Sunday, January 2, 2011

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

Maheshwar, a Sleepy Town in Madhya Pradesh


Once it so happened that Baba had to go to Maheshwar, his birthplace, when he was staying in Shahjahanpur. Shri Narayan Rao and Shri Mangilal, extremely loving devotees of highly revered Shri Maharaj ji, used to stay in Mandleshwar at a distance of four kilometres from there. Baba had friendly relations with them and hence he went to Mandleshwar to meet them. When he was returning by bus to Maheshwar the bus turned turtle all of a sudden. Pandemonium broke lose in a few minutes. There were 28 passengers in the bus. All of them were wounded in some way but Baba did not receive even a single scratch.


The Gajendra Moksha


Baba could figure out that this miraculous escape was due to his reading the Gajendra Moksha. Ever since Baba had implicit faith in the legend. Lifelong not only did he do the paath of Gajendra Moksha himself but  advised others to do so.

Shri Radha-Krishna Flanked by Sakhis in Vrindavan


After returning from Maheshwar revered Manohar Baba suffered extremely because of being separated from Shri Maharaj ji. With his disturbed mindset he would wander around here and there and return to Shri Dham Vrindavan again. Precisely as the bird of a soaring ship comes back to the ship.The allurement of having darshan of Maharaj ji was always there even if it was from a great distance.


Shri Manohar Baba & Balkrishan Das ji Maharaj


He had such an intense feeling of oneness with Shri Maharj ji that Baba would ask several questions from him even while asleep and get their answers. Once while weeping hysterically on the banks of the Yamuna in the anguish of separation from Shri Maharaj ji, he fell into a thorny bush.


Lord Krishna Embraces Devotee

That is when in a semi-conscious state he saw that Lord Krishna had wrapped his arms around him in an embrace.

“Why did you come here? And where is Shri Maharaj ji?” Baba asked him this time.

Once it so happened that Baba intensely grieved on being separated from Maharaj ji, drank half a bottle of spirit but was saved solely due to his (revered Shri Maharaj ji) grace.

Highly revered Shri Maharaj ji used to say that he had distanced Baba from himself to end the intense infatuation Baba had for him and to make him strongly attached to Lord Shri Krishna. 

It was his guarantee that Baba would not be harmed in any way.

 “I am taking complete care of him,” Shriji would say.


Worshipping Govinda 


Baba began to spend most of his time in meditating upon the name of God in his hut due to Shri Maharaj ji's eternal and infinite grace.The door of his kutiya would not open till eleven o'clock due to his dedicated devotion in worshipping the Divine. 

He had written 'No Entry' outside his kutiya.



Manohar Baba in Kasht Maun


At times Manohar Baba would even take kasht maun or a wooden vow of silence (in which no gesture is made and neither is anything written) which continued constantly for a span of several days.

Sharad Purnima
Every year he would remain silent from Sharad Purnima right up to Holi and he had a regime of chanting the name of God three lakh times every single day during this duration. (page 371 of 'Smriti Kaumudi,' the memoirs of Shri Manohar Baba)

No comments: