the calamity he underwent as ‘a-casual’. He even said that it could happen to anybody. A person by name Karl Renz also underwent similar calamity. His body used to glow in darkness and sacred ash dropped from his body. This happened to UG as well. He explained the phenomenon as, ‘A thought originating in my mind dies instantaneously. The remains of the thought drop from my body as ash’.”

Me: “Yes. It is true. But does the person called Karl Renz still exist?”

Venkat replied: “Yes. Half of the year he resides in Arunachalam. He spends rest of the year in other countries. While residing in Arunachalam, he sends an open invitation for everyone to attend free of cost. Outside the place, he charges for the discourses. You can find his preaching videos on Youtube as well.”

Me: “Why does he need to charge for a discourse? Anyway, it’s his choice and none of our business'.

I gifted him my books – ‘The secret of Srividya’ and ‘The hidden meanings of Lalita Sahasranama’ and asked him to go through them thoroughly. I encouraged him to come back if he had any questions and bade him good-bye.

(Completed)

Birthday of UG – Talk with GG - 5

 

It was nearing lunch time and we invited him to join us for lunch. We continued our conversation after food.

Venkat re-started. “I have another doubt”.

I said, “Proceed”.

Venkat: “Why does Sri Vidya upasana have various deities like Bala, Lalita, Tripura, Bhagala, etc? Sri Vidya has mantras in ascending order of progress. Why do we need so many? Isn’t one deity capable of giving us siddhi?”

Me: “What made you question this?”

Venkat: “I have a friend who is a dancer and also a follower of Srividya. He mentioned about following ‘Bala’ sometimes and ‘Lalita’ at other times. Why so?”

Me: “Did you not pose the same question to him?”

Venkat: “I did. He explained that deities have their own emotions to express. Dance is about expressing various emotions. To forge each emotion, he resorts to various deities and their upasanas. He even claims that the respective deity communicates with him.”

Me: “How does the deity communicate? Is she physically visible to him?”

Venkat: “No. Once in a while, he hears instructions from her about what to do and what not to do.”

I laughed and continued: “It must be his hallucination. They are whispers from his own mind. If the deity really wants to communicate to him, his mind should be very clear and pious. And if he were that pious, he wouldn’t resort to Sri Vidya upasana for dance. Majority of the population hallucinate about such things. They are not true manifestations.”

I further continued: “This is not true Sri Vidya. This is a major drawback while dealing with sadhakas and Gurus. What is the actual need for upasana? It might be a worldly desire or it might be moksha. Doing upasana for worldly desires is mean. As Sri Ramakrishna says, ‘it is akin to choosing brinjals when the king is ready to give a boon’. Upasana for moksha is supreme. But we rarely find such people. Everyone is ‘kshudra’ (mean). They pray expecting some physical boon in return. ‘Kshudra’ does not mean black magic. A prayer done for worldly things is considered to be a ‘kshudra puja’. Only the prayer for moksha counts as pure worship. Let us not bother about others.

There are scores of people in Sri Vidya who resort to upasanas of various deities for wordly causes. These are the people who hallucinate as mentioned above. Any deity is capable of giving both – worldly at the least to moksha at the best. For example, many consider ‘Bala’ as the deity to be worshipped in the initial days of Sri Vidya. They assume it is like a child’s play. But there are many who attained salvation through Bala. They consider Bala upasana as supreme and capable of fulfilling every desire. It is true. If you make sincere effort, only one deity should be sufficient. She will manifest everything.

As long as you think in terms of giving-and-receiving and profit-and-loss, your sadhana is still at a very preliminary level and in the wrong direction. It is not about the Goddess giving you boons and you receiving them. You should lose your sense of self in the process. By experience, you should realize that you are no different from her and merge with her completely. In fact, all these physical forms of deities are not different from each other. They are manifestations of one divine energy. The same energy resides in you as well. This cannot be expressed by mere words. One should feel it through experience.

‘Bala’ can be fierce. ‘Kali’ can be peaceful. It all depends on your perspective. Bala transforms into Kali. She is capable of interchanging her appearance. That which controls creation (srushti), maintenance (sthiti) and resolution (laya) is capable of doing everything.

For example, consider the analogy of sunlight entering our home through a small window. Consider this to be Bala. We can get the same sunlight through a door as well. Consider it to be Lalita. The same sunlight enters home through a tainted glass as well. Consider it to be Kali. It is the same light that is entering through various intensities and brightness. But your perception about them varies. Whether you use it to fulfil your wishes or use one of the exits to merge into the limitless sunlight outside decides your fate. The same sunlight has been referred to as Brahma or Vishnu or Siva. Your job is to merge with the light. But if you choose to stay inside the house and use the sunlight for petty things, you are wasting your efforts. You should try to get out of the house and become one with the divine light. Any kind of opening can lead you to the destination irrespective of its dimensions. You should take help of it and step into brightness. Irrespective of which deity you start with, you should use it as a window to merge in the infinite consciousness. From this point of view, any deity is the same. There is no grading in deities.

Jillellamudi Amma always insisted – ‘If you know what a ‘mantra’ means, you will see tht all the mantras in the world are equal’. There were many who criticized her words in those days.

Only petty-minded people distinguish between mantras and deities. They fight over grading deities and make tall claims about ‘their God’ being better. They are the ignorant who do not know the entire truth.

Sri Vidya has various stages and various mantras. It is true. But what does it mean to step from one stage to another? What does it mean to follow a certain mantra? It means to manifest their energies within you. I know a few Sri Vidya upasakas who are Gurus. They upgrade various mantras periodically and ask the disciples to recite. They even charge for it. Yantras are up for sale. Every time a mantra is upgraded, it is charged. It is a business of sorts. It is but a grave mistake. Should one really stoop so low for money?

The disciples are no less. They intend to grab everything from the Guru as soon as possible and start their own business. They follow the same procedure of selling the mantras at a price and claim to be Gurus, deceiving people along the way.

Is this true Sri Vidya?

To attain siddhi in any of the Sri Vidya mantras, one has to persevere for a very long time. It does not end with it. To prove that the mantra has manifested to you, you would undergo certain experiences. There would be changes happening internally. Your personality would change. You would change overall as a person. Without this process, if you think that a six-month japa of the mantra is adequate to yield results, you are grossly wrong.

I had the same doubt as a kid: ‘Why does Sri Vidya need so many deities? Isn’t one sufficient?’. I even enquired a few Gurus. Few brushed away saying the question was inappropriate for my age and the answer was beyond my understanding. A few more gave random explanations. But I understood that nobody had the right answer. As days passed, my sadhana gave me the appropriate answers. Mother showed me the way. She taught me everything. She helped me understand everything.

I answered myself: ‘All these energies are part of you. You forge ahead demonstrating each ‘shakti’ within you, understand it and move on to the next phase until you know your true self. This is the actual path of Sri Vidya’. In my knowledge, people who propogate this kind of Sri Vidya do not exist anymore. Everyone is commercial.”

Venkat: “True. Even Kavya Kanta Ganapathi muni emphasized that Bala, Lalita, Tripura and others were dormant ‘shaktis’ in us. I couldn’t follow his Sanskrit thoroughly. But this is as far as I could comprehend.”

Me: “yes. He mentioned the same in ‘Uma Sahasram’. He followed ‘Shuddha upasana’. Veda and Tantra go hand-in-hand in his method, which is the same as I said.  In this path, external upasana moulds itself into internal upasana over time. That means, there is balance between your ‘outside’ and ‘inside’. Ultimately, you would learn through experience that those deities whom you are praying to externally, are the dormant energies inside you. This is the reason my book ‘The secret of Sri Vidya’ has a subtitle named ‘The pure path of Upasana’. Got it?”

Venkat: “Yes. I understood”.

(To be continued…….)

 

 

Birthday of UG – Talk with GG - 4

I continued – “You may go ahead with your questions”.

Venkat – “Why did you establish Panchawati spiritual foundation?”

I replied – “I walked on the path of sadhana since my childhood days. I tried various paths of sadhana and various upasanas. For example, I tried ‘Kala Bhairava Sadhana’ at the age of twelve. This in itself should explain what I did later. In the next 48 years, I searched through hundreds of scriptures. My life is filled with two things, sadhana and research. I crossed paths and gained many ‘vidyas’ on my way. However I give no importance to them. Only sadhana was of prime importance.

In this lengthy journey, I understood what sadhana actually meant, various religions and their respective sadhana methods, their stances in driving human consciousness towards God, the values they hold and how far they have been successful, what is a true path and what is false, the way ahead for the world, the path people have chosen, the lives of Gurus, their experiences, the differences in their spiritual potential and the place of everything in the grand scheme of universe.

Based on this understanding, when I observed the condition of human race, I realized that everyone was treading on wrong paths. Those following rituals associated with a particular religion are no way near the right track. Those high on ego would pay no heed to the truth. Only when they encounter highly turbulent situations would they realize the truth. Prior to it, they will not pay heed to any warnings. Even then, they may not understand. A few are good people and true to their selves and not self-centered. I wanted to shorten their search for truth and show them the actual path of sadhana.

I searched a lot from my childhood. I underwent a lot of turmoil both internally and externally. After a lot of effort, I understood the whole concept. I wanted to help those sincere souls who were in the same quest, but confused and tormented in the hands of false Gurus. This is the reason for establishing ‘Panchawati’.

All these years, I have never openly declared ‘I am knowledgeable, I have accomplished a lot’ about myself. I maintained a low profile throughout my career. Not even my close friends or relatives are aware that I have accomplished so much. After remaining silent for 38 years, I started expressing myself from the past ten years guiding the few who approached me. I preached and corrected only these few. Those who listened, followed me and those who did not want left me. A few could sync with me totally and a few left after staying for a few years.

Many were jealous of me and a few were scared. Few others ridiculed me. A few more tried to use me for their personal gains. A few eyed on the information and the knowledge I had. I knew their intentions. But I cared none. Neither did I refuse anyone. I welcomed when someone wanted to walk with me and accepted when they wanted to part ways. I agreed both - when they said ‘You are our life’ and when they said ‘I do not like you’ or when they said ‘You are a scamster’ or when they said ‘you are the best amongst everyone we came across’. It was all their perception. They understood me according to their maturity. Why should I disagree?

I walk on my path. If someone wants to accompany me, I guide them. I ignore the others. This will continue in the future as well”.

I have no big dreams of transforming the world. I know that it is of no use. It will never take a firm stand without discrepancies. If everything was fool-proof, it would not be complete. No single person is capable of leading the entire humanity to God and salvation. It is impossible. I already told you, I would guide only those willing to walk with me. I will preach my thoughts only in my vicinity. I will not reach beyond this limit.

But these days, my limits have extended. We can influence someone on the other side of the globe from our home. There are thousands who sync with my thoughts and follow me irrespective of the physical distance. I will guide them on my path. I will guide them to salvation and fulfilment. This is the reason for starting ‘Panchawati’.”

Venkat asked another question – “Sri Ramakrishna said a story. A place near a lake was used as a dump yard and could not be bettered despite anyone’s efforts. Only when the king himself got involved and ordered it to be cleaned, the people followed his orders. Only the utmost authority can get some things into action. Similarly, ‘One cannot preach the world unless God permits it’. Did you also receive any such command from God to preach people? Did you establish Panchawati in accordance with such an indication?

I laughed.

“No. Unlike in the movies, no God came across in a physical form and asked me to start Panchawati. The will of God can be seen in many ways. A selfless thought that arises from a pure mind can also be considered as a will of God. It will fructify for sure. I felt this happen within me and started ‘Panchawati’. Not otherwise. In due course of time, it was proven that my intention was true. Today, I am able to guide many to God via the path of sadhana. I do not need any more proof that God’s will is on my side.”

(To be continued…)