Tuesday, November 2, 2010

Baba Shri Manohar Das ji, the Pride of the Spiritual World-VI

Baba was Made to Sit in a Bus

 Baba wore the golden finger ring so as not to hurt his mother's feelings. Sakhyahari ji, his elder brother, gave him money for expenses to be incurred en route and made him sit in the bus along with Shri Umakant Dave, his friend.

Dhamnod


But on reaching Dhamnod, the next stopover, Baba had all the things he had got from home, sent back through an acquaintance. At the same time by completely depending on assets of the divine, he reached Shri Dham Vrindavan in quest of Lord Krishna, his eternal friend.


Shri Vrindavan


On reaching Vrindavan, revered Manohar Baba strongly felt that he had obtained a new lease of life. However there was no fixed place where he could live and neither was there  any arrangement for his food. Initially Baba stayed in a dharamshala  located in the Gopinath Bazaar of Vrindavan. He was not accustomed to bhiksha or begging for cooked food since he hailed from a family of jagirdars. Thus he remained without meals for a span of seven days. He would invariably eat a morsel of the foodstuff his mother had packed for him for the journey to Vrindavan, and drink water of the Yamuna, soon after.


Vanshi Vat, Vrindavan


Later on, he began to stay in the Chhoti Kunja of Gwalior situated in front of Vanshi Vat. Shri Bal Govind ji, the pujari of the temple,  would give some bhiksha from the bhoga offered to Thakur ji. 


Shri Jagannath Temple, (Jagannath Ghat) Vrindavan

With the passage of time, he began to live in a hut made on the Jagannath Ghat.


A Rasika, Moved by Passionate Religious Devotion for Krishna

Shri Manohar Das ji was desperately in search of some rasika (moved by passionate religious devotion esp for Krishna) saint of Vrindavan of the highest order, so that he could become the refuge of his life. In those days ,Shri Moti Ram ji, a brahmin acquaintance of Baba from his home town, used to live in Govind Bag of Vrindavan.


Shri Bal Krishna Das ji Maharaj


He wanted to make Baba meet Maharaj Bal Krishna Das ji, a saint who had experienced the highest ideal of religious rapture by relishing Shri Radha-Krishna's madhurya or sweet romance, and was adorned with the eternal Supreme Being.

However Maharaj ji did not show any particular interest in meeting Baba because he wanted to live in an extremely secretive fashion. When Baba began visiting him over and over again for the sake of satsang, Maharaj ji would go and hide in the upper storey of his residence, the instant he heard his footfalls. Baba was deeply pained by this act of his.

Manohar Baba had come from the mundane world just a short while ago therefore his heart was in an intensely abject state. He would burst out crying and lament,“I am a terrible sinner for sure because of which a siddh saint does not want to give me darshan.


Brahma, the Creator


One fine day when he met Moti Ram ji on the way Baba affirmed that he would abandon Vrindavan tomorrow, and leave.Even Brahma ji would not be able to stop him, as of now. When Moti Ram ji revealed this matter to Shri Maharaj ji, he asked him to get Manohar ji to him in the evening and that is precisely what Moti Ram ji did.

Amazingly, Shri Maharaj ji talked to Baba about the 'objective of life' until the day dawned at 4 o' clock. Moreover, he took Baba along with him for bhiksha, the next morning and for the next three days at a stretch. (page 356 of 'Smriti Kaumudi, the memoirs of Shri Manohar Das ji)

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