Friday, December 3, 2010

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

Maheshwar, a Tranquil City in Madhya Pradesh


Once a year, Baba used to definitely go and meet his mother in Maheshwar as long as she lived. At that point of time, Baba would abandon his dress up as a sadhu (ascetic) and wear a dhoti-kurta (dhoti-a piece of cloth worn around the lower body, one end of which passes between the legs and is tucked in behind,kurta-a collarless shirt) so that his mother could get some consolation.




Sri Radha Raman ji, Vrindavan


When his mother was extremely distressed out of concern for Baba, he would ask her to leave her household and come with him to Vrindavan. Giving an assurance that he would attend to her needs by doing her seva there. Baba's mother was an extremely faithful and devoted wife that is why she explained to Baba that it was not a matter of giving up the house or its premises. And she would abandon the company of her husband only after death. In the course of time she took Sushri Shashikala Mule, her seven year old grand-daughter, and came for a few days to Vrindavan.




Manohar Baba Serving Shri Maharaj ji


Revered Manohar Baba would look after the needs of revered Shri Maharaj ji with attentive devotion. In the bitter cold, Baba would conscientiously wrap adequate woolens around Maharaj ji and put him to sleep.Even though Baba slept near him, he would be extremely vigilant. Because during those days, Maharaj ji was going through an ecstatic trance of religious rapture.


Thus in a short while, Baba would find that the blanket had been thrown off his body.Alongside, he often saw Maharaj ji's eyes shedding tears and his body blazing(for union with the divine.) On getting an indication that there was an unbearable headache hurting Maharaj ji, Baba would massage his head with a cool oil but the intense fervour of Maharaj ji's body would not be  cooled.


Baba would often see Maharahj ji discard his bed and sparsely clad in a kopeen (a small piece of cloth to cover the private parts)be sitting in the open courtyard with tears streaming down his cheeks. Even the ground below would be soaked with his flowing tears. By making constantly ardent entreaties to Maharaj ji, Baba would somehow get him into the room and make him lie down.Amazingly the sheet covering his bed got wet because of Maharaj ji's tears at times. Baba would wring the sheet and put it out to dry, as he covered the cot with a fresh spread.



Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu Shedding Tears


Baba would tell us that when he had read about the traits of tears squirting out from the eyes of Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, he had considered it an exaggeration. But when he saw the same condition in Maharaj ji, his disbelief radically transformed into implicit belief. In the year 1947, Maharaj ji was in a trance state of extreme religious rapture. Therefore Baba would be by his side like a shadow.



Eternal Vrindavan,Where Shri Radha-Krishna Forever Dwell


One fine highly revered Maharaj ji revealed to Manohar Baba and Devi ji that he had got a signal from eternal Vrindavan, the site of Krishna's nitya leela, of staying in a state of akhand bhavadasha of ecstatic exaltation for a month. After this information, the two of them became more alert. Soon after a span of two-three days, Shri Maharaj ji began to live in an intense state of bhava dasha, having reached the heights of elation and ecstasy.

Whenever he would be in a semi-conscious condition, an effort was made to make him eat something but before the food could reach his mouth, he would invariably get into a sleep like trance again, without response to stimuli. (Page 361 of 'Smriti Kaumudi',the memoirs of Manohar Baba.)

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