21.1 In the Samvat year 1878, on Fãgan sud Punam [7th March 1822], Swãmi Shree Sahajãnandji Mahãrãj was sitting in front of the mandir of Shree Vãsudev-Nãrãyan in Dãdã Khãchar’s darbãr in Gadhadã. He was wearing a white khes and had covered Himself with a white chãdar. He had also tied a white pãgh around His head. Premãnand Swãmi and other paramhans were singing vishnupad before Him.
21.2 Then, Shreeji Mahãrãj said, “Please stop the kirtans. I wish to speak to all of you, so please listen attentively.” He then said, “I have listened to all the shãstras written by Vyãsji regarding the attainment of kalyãn. The main principle prevalent in all those shãstras and the only principle for the kalyãn of the jeev is simply this: Bhagvãn creates, maintains, and destroys this entire universe.
21.3 “Also, in all of those shãstras, there are talks of the charitras of either Bhagvãn or His sant. So, a person cannot attain kalyãn just by following the dharma of his varna and ashram, or through its rewards in the form of dharma, arth, and kãm. This is because the observance of the dharma on its own may bring worldly reputation and physical comforts – but that is all. However, to attain kalyãn, a person must realise Bhagvãn to be the all-doer.
21.4 “In addition, nothing remains to be understood on the path of kalyãn if a person realises the greatness of pratyaksha Bhagvãn and His sant in exactly the same way as he realises the greatness of past avatãrs of Bhagvãn such as Rãm, and Krishna, and the greatness of past sãdhus, such as Nãrad, the Sanakãdik, Shukji, Jadbharat, Hanumãn, and Uddhav.
21.5 “Whether this principle is understood after being told once, or after being told a thousand times; whether it is understood today, or after a thousand years, there is no option but to understand it. If a person were to ask Nãrad, the Sanakãdik, Shukji, Brahma, and Shiv, as they are wise, even they would point to pratyaksha Bhagvãn and the pratyaksha sant as being the only granters of kalyãn. They would also explain that the greatness of the pratyaksha svarup of Bhagvãn and the pratyaksha sant is exactly the same as the greatness of past svarup of Bhagvãn and His sant.
21.6 “A person who has such a firm nishchay, has grasped all the fundamental principles. What is more, he will never fall from the path of kalyãn. Brahmã, Shiv, Bruhaspati, Parãshar, and many others may have fallen from the path of dharma due to vicious natures like kãm and krodh, but because they had the same nishchay and knowledge of the greatness of pratyaksha Bhagvãn and the pratyaksha sant as they had of their past lives, they did not fall from the path of kalyãn. Therefore, this very fact is the essence of all the shãstras.”
21.7 In the evening of that same day, Swãmi Shree Sahajãnandji Mahãrãj mounted His horse in Dãdã Khãchar’s darbãr in Gadhadã and came to Lakshmi-Vãdi. There, He sat on a decorated bedstead on the platform under the mango tree. He was wearing a white khes and had covered Himself with a white chãdar. He had also tied a white pãgh around His head, with a tassel of yellow flowers hanging from it. Bunches of mogrã flowers were placed upon His ears, and a garland of mogrã flowers was hanging around His neck. A sabhã of munis, as well as haribhaktas from various places, had gathered before Him.
21.8 Then, Shreeji Mahãrãj said, “Please listen, I wish to ask all of you a question. During the svapna state, when the jeev sees a creation and indulges in the pleasures of that creation, does the jeev itself become the svarup of the creation? Or does the jeev create the creation in its svapna by its own will? Also, in the same way as the jeev, the ishvars also experience creations during their svapna state. Do they themselves become the svarup of the creation? Or do they create it by their own will? Or does Bhagvãn, who is beyond both jeev and ishvar, create the creations experienced in their svapnas?”
21.9 Everyone attempted to answer the question according to his level of intelligence, but no one was able to offer a precise explanation.
21.10 Shreeji Mahãrãj then explained, “Neither the jeev nor ishvar creates the creations experienced during the svapna state, and nor do they become the svarup of those creations themselves. In reality, it is Bhagvãn – who is beyond both jeev and ishvar, and who is also the giver of the rewards of a person’s karmas – who creates the world experienced in svapnas according to the karmas of the particular jeev or ishvar.
21.11 “The unstable and deceptive nature of svapnas is due to their region of origin. The throat is a place where countless types of such creations can be seen – just as when an oil lamp is lit in one place within a mandir decorated with mirrors, countless oil lamps would be seen. Therefore, due to the location of its origin (the throat), a single thought can be experienced in countless ways.”
21.12 Shreeji Mahãrãj then said, “A person possessing gnãn understands only the influence of desh to be predominant when there is the predominance of desh; when the influence of kãl is predominant, he understands only kãl to be predominant; when the influence of karma is predominant, he understands only karma to be predominant; and when Bhagvãn’s influence is predominant, he understand only Bhagvãn to be predominant. In contrast, a fool, once he has understood one factor, considers that alone to be the main principle. If he has understood kãl, he considers kãl to be the main principle; if he has understood karma, he considers karma to be the main principle; and if he has understood mãyã, he considers mãyã to be the main principle. However, such a fool does not know how to distinguish between the different predominating factors prevalent in different circumstances. On the other hand, a person with gnãn understands the predominance of various factors based on the circumstances.
21.13 “In fact, it is Bhagvãn who is the inspirer of everything – of desh, kãl, karma, and mãyã. It is He Himself who allows the factors of desh, kãl, karma, and mãyã, to be predominant. Therefore, they are all dependent upon Bhagvãn – just as the shishumãr chakra is dependent on the support of the Dhruv star; and just as all the subjects of a kingdom are dependent on their king. Furthermore, in a kingdom, the minister and secretaries can only do as much as their king allows them to do; when the king does not allow it, they cannot do even the smallest of tasks. In the same way, the factors of desh, kãl, karma, and mãyã can only do as much as Bhagvãn allows them to do; they cannot do a single thing against the wish of Bhagvãn. Therefore, only Bhagvãn is the all-doer.”
21.14 After delivering this talk, Shreeji Mahãrãj returned to the darbãr.
21.15 Later that night, Shreeji Mahãrãj went to the residence of the sãdhus. All the sãdhus bowed down to Him and paid their respects. Shreeji Mahãrãj then said to the munis, “I have had a thought, which is why I have come to you at this hour. In my mind, I understand that whoever owns land and money, is the most unhappy; and whoever has very little money and no land, is the most happy.
21.16 “I have built a mandir in Amdãvãd Nagar, and others will also be built. However, a person should not unwilling donate money to for mandirs to be built. It is the wish of Shree Nar-Nãrãyan if the mandir is built or not. However, we should do whatever does not cause problems for the mandir.
21.17 “Some festivals, like Janamãshtmi, are celebrated using millions of rupees, due to the grace of Shree Nar-Nãrãyan. Sometimes, festivals are celebrated using a tulsi leaf. The best way is whatever occurs without difficulty. However, a person should never ask for money for the mandir. Due to a person’s shraddhã in Shree Nar-Nãrãyan, if they wish to donate their land, they should do so willingly. A person should not forcefully ask for anything.”
21.18 Then, Shreeji Mahãrãj happily asked the sãdhu a question, “Who do we call an ekãntik bhakta?”
21.19 Muktãnand Swãmi tried to answer the question, but was unable to give a satisfactory answer.
21.20 Then, Shreeji Mahãrãj said, “A true ekãntik bhakta sees himself as brahm-rup, who strictly follows his own dharma and performs bhakti, regularly performs dhyãn and smaran of Bhagvãn, and also keeps upãsanã of Bhagvãn. He makes sure that there are no alterations in the vartmãns followed by the body, which have been given by Bhagvãn. A person with all these qualities should be regarded as an ekãntik bhakta.
21.21 “Also, when there is a lack of bhakti on earth, bhakti remains within Nar-Nãrãyan. Shree Nar-Nãrãyan behaves just like the ekãntik bhakta to teach the bhaktas who come to His feet. Ekãntik bhaktas like this are only found in satsang. In other sects, there is upãsanã of Bhagvãn, but there is no tyãg and ãtmã-gnãn; in some sects there is ãtmã-gnãn, but no upãsanã and tyãg; in some sects there is tyãg, but no upãsanã and ãtmã-gnãn. However, at this time in our satsang, there are many bhaktas with all these qualities.”
21.22 After deliviering this talk, Shreeji Mahãrãj returned to His residence.
End of Vachanãmrut Gadhadã II || 21 || 154 ||