Friday, November 13, 2009

Chapter 2: The Current Scene

Revered Usha Bahenji was born on 30th of July, 1925. The political scene at present was not particularly comforting. The British were ruling India since long. Mahatma Gandhi, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Gopal Krishna Gokhale and other national leaders were doing intense propaganda and satyagraha against British Rule. In Punjab initially Lala Hardyal and later Lala Lajpat Rai, Bhagat Singh and Sukhdev were working towards independence. The common people of Punjab had not yet forgotten the carnage at Jallianwala Bagh.

 
The Gandhian Era

The era was considered to be overly Gandhian. The ideals of non-cooperation and non-violence which he upheld were admired by everyone. They were confronted at some places but due to the absence of any other alternative, Mahatma Gandhi became the leader of both moderates and extremists in the political arena.

Shri Manmohanji (Ushaji's father) was a staunch nationalist. Burning foreign goods, opposing and non-cooperating with the British Sarkar was deeply-rooted in him. With the passage of time this mindset had a certain impact on Bahenji's life.

There was a sense of antagonism against some conventional norms on the social front but an increased aversion could be seen now due to the influence of western civilization. Several dignitaries had joined hands with the British for their self-interest. Those well-versed in the English language began to weigh Hindu social customs, religion, customs and tradition on the scale of reasoning. This sparked off some social and religious movements.


The Brahmo Samaj

The Brahmo Samaj was involved in doing away with social malpractices and stopping Hindus from converting to Christianity. Its founders raised the slogan, 'Head towards the Vedas' and termed other religions to be baseless and hypocritical.

A Great Leader of the Samaj

There was propaganda of Prarthana Samaj in Maharashtra, which payed attention to the backward classes. The Dayal Singh Trust spread this concept in Punjab.


Shri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa & Vivekananada

The Ramakrishna Movement had begun in Bengal. Shri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa considered all religions as genuine. He believed in idol worship as the means of leading to the all powerful Supreme Being. Practicing sadhana of tantric, vaishnava and advaita, he soon became renowned as Paramahamsa.

Shri Vivekananda adopted his teachings. He argued that how could a certain religion which can not wipe a widow's tears and is unable to provide food to an orphan, be worthy of acceptance? The state of nirvikalpa samadhi of Paramahamsaji was imbibed by Swami Brahmananda (Rakhal) and Nagji.This religion also aimed at reforming society.

The theosophical society was formed by western scholars particularly impressed by Indian culture. A German lady had laid its foundation. Its followers professed to achieve knowledge of God by spiritual ecstasy, direct intuition or special individual relations. They believed in the concept of previous birth and karma and were inspired by sankhya philosophy and the Upanishads.

Mrs Annie Besant

Mrs.Annie Besant abandoned Christianity and became well-versed with Indian culture. The founder of this society Madame Blavatski's strength was occult and not spirituality. But Annie Besant became a Hindu and under her this movement led to a awakening in India. She lay the foundation of Central Hindu College affiliated to the Banaras Hindu University.

Indian culture and religion had such a great influence in all spheres that religious sentiments intensified even on opposition.The bhakti wave was at its crest in the 15th century.

Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu

Nimbarkacharya Maharaj had contributed in his own way to make religious devotion easily accessible for us. Shri Ramanujacharya had brought about invaluable change by propagating religion in the south.Mahaprabhu Vallabhacharya spread Krishna worship in entire India and most of his followers were from Gujarat and Rajasthan. Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, chief exponent of the Gaudiya Vaishnava Movement in eastern India, surfaced with Krishna worship in Bengal. Several saints like Tulsidas and Kabir were born to propagate religion. To worship in the Vrindavana Rasa were Haridasji, Harivanshji and Goswami Vithalnthji. Surdasji as well as the asthachhap poets, Roopji, Sanatanji and Jeev Goswamiji composed several works on Krishna.


Saint Tukaram

The Alvars or Tamil Bhakti saints, had already begun the mass bhakti movement in the south. Devotees are certainly aware of Andal a 10th century Tamil poet revered as the only woman Alvar (saint) of Vaishnavism. Lord Vithalnath enraptured great saints like Tukaram and Eknath in Maharashstra. Mira, a bhakti poet-saint and Rajput princess, whose disdain for her royal husband was more than matched by her love for Krishna, impacted the entire world. In the north Shri Guru Nanakji and other gurus called upon devotees to engage in worship through the word of God (Naam-japna).


Hindu Saint Poet Sant Surdas

The series of bhaktas-saints came to Vraja and began propagating religious devotion. Several religious texts were composed. Jayadeva's, 'Gita Govinda' written in perfect and flawless classical Sanskrit was the climax of romantic love poetry. At this end, the poetry of Chandidas, Shri Billavmangalji's 'Shri Krishna-Karnamrit' and Vidyapati's poems were truly inspiring. On the other front ashtachaap and bhakti poets Surdas and Nand Das worked on widespread development of Krishna worship.


Swami Shri Haridas

Shri Vyasdevacharyaji's, Swami Haridasji and Harvanshji's compilation of padas became available. Shri Druvdasji and his uncle Vrindavandasji and several devotees wrote their experiences and published them. Shri Roopji, Jeevji, Prabodha Nand Saraswati and Vishwanath Chakravarti created many religious texts. In the meantime compositions like Shri Krishna-Karnamrit, Sur Sagar, Shri Radha-Sudhanidi, Vrindavan Shatak as well as Lalit-Madhav were penned and published.



Hanuman Prasad Poddar & Shri Radha Baba



Vrindavan remained the centre of all these sampradayas and consequently its importance escalated. Society was impressed by the gushing bhakti wave and voluminous repertoire of poetry.The next generation of bhaktas had Swami Ramteerth, Ramakrishna Paramhansa, Vivekanandji, Udiya Baba, Gwariya Baba, Anandamayi Ma, Hari Baba, Gangeshwar Anandji, Sharnanandji, Hanuman Prasadji Poddar and Chakradhar Baba. The essence of that bhakti era invaded our hearts and is steeping us in the bhakti bhava even today.



Bhaktimati Usha Bahenji

Several great saints remained hidden from the public eye because of their unaffected simple lifestyle. Those with a pure heart were influenced by their persona. Ushaji was one such saint, also affected by the current scene but her disposition was independent. The sacredness apparent in her devotional practices, experiences and conduct inflamed the desire of the individuated soul of union with God. Her religious devotion did not violate the shastras but was free from the restraints and reasoning of the scriptures. 


.Those whom God accepts because of His loving tenderness come into contact with such saintly personages. They lead us to our ultimate destination which is union with Krishna. Bhava was sacrosanct for Ushaji. Bhava is understood as love flowing towards the Lord. 


Dark-hued Krishna is Waiting for Us

Spreading out both His arms Krishna is standing, waiting for us. Shyam Sunder is inviting us.The same dark-hued radiant Krishna, standing beneath a kadamba tree on the banks of the Yamuna, is gazing at us in astonishment from the thicket in front, waiting for us.

Wednesday, November 11, 2009

Chapter 1: Heading Towards Krishna's Madhurya

Madhurya, the Watchword of Shringara Bhakti

Consciousness is the essence of all living beings like birds and bees, trees and creepers. But in humans it has a slightly different identity as it is suffused with love, for which we must be grateful to the Supreme Being. Man is indebted to God for this particular concern of His but oblivious of how to go about expressing it.

On accepting that Krishna's hungering devotees are passionately drawn towards His madhurya or sweet love, the watchword of bhakti shringara, a certain spirituality that can only arise by indulging in love, takes us to the very heart of the love of Radha and Krishna. When Krishna bursts forth into our hearts, affecting all with a mysterious and sometimes terrifying rush of love, why should we wander in the jungles of knowledge and not roam in the garden of religious devotion instead.



Enraptured Cowherdesses Drawn by Krishna

The world of shringara rasa is not inaccessible. With mischief and spontaneity, tenderness and teasing, we find the dark-skinned Cowherd frolicking in the forested regions, market places, banks of the Yamuna and glades of Vraja where He plays the flute. The enraptured gopis, representing souls in search of salvation, long for their teasing, elusive and insistent paramour. If a bit of His secret or sudden love invades our hearts, life is filled with inspiration and delight.

The resonances of the gopikas' hungry for fulfillment of their love, is heard in the hearts of rasikas and bhaktas even as of today. Krishna is hungry too and is conceptualized as the god in need, as the ardent but often faithless Lover of the love-struck soul.

With His spirited antics Shyam Sundar placed the burden on one such sakhi Ushaji of His nij parikar (inner circle of attendants) who was very dear to Him. She was entrusted with the task of bringing us close to dark-hued Krishna.

You have also been a close sakhi of His but have forgotten this fact. By smarana, a concentrated internal practice of imaginative recollection by living through the countless legends of the playful dalliance of Radha and Krishna, you will be privileged to witness the sole Purusha, Krishna who is the divine exemplar and the Supreme Lover.



Bhaktimati Usha Bahenji

 Bhaktimati Usha Bahenji, the epitome of infinite love came to alert us of the surrounding oblivion and gave it direction by bringing alive the concept of bhakti shringara. Above all, self-assured and dignified she was to show us the path of union with the Divine. No one could truly understand her.

An absolutely simple personality,she remained an unsolved enigma and distributed religious devotion with a generous hand. Several seekers could attain the ultimate reality because of her. The rush of shringara rasa made her a paradigm of the perennial quest of mankind for a divine and transcendental love, in accordance with the shastras.



Shri Shyama-Shyam

Playing her part, Ushaji of Vraja withdrew herself and returned from where she had come because she was much needed there. The high ideals she expounded during her lifespan are certainly worth adopting. She unveiled the cascading sweet love of Shyama-Shyam. Usha Bahenji's ardent longing for the rasa-laden love of Krishna was pacified in the proximity and closeness of that very Krishna, the Supreme Lover.

By ecstatic and evocative expressions of love she steeped everyone in the Supreme Lover's rasa suffused with madhurya.