== MY FEELING ABOUT PRABHAT SAMGIITA ==
Namaskar,
In this time of celebration of Prabhat Samgiita, I wish to share a few
of my own recollections and personal experiences with Prabhat Samgiita.
All are aware that Prabhat Samgiita is Baba's divine gift to help
sadhakas develop a closer link with Him. Through His songs, we learn new
ways of calling Him and communicating our inner feelings to Him. For His
devotional compositions of Prabhat Samgiita express the many ways a
bhakta yearns for Parama Purusa.
So truly speaking, Prabhat Samgiita is a gleaming treasure that
illumines the pathway for sadhakas to make that inner connection with
Baba. All in our Marga have realised this truth in various ways, in
their own relation with Him. Even then I must confess that there are
some, if not many, days that the entire essence of Prabhat Samgiita
totally eludes me-- totally escapes me.
Here then is a short sharing of some of my experiences and I would
greatly appreciate hearing yours as well.
PRACTICAL VS THEORETICAL UNDERSTANDING
By Baba's grace, there are some days when each and every word and
expression of Prabhat Samgiita resonates in the deep core of my heart.
When the phrase, 'Tumi esecho', resounds, then I really feel that Baba
has come close. By His grace, I feel His vibration overflowing
throughout my whole being and my mind drifts effortlessly in His flow.
And in that state, when I sing, tears of devotion gently roll down my
cheeks and I feel so fortunate to dance tenderly in His bliss. This
sweet experience happens on my best days-- all due to His grace.
When I explained this to one Dada while I was in Ananda Nagar, then he
said that this is the practical understanding or practical realisation
of Prabhat Samgiita. When the song actually reflects one's devotional
state of mind and one feels that what is being described in the song is
a reflection of one's own sadhana or devotional longing. Dadaji told me
that this type of experience is exclusively Baba's grace and comes on
those special occasions due to one's genuine love for Parama Purusa.
When that Dada told me this then I felt especially blessed and
fortunate. And now I can understand how really those blissful occasions
were all due to Baba's grace, because there are many, many times when I
listen to or sing Prabhat Samgiita and the whole song feels quite
abstract and theoretical.
Unfortunately, all too often, when I listen to Prabhat Samgiita, it is
merely an intellectual exercise. That is to say I can understand what
the song is saying-- in a detached sort of way, but I do not feel the
essence of the song inside my heart. The song does not feel like an
extension of my own sadhana; just it becomes something that is outside
me. Many times whens I listen to Prabhat Samgiita or sing Prabhat
Samgiita, this is my experience.
And that same revered Dadaji explained to me that on such occasions my
understanding of Prabhat Samgiita is merely theoretical. And he said
this is not due to the way the song is sung, just it is a consequence of
my own mental state. Dadaji explained that the mind goes up and down.
When it is up then one is more apt to realise the true essence of
Prabhat Samgiita and when the mind is down-- less devotional and more
dry-- then one is left with mere theoretical understanding Prabhat
Samgiita.
And one step further down is when I do not like to even listen to
Prabhat Samgiita. This also happens. It occurs when my mind is unable to
make any link at all with the song and the whole thing seems like a
distant galaxy, totally out of reach and not at all related with me. It
is then that I understand just how out of the flow I really am.
Dadaji told the only way to overcome these latter two states is to do
more sadhana and ask Baba for His grace. That is the only recall in such
circumstances. And if we are sincere then by His grace the cultivation
of devotional love will again be aroused in the heart and mind, in which
case one will continue to experience the joys and bliss of practically
understanding Prabhat Samgiita. Then Prabhat Samgiita will be real. But
for that to happen sadhana and devotional longing are needed. That is
what Dada explained.
In my experiences since, I have found Dadaji's guideline to be
completely accurate. When Prabhat Samgiita feels like a sweet extension
of sadhana-- ie when I have practical understanding of Prabhat
Samgiita-- it is because, by Baba's grace, my mind is in a devotional
flow. And when Prabhat Samgiita is a mere theoretical concept or totally
out of reach, it is because my mind feels dry and out of the sadhana flow.
MOTHER BABY EXAMPLE
A sadhaka's understanding of Prabhat Samgiita can be thought of this way.
When a child is young the that infant longs to always be held in the
mother's arms and be tightly embraced. The child dreams day and night of
mother's closeness and seemingly never tires of mothers love and
affection. Rather the baby always wants to be held and caressed by its
mother.
Yet 10 or 12 years later, that same child will hardly want its mother to
come close. The child no longer wishes to be cradled in its mother's
lap. Rather that boy now wants to run free and wander in the world. The
child does not wish to sit at home in mother's arms anymore.
Hence, the child is the same child and the mother is the same mother yet
the relation is totally different-- all because the child's mind has
changed.
Same then is the case with Prabhat Samgiita. The bhakta may listen to
the same song sung by the same singer one day and the sadhaka may feel
devotionally ensconced in the flow of Prabhat Samgiita; and, other days
that same sadhaka may listen to the same song sung by the same singer
and not feel any attraction at all. What has changed? Not the Prabhat
Samgiita, not the musician, and still it is the same bhakta. So the only
thing different in the formula is the devotional state of the sadhaka.
Just like in the above example of the child, the bhakta's mind has
changed and that alone accounts for one's interest and connection with
Prabhat Samgiita.
DHYANA: THE KEY INGREDIENT
In a word then, we can say that the whole essence of Prabhat Samgiita is
based on one's dhyana, one's inner mental flow.
Because dhyana is that unique lesson of sadhana where the bhakta make
that very personal link with Baba. When dhyana is dry then one my feel
fearful of Baba or even worse, disinterested. And in that case surely
one will think that Prabhat Samgiita is just one fairy tale type of song.
Whereas when one is in a good flow of dhyana then the time will pass in
sadhana as one yearns to go closer and closer in Him and delve deeper
into His bliss. And in that circumstance, in that mental state, Prabhat
Samgiita will feel like a melodious expression of one's own heart feeling.
So to deepen one's link with Prabhat Samgiita means deepening one's
sadhana. The two are inextricably interlinked. Because both Prabhat
Samgiita and dhyana are based on having subtle devotional feelings for
Him-- love for Him.
Without that love, one cannot do dhyana and one will find Prabhat
Samgiita to be nothing but a bore.
That is why Dadaji would tell me again and again that if one wishes to
experience that golden world of Prabhat Samgiita then devotional love
must be there, and that intimate devotional love is a result of one's
efforts in dhyana and asking for His grace. Hence Dadaji's maxim,
'Dhyana is the pre-requisite of Prabhat Samgiita'.
BEST WAY OF LEARNING PRABHAT SAMGIITA:
WORD BY WORD
Before concluding my letter, the only other point I wanted to touch on
was how to go about learning Prabhat Samgiita. Because without knowing
the song, then how is one going to make a link; it would be the same as
doing sadhana without knowing the meaning of one's mantra. In that case
it is basically futile. So learning the meaning of the Prabhat Samgiita
is essential.
As an overseas margii, this has been quite a challenge but fortunately,
by Baba's grace, many have given me some excellent guidance along the
way. And certainly the most significant aspect is developing a word by
word understanding of each line of the song. That way one will have
pointed understanding of the song and be able to link with the inner
spirit of the song. Without word by word understanding, the song remains
mostly an unsolved mystery.
So when approaching any song, try and get a word by word translation,
and then listen to the song again and again until the understanding of
each word and each line is clear in the mind. Once this occurs, then one
will be be easily able to apply one's devotional faculty and immerse in
the real spirit of the Prabhat Samgiita.
These then are some of my experiences which I wanted to share with all
my margii brothers and sisters. It is so nice to be part of this
devotional family-- dedicated to Baba & His mission.
BABA'S BLESSING
By Baba's grace, on this memorable anniversary of Prabhat Samgiita, we
are all most fortunate have a Sadguru who has given the pathway for
coming closer and closer to Him in a personal way through the world of
songs. That is truly His unfathomable grace.
Baba says, "One feels kinship to those with whom there is a relation of
mutual love and affection, a relation of close intimacy. Where there is
lack of intimacy, we call a person as Mr. X, Mrs. Y, etc.; but where
there is a feeling of intimacy, the relationship of brothers, sisters,
uncles, aunts, etc. grows. Obviously where there is no close intimacy
between human beings and the Impersonal Entity, no kinship can grow at
all...Human beings want a personal God who will understand their joys
and sorrows, who will have love for them, and to whom they can express
love and feel kinship...They want an Entity who will sympathize with
them cent per cent in their prosperity and adversity alike... He [Parama
Purusa] is the eternal companion of unit beings in their joys and
sorrows – not a God in the distant sky but an understanding Lord in the
house where they dwell." (SS-11)
Namaskar,
Jiivendra
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Baba says, "Da'd'imba [Pomegranate]. Its bark, roots, and fruits are all
very good medicines for all kinds of female diseases. In a'yurvaedic
schools of medicine, as practiced both in India and China,
these qualities of da'dimba are recognized." (NSS, '95, p.121)
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