Muniraji

Muniraji and Haidhakan
2003 - 2009


photo from net

Around 2003, one afternoon, I saw this book lying on our coffee table in the Philippines. "I Am Harmony" was boldly printed on the cover with a sweet smiling painting of a chubby person on the cover. Intrigued by the title, I started flipping through the pages and started online researching more about the person on the cover. "It can't be.. " I thought. "Oh and he paints too?" I instantly felt connected with this expression of himself.
Three long years and no sign of India in my life. I stared deeply on the cover painting and whispered : "Bring us there. I want to visit your ashram and let my daughter crawl into your cave." Then, I dropped the thought and forgot all about it and went about my life, running a school and teaching in a university during evenings while holding summer art and martial arts workshops in the summer. Life was busy. Life was normal.
The next thing I knew, my family and I have been living in India for over three years already. Looking out of the window of our mud and stone cabin on the Palani hills of the western ghats in South India, I remembered a silent promise that I have made. It was just between me and the front cover of a book.
My family and I quickly packed our bags to set off and find this cave at the foothills of the Himalayas. For days we traveled by train and for hours, hit the winding road up the hill and down the plains.
Having reached without any hassle, through a scenic beauty of the space, we reached more excited than exhausted. The day started before cold sunrise, having showered in freezing water and descending through hundreds of steps down the river at the dhuni bathing us in the warmth of fire, melody of the bells in unison and perfume of incense sticks. It was surreal.
The book said, no one leaves the space without Haidhakan Baba's darshan, especially in Nainital. I had no darshan and I wasn't ready to give up. I thought meeting Muniraji, his closest disciple would be closest to a darshan for me. We were told he was in the ashram in Nainital where one can have a view of the Himalayan range in front of the temple. Off we packed our bags along with our tiny tot, tagging along with us over hills,mountains and rivers.
One powerful sunrise, in a dark small room was a dhuni, my family, a few people and Muniraji conducting the havan himself. I couldn't believe it was finally happening, and so effortlessly happening. On our last day, we were heading home. We went early to pass by the temple while waiting for our driver to pick us up.
There was only one person standing outside the temple door and no one else was there. He summoned me to go inside. It was empty and the curtains covered the murti. Then the old man was nowhere in sight. Left for his next task, perhaps.
We waited and waited and there was no driver in sight. We went back inside only to be told, your driver called and he will be an hour late, and by the way, there is a big and special ceremony today. It's a very auspicious day.
After the abhishekam, we fell in line like everyone else to get to go nearer to the murti about to be exposed and have our darshan and flower prasadam like everyone else.
It was my turn. I looked up, and the pundit opened the curtains at the same time.
Kaboom!!! The next thing I knew I was on the floor with my arms wailing trying to hold on to anything to get up. I was dizzy trying to stand wobbling in circles. I looked around, the people before me and after me were standing and walking straight, and I was the only one zapped on the floor. It felt like a time warp, like Dr. Strange freezing time in slow motion.
I looked to my husband and daughter behind me helping me stand up. I watched carefully ready to catch them for their turn to fall. But they still stood there and walked away like everyone else.
What on earth was that?! Stunned, I froze for awhile. While my husband was helping me stand, I asked : "Did you feel that?!!!" I felt like I was in the middle of a Hiroshima bombing, and was hit with loud concentric circles layer after layer. It was an explosion, so strong I felt hit with Saturn's rings expanding three times!! It felt like a nuclear bomb of concentrated Silence in motion.
"The driver has arrived.", my husband whispered. What happened to you, he asked.
I think I just had my darshan..

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Avadhoota Nadananda

Image
Avadhoot Nadananda Never in my life have I thought that this day will come. Or that it is even remotely possible. I don't know when or how did it exactly happen. One day, I just woke up and I could hardly recognise myself. Many things have disappeared within me. Some, emerged and were awakened, as well.   And with great ease, it all happened. There was no obvious effort on my side for these changes, except the "trying" for years and failed at a few attempts to meet him. Sometimes, I even wonder if that effort was all on me.   There was a time I dragged my somewhat willing family to travel for hours by car and by bus overnight to catch a glimpse of him in another city, only to miss him again over some emergency he needs to run to. My daughter burnt in fever and was vomiting from the strenuous sleepless uncomfortable travel, while my spine was in paralysing deep pain. Months later, It was followed by travelling with my family for a few nights by train to reach h...
Read more

Shibendu Lahiri

Image
Shibendu Lahiri My First Shaktipat photo from net This tribute is more of a public confession of my then inability to value the presence of powerful and beautiful illuminated beings, simply because they did not fit my stereotype. Take it as fiction or non-fiction, but if a story can be a legacy, then let it not die with me. Finding ourselves in Banaras, the oldest inhabited city in India, my father and I decided to be on a search for Lahiri Mahasaya's ancestral home. He was the spiritual mentor of our mentor's mentor. It was around 2001. A local guide turned into a lifetime friend, told us that his grandson is currently there. He lives in Germany and is home for only once a year for less than a week to perform a family vedic ceremony. He does not meet people because he is only home for a private function. Before long, there was an empty chair in front of us as we sat waiting inside the ancestral home of his grandfather. We waited and waited. I was expecti...
Read more

Mohanji

Image
Have you ever met somebody who,  like  the great Sun , could make you melt, and at the same time allow you to relax back into your comfortable self, like the moon blowing a cool breeze over the top of your head? My husband kept looking at me when I was finally sitting right in front of Mohanji. He turned to me like I was a child who was in Disneyland for the first time and said with a sheepish teasing smile: “Look, that’s your Mohanji finally right in front of you! ” S ince the top of my head felt like a hundred yarn threads were being pulled up,  I couldn’t reply in a giggle even if I wanted to.  I thought,  “He’s on it, working on me now.”. My husband could perceive every atom of my body smiling in a simultaneous sun and starstruck state. I felt my husband’s joy for me, as he had witnessed the days, nights and in-betweens that I was glued watching Mohanji’s videos online. Many times, I would fall asleep still with the earphones playing, in my ears, h...
Read more