Baba
Story of Tiljala archive
Namaskar,
This is an important piece of history for every Ananda Margii to know about.
Baba's system for recording His discourses those days
It was PA Dada's duty to record Baba's discourses via cassette. When Baba would graciously give His pravacan, then PA Dada used to record. And just after recording, it was his duty to hand over the cassette to Central PRS Dada - immediately. So ultimately the real caretaker of those precious cassettes was Central PRS. And in the post-Emergency period when Patna Central Office was re-established, then PRS was posted as Central PRS. So in this official capacity, it was his duty to protect those cassettes which were brought back from margiis' house storage just after Emergency ended.
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That large metal trunk was full of Baba cassettes
But it is so unfortunate that the large metal trunk filled with those very cassettes was lying on the shelf in the corner of PRS's room, in an uncared for and neglected manner. PRS Dada did not have the feeling to go and look at what was inside - to ensure everything was in proper condition. Gradually, PRS Dada even forgot what was inside the box. That's to say, that box was a treasure chest containing all of Baba's original recordings, and it was the designated duty of PRS Dada to safeguard that box, yet neither in his official capacity as PRS nor as a bhakta of Lord Shrii Shrii Anandamurtiji did he fulfill his duty to look into that box. The story does not end here.
Sadly, that sealed trunk was forgotten by those who were supposed to care for it. Year after year, the trunk filled cassettes was carried from one place to another place. The box was just picked up and moved to wherever Central Office was shifted: From Patna to Calcutta Panditiya Road to Jodhpur Park, and then ultimately it reached in Tiljala, i.e. in Dada's room PRS room.
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Dadas let Baba’s original discourse cassettes rot & become mouldy
That is how those precious Baba cassettes were randomly put in an out-of-the-way place in a remote dark corner of PRS Dada's room - where useless, old, "books and papers" were lying in that hot (100-110 degree Fahrenheit) and humid (about 90%) environment. That room was ultra-hot and ultra-moist approximately nine months of each and every year. In this condition any metal item gets rusted within a few months or 1 - 2 years. That is why all the windows and metal doors need painting and repainting every year - otherwise they will become completely ruined and turn into soil. So you can imagine what happened to that metal box.
About the cassettes in that metal box, nobody - i.e. no Dada - cared to look through all those cassettes; they actually forgot what was inside the trunk. Because the label that was put on it - "Baba's Cassettes" - had fallen off because of Calcutta's hot, humid, salty air. So there was no longer any label on that rusted metal box which was full of cassettes from Baba's discourses of the pre-1971 period. That unlabeled box was just sitting there rusting and collecting moisture.
Sadguru Baba took huge effort to deliver those discourses on various guidelines, yet for years and years those Dadas in charge of safeguarding those cassettes just let them rot. In the natural course, the bottom of that metal trunk became severely rusted, and the trunk full of Baba's cassettes was almost without a bottom. There were so many holes that numerous cockroaches and different insects started living and thriving inside. That box became the den of cockroaches and other such bugs. No one took note of what was going on with the box. Nor were they aware about what was inside the box. That was completely out of their mind, and in that way cockroaches and other bugs were freely coming and going from the bottom side of the box. Like this, time passed months and years.
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One sincere LFT uncovers those rotting cassettes
Then one glorious day in the history of our Ananda Marga Pracaraka Samgha arrived. One morning in 1991, one LFT of PRS was cleaning his office in Tiljala for the occasion of the Bangla New Year. That time the whole office was being scoured. Eventually, the LFT brother went to clean that dark corner and lifted the trunk.
Because the bottom of the trunk was completely rusted, when the LFT lifted the metal box then all those original Baba darshan and discourse cassettes, along with hundreds of cockroaches and bugs, fell and spread on the ground. The bugs ran and hid here and there and took shelter under different cupboards. But those moldy and rotten cassettes remained lying there on the ground in plain view. Because the trunk lost its bottom, that's why all this happened and the cassettes came out. I think that was the day of the rebirth of those cassettes.
The shocked and innocent LFT ran to PRS Dada and exclaimed, “Look! These are Baba's cassettes.” The LFT was not aware why these cassettes had remained neglected; for some time Central Dadas were aware about them. How could they not have known - knowingly they had neglected that box. This fact the LFT did not know and that is why he gave that news to PRS Dada. Those days Pranavatmakananda was posted as Archive-in-Charge, so naturally it reached in his hand.
Anybody can think, “How shocking and painful it is: That lying in a forgotten and uncared for way, Baba's hundreds of cassettes got moldy and were not easy to play.”
(Note: After talking with many margiis the suggestion as given that it may be possible that those trunks of cassettes were neglected because the majority of those discourses were given in non-Bengali areas, i.e. in Hindi and English speaking areas. Otherwise what can be the reason for hiding / ruining them.)
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How those Dadas capitalised on the situation
In those days, Dada Sarvatmananda was GS, plus there was PRS Dada, and Pranavatmakananda was there as Archive-in-charge. And together they thought that, “Anyhow this story has come out and we cannot stop that process. So best is that we should capitalize on this opportunity.”
Sarvatmananda justified, “This is the best opportunity to mobilize the margiis using these rotten cassettes. Margiis have deep heartfelt feeling for Baba's materials. So we can mobilize them and get their money in order to repair Baba's rotting cassettes. Just don't tell them the fact that these cassettes became rotten due to our own negligence. If you tell them this, they will be furious with us that why we allowed those cassettes to lie in an uncared for way for so long. They will blame us forever.”
So a story was created, and Pranavatmakananda printed a photo of those decayed and rotting cassettes. You might have seen this photo in various pamphlets from the Archive Department, which is used as a "tool of donations". It was distributed to margiis all around the globe. Furthermore, you might have noticed that in that pamphlet about the picture of the moldy tapes, it was explained as if this decay happened due to environmental conditions. Margiis were called upon to donate big money to protect and transfer those rotting cassettes into digital format in the computer.
And the story does not end here. If anybody examines this situation, they will easily understand that the demise of Baba's original discourse cassettes is the fault of Central PRS Department. But what to say about accepting the mistake, they used those mouldy cassette to mobilize and exploit margiis. Indeed, Pranavatmakananda collected millions of rupees from margiis all around the globe for his archive project. So first they ruined the cassettes by allowing them to decay; then they quickly acted to raise enormous sums of money as innocent margiis were eager to help; and then PRS does virtually nothing with that money to repair those cassettes.
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PK Dada uses margii archive donations to expand his personal wealth
Surely some people may be curious as to what happened with all that money.
And the reply is this: The next time margiis of Tamil Nadu like Bhaktavatsalam ji etc come for DMS, then ask them. And surely they will tell you the fact. Pranavatmakananda deposited millions of rupees with one money lender businessman. Dada Pranavatmakananda used margiis' donations for his own personal business investment and related financial affairs. So those days he was personally profiting and earning huge income from money lending and the wholesale cloth business in Salem, Surat City N, and other businesses in Delhi and Kolkata.
Yet that money belonged to margiis who generously donated it for the archive department to repair those cassettes. So with all those monies which Pranavatmakananda collected for the Archive, he used most of those funds for multiplying his own personal business endeavours. And all the while the real archive project work remained neglected.
And on the top, a mock drama has been created that, 'Whatever money Pranavatmakananda ji could collect monthly from the margiis, some small portion of that he was spending on his archive project to show others that serious work is going on.” Those moldy reel-to-reel cassettes were sent to overseas margiis for free repair.
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Still they could not get the work done
The question is that if really serious work was going on, then why even after several years when he is controlling the archive all the discourses and Baba's books could not be printed. After all, there are not millions of discourses; all those discourses can be published in a maximum of 100 books. Or let me put it this way. Those who are aware know that transferring 100 video and 1000 audio cassettes into digital form is the work of 45 days maximum, by a group of 5 to 10 people.
Altogether then this is completely one black game. Externally it looks like a very fine, decorated house. But internally there are so many rotten holes where behind the scenes so many untoward things are going on that are beyond the reach of common margiis. That's why this factual information could never reach you.
Instead, the wrong information was inserted into the Publisher’s Note about the so-called great efforts of Pranavatmakananda ji. That has been printed for all to see in our Ananda Vacanamrtam and Subhasita Samgraha books. Those notations and acknowledgements makes it look like Pranavatmakananda ji was the dharmic vanguard to snatch Baba's cassette away from the demon’s mouth. When in truth, he was the cause of so much ruination and deceit. But in this whole period he has always tried to capitalize on the same fake propaganda.
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Now, various clashes are going on. And behind all these, there is only one reason. That is the absence of neo-humanistic feeling. In this critical phase the only way is to surrender fully to Baba and follow His guideline.
Ananda Marga ideology states, "The diseases of humanity are the result of not having bhumadhrsti (Cosmic outlook) in life. The diseased persons do not consider others, but think only about themselves. They are busy thinking about their own families, employers, etc., and they forget everyone else. This is a terrible malady. But it is a mere expression and symptom of narrow-mindedness, the real root and reason for psychological disease. The cure is to reverse the trend of behaviour to rid the fallen human beings of narrow-mindedness. The medicine is one and only one: Brahma Bhava (ideation on the Supreme Consciousness)." (1)
In Him,
Shanti
Reference
1. Ananda Vacanamrtam - 31, The Conduct of an Acarya
== Section: Important Teaching ==
Way to overcome the pashas
Ananda Marga philosophy states, "Regarding pashas [imposed bondages of the mind – fear shame, doubt etc.], the considered opinion of elevated sages in the past was that pashas had to be resisted. To successfully combat the fear instinct, one has to march with rapid steps towards the source of fear and, if necessary, with the requisite physical and psychic weapons. If one hides inside behind locked doors, then the fear will become so entrenched in your mind that you will not be able to get it out of your mind. So it must be remembered that the ripus have got to be controlled and the pashas must be resisted. The way to get rid of the pashas is to expand the mind – to elevate human potentialities." (1)
Reference
1. Prout in a Nutshell - 12, Sin, Crime and Law
== Section 2: Links ==
