Mahaprayan of Ac Pran'ava'nanda Avt

Date: Mon 08 Mar 2010 11:20:47 -0000 (GMT) From: Singh_Manindra Subject: Mahaprayan of Ac Pran'ava'nanda Avt To: AM-GLOBAL Baba

== MAHAPRAYAN* (Death) AC PRAN'AVA'NANDA AVT ==

Namaskar, Sadly we have lost a dear soul in one of our esteemed acaryas. The mahaprayan of respected Dada Pran'ava'nandji occurred at noon time on Sunday 07 March. Dadaji succumbed to double kidney failure and related illnesses. It is with sadness, reverence and sweet memories that we announce his mahaprayan. Acarya Pran'ava'nandji was a very senior worker known to nearly everyone in AM. He entered the Marga in 1962 and carried out his duties faithfully for nearly 50 years. He was well known for serving as COS (Central Office Secretary) for years and years when Baba was running the organisation. As COS, Dadaji was also instrumental in the examination process for tattvika and acarya candidates. He also had tremendous energy for organisational works and had direct oversight in the construction of so many buildings. Although he spent the days of his youth in Uttar Pradesh, there is no doubt that Pran'ava'nanda dedicated his life to the upliftment of the entire humanity. With his strong work ethic and keen intellect, he helped propagate AM ideology in so many regions of the globe. From his posting in Kullu to his travels overseas, Dadaji was a strong personality. And he will be dearly missed. At the time of his mahaprayan, Acarya Pran'ava'nanda was 67 years of age. On the occasions of his mahaprayan (death), let us remember our dear Dadaji who led a great career in Ananda Marga. It is with much sadness & sweet memories that we bid adieu to our dear respected bother. At least now his long struggle with illness is over. We can all take solace in the fact that he has reached his final destination unto Baba's lap. Baba has taken it upon Himself to save Dadaji and grant him salvation. With deepest respects, Yours brotherly, Manindra * Mahaprayan (Death): Many are aware that mahaprayan (death) is the common term used in India and especially in Bengal to describe the death of an honoured or even ordinary person. In that way the newspapers of Bengal are regularly citing the mahaprayan (death) of various persons of society who died or passed away. Some may get confused and wrongly think that the word 'mahaprayan' (death) is one extraordinarily devotional term to be used in association with Parama Purusa. But that is not at all the case. Rather to do so is only to undermine the eternal presence of Parama Purusa. That is why no devotees ever use the word 'mahaprayan' in reference to Lord Shiva or Lord Krsna and Shrii Shri Anandamurtiji. Because Lord Shiva and Lord Krsna exist eternally. Then there is no question of Their mahaprayan (death). And for those who need still more technical proof then all this can be clarified quite readily by referencing the dictionary. Specifically in the Samsad Bengali-English dictionary on page 742. Checking there it will be confirmed that the word 'mahaprayan' means death. Which is why it used to refer to the passing away of even common citizens.

Itiha'sa Should Be Written

From: "Seshagiri Deva" To: am-global@earthlink.net Subject: Itiha'sa Should Be Written Date: Mon, 08 Mar 2010 10:54:26 +0530 Baba "Toma'ke cena' na'hi ja'y..." (P.S. 2089) Purport: Baba, it is not possible to recognize You. When I think that I have recognized You, then my consciousness gets completely enveloped by the Cimmerian darkness. Baba, Your divine Presence shifts from one extreme to the next. On the one side You are so tough and other times You are very soft and sweet. Baba, sometimes You are vehemently sounding Your sermons by the beating of the marching drum and blowing of the military trumpets; and on other occasions You are smiling sweetly and showering Your causeless grace with the flower pollen. Baba, such is Your beauty. O' Baba, in the end, in the lonely, isolated moment, I see that everything happens by Your grace. What You desire that is what happens-- that is the final truth. O' Parama Purusa Baba, in Your grand Kingdom, everything belongs to You. I cannot boast that anything is mine; indeed to think that something is mine is a crime. Because everything is created by You-- this whole expressed universe is Your mental projection. Then how can I say that anything is mine. Baba, only You are mine; everyone is Yours. Baba, everyone longs for Your karuna'-- divine compassion. Baba, to recognize You is not possible without Your grace. Baba only with the showering of Your grace can one realise You-- otherwise not. Baba please grace me...

== ITIHA'SA SHOULD BE WRITTEN ==

Namaskar, All Baba's discourses should be named in the proper way-- according to His system. No title should mislead or go against the spirit of His teachings. Here following is a discussion about the naming of one of His historic discourses. We should consider whether justice has been done to Baba's discourse or not.

TYPES OF WRITING

Before getting to the title of the discourse, we should examine Baba's guidlines on literature. We know that there are various types of writing such as kavya, purana, itikatha, and itihasa etc. And each of these categories has their own special qualities and distinguishing features. For example kavyas are known for their beauty, puranas are a type of mythology, itikatha is a chronology of events or history etc. Baba says, "Kavya might not be real, but the way of expression is lucid and beautiful. 'Vakvam rasatmakam Kavyam'- stories which were narrated in a graceful language were known as 'kavya'." (MHB, p.2) Baba says, "Purana (mythology). In it the stories told are not real but have educative value. Therefore it has its value in society. For instance, the Ramayana is a purana." (MHB, p.2) Baba says, "Itikatha is also known as 'purakatha', 'itivrtta', 'puravrtta' etc in Samskrta. It is known as 'history' in English." (MHB, p.3) So like that in easy to understand, crystal-clear fashion Baba has clarified the terms kavya, purana, and itikatha for us. And in similar fashion Baba has done the same with the term itiha'sa. Despite that, one or two persons remain confused to the extent that such translators are wrongly titling Baba's discourses.

THE TRUE MEANING OF ITIHA'SA

Here Baba describes the speciality of the term itiha'sa.

"Iti hasiti ityarthe itiha'sah"

Meaning: "A resplendent reflection of collective life whose study will be of immense inspiration for future generations. "Iti hasati" literally means, "glowing example of glorious human dignity." (PNS-8, p. 24) And Baba here furthermore is describing the uniqueness of the itihasa term:

Dharma'rtha ka'ma moks'a'rtham Niiti va'kya samanvitam' Pura'vrta katha'yuktam'itiha'sah pracaks'ate

Thus in the above shloka Baba guides us that in itiha'sa there a minimum of seven key ingredients which in totality transcend all the layers of life in all the directions. Itihasa has: [1] dharma (psycho-spiritual development), [2] artha (that which relieves pain), [3] ka'ma (mundane longings), [4] moksa (salvation), [5] niiti (morality), [6] pura'vrta (facts and records), [7] katha (stories). All these factors are components of itihasa. Thus itiha'sa is a unique, diverse, and complete approach for encapsulating the trials and glories of human existence. Baba says, "Itiha'sa is that...which a man gets the fruits of caturvarga-- dharma, artha, kama and moks'a-- as well as a system of the do's and don'ts of niiti." (MHB, p.3)

ITIHASA HAS NO EQUIVALENT ENGLISH TERM

By this we can understand that itihasa is one unique type of term that has no English equivalent. Thus Itihasa cannot be translated directly into any single English word such as 'history'. And in clear-cut language Baba reveals this very fact: Baba says, "Let me tell you at the very outset that the English word 'history' and the Sam'skrta word itiha'sa are not synonymous." (PNS-21, p.1) Then Baba goes on to explain further that the English word 'history' instead means itikatha. Which as we read above is vastly different from the term itiha'sa. Baba says, "The chronological record of past events which is called "history" in English should be called itikatha'&in Sam'skrta." (PNS-21, p.1) Baba says, "Itikatha. In English this is known as "history". Itikatha is a chronology of events. In itikatha there is simply a collection of different happenings. In it the author bothers little about the educative value of the affairs. People at large derive little benefit from knowing the dates of birth and death of different kings." (MHB, p.2) Thus the English term 'history' meaning itikatha has nothing to do with itiha'sa. The term history is comparatively flat and wholly fails to carry any of the vitality, insight, or dynamism which the term itiha'sa portrays. Baba says, Itiha'sa is "A resplendent reflection of collective life whose study will be of immense inspiration for future generations. "Iti hasati" literally means, "glowing example of glorious human dignity." (PNS-8, p. 24) Thus the English term history falls far short of the mark. And it refers to itikatha'-- NOT itiha'sa. So as huge as these practical and philosphical differences are, even then top of all Baba's commanding opinion is there. Baba says, "Let me tell you at the very outset that the English word 'history' and the Sam'skrta word itiha'sa are not synonymous." (PNS-21, p.1) Clearly then the term itiha'sa cannot be translated as 'history'. Yet certain translators of Baba Prout discourses have swapped out the itihasa term and replaced it with the English term- history. Here below is more of the story how this negative affair happened.

BABA'S HISTORIC DISCOURSE

In Patna DMC in January 1980 Baba is giving the discourse and guiding us that Itiha'sa should be written. The point being that up till now the past history has been written in such a way where those in power were just telling about how they themselves were great kings and queens etc. Means in their own way the leaders of each of the eras -- ksattriyan, vipran, veashyan etc-- were just selfishly preaching about their own magnificence. Baba says, "History Books are selected in order to establish the glory of a particular era. For example, the heroic tales of the chivalry of the Ksattriyas form the main basis for the writing of the history of the Ks'attriya era." (PNS-8, p. 25) And like that the leaders of all the eras followed this negative trend. So straight-away Baba rejects this misguided manner of recounting the past. Baba says, "Unfortunately, the biased history is always written according to the dictates of the ruling class of different countries. The study of this biased history is detrimental to society. It should not occur." (PNS-8, p.26) Then Baba guides us that we are to create a full-fledge, colorful picture of the whole society. One which tells how society developed, how the problems were solved, and how the people lived. And such type of comprehensive, honest, educative, and dharmic account is known as Itiha'sa. Plus about the speciality of Itiha'sa Baba tells the following. Baba says, Itiha'sa is "that treatise alone which increases human beings' arena of spiritual awareness and thus renders the intellect more subtle, which enhances the knowledge of various branches of art and science - such as literature, fine art, pure science, technology, social science, etc - and which places human beings on a firm foundation."(PNS-8, p. 25) By all it is quite clear that Itihasa itself is a unique approach. And in that Patna discourse of January 1980 Baba is guiding us about the great import of Itihasa. And He is telling that Itihasa should be written-- not history.

DISCOURSE TALKS SOMETHING AND HEADING IS SOMETHING ELSE

And by Baba's grace I was present there in that Patna DMC where Baba is giving this discourse in Hindi and He is telling that itihasa should be written. But later on when the book got published then in the English edition certain translators wrongly put heading of the discourse as 'Let History Be Rewritten' etc. When the English term 'history' has a completely different meaning-- one which is more limited and static in nature. That's why the word 'history' is equated with the Sanskrit word itikatha-- not itiha'sa. Baba says, "Itikatha is also known as 'history' in English." (MHB, p.3) So unfortunately all this got wrongly translated. Because in the Patna discourse Baba is revealing the deep significance of itiha'sa. And that itiha'sa covers all the realms of human existence and that it has no English equivalent word. Baba says, "Let me tell you at the very outset that the English word "history" and the Sam'skrta word itiha'sa are not synonymous." (PNS-21, p.1) But even then the translators wrongly titled Baba two discourses about itiha'sa. And they translated the itiha'sa term itself as 'history'. In that way they did a big blunder and gave the misleading title(s): (1) What History Should Be Like and (2) Let History Be Rewritten. When in fact Baba clearly guides us that history is not the equivalent of itihasa.

SOLUTION: FOLLOW BABA'S EXAMPLE BABA HAS SET THE TREND TO USE SANSKRIT WORDS IN THE TITLE

In numerous discourses Baba has led the way by placing various headings in the Sanskrit language. Such as the discourse 'The Glory of Kiirtan'. Here we do not translate the Sanskrit 'Kiirtan' term as devotional chanting etc. Rather the Kiirtan term is kept in its original Sanskrit as it gives a more pointed meaning and also because there is not a proper equivalent English term. And not just in that example. But there are many, many occasions where Baba has assigned Sanskrit terms in the English headings of His discourses. Words such as Sadhana, Ista, Yoga, Diiks'a', Mantra, Guru, Dharma to name a few. And in that way there are English discourses titled as: 'Guru Puja' (AV-3), 'The Importance of Diiks'a' (DT-2), 'What is Dharma?' (APH-1), 'The Forms of Sadhana' (SS-1), 'Dharma Sadhana' (AV-31), 'Satya' (GHC), 'Where There is Dharma There is Ista' (SS) etc etc.

ITIHASA SHOULD BE WRITTEN...

So when such above listed discourses contain Sanskrit words and those are not translated into English but are kept in their original Sanskrt and used in the title. And when Baba Himself has set this trend. Then, in the same way, the discourse at hand should be titled as 'Let History Be Rewritten' .

... BUT INSTEAD THE TERM BABA REJECTS WAS PUT IN THE TITLE

Because here Baba is opening new Vistas by introducing the term itihasa and demonstrating how it is different from the English term 'history'. Thus when the translators use that very term-- i.e. history-- which Baba has rejected and they are using the history term in the title of the discourse. Then that is misleading. Since in that very discourse itself and in numerous other discourses Baba goes to great lengths to differentiate the two terms-- history and itihasa. Means on multiple occasions Baba has objected to the use of the English term 'history' in place of Itiha'sa. And in that way, by this mistranslation, these precious discourses have lost their charm. Means they became tainted. So the titles of all such discourses should be corrected. Because Guru's teaching is divine and it should not be altered or placed in the wrong way such that it misguides the readers. Here it should also be added that not just in the title but throughout these two discourses the translators have splattered the word 'history' such that not just the title but indeed the entire discourse is outright misleading. Thus it gives the reader a convoluted and wrong understanding of Baba's discourse. So those who do not have the capacity to do translation work should give up the job. They should not ruin Baba's divine gifts and mislead others.

MOVING TOWARDS A BRIGHT FUTURE

Baba guides us that by studying the past and present according to the dharmic guidelines of itiha'sa-- "people will gain inspiration and derive great strength to move ahead." (PNS-8, p. 28) Namaskar, Seshagiri Note 1: Up till now, the itiha'sa term has been commonly used in India; but in the name of Itiha'sa all people do is write traditional history. Because they mostly just translate overseas history books and then categorize or label them as itiha'sa. So this is not proper. For this reason when speaking to the audience in Patna, Baba guides us that Itiha'sa should be written. Note 2: The English version of these two discourses are printed in Prout Nutshell part 8. So anyone can review this whole matter by consulting that Prout-8 book which contains the discourses, 'Let History Be Rewritten' & 'What History Should Be Like'. Plus the first discourse of Prout 21 titled 'History and Superstition' and the first chapter of the book 'Discourses of the Mahabharata' are also good resources for this entire topic of the true meaning of itiha'sa etc. Note 3: All the negative translation errors noted in this entire letter were done by Jayanta (SUVA). The main point being that unqualified people such as J should not get the scope to do translation work. Baba says, "When the question of social responsibility arises, it should be considered with care and caution. Irresponsible people cannot be entrusted with social responsibility." (PNS-7, p. 60) About the present era Baba furthermore guides us. Baba says, "Those who are selected for discharging social responsibilities do not possess the necessary qualities [morality]. They have occupied the posts either for money or for recommendation, but no social good has been accomplished." (PNS-7, p. 61) Baba finally warns us: Baba says, "If power is given to an incompetent person, it is the equivalent to leading society astray in cold blood." (PNS 7- p.61)

**************************************** Slowly Moving Towards Cemetery

Baba says, "Human beings often attached less importance to the spiritual aspect of nitya karma and more importance to the physical aspect. This is detrimental because one should not forget that human life is short while act is long. From the very moment of birth one slowly and steadily advances towards death with every passing moment of time. This short period of time from birth to death is human life. Human beings have come from the world of invisibility and at the end of this short span of time will return to the land of invisibility. Those people can be called intelligent who utilised every moment of their short life engaged in spiritual practice." (APH-4, p. 251)

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Understanding Their Mindset

Date: 07 Mar 2010 13:56:44 -0000 From: "Sudhakar Pandit" To: am-global@earthlink.net Subject: Understanding Their Mindset Baba "Bha'lobesechi a'mi toma'y, jar'ata'r yato a'hva'n..." (P.S. 4628) Purport: Baba, I am loving You. No matter how intoxicating the worldly attractions & crude allurements are; no matter how much they call out to me and try to pull me, in my heart I know that this is not Your divine attraction. Baba, by Your grace, I understand that these crude things will not bring me under Your divine shelter. Whatever flowers are blossoming today, tomorrow they will wither away. The mala which was smiling in vibrant colours, tomorrow it will become one with the dust. This is how this changing, panoramic universe unfolds; this is the way this transitory world works. This is Your divine liila. Nothing in this world is permanent. Baba, by Your grace, this spiritual truth You have made me understand. Baba, when the dark night ends then the shining and glittering moon becomes faded and faint. It loses its charm. Baba, in the most loving and beautiful way, in the end ultimately everything gets its place at Your lotus feet. That is the final stance of this grand creation. Baba, by Your grace You have made me understand that all these worldly attractions do not lead unto You. Baba, You have given me samvit and awakened to the fact that these worldly allurements are not meaningful. Baba, all this is Your unfathomable divine grace...

== UNDERSTANDING THEIR MINDSET ==

Namaskar, Everyone has their own mindset and with that mental outlook they express themselves. For instance, various people have their own way of describing Baba. Indira Gandhi characterized Him as a magician who was a threat to her reign; the communists and political leaders thought He had the chicanery to attract followers and befool the people; bhaktas think He is Parama Purusa; and some groupists have their own style. It all depends upon one's mindset. Let's look at a correspondence from long ago in order to gain insight into a particular mindset that is still prevalent today.

PK CHATTERJEE'S LETTER TO CANDRANATHJI

In the post 1990 era, Ac Candranthji requested Pranay Kumar Chatterjee (aka Rtambar) to write him about his experiences with Baba, realisations in sadhana, as well as what circumstances led him to leave the Marga. As many will recall, PK Chatterjee was the first General Secretary of AMPS who worked tirelessly for AM in the early years. And then, in this Divine liila, PK Chatterjee drifted away from Ananda Marga for many years. Even then, we should not think of him as just an ordinary citizen - he still had devotional feeling for Baba. So Candranathji wrote him to learn the details and gather the history of those early days with Baba. In his reply, PK Chatterjee wrote Candranathji about his entire history in AM. And when talking about his laukik family, PK Chatterjee wrote in his letter on page 3 about the day that his mother died. To express that event, PK Chatterjee, a native Bengali speaker, used the word "mahaprayan". That was how he described his laukik mother's death - i.e. mahaprayan. Then, in his book of 2006, Ham Nahin Bhu'lenge (We Will Never Forget), Ac Candranathji recounts this aspect of PK Chatterjee's life, and on page 24 he also used the term "mahaprayan" to refer to the death of PK Chatterjee's laukik mother.

WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN

Here the point is that the term "mahaprayan" is the normal word Bengali speaking people use to describe the death of a respected human being, such as PK Chatterjee's mother. Indeed, PK Chatterjee himself used this word, as did Ac Candranathji. The mahaprayan term then is not some special devotional term to describe the physical departure of Taraka Brahma. No doubt, Sarvatmananda is selling the term as such and he himself coined the mahaprayan term in AM. But the fact remains it is a term used regularly for the death of respected and even normal human beings. That is its usage in Bengali. The fact that Sarvatmananda has used such an ordinary and common term for Baba speaks more about Sarvatmananda's own mindset than Baba's true stature. In his groupist paradigm, Sarvatmananda has less regard for Baba, that is why he has repeatedly indulged in distorting AM books etc. No one who has great reverence for Baba as being the Parama Purusa would do such a thing like purposefully ruin Baba's original discourses. But Sarvatmananda did. And it is with that same mindset that Sarvatmananda has applied a word, i.e. mahaprayan, to describe the physical departure of Taraka Brahma. By understanding Sarvatmananda's mindset, we can understand his actions like the invention of the mahaprayan term and function. And we can also understand whether we should support such things, or not.

MUST THINK BEFORE RALLYING AROUND

As disciples of Baba we should think carefully. Just as we do not rally around the way that Indira Gandhi or the communists have described Baba, similarly we should use our viveka before rallying around the way certain groupists have classified Baba by their term, "mahaprayan".

BABA'S WARNING: DON'T BE SWAYED BY GROUPIST AGENDAS

According to Baba, so many groupists and jinanis come onto this earth with their own personal agendas and narrow-minded objectives. The dogma of the mahaprayan program is one such example. Baba warns us about such things again and again.

Maha'jano yena gatah sah pantha'

Baba says, "So many scriptures say so many things, and they are sometimes contradictory to one another. Now what to do? What is an ordinary man to do? Whom to follow and whom not to follow? “Smrtayoh vibhinna'h”. There are so many social codes in the world. Whom to follow and whom not to follow? And amongst intellectuals [and groupists] there are so many – there are diversities of opinion. One intellectual doesn’t [[carry]], doesn’t recommend, doesn’t support, the views of others. And it is the greatest weakness of intellectuals [and groupists] that they always encourage disunity. They always support heterogeneity. And one spiritual aspirant, once upon a time, remarked that these intellectuals [and groupists] are polished satans." (AV-12) Life is too short to be swayed by the mindset and agenda of various groupists. They will always try to lure you away from dharma and into their own camp. That is what such groupists do. They will take a mundane term like mahaprayan and try to project it as being one great spiritual event. When in fact the term mahaprayan is just an ordinary word. Yet they have taken this word for their own agenda and applied it to Baba. We are not to be guided by such persons.

BABA'S BLESSING

By Baba's grace, we are to follow the practical yogi - those who have dyed their hearts and minds in His colour, not in the trappings of any groupist strategy. The ways that both PK Chatterjee and Ac Candranathji employed the term mahaprayan in their writings shows that this word is just meant to depict the death of human beings - it is not to be used for Parama Purusa. Yet, due to their own own mindset, some groupists would have you believe otherwise. We should not be swayed by their logic. Ours is the path of truth and dharma, not narrow-mindedness and groupist agendas. Baba says, "So you are to follow the path, you are to follow the cult, and you are to do according to the approaches of the aspirants of the past, the kaolas of the past. You are to be practical in your life of occult science. Your only object of ideation is Parama Purus'a, and not any dogma, nor any scripture." (AV-12) Namaskar, Sudhakar

******************************************** Pracar

Baba says, "There is a secret technique to raise this serpentine coil [kulakundalinii]. Previously this technique was not clearly given. At that time some people thought it proper to keep it secret. If something harmful to individual or collective life is not given, that is good; but the useful things must be given. People will be more attracted to do sadhana." (DKG, p. 22) Note 1: In Baba's above guideline He is telling that all useful teachings must be imparted to the society, i.e. to the common people. Unfortunately, all too often there was the prevalent dogma in the past in India where so-calledgurus did not like to share all their knowledge or reveal all of their techniques to their disciples. Those gurus were thinking they should keep something 'special' for themselves otherwise their prestige and own value will be lost. So they did not tell all those good things and they died withholding those special techniques from the people. In that case, their disciples only got 99% or so of what the guru knew-- not everything, not that last 1%. Gradually then from one generation to the next, 1% of the teachings kept getting withheld until finally everything got completely diluted. And now in places like India in the name of spirituality, only dogma is left. And it is due to the fact that gurus were withholding dharmic teachings. This applies to other fields as well such as medicine etc. This same type of withholding of information and technique occurs. This dogma and defective way must be stopped. Note 2: Baba has given the idea in Namah Shivaya Shantaya that when one gets proper students who are eager and capable, then in that case tell them everything. Do not withhold any information or keep anything secret. That will be disservice to the society.

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