So-Called Mahaprayan Came From Islam

Date: Sat, 08 Sep 2012 21:01:42 -0400
To: am-global@earthlink.net
From: "Riten Chattopadhyay"
Subject: So-Called Mahaprayan Came From Islam

Baba

== SO-CALLED MAHAPRAYAN CAME FROM ISLAM ==

Namaskar,
The so-called mahaprayan programme was copied from Islam. Here is the proof - read carefully.

JUST A RESULT OF APE PSYCHOLOGY

It is a natural human tendency to copy or emulate others. What they see others do, they also do. It is just a form of ape psychology. Apes imitate everything. Humans also have this tendency: To copy others.

In day to day life, people copy new fashions, new ways of eating, new ways of cheating as well as helping. People copy everything from others for their own use.

This is also the case with the dogma of mahaprayan. It is quite clear that the inventors of so-called mahaprayan copied their ways of observing "mahaprayan" from Islamic holy tomb worship.

Read below and you will find many striking similarities between (a) the 800 year old Islamic pilgrimage / gathering at Ajmer Sharif for the tomb worship of their great Sufi saint and (b) the recently invented so-called mahaprayan programme in Tiljala.

For instance, both programmes are exactly six days long and both employ many of the same rituals & tactics like tomb worship, prasad, money collection, mass feeding, asking for boons etc. The only real difference is language: Arabic versus Bangla and Sanskrit.

I wonder who copied from whom? Seeing that the Muslim ceremony has been going on since the 13th century, it is quite clear. Read below - it all becomes self-evident.

PAY HEED TO BABA'S WARNING

MUST ONLY FOLLOW HIS GUIDELINES

It is unfortunate that despite Almighty Baba's warnings about such dogmatic ways of worshiping Him, now His own so-called disciples are doing the very things He warned against. All His divine teachings of sadhana have been pushed aside and in place of that tomb worship has started.

Reverence to Baba means following His guidelines - not following the guidelines of the dogmatic religions in the name of Baba.

Baba Shrii Shrii Anandamurti ji has given thousands of discourses, but nowhere will you find instructions for observing so-called mahaprayan as it is going on now. Only in Islamic scriptures can you find such guidelines.

As sincere devotees of Baba we should follow all the sadhana lessons and meditate on Him, and study His spiritual teachings given in Subhasita Samgraha etc. We must not follow the dogma of Islam.

THE ISLAMIC DOGMA OF

DARGAH SHARIF OF AJMER IN RAJASTHAN, INDIA

WHICH IS SIMILAR TO MAHAPRAYAN DIVAS

Here following is a detailed, point by point listing of the Islamic tomb worship ceremony that is done by Muslims. See for yourself if this resembles the so-called mahaprayan programme in Tiljala

[1] "The six-day Urs (death ceremony or mahaprayan in Sanskrit) commemorates the death anniversary of the prophet Moin-ud-din Chisti. It is held in the Islamic month of Rajab, the time when the Khwaja (deceased saint) became one with Allah and died. Muslims from all over India and even abroad throng Ajmer during the festival."

[2] "Every year Urs (mahaprayan) is held here for six days in his remembrance. It is said that when he was 114 years old, the saint locked himself in a room for six days to pray and left his mortal body in solitude."

[3] "The Dargah (tomb) Sharif Ajmer, located at the foot of a barren hill, is the place where the Khawaja Moinuddin Chishti mortal remains lie buried. The Dargah (tomb) with a marble dome is situated in the center of a courtyard and is surrounded by a silver platform. It's believed that the shrine is a place of wish fulfillment for those who pray with devout and pure hearts."

[4] "The most important of all Muslim pilgrimage centers in India, the dargah (tomb) of Khwaja Moin-ud-din Chisti at Ajmer Sharif."

[5] "The shrine or tomb comes alive with activity when millions of devotees throng the shrine during Urs (mahaprayan) fair. Urs (mahaprayan) is held on the seventh lunar month according to Islamic calendar and is variable according to the solar calendar. Sufis and believers converge from all over India and abroad, as it is believed that those visiting during Urs (mahaprayan) receives special blessings of the saint."

[6] "The best time to visit is during the Dargah (tomb) Sharif of Ajmer in Rajasthan, India. The dargah (tomb) becomes a hub of activity in the seventh month of the lunar calendar when the Urs (Mahaprayan) is held to mark the death anniversary of the divine saint."

[7] "Several thousand devotees throng to this place during this time of the year and food is cooked in huge cauldrons and served to the devotees."

[8] "Upon arriving at the shrine, one has to make the entry from the Dargah (tomb) Bazaar. This would lead to the first courtyard. There is a mosque built by Emperor Akbar in this courtyard. There are also present two cauldrons or degs, where donations could be made."

"Devotees visit Ajmer Sharif to be blessed by the Khwaja (deceased saint). When their prayers are answered, their wishes fulfilled, they come again to offer the promised gilaf (velvet cloth), ittar (perfume), etc. Besides these offerings, they also recite the holy Qur'an (holy scripture), nafal namaz, milad and aayat-e-karima and khatam khawajgan."

"It is revered by people of all faiths. It is situated 135 km from Jaipur and is renowned for fulfilling the wishes of the followers. Apart from the devout Muslims, people of other religions throng the holy dargah (tomb) and pray for the fulfillment of their desires. The devotees also offer flowers, velvet cloth, perfume (non-alcoholic) and sandalwood at the shrine or tomb."

[9] "The dargah is the tomb of the sublime Sufi saint who came to Ajmer from Persia and died in 1236. It was built by emperor Humayun. Later, rulers like Shahjahan, Jahangir and Akbar also constructed mosques here."

[10] "Khidmat is the cleaning of the mazar (tomb) and offering fresh flowers to it. The ceremony is performed twice a day. In the early morning at 4.00 a.m., the main entrance of the tomb is opened with the call of azan (call of prayer). It is performed for about half an hour before the fajar prayer. Only khadims are allowed to perform the khidmat. The same ritual is performed at 3 p.m., though somewhat differently."

[11] "At this auspicious time, all the pilgrims are allowed inside except the ladies. Along with the offering of flowers, the khadims recite fateha and offer sandalwood, which is later distributed among the pilgrims."

[12] "The Urs (mahaprayan) begins with flag hoisting at the Buland Darwaza. The main entrance to the holy tomb remains open throughout the day and night, and the entire place is decked up with the special shops, lights and festoons."

[13] "The closing ceremony of the tomb is known as karka. It takes place an hour after the isha prayer. The custom is that 20 minutes before closing the door, as the fifth part of the night passes, a person calls to ring five and the clock sounds five times. The devotees present inside the tomb are asked to leave and three khadims clean and sweep the tomb. When the bell rings six times, the qawwals sing a special karka song. The doorways of the tomb are closed after the ceremony."

[14] "Qawwali (bhajan, kiirtan, devotional songs) is an integral part of the rituals here. A qawwali is a song in the praise of Allah. They are sung by the qawwals (devotional singer) at the Mehfil-e-Sama in front of the mazar (tomb) after the fajar namaz, magrib namaz, and isha namaz are over Qur'an Recital. The Qur'an recital takes place everyday at Jama Masjid (main jagrti) and Alamgir Masjid."

[15] "The dargah (tomb) has a special daily ceremony called the langar (free food of death ceremony) in which devotees are served wheat porridge cooked in a special grass. It is said that the same porridge was eaten by the Khwaja (deceased saint) himself. Even emperor Akbar used to stand in queue to take the langar (free food of death ceremony) along with other commoners. Devotees can go for the langar (free food of death ceremony) after commencing the isha prayer."

[16] "The Urs (mahaprayan) culminates with the Qul ceremony, which takes place on the last day. It is an extremely important day. The day commences with prayer in the morning, followed by the gathering of people at the holy tomb. A series of activities like the recital of the Qur'an (holy scripture like Subhasita Samgraha), Darood, Shijra-e-Chishtia and other verses follows this. Afterwards, people tie small turbans on each other's head and pray for welfare of the entire
community."

[17] "Hazrat Khwaja Moin-ud-din Chisti (deceased saint) was the founder of Islam in India. He was one of the greatest preachers in the world. The revered prophet undertook to propagate Islam in India by the most peaceful means and with great forbearance. When Khwaja (deceased saint) arrived, the Muslim community in India was not as large as it is now. The Khwaja (deceased saint), by his noble teaching, touched the hearts of everyone who came his way."

COMPARING THE TWO

Now compare both: The tomb worship in Ajmer and in Kolkata.

They (1) both have tomb worships; (2) both are 6-day programs of chanting and kiirtan; (3) both offer free shraddha food; (4) both are annual gatherings; (5) both entail requesting boons; and much more.

Plus in both observances, the worshipers think a great saint died. The dire irony of course is that one of these programs is related with a human being; and, humans do die. Whereas, the other - i.e. so-called mahaprayan - is related with Parama Purusa; and, Parama Purusa never dies.

So although Parama Purusa does not die, but those attending so-called mahaprayan think He has died. Thus, this point is similar in both programmes, since those at so-called mahaprayan feel He is gone forever.

The Muslim saint died and those followers think he died - so that is fine. With regards to Baba, the Parama Purusa incarnate, He did not die but so-called mahaprayan participants think He died. So from the participants' perspective it is 100% same. Both are death ceremonies. Both are ceremonies where people mourn and cry.

Thus, the Islamic programme in Ajmer and the so-called mahaprayan programme in Tiljala are strikingly similar. The latter (Tiljala mahaprayan) is an exact copy of the former (Islamic tomb worship in Ajmer).

WHY THEY COPIED IT: FINANCIAL REASON

Why did Sarvatmanand ji copy it? The answer is very simple. Several thousand Muslim priests enjoy their material life by the generous offerings of devotees who come each year for their annual death ceremony programme. It is lucrative programme for those priests. And Saravatmananda wanted the same type of situation. Financial and material gain then is one distinct reason behind the current so-called mahaprayan program.

Secondly, hosting a "mahaprayan" programme in Tiljala is supportive of their crude agenda of geo-sentiment. Those organisers of so-called mahaprayan want to make Tiljala the epicenter of Ananda Marga. For this, they know they must have something in Bengal to attract naive margiis - i.e. those who do not read Baba's books critically.

For those "mahaprayan" organisers, their goal is to portray Tiljala as a veritable tiirtha (pilgrimage) to attract money and people. By this way, they will gain fame and prestige as well.

BABA'S BLESSING

By Baba's grace we should strictly follow His below teaching and not turn any crude physical spot into a place of worship. Mahaprayan is just one copy of Islamic dogma - we must not fall in this trap. By His grace we are to realise Him within.

"Vya'pitvm ca...dine"

Baba says, "The Supreme Being is omnipresent, all-pervading and witness to everything, everywhere. It is not proper to confine Him to a particular place and say that He has eaten butter at this place or taken a dip in the Ganges at that particular place, thus limiting Him to a particular region or a particular country or the glorification of a particular sacred place, and thereby limit His all-pervasiveness" (Ananda Vacanamrtam - 11, p.29)

Namaskar,
Riten Chattopadhyay

Note 1: CAN ONLY BE A COPY OF ISLAMIC DOGMA

This type of death ceremony of Mahaprayan is only done in India by Muslims.

Lord Krsna, Lord Shiva, the mythological Rama, and all kinds of gods and goddesses from Hindu religion never die. Furthermore, nobody reaches to some spot to celebrate Lord Buddha's passing.

Hence so-called mahaprayan can only be a copy of Islamic dogma. It is quite obvious that Sarvatmananda ji wanted such a tiirtha related with the death so he copied Islam.

It is very disgraceful that when Parama Purusa does not die, even then the inventors and participants of "mahaprayan" treat Him as an ordinary mortal who dies.

I request participants to please consider and think about what you are doing. If you are not following Baba, He will not harm you, but nature will not spare you.

Note 2: THE DOGMA OF MAHAPRAYAN IS MULTIPLYING

Now is the critical moment, because as we speak this mahaprayan dogma is multiplying left and right.

In the last year or so, the followers of Ac Nigamanana Avt - most notably Dada Acintanandji - have constructed a tomb in Ananda Nagar for Nigamanandji. Such followers go there for boons etc. They think Nigamananda Dada will grace them. For this reason they built one tomb and visit it regularly.

Another case involves a few naive margiis who are observing the death day for their parents and ancestors on an annual basis. We all know the period of mourning in Ananda Marga is 10 - 12 days - within that period all observances for the deceased should be completed. So hosting an annual death day ceremony for your mother or grandfather is totally against the dictates of Ananda Marga. But if you oppose this matter, then those hosts say that Tiljala sponsors an annual mahaprayan function - we want to do the same. Such is their justification and logic.

We have to stop this - this tomb worship / mahaprayan cancer is growing. If we fail to take action now, we will see tombs everywhere. This dogma will take various shapes and forms. Now is the time it should be addressed, and ultimately stopped.

Note 3: SEE AND READ ABOUT THE DOGMATIC MUSLIM TOMB

Here is a webpage highlighting the 6-day dogmatic Islamic tomb worship programme upon which the so-called mahaprayan programme is based.

http://www.dargahajmersharif.com/Urs%20Ajmer%20Sharif.htm

PRABHAT SAMGIITA

"A'mi toma'r na'me toma'r gane jiivan ka't'a'bo..."  (P.S. 2455)

Purport:

Baba, You are the be-all and end all of my life. You are my everything. I will spend my whole life singing Your song and propagating Your glory, by Your grace. I will satiate my heart, by pleasing You in all the ways: doing Your sadhana and executing the work that You like.  

Baba, it is the eternal law of this creation that whoever has taken birth will go. Coming and going is the Cosmic rule. Nobody can take anything along with them. Only one thing goes along - Your love & Your devotion. That remains always - in this world as well as that. Baba, I will only get You when I move on Your path ceaselessly, by Your grace.

Baba, I do not know where You reside. Wherever You are, close or distant, please always keep me next to Your eyes. Baba, by Your grace, with the pull of my longing and love, I will bring You close. And when You are sitting next to me then I will sing the song for You to listen to, up to Your heart's content.

Baba, let every moment of my life pass in pleasing You. Baba, please shower Your divine compassion on me so I can march forward on the path which reaches unto You...