Salvation in Kali Yuga. Swami Vankhandi Maharaj: Interviews, Satsangs, Teachings, Parables
Yes. I can. But the person must already possess enormous endurance, stamina, special energy to receive shaktipat.
Siddharth: And how does it happen in your case: does something spontaneously trigger and somehow transmit itself through your body to the disciple? Or do you first see that yes, this disciple is ready, and after that intentionally give them shaktipat?
Maharaj: The disciple must first pass a test, endure verification.
Siddharth: What kind of test?
Maharaj: A disciple’s readiness can be tested in different ways. Well, for example, someone might say an offensive word to the disciple, and if they flare up and start arguing. This is a sign that this disciple isn’t ready for shaktipat. Anger has destructive power, it burns a person like fire. A hot-tempered person, prone to taking offense, won’t endure, will simply go mad if given shaktipat. For the fire of their anger will rise to the surface.
Siddharth: Do you specially create situations of quarrels and conflicts in the ashram on a subtle level? To test your disciples?
Maharaj: No, I don’t arrange anything specially myself. I just observe. And observation shows me what progress people are making in their sadhana, how much love for God they have. After all, when you have strong love for God, you don’t have any desire to quarrel with anyone. You simply don’t need it. Shanti [peace] is the most important thing. And if they have raga and dvesha [attractions and aversions], there will be no shanti. We have many conflicts in our ashram, people quarrel, shout at each other, take offense. I watch this. I say nothing, let them quarrel. For I have no preferences. But I don’t arrange anything. All these situations are created by Devi, the Goddess. This is her play. We have a Goddess temple here. This is her doing.
One who loves God has no time for conflicts. One who lives advaita, has a non-dual view, never conflicts with anyone. For them, the opposites and extremes of existence are erased. For them there is no difference – important work or not important. All work is important. Here at this moment there are dirty dishes, they need to be cleaned. And they will clean them, because it’s for the good. They don’t find it offensive or shameful, they accept any such work as seva. This is non-dual attitude to reality, advaita-bhava. Small or big, dirty or clean – in every facet of existing phenomena, a person with advaita-bhava sees one God in everything – in every opposite. So why should they take offense and conflict?
Sadhana gives understanding of this. Become a sadhak, and you’ll achieve such an attitude to life. When the mind is cleansed of dirt, you won’t commit anything bad anymore. You will be balanced. But if there are preferences, attachments in the heart, they will spread like waves and transmit to others.
Suddenly Maharaj turns to the Russian devotee present at the interview, who knows neither Hindi nor English, and through the translator asks: «Do you understand everything?» She answers: «Only in the heart,» and the translator adds that later all this will be translated into Russian and that this is Siddharth’s seva – to bring this message to Russian-speaking people.
Maharaj: The «Ramayana» says: «Most of all I love those who do seva for the benefit of others.» Everyone loves sevaks. If you possess the quality of a sevak, everyone will love you. A sevak never considers themselves higher or more worthy than others. They have no ego. An egoistic person will never be able to engage in true seva.
It happens with us that a young person from a village goes to university, gets higher education, then gets a good job, and that’s it – they already consider themselves above everyone in their native village. They find it beneath them to simply take a broom and sweep in their own house, they’ll consider it beneath their dignity. It’s even awkward for them to bring a glass of water to a guest who has come to their house. Parents will both sweep the floor and serve water, but they will remain sitting. I’ve seen such things.
Siddharth: But many people do seva to earn respect from others…
Maharaj: You can’t approach seva this way. Seva is done selflessly, a sevak never expects reward, praise or encouragement. You simply do good, that’s all. Animals have a subtle ability to sense sincerity and true kindness. Look at our dogs, for example. We feed them, give them water, take care of them, and they respond and answer us with mutual love. Animals and birds understand everything. And trees, plants understand everything.
There’s such a story. Two biologists, an American and a German, were conducting research related to studying the emotional state of different plant species. The American scientist had his own laboratory where instruments were attached to tree roots, registering plants’ reactions to changes in the environment and surroundings. Once his German colleague came to visit, she had a knife in her briefcase. Before she could approach the laboratory door, the needle on all the American’s measuring instruments began pointing to red. This is the color indicating feelings of anxiety and danger. Then the American asked the woman to show if she had any weapons with her, and she admitted she had a knife. But when she removed the knife from her bag and took it away, and took a water hose in her hands instead, the instruments’ needles began showing green.
Plants and trees know and feel everything. Trees experience fear of violence and acutely sense others’ intention to harm them – to cut or saw them down. And if someone cuts down a tree, other trees growing nearby cry and suffer.
Japanese people never pick flowers. They only pick up fallen flowers or fallen petals. The Shastras say: if you need to pick a plant, talk to it, bow to it, explain to it – why and for what purpose you want to pick it. After such a conversation, the plant won’t feel pain. If you approach and roughly pick it, you’ll cause it suffering.
Siddharth: Do you directly feel your unity with trees and plants? Do you understand their language? They’re not much different from us?
Maharaj: They’re no different at all. The external form is different, but we exist with them in a unified space of consciousness, though at different levels. We are all one.
There was such a sadhu in Maharashtra state named Namdev. Once he was baking roti in the courtyard and went into the house for a minute to bring ghee. And then a dog, while he was gone, came, grabbed the roti and went further down the street. Namdev saw this and ran after it shouting: «Lord! Bhagavan! Where are you going? What about the ghee? Let me spread ghee on your roti, it will be tastier that way!» For Namdev, God was manifested in the dog. This was long ago. Back then, sadhus didn’t call a dog a dog, they addressed it as God.
I once planted a tree by our gates. It’s still growing there. And once during bad weather, one branch of this young tree was strongly bent to the ground by wind and pressed down by a log. I was sleeping in my house at night, and I dream that the tree is crying. Crying and crying. I could hardly wait for morning. In the morning I got up and went straight to this tree. I see – the pressed branch is lying on the ground. I removed the log from it, freed it from the weight, and it immediately rose up, even flew up. And it became so joyful. Trees, they understand and feel everything. This tree is still growing by our gates.
If you love someone, you feel and understand them. Unity of consciousness arises between you. It’s the same with animals. Sometimes I lie down to rest, and he [points to one of the dogs] comes at 11 AM to wake me up. If I forget to give him food on time, he comes and wakes me. Animals sensitively feel your attitude. They feel your love. You can’t show hostility and fear toward them. They pick up on such attitudes toward themselves very well.
All living beings understand the language of love. Chetan-atma, consciousness at the level of Atma, exists in everyone, it’s expressed through the feeling of love.
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