Ista Mantra and Guru Mantra

Date: 03 Jul 2010 20:50:43 -0000 From: "Subhash Dholakia" To: am-global@earthlink.net Subject: Ista Mantra and Guru Mantra Baba "Tava bha'loba'sa' keno ashru ma'kha', he devata'..." (PS 1781) Purport: O' my Lord, those who love You desperately want to get You more and more close; they long for You and cry for You but You do not come. Baba, You are the Divine One then why is Your love drenched in tears. Baba, sometimes You come close and smile sweetly in my mind and other times You remain far and my mind is just involved in worldly thoughts and crude desires. Baba, why is Your coming and going shrouded in mystery; please tell Your tales-- Your ways. O' my dearmost, please tell me why You do like this. Baba, various jinana sadhakas try to know You through their intellectual pursuits. But by this way their heart cannot get drenched in Your divine love. Baba, You do not allow Yourself to be held by the philosophy or material science. Rather You remain far, far away; You do not come close to such jinanis. One cannot get You with the vanity of darshan (mundane theory) or with the pride of vijinana (worldly knowledge). Baba, I want to have You close, but in spite of my repeated asking and requests You do not tell me what You want. You do not reveal to me how I can hold You in my heart. You do not tell me the answer; You just keep quiet-- smiling. Baba, even then how sweet You are: You love me so much and You come close to shower me in Your love. Such a sweetness. Baba, You are Love Personified. You have bound me in the bond of Your love; this is nothing but Your causeless grace, O' my Dearmost. Baba, You do not give shelter to vain persons. Those who are arrogant and egoistic do not surrender themselves at Your alter; they are unable to realise You. Baba, by Your grace You remove the all the ailments from the mind, including vanity and ego. Jinanis drown themselves in the psychic disease of ahamkara [1] (ego), but by Your grace You dispel the fog of arrogance from their mind after pulverizing their ego. Baba, You are so gracious. You understand the upsurge of devotional love, and You are radiant with that soft and tender love. O my dearmost, with Your ever-flowing grace You saturate everything with Your love and sweetness. Baba, You Yourself are divine and Your beauty is unfathomable. Baba, please come in my heart... ASTERISK NOTES (*): [1] "A'hamka're prashreya na'hi da'o, rucivika're sudu're sara'o...": This is the first line of the third stanza of the above Prabhat Samgiita (PS #1781) where Baba is warning us about the hazards of ego and vanity etc. By this way we can understand so many of Baba's teachings, nay the whole of AM philosophy, is represented in a concentrated manner in Prabhat Samgiita. So Baba's divine discourses elaborate on those seed form ideas which He has given in Prabhat Samgiita. Here then in one of His discourses Baba warns sadhakas in detail about the dangers of aham'ka'ra and explains how it comes in three various forms. And side by side He also gives the solution. Baba says, "The aham'ka'ra [pride] that creeps into a person due to the acquisition of jina'na has very serious repercussions in human life. It can lead to the complete downfall of the individual. Aham'ka'ra falls into three basic types, and each of the types brings disastrous results: "The first type of aham'ka'ra is called abhima'nam, which means that a person thinks that he deserves more than what he is getting; and consequently develops an overbearing attitude towards everyone." "Gaorava is the second type of aham'ka'ra. It means 'self-aggrandizement'. Puffed up with vanity, a person will want to project his image in an exaggerated manner.Often we hear somebody say, for example, that they have a rose the size of a balloon in their garden - whereas actually the rose may be the size of a ping-pong ball. Constant indulgence in this type of activity converts the mind into matter." "The third type of aham'ka'ra is [the desire for] pratis't'ha' - the desire to make oneself known. A person influenced by [the desire for] pratis't'ha' expects respect from everyone, and hankers after name and fame." "After having analysed the various types of aham'ka'ra and their evil effects, we need to examine the ways and means of getting rid of these defects." "In order to get rid of abhima'na, one will have to cultivate the habit of being polite and humble. Just as a [blade of grass] may lie on the ground [underfoot], but does not, through its remaining humble, lose its importance, so a person will never become insignificant by being humble. Humility such as that of the [blade of grass] can alone save a person from abhima'na." "A person who is always engaged in the thought of his pratis't'ha' must learn how to care about the respect and prestige of others. Such a person must never forget that respect begets respect, and that he should always honour those who are not honoured by anyone. A constant practice of this type will remove the evil effects of the desire for pratis't'ha'." "And finally, a person who moves about puffed up with vanity and arrogance, and is always engaged in gaorava, self-aggrandizement, will be able to improve only by utilizing his time in kiirtana. If a person keeps himself engaged in kiirtana, that person will not have time to criticize and slander anyone in order to project his own image by comparison and contrast." "Therefore spiritual aspirants who have set their eyes on Parama Purus'a as their goal must always strive to get rid of aham'ka'ra, and gain the full benefits of jina'na and karma, so as to arouse and enliven bhakti, which is the only road to the journey's end." (AV-23, p.104-110) So we should always remember how Baba has given His entire philosophy in Prabhat Samgiita and that it is His usual way to give long discourse about a single Prabhat Samgiita. You may remember that in one DMC the purport of one Prabhat Samgiita became an entire RU discourse: 'Humanity on the Threshold of a New Era'. By all this it is quite evident that Baba's Prabhat Samgiita compositions hold great meaning and contain innumerable eternal truths. So we should cultivate the practice of learning Prabhat Samgiita more and more. Baba has given the tradition that during our DMS gatherings, dharmacakra, social functions, and spiritual retreats etc, the organisers should not give their own silly lectures but rather utilise the time in giving the purports of Baba's divine Prabhat Samgiita. By this way each and every A'nanda Ma'rgii will learn the entire social and spiritual philosophy of the vast AM ideology.

== ISTA MANTRA AND GURU MANTRA ==

Namaskar, During the second week of January 1979, I attended one of Baba's general darshans. And on that occasion by His sweet grace He beautifully explained the essential quality and inner spirit of both the Ista mantra and Guru mantra.

THE INTIMACY OF OUR ISTA MANTRA

In His description of the Istra mantra, Baba began by telling that in our family life, there are various ways to communicate with one another, such as in the personal relation between a mother and her son. For instance, if the son's given name is Ram Kumar then naturally the mother does not always like to address her son by his formal or legal name of Ram Kumar. Rather, in the closeness of their day to day living the mother affectionately calls him 'Ramu'. So the nickname 'Ramu' is one loving way for the mother to address her son. Similar is case in the relation between the bhakta and Parama Purusa. Parama Purusa has countless official names or formal titles-- one for each of His infinite attributions. But all along there is one very special & meaningful way for the devotee to call Parama Purusa: That is with one's Ista Mantra. This is the very personal and intimate way for the bhakta to call Parama Purusa. As we all know "Ista" means 'most loving', 'most dear', 'most intimate' etc. So our Ista Mantra is one very loving way for the bhakta to devotionally address Parama Purusa. Thus when we repeat or chant of Ista mantra we are calling Parama Purusa. That is the speciality of our Ista mantra.

THE SPECIALITY OF GURU MANTRA

And with respect to Guru mantra, Baba has also given a special description. Baba graciously guides us that when we do any action in this world then we have to remember that Guru is along with us. When we think that Parama Purusa is indeed watching our each and every move, then that itself is Guru mantra: 'Parama Purusa is watching me. Wherever I am-- I am never alone-- constantly He is watching me'. This is the feeling behind Guru mantra, our second lesson also known as madhuvidya. Here are more postings about the importance and practice of second lesson: A) This is one special Baba story how second lesson protects sadhakas from danger and disaster.

http://am-global-01.blogspot.com/2009/01/baba-story-power-of-guru-mantra.html

B) This below shows how closely related bath mantra is to second lesson.

http://am-global-01.blogspot.com/2009/08/not-just-ritual.html

C) In the following letter Baba guides us how we are always to remember second lesson.

http://am-global-01.blogspot.com/2009/10/do-you-eat-sweets.html

D) Here is one special Baba story related with second lesson.

http://am-global-01.blogspot.com/2009/09/story-baba-sends-money-to-devotee.html

CONCLUSION: CALLING AND REMEMBERING HIM

So by our Ista mantra we are 'lovingly calling' Parama Purusa and in the Guru mantra we remember that 'He is watching me'. These are the beautiful ways Baba has described these mantras in His special darshan that day. So in our devotional life we are to practice these two mantras accordingly. In the repetition of our Ista mantra we are calling out to Parama Purusa in a deeply loving and personal way-- requesting His close proximity. And by our Guru mantra we recall His ever-present gaze, helping to keep the spontaneity and presence of Guru in our daily actions & spiritual lives. Namaskar, Subhash

Note 1: HIS INFINITE COMPASSION

When any sadhaka is sincerely calling Parama Purusa through the repetition of their Ista mantra then if the sadhaka's mind is wandering here and there, even then Parama Purusa feels great compassion in His heart for that devotee and He lovingly responds. It is just like if one baby tries to speak to its mother but cannot due to its insufficient strength, then that time the mother understands the baby's desire and she responds with all motherly love. Similarly Parama Purusa cannot sit idle or remain aloof whenever any sadhaka calls Him. Rather then and there the devotee's call resonates in His heart and He responds.

Note 2: MEANING AND USE OF ISTA MANTRA

Baba says, "And regarding one's Is't'a mantra - first, what's the meaning of Is't'a? Is't'a means "loving", "favourite", "dear", "attractive", "goal", "terminus", "desideratum"." (AV-23, 'Omnkara and Ista Mantra') Baba says, "For a sa'dhaka, the most valuable thing is his Is't'a Mantra. With the help of the Is't'a Mantra or his personal incantation, a sa'dhaka will attain enlightenment." (SS-18, 'The Lord and His Name')

Note 3: SPIRIT OF GURU MANTRA-- MADHUVIDYA

Baba says, "He is the witness of all the worlds, all the deeds done in this universe. Nothing is secret for Him. You cannot do anything nor think anything without being witnessed by Him. If anyone says, 'I am not being witnessed by anybody,' He will be witnessing this utterance. So as the witnessing Entity He is always with you. This is the greatest assurance, because when you know that He is with you, your mental strength will increase a thousand-fold, because He is always with you to help you...you are never alone, you are never weak, you are never helpless. So the duty of a perfect human being, the duty of a spiritual aspirant is always to remember this supreme truth - that one is never alone, one is always with Supreme Father. He will always help you." (Istanbul, 1979)