Baba
Baba vs Bhagavan
Note: This letter is only for those who have reverence for Sadguru Baba Shrii Shrii Anandamurti ji and try to follow His Ananda Marga ideology.
Namaskar,
On the stage of DMS, PP openly declared that "Baba is Bhagwan". Let us see how far PP is correct.
Bhagavan is only comprised of six attributions - which any human can attain - while Mahasambhuti is so much more than that.
http://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
Ananda Marga ideology guides us, “The combination of all these six attributes [aeshvarya, viirya, yasha, shrii, jiṋána and vaerágya] is called bhaga, and he who is the owner of this bhaga, that is, he who is owner of these six attributes, is called bhagaván. By sádhaná an ordinary man can become bhagaván – after acquiring bhaga, these six attributes.” (1)
Taraka Brahma is above bhagavan
There are many bhagavans and Baba details in His Ananda Marga philosophy that Buddha, Mahaviira, and Shankaracarya were bhagavan. Yet Bhagavan Buddha, Bhagavan Mahaviira, and Bhagavan Shankaracarya are not Mahasambhuti - nor are they Parama Purusa. Bhagavan is anyone in human form who gains those six attributions - aeshvarya, viiryam, yasha, shrii, jina'nam, and vaera'gya.
Some get confused and think that bhagavan, Parama Purusa, Mahasambhuti, and Taraka Brahma are one and the same. When talking about Ananda Marga philosophy it is important to understand the profound nuances and differences between these terms. And if one is writing an essay or publishing a book, or speaking on the stage of DMS etc, then one should be very careful to be philosophically accurate. And by and large, every sadhaka should at least know these fundamental concepts and understand how Baba uses these terms. For propagating Baba's ideals, doing pracara, and helping others onto the path of spirituality this basic knowledge is highly necessary.
http://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
The Supreme Consciousness is one singular Divine Entity - which we refer to as Parama Purusa. Then in His role as Taraka Brahma He is the tangential point of Saguna Brahma and Nirguna Brahma, and when that Entity known as Taraka Brahma wishes to come in human form He is Mahasambhuti. In a nutshell, that is the relationship between Parama Purusa, Taraka Brahma and Mahasambhuti. Yet all three appellations refer to the same singular Supreme Entity, Parama Purusa. In stark contrast, the terms Bhagavan and Iishvara are completely different. This creation is thought-projection of Parama Purusa - He creates this in His mind. In contrast, bhagavan is not the Creator of this universe but rather is one of the created beings.
- Sadhaka → iishvara; iishvara → bhagvan; bhagavan → Parama Purusa
sadhaka → iishvara; iishvara → bhagvan; bhagavan → Parama Purusa
Throughout Ananda Marga literature, Parama Purusa is the main term used to refer to the Supreme Consciousness. Here the foundational attribution of Parama Purusa is the witness-ship of everyone and everything across all time and space. He is there covert in each and every entity - everywhere. About this Baba has delivered so many discourses declaring that Parama Purusa is the Supreme Witnessing Entity.
Parama Purusa is the Creator of this universe, and bhagavan is not. Any person who does sadhana can become a bhagavan. For instance, Shankaracarya and Buddha did like this. They had to do sadhana and undergo all sorts of penance in order to achieve their status of bhagavan. In contrast, Parama Purusa is Parama Purusa. He does not need to do any sadhana. By His own will He takes human form to liberate others. He is beyond all the bondages. So for Him there is no need of any sadhana. He does not need to do anything in this regard.
http://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
Parama Purusa is Mayadhiisha, i.e. the Controller of maya, not máyádhiina, i.e. bound my maya. Only Parama Purusa lords over maya, while all those various bhagavans are firmly under maya's rule and control. So the infinite glory of Parama Purusa towers far above the position of bhagavan.
Ananda Marga ideology states, “All the qualities that are present in Saguńa Brahma or Iishvara (Qualified Consciousness) are of course also present in Parama Puruśa, with some other qualities as well. So we see that Parama Puruśa is both Iishvara and Bhagaván, and something more than that.” (2)
Bhagavan Shankaracarya was not Taraka Brahma
Baba describes in step by step manner the meaning of bhagavan. That He did in His book, Namami Krsnasundaram. In that discourse, Baba clearly describes that bhaga means the combination of six attributions: aeshvarya, viirya, yasha, shrii, jina'nam, and vaera'gya. So first Baba illustrates what is meant by the term bhagavan - i.e. anyone who achieves the aforementioned six qualities. Then in a grand comparison, Baba gives an example how Taraka Brahma Parama Purusa is much more than this.
Suffice to say here that Baba is graciously revealing the fact that this type of divine guarantee of freeing one from sin cannot be given by those who are merely bhagavan. Such a proclamation guaranteeing the liberation of one's sins can only be given by the Parama Purusa Himself.
This creation is thought-projection of Parama Purusa - He creates this in His mind. Bhagavan is not the Creator of this universe but rather is one of the created beings.
http://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
Baba is Parama Purusa not merely bhagavan
Similarly, it is entirely misleading and inappropriate to introduce Baba as being merely a bhagavan when He is the God Himself, Parama Purusa. When writing a book about Baba it should not be titled as Bhagavan Anandamurti nor should the aim of the book be to prove Baba as being bhagavan. Not should PP make such a claim on the stage of DMS. Because bhagavan is the sadhaka who does sadhana and has gained the aforesaid six attributions, whereas Baba being the Parama Purusa is so much more than just bhagavan.
Ananda Marga philosophy states, “It has been mentioned in the scriptures that Púrńa Brahma exists on the highest plane, and that through the partial manifestation of His power, khańd́ávatára or aḿshávatára or kalávatára is born...They may also be bhagaván if they possess the six qualities, but they are not the Supreme Entity.” (3)
Ananda Marga philosophy states, "The collective name of these six qualities [aeshvarya, viiryam, yasha, shrii, jina'nam, va'ra'gya] is bhaga, and one who has fully imbibed these six qualities is bhagaván. Any great person can be called bhagaván in this sense." (4) But Parama Purusa is far above.
According to Baba's above teaching, any sadhaka who gets these occult powers can be called bhagavan. Hence, Baba has respectfully given the titles Bhagavan Buddha, Bhagavan Shankaracarya, and Bhagavan Mahaviira etc. Over the ages, many have become bhagvan by their intense sadhana practice. But we never classify these aforementioned sages as being Parama Purusa or Taraka Brahma. We do not say Parama Purusa Buddha, or Taraka Brahma Shankaracarya, or Mahaviira etc. This is not done.
http://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
Conclusion
Thus we must acknowledge the clear-cut difference between bhagavan and Parama Purusa. To call sadhakas like Buddha and Shankaracarya as bhagavan is an honorable and respectable title as they gave much effort to attain that stance. But to call Parama Purusa Baba as bhagavan is not fitting as He is far beyond that ordinary stance of being bhagavan. Being the Parama Purusa He has an infinite number of attributions whereas a bhagavan possesses a mere six qualities. Thus there is no comparison.
When a sadhaka proceeds and reaches a higher stage, then he becomes iishvara. And when he does more sadhana and reaches the next higher stage he becomes bhagavan. And when bhagavan reaches the next higher stage he merges into and becomes one with Parama Purusa. So here is the key point to understand. At one time there may be thousands of bhagavans on this planet, or any planet, or throughout the universe etc, but regardless of the circumstances Parama Purusa cannot be two. Because He is the Supreme Controller. So it is obvious that bhagavan is lower.
http://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
- sadhaka → iishvara; iishvara → bhagvan; bhagavan → Parama Purusa
Namaskar,
At His lotus feet,
Harideva
(Hank Morrow)
~ In-depth study ~
About two faulty books
It is sad that as an avadhuta, Ac Savitananda has no idea about Ananda Marga philosophy. He wrote one book and titled it “Ba'ba' Bhagava'n.”
Dada Savitananda, due to his ignorance - or maybe other reasons, is trying hard to belittle Baba and prove that He is just merely bhagavan. To give his agenda practical shape he wrote a book titled, “Ba'ba' Bhagava'n.” If we think in a straightforward manner we will find that he is a coward also. As an avadhuta he knows that Baba is Parama Purusa, but he did not make that book title as "Baba Parama Purusa", but rather “Ba'ba' Bhagava'n.”
Due to his cowardliness he must have thought that, "If I write "Baba Parama Purusa" then people will think it is outlandish."
Then there is one pseudo-margii Mr N who wrote a different book and titled it as “Bhagavan Anandamurti.”
http://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
Ananda Marga philosophy states, “Hypocrites want to misguide the people by their tall talks alone. Lord Shiva had this to say about such people: “Loka Vyámoha Káraka.” That is, “They create disease in the minds of the people.” Their aim is not to solve society’s problems. Rather, they are the chief cause for the downfall, retardation and sad plight of human society. The present crisis in today’s civilization is due to them. Their theories are based on the psychology and intellectual extravaganza of the hypocrite. You will certainly encounter many such theories in the social sphere, the economic sphere, and other spheres of life.” (5)
How to rectify this matter of belittling Baba
Clear, practical steps should be taken to address the inherent error in writing a book called, Bhagavan Anandamurti. Basically those with that book should throw it away. Or at the very least the cover of the book should be completely torn off and in its place a note of warning should be attached stating:
"WARNING: The contents of this book are defective as Narada wrongly wrote this book to prove Baba as bhagavan, when in truth our Lord Shrii Shrii Anandamurtiji Baba is Parama Purusa and not just Bhagavan. Beware! This book should be tossed away or updated accordingly."
Failing that, failing to alert others about the inherent defects of this book, our kids, new margiis, relatives and more will get a negative message by reading this text.
http://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
We may leave this world after a few hundred years but books remain on this earth much longer and this particular book will spread a defective, dogmatic, and faulty message. We should raise our voice that this book be permanently banned until it is reprinted with a proper title and all its contents updated. The actual text must reflect the true spirit of Baba's teachings.
Finally, some persons write such books just to show themselves as being "great intellectuals". But they do not know how much harm they are doing by spreading their dogmatic views. Narada has done such a blunder. He stole others' experiences and copied some of Baba's teachings and then hastily made this book. All done to remove his inferiority complex of being an illiterate man.
Writing a dogmatic book about Guru
There are so many constructive ways of eliminating one's psychic complex; but writing a dogmatic book about Guru is not one of them. Why should such so-called writers try to overcome their complexes by undermining Baba. I have regard for them as human beings but on this ideological matter their dealing cannot be overlooked or supported.
As disciples of Shrii Shrii Anandamurtiji, our main and sole intention in life is to glorify Him and spread His divine teachings. Thus no book about Baba should aim to prove Him as being a mere bhagavan. To do so is to undermine His lofty status as being the Parama Purusa. We should all be crystal-clear about this so we can best please and serve Him.
http://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
Who wrote these books
(A) It is sad that as an avadhuta, Ac Savitananda has no idea about Ananda Marga philosophy. He wrote one book and titled it “Ba'ba' Bhagava'n.”
- To open his eyes please email him at: dadasavitananda@yahoo.com
- To open his eyes please email him at: paul@alistermultimedia.net
References
1. Ananda Vacanamrtam - 34, Blind Mind and Conscience
2. Ananda Marga Ideology & Way of Life - 11, Parama Puruśa and His Creation
3. Namámi Krśńasundaram, Disc 24: Párthasárathi Krśńa and Pariprashna
4. Namámi Krśńasundaram, Disc 24: Párthasárathi Krśńa and Pariprashna
5. A Few Problems Solved Part 6, Theory and Practice
* * *
The below sections are entirely different topics, unrelated to the above material.
They stand on their own as points of interest.
* * *
== Section 2: Important Topic ==
Samskaras & sufferingAnanda Marga ideology states, “When a dishonest government employee accepts a bribe it is an original action, and when his son gets sick and has to be rushed to the doctor it is the reactive action (the reaction to the original action). When his son dies he laments, “I haven’t knowingly done anything wrong…[when in fact]... the deep sorrow he felt at the death of his child was the result of his past original actions.” (1)
As Baba explains in the above teaching, when a person dies then it is the surviving, grieving family members who suffer the most. The person who died suffers for a short while, whereas their loved ones suffer that loss every day for the rest of their lives. For instance, a young executive who died in the Twin Towers tragedy suffered for a few minutes or more before his death, whereas his spouse and his parents have suffered from that tragedy daily for years and will do so for decades. It is those surviving family members who are undergoing the burning of a huge, negative samskara, not the person who died. The person who died suffered comparatively little; theirs was a small samskara. Generally, people think that the one who died is the one who suffered the most. But, as explained above, that is not the case.
Similarly, when an adult patient is unaware or unconscious, then the one suffering is the caregiver. It is the caregiver who is undergoing their negative samskaras. The adult patient is not undergoing any samskaras because they are completely oblivious of their surroundings and thus not suffering at all. The irony then is that when mean-minded persons try to serve someone who is unconscious or unaware, then that so-called caregiver thinks in the back of their mind that the unconscious person did something terrible and now they are undergoing the reaction. But that is not the case. Rather it is the caregiver who is undergoing their own negative samskara as they are pained by serving the patient. But before the patient became unconscious they were suffering.
Reference
1. Ananda Marga Ideology and Way of Life in a Nutshell Part 8, Sadhana
== Section: Important Teaching ==
How they increase their number
Intro: Kindly read the below quote from Baba's teachings. At the end of the quote a question has been posed. If your answer to the question is correct then it means you read Baba's books carefully; and, if your answer is wrong or you do not know the answer, then it signifies that you need to pay more attention when reading Guru's teachings. After all, if sadhakas are not diligent in studying Baba's books then who is going to read them - non-margiis?
Ananda Marga philosophy states, "Some philosophies have taught their own [religious or caste] communities, “The members of this community are the favourite children of Parama Puruśa – others are cursed and unwanted.” Due to this defective teaching the people of one community have even considered the destruction of the members of another community as an act of virtue, and stained the stony altar of human society with the blood of innocent people. In the blood of these innocent victims, the blind adherents of such defective philosophies have taken a holy bath of “liberation”." (1)
Quiz: Who is Baba referring to in the above quote?
Most probably, as an Ananda Margii, you know what the answer is. But if not, or if you want confirmation, then click here for the answer.
Answer: Baba is indirectly talking about battles between the various Semitic religions like Christianity that did forced conversions during the Crusades, Shia-Sunni fight, and aggressive / forced conversion etc.
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My group is the favourite others are cursed
Again, Baba is indirectly talking about battles between the various Semitic religions such as the church Crusades, Shia-Sunni fight, protestant Catholic and aggressive / forced conversion etc. Here are the specifics:
Forced conversion attack native peoples
(a) Christians engaged in brutal forced conversions of non-Christians wherever they went. During the era of colonization, with the "sword" they forcibly converted native peoples in so many lands across the globe. Gradually, they transformed their approach from "using the sword" to applying economic, psychological, and circumstantial pressure to convert people to Christianity. All along they sinfully reasoned that what they are doing is virtuous because they are "saving" such heathens from their uncivilised style of worship.
Forced conversion attack non-Catholics
(b) Catholics also have a long and brutal history of forcible converting non-Catholics. Their harsh approach created a strong backlash and the rise of the Protestants. Thus within Christianity itself there is a history of such battles and forced conversion.
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Forced conversion attack non-Muslims
(c) Islam has a bloody history of conversion, and still this tactic is in vogue. They forcibly convert and attack non-Muslims with their physical might. There are innumerable instances of this. In addition, the Muslims apply economic pressure in the form of taxes and denial of business licenses. Plus, non-Muslims are sidelined and lose their rights and privileges. By all such methods, people are pressured and forced to convert to Islam. And those Muslims feel their approach is virtuous as they are rescuing such persons from their other faith.
Shia-sunni battles forced conversion
(d) Within the Islamic tradition, the battles of shia-sunni are well documented where forced conversion is done at gun-point and numerous other bloody strategies.
Buddhist kings forced conversion
(e) Long back also in the Buddhist era there were forced conversions. Those Buddhist kings were carrying out raids and battles to increase the number of their Buddhist followers. That approach is no longer in vogue.
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AMPS: various ways to convert
(f) Unfortunately, the way events are unfolding in AMPS nowadays, things are moving in that same direction. At present, if you are not a member of a particular group, they may bar you from attending a function, or you may be denied entry into a jagrti, or you may be kept out of certain parts of Ananda Nagar, or you may face certain difficulties etc. Or they may try and entice you to join their group by offering post, power, status etc. All these types of pressure tactics and allurements are already going on in AMPS. And if awareness of our ideological principles is not emphasized, then most certainly, groups will start carrying out forced conversions where they physically attack non-members to increase their own membership / cadres.
http://anandamarganewsbulletin.blogspot.com/
Reference
1. Namah Shiváya Shántáya, Disc: 14
== Section: Prabhat Samgiita ==
प्रभात संगीत 4342: अजाना पथिक आज एशेछे, तारे घरे....
भावार्थ
आज, अजाना पथिक परमपुरुष बाबाआए हैं। इस भव्य अवसर को व्यर्थ न खो देना। हृदय सेे उनका स्वागत करो और बिना समय नष्ट किए अपने घर में, अपने हृदय में ले आओ। चारों ओर फैल रही उनकी दिव्य आभा से हृदय को लबालब भर जाने दो। अब जड़ता, तन्द्रा और निद्रा में समय नष्ट करने का अवसर नहीं है।
बाबा, मेरे लिए, आपके लिए, सबके लिए, आए हैं। हर स्थान और हर देश के लिए, आए हैं। वे दूसरों का दुख और रोना देखकर दुखी हो जाते हैं। वे मुस्कराने लगते हैं जब अन्य लोगों को मुस्कराते देखते हैं। वे सबको चाहते हैं।
उनकी कृपा से, यह समय उनके चरण कमलों में सब कुछ समर्पित कर देने का है। इस अवसर को नाश कर देना बिलकुल उचित नहीं है। बाबा आए हैं उनका स्वागत कर अपने घर में ले आओ।.
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