Prem Sudha Dhara: Boshiji

(Page 249)

Shri Hari

Ambala Cant

4th June 1953

Dear sister Boshi,

With love, Jai Shri Hari.

You had asked why Hanumanji (the monkey chief or deity who was Ramchandra's ally in his invasion of Lanka) is worshipped fervently to such a great extent. Listen the point is ,'Ram te adhik, Ramkar dasa.' All the actions of Hanumanji are enacted for the loving affection of Shri Ram (name of Ramchandra, the seventh avatar of Vishnu). Remember the line ' Ram kaaj karibe ko aatur'' of Hanuman Chalisa (a Brajbhasa poem with an aggregate of forty verses).

Not just construing the task as a duty but rather eagerly desirous, Hanumanji is constantly keen to do Rama's work. If an appraisal of Sitaji's condition is to be made, Hanumanji has to be deputed. He is the one ready to move in delicious anguish for getting the sanjeevni booti (a life-giving herb). To sum up the underlying essence, no one has performed Rama's work with such dedicated devotion as the monkey ally.

Even to cite Bharatji's example; a love-struck younger brother, always intoxicated by Rama's love is not correct. He glimpsed the burden of duties from an emotionally spiritual angle and is not an ideal for ordinary mortals in the mundane world. Only very few people can reach such lofty aesthetic heights of adulation as Bharatji.

Now we come to Laxmanji (son of Dasrath by his wife Sumitra,the younger half-brother and faithful companion of Ramchandra during his exile). He religiously did all his deeds but did not have the same magnitude as Hanumanji's enigmatic persona. The monkey deity never made a speedy critical assessment of any action of Shri Ram; a distinctive trait of the sevak bhava or love flowing towards the Lord in servitude.

While Laxmanji lost his temper instantly, being critical at times,'Katar man kar ek adhara, Daivdaiv aalsi pukara.''On Ramji's asking a path from the ocean, Laxmanji makes the above statement. Suspicious that Bharatji has come to fight a battle, he is sarcastic about Ramji not recommending war but, 'Kanh lagi sahiye, Rahiye man mare.'

The spiritual emotions encompassed by Marutinandan (son of Maruti, the wind god) are not present in anyone else, particularly in the mundane. Otherwise it is not as if Shri Bharat and Shri Laxman are in any way less significant than Hanumanji. They are far superior, very virtuous but their characters are not to be emulated by common folk on the temporal plane.

Whereas, every mode of Mahavirji's (a title of Hanuman) conduct is worth imitating. Don't forget that Jankiji (daughter of Janaka: title of Sita) has also blessed him,'Tumahare bhajan Ram ko bhanve'' meaning that a person who does his bhajans or sings songs of a devotional nature is dear to Rama.

Therefore propitiating Hanumanji is essential for closeness to Lord Rama. The blessings of Jaganmata (Jankiji) are the root cause of Hanumanji's worship. Precisely this path is ideal for mankind and inspiration of action is its religious norm. You explain this concept to your revered father and write if there is any inquiry. I will make an effort to find a suitable answer.

God is the supreme motivator of the individual soul. In whichever manner he inspires us, the same comes about. The rest depends on the Lord's grace. Namaskar (respectful salutation), to the honourable elders.

With love,

Yours Bobo.

Prem Sudha Dhara: Shantanuji

 

Union With Shri Krishna

(Page 247)

Shri Hari

Shri Vrindavan Dhaam

27th November 1980

Dear Shantanu,

With love, Jai Shri Hari.

Received your letter last week after a long time. I felt your busy schedule was the reason for not corresponding earlier. 'The busiest man is the happiest man' is true. A matter of concern, such intense involvement is harmful for health and utility of life. However occupied one may be, some time has to be set aside to soothe the body and mind, equipping them with resolute calm.

Not a mere machine, life is pulsating with joys and sorrows, consciousness of our close friends and foes, and desirous longings at different levels, depending on the individual. Ideally one should study with total concentration and do duties with complete sincerity but some moments should be solely our own...reserved for ourselves.

Attending to the Needs of Lord Krishna

This intimate tryst is the search of the enraptured soul for union with God, the perennial quest of mankind for a divine and transcendental love. To develop an all consuming intimacy with the Lord, some seconds have to be segregated where everyone's entry is banned; just the divine and we strike a particular relationship. We remember Him whom we belong to; spontaneously practicing familiarity in personal seva as we attend to the needs of the Lord.

You are fortunate that sharing a rapport with the lovingly tender Supreme Being in a tight schedule, concerns you. Certainly the Lord listens to your entreaties, keeping you on the virtuous path as you pray. Just rest assured of His innate strength, while propitiating Lord Krishna. Constantly be on guard that you do not mete out unjust or harsh treatment towards anyone on purpose.

Money gathered by bribes and a luxurious life of sensuous pleasures are both causes of a downfall. Keep away from them. 

Meditate upon Dark-hued Krishna

Meditating upon God is of prime importance on the temporal plane. Spiritual life is sustained and adorned with chintan (meditating) precisely like the body survives on food. Kirtans or songs of a devotional nature are sung in the Krishna seva (service) and are the staple diet of the mind and soul.

You wrote, 'I want to come to Him, to be with Him always' which felt great. God is our true friend; sole exhibitor of the path leading to union with the divine and our protector. Whatever is done under His guidance is virtuous. You recite your daily paath ( recitation of a sacred text) isn't it? Some minutes in a 24 hour long day must be set aside for interaction with the Supreme Being.

Pujya Boboji

You must be complaining that Bobo has delivered a long lecture of spiritual advice. But merely watering a promising sapling, I long for it to grow luxuriantly and flourish. You seemed kindly dear when I saw you the first time. Absorbed in Lord Krishna and focused, you must become completely His. Under the canopy of His protection, carry on tasks as you cope with them. Serve your mother and father with dedicated devotion. Being dependent on the divine, realize His grace and loving tenderness. The greatest advantage of human life is being steeped in the love of Krishna, we attain the state of oneness with the Lord..

Supreme Lover Krishna Dallying with the Gopis in Vrindavana

Do drop in without any inhibitions, whenever possible. The metaphorical search of the impassioned soul for union with God is centered within earthly Vrindavan, our true home. Krishna irresistibly attractive, has been worshipped over the centuries and continues to be worshipped and celebrated even today. By dallying with the gopis in that heaven on earth called Vrindavan, Krishna gives himself in to freedom, spontaneity and intense passion. Eternally glorious festivals and constant good fortune acclaim the dust of this fabled land as the root cause of all joys.

Okay then, Jai Shri Hari.

With love,
Yours Bobo.

Prem Sudha Dhara: Poonamji

The Divine Play of Shri Radha-Krishna

Page 245)

Shri Hari

Shri Vrindavan Dhaam

14th March 1975

Dearest Poonam,

With love, Jai Shri Hari.

You have requested me in several letters to write some divine play of the Yugal Sarkar (Shri Radha-Krishna, the divine couple). This play or lila is a trove of Lord Krishna's romantic dalliances and spirited antics;dedicated devotees splash them, after experiencing the deeper ecstasies of devotion. Not tales, figments of the imagination or literary artistic creations, the lilas are a collection of the amorous love-play of Shri Radha-Krishna occurring every moment.

This playful dalliance which is both real and illusionary which makes them both human and divine at the same time, becomes Shri Radha-Krishna most of all. Delighting in play they endear themselves and bring delight to all their bhaktas.

We are ecstatic on glimpsing, hearing, reading and narrating these amorous frolics of Shr Radha-Krishna. Radha is revealed as the embodiment of that irresistably attractive feminine principle toward which the masculine power encompassed in the god is drawn.

Thus the play between Radha and Krishna as they move into the mazes and mysteries of love, becomes a metaphor for the conjunction of the male and female polarities of the cosmos itself-where the descending god and the ascending soul are one. There is no end to the dalliances being constantly enacted in precisely the same fashion even today. Our eyes should be washed and opened wide, enabling us to savour the duo's divine play.

Shri Radha-Krishna Sprinkling abeer-gulal on Holi-Phaag

The passionately merry days of Holi-Phaag (a great Hindu spring festival observed on the last day of the bright half of Phalgun) are here. Our ardent Yugal spill over colours of passion in different ways, sprinkling abeer-gulal (a powder usually red which is thrown at the Holi festival) and singing love-songs in joyous abandon. Ah! The thronging sakhis, hordes of sakhas, the swirls of gulal and the riot of colours mesmerize entire Vrindavana with its multi-hued lustre.

Krishna,the handsome dark-skinned cowherd, sometimes astonishes the sakhis guised as a sakhi. At other times, the cowherdesses catch hold of Him and mutually consent to:
\
Rasiya ko naar banao ree, Rasiya ko.
Kati lahanga, gal mahin kanchuki
Yake bendi bhaal lagao ree.

Turn rasiya or the Supreme  Lover into a woman. (a type of Holi song in Braj and Bundelkhand). Wearing a lahanga or voluminous skirt around his waist, a kanchuki or woman's jacket around the throat and a bendi or an ornament worn on the forehead by women. Now after all the adornments, dressed like a newly wed bride let us take Krishna to Maiya Yashoda and listen to her comments.

Supreme Lover Krishna Dressed as a Woman

"Maiya! Ree Maiya! Come out and have a look, Is  this bride is suitable for your darling lala (a term of affectionate address to a child)? You are not aware and the bride has come to the threshold of your bhavan!" the sakhis cried from the courtyard outside.

Listening to the din, Yashodaji stepped out of her chamber. The multitude of sakhis surged ahead in delicious delight.

Truly a beautiful young bride stood in their midst. Astounded, the mother inquired," Hey, lasses and brides of Vraja whom have you got along. Let me have a glimpse of her face." 

 The sakhis retorted that they wouldn't let her do so, free of cost and insisted on the ritual of munh dikhai where money is given for a look at the newly wed. Or else gift a token for the festival of Holi. Before Yashoda could respond the quick-witted bride lifted her veil slightly, and spoke.

 " Oh this is my lala! The apple of my eye and the light of our lives," said the thrilled mother.

Merriment and peals of laughter rent the air. The sakhis poured buckets of coloured water on maiya and coloured her in abeer and gulal, celebrating the festivities of Holi with spirited abandon. Maiya warmly welcomed all of them; treating the lot to a sumptuous feast. Soon after everyone sang songs of badhai or congratulations.

Okay, Jai Shri Hari.

With love,
Yours Bobo.