AvadhootaDatta Peetham

Speeches of HH Sri Ganapathy Sachchidananda Swamiji - November 11, 2015 - Bengaluru

Compiled by Smt Hira Duvvuri

Speech in the morning

Sri Maha Ganapataye Namaha
Sri Saraswatyai Namaha
Sripada Vallabha Narasimha Saraswati
Sri Guru Dattatreyaya Namaha

You have heard from Swamiji many things about Deepavali, in Telugu, Kannada, and Tamil, the story of Krishna and Satyabhama killing the demon Narakasura, how the celebration took place and why, how people lived in darkness when their children were captured by Narakasura and kept under his control. People lived in darkness without lighting any lamps. In Rajasthan, and Madhya Pradesh areas, and all the way to the Himalayas, Narakasura’s power had spread. He could not be vanquished by any of the kings. Such a one was killed by Sri Krishna and Satyabhama. This happened on a new moon day. Some people are afraid of the dark night of new moon. But there is no need to fear. New moon is also an auspicious day. Yatiswaras and ascetics find the new moon to be very favorable. That is why the false notion about the day should be given up.

Lighting a lamp signifies removal of ignorance from our minds, and the dawning of spiritual wisdom. Some traditions are passed on from generation to generation. Some customs follow the scriptures. Just follow either one. Otherwise just keep quiet. Whether you follow tradition or not, avoid making comments and criticisms. Sometimes the festival dates fall this way or that. It just happens naturally. Now it is daytime for us. In America it is night time. What is wrong in that? There is twelve hours’ time difference. We have finished the celebration and we are ready to call it a day. Their celebrations are just now commencing. What is wrong in that? In some regions whatever festivals are celebrated, those are totally unknown in other regions, where they are not celebrated. Traditions vary from region to region also. Customs differ. Some do the ancestral rites elaborately. Some do it in a simple manner by just feeding a cow or a priest and giving some gratuity. Some fast in honor of parents. Some follow certain practices and some don’t. Some take an oil bath and wear new clothes. People follow their own family customs. Some people perform the Ananta Padmanabha Vrata. Some never perform it. Some people perform the Satyanarayana Vrata. Some don’t. The method of preparing the Satyanarayana Prasada also varies. One should not argue and criticize. If you wish, you follow your own family’s tradition, and then join others in their way of doing things differently. No harm in doing the rituals twice. After all, you eat twice a day. If you wish not to offend your hosts, you participate in their rituals doing them their way, and partake of their feast. Even if you are on a diet, you bend your rule to please the host. Don’t complain. If wish to please others, you have to spoil your health. Otherwise, tell them frankly and beg to be excused for not accepting their food or beverage. They will probably understand. Main thing is do not criticize the various traditions or the almanacs. Just follow some almanac. Perform some festival. About Deepavali celebration, many questions are raised. Some answers are satisfactory and some are not. Each person answers according to his knowledge and belief. Some believe in not learning any new information. They simply keep mum. Some may say that in their families they do not worship gods but only devils and ghosts. What is wrong? Bhuta means prana. They worship life energy.

Now you may ask questions, not personal questions about getting a visa. If I know the answer, I will answer. Otherwise, I will say, I don’t know.
Ask boldly.

Q: To attain liberation, what spiritual pursuit should we follow?
A: If you know in detail, what Liberation is, then I can give you information. You don’t even know what Liberation is. Moksha is of different kinds: one is not to be reborn. One is to be reborn but to have a grand life. Which type do you desire?

Q: The moksha mentioned in the Upanishads, Bhagavad Gita, and the Prasthana Traya.
A: Have you read them all?
Q: I have read a little bit.
A: Then you should have the answers.
Q: I have read. I am doing some spiritual practice. I need your blessings and grace.
A: Very good. So, you have commenced the climb towards Sadhana. Japa, penance, satsang, speaking good words, doing good deeds, not causing trouble to others for your comfort, leading a totally truthful life, doing charity, and if you are married, carrying on your duties, you must develop devotion to ***. That is a pre-requisite. Devotion must first be developed. The attitude of surrendering everything to *** should be cultivated. It should be to the extent that you believe your life and breath are only there by ***’s grace. After devotion is perfected, Jnana will come on its own. Paramatma will reveal to you who you are and who He is. After that, detachment comes. There is nothing but Paramatma is the feeling you get, from developing dispassion. After that Moksha is the next step. You have to go through all these steps. You just say that you have a little familiarity with the Bhagavad Gita and the Prasthana Traya. You just mentioned the names. Just listening to lectures is not enough. You must repeatedly listen. You must contemplate, and question yourself. When you go through mental churning and keep questioning yourself, the answers will emerge from within. Then if you complete the Sadhana, and you perfect your devotion, that itself is Moksha/Liberation. Going to another world called Vaikuntha, and taking a bath in the Ocean of Milk, and sitting there with closed eyes while the celestial dancers come and do the ballet dance for you, that is not Moksha. That is Cinema moksha. In reality, in Moksha, there is nothing, no celestial Apsara dancers are there. You will remain blissful. You will not be a burden on earth. That is Moksha, and that is Paramatma. There is no stipulation that you should take a bath, and sit with a rosary/japamala for two hours. Wherever you are, continuously, along with your breath, you should chant a mantra. Holding the rosary is only for initial discipline for the sense organs. That is why you bathe, and sit facing the easterly direction and do japa. Doing natural japa 24/7, transcending whatever the Prasthana traya says, is Liberation.
Q: I pray for your blessings, Swamiji.
A: Yes. Granted.

Q: Please explain about Ekadasi fasting. I do fast. It is said that Siva and Vishnu are one and the same. But should I fast in the morning or night?
A: You are now skipping one meal on Ekadasi. The other meal, you eat double the quantity to compensate for the missed meal.
Q: I fast till night, Swamiji.
A: Ekadasi does not mean only giving up food. Leaving off regular food and eating fruits and drinking milk, and eating four chapatis at night is not Ekadasi. Ekadasi means not even drinking water. Why have they stipulated this ritual? Only to discipline your sense organs. A new vehicle you take for overhauling. Like that, once a fortnight, when you fast, all the undigested and stored substances in the body, which tend to cause serious problems, will get expelled. It is good for health.
Many times I have explained that there is no difference between Siva and Vishnu. How many nostrils do you have? Two. What goes through them both? Air goes in and comes out. Can you distinguish the air that comes out through the right or the left nostril? You cannot. But you refer to them as the right and left nostrils. Is there a difference between the two? No. Similarly, there is no difference between Siva and Vishnu.

Q: For all Pujas, we first pray to Ganesha. After that, why do we always chant the names of Vishnu, and not of Siva? We say Kesavaya namaha, Govindaya namaha, and so on. Even in Sandhya Vandana it is the same.
A: You don’t like, so you don’t say Siva’s names. You go to someone’s house for dinner. They serve so many items. You choose the items you like. You don’t force yourself to eat everything. I just now said, Siva and Vishnu are one and the same. If you say Vishnu’s name, it applies to Siva also and vice versa. They are both one and the same. Only we create the differences. Many people, ascetics, and avadhootas, mix all the items served to them and eat like that. Will it have a proper taste? They find it tasty. They decide not to show any difference of taste. But we are different. We eat salty foods separately, and sweets separately. We eat sour foods separately. Do we mix water and rasam? No. But what happens to the food after you swallow it? Inside the stomach, do the items remain separate? What happens there? Everything gets mixed. Only the essence from the food gets absorbed. Similarly, whether you say Siva’s name or Vishnu’s name, *** only receives the essence from the name. That you chant the name is important. Not whose name you chant.

Q: I was always afraid to express myself before Swamiji. But I find that through some vibration, without my having to say anything about my troubles, Swamiji would know everything. What is this relationship between the two of us that *** has created? I do not understand how this is happening. Does the same thing happen with others? I believe that Swamiji is ***.
A: Many people feel that they really should not ask Swamiji about trivial things. Once they come to Appaji, the problem loses its magnitude and appears very small and manageable. His blessing is here. Many people start out in the queue with questions to ask, but by the time they approach Swamiji, their answers come to them. The vibration and energy comes to them, and with that, their problems get resolved. With mere darshan, glance, speech and touch the troubles go away.
Why am I not able to personally ask Swamiji? That is your question. Who do you consider Swamiji to be? ***. Where does *** reside? Does He not reside within you? All addresses are His. He is in our own minds. Therefore, He knows what goes on in my mind. If you do not believe this that means that you regard Swamiji as a mere human being, who gives mantras, and gives answers to questions. With what feeling do you approach or view Swamiji? As Hanuman, Dattatreya, Maha Vishnu, Siva, or some deity? A deity’s address is everywhere, in everyone’s mind. For such a one who knows everything, what is there to ask? I don’t understand. If by chance, Swamiji himself asks what the situation is, you should not act smart and say, don’t you already know? It is wrong. You must give a proper answer. Sometimes Swamiji says, I know everything. You don’t have to say anything. There is no greater blessing than that. Since he knows, he will give the solution. Or, he may choose not to. He may give you the strength to endure the situation. He may make you forget the problem altogether. Before you proceed forward in the line, you forget your question. He may give you a chance to ask about your issue, but you say, everything is fine, by your grace. So, you proceed. No hesitation or fear is there. You only think it is hesitation or fear. It is neither. It means that it has been proven that Swamiji resides in your heart and knows everything. When you come close and still fail to ask, it is not hesitation. It is the conviction that he already knows. In a short time, the problem gets resolved. You would not have mentioned anything at all to Swamiji.
Let us say, you go to a powerful temple. You go to Tirupati. You tell the Lord your difficulties. All the response you get is “Jaragandi”. Does *** there ask what your next question is? No. You only feel the jostling of the crowd. But do you get the feeling that *** has listened to your prayers? Your knees were paining earlier. But now the pain is gone. But you never walked. The crowd pushed you in and out again.
Sometimes you ask guru and he may scold you. Then you feel bad. So you decide not to bother asking anything, just to be on the safe side. So you sit far away. Say your prayers in your heart and believe that Swamiji has heard you. That is the start of Guru Bhakti in you, your devotion towards Guru is now established. Then your experience will be that Swamiji will talk to you in your heart. Such trust and faith in Swamiji you must develop. What is happening to you is a common experience amongst devotees. It is not anything unique to you. You strengthen your faith. Swamiji will then begin speaking to you, the way he speaks in dreams or from his photo.

Jaya Guru Datta.

Part 2

Q: I was given the responsibility of getting the compound wall built in Mekedatu. I had not done such an assignment ever before. I went there to see. The project budget appeared to be out of our limit. The range officer was Mansur. I went to speak to him. I prayed that he should be given a good heart. I went hesitatingly to talk to him that the wild animals are intruding and spoiling the property. Mansur, a Muslim, said: Swamiji is my Guru. It is my ashrama. Why do you ask like this? Go ahead and order the timber and get the work finished.

A: Give Mansur Prasadam from the ashrama, some CDs and Prasadam. Tell him that Swamiji remembered him in the assembly.

Q: I should not commit wrong, I tell myself. But when I begin the job, I end up doing wrong. How do I avoid this?

A: It is because of the people around you and their influence upon you. You are so afraid of doing wrong that you are dwelling on the negative so much that you end up doing wrong. You focus on wrong all the time. You are apprehensive of getting Swamiji’s darshan. Then you do not get darshan. You have to be confident and positive that you will have darshan. Then you will get. If you do not get, that is also good, because then you will get detachment. You will give up your dependence on the physical presence of Swamiji.
You must first develop the right attitude in your family members and close friends. If they are insistent on following the wrong path, you leave them. In your heart, you must remain firm to do right only. If you have done wrong unintentionally, although your intentions were absolutely good, then you are not the doer.
I will tell you a Tenali Rama story. A pundit was there who was totally ignorant. He begged Tenali Rama to help him get the grace of the king. The pundit who was born in a scholarly home had absolutely no literacy.
Tenali Rama told the king, my guru has come. The King was surprised. This Tenali Rama is so scholarly. Wow, his guru has come. He must be quite a learned man. Bring him to the court.
The man did not even know how to tie a dhoti properly. He was dressed up by Tenali Rama. He taught the man only one sentence of blessing to say to the king. He told him to practice repeating that sentence constantly.
The entourage came to take Tenali Rama’s guru. On an elephant he was taken with great honors. He practiced all the way there the blessing phrases.
At the gate to the palace, one calf in a herd of cattle saw the elephant, got frightened, and ran away from the herd. The cowherd said: “trrrrrr bey”, to guide the animal back to the herd. The man’s attention got diverted by this commotion. He forgot the blessing phrases.
The king seated the guru on a seat, and washed his feet. All that the man could say was: “trrrrrr beyhey”. The queen prostrated. Guru said the same phrases. The King fainted. He got up and said: what does the phrase mean? I have never heard it before.
Tenali Rama explained the meaning of each syllable in a highly literary manner and convinced the king. The king accepted the explanation.
After coming home, Tenali Rama asked the man, where did you learn the “trrrrr beyhey”? The man said, that was the last sound he heard, made by the cowherd, before seeing the king and it got stuck in his head.
If in the last minute before writing an exam, you get distracted, it will spoil your focus. If you remain focused you will do well. Till the end, think and believe that you will only do well. Then you will do fine.
This man who posed the question, always started with good intentions, but his mind would get spoiled by the influence of others before completing his good work, and he would mess up in the end.

Q: It was very difficult to open the door. Your blessing, 42 apartments, swimming pool on the terrace. Now basement. No problems.
Temple was built over 80 years ago. You sent me to Germany. Heart of Bengaluru is where this property is located. To improve it, I need your blessings.

A: You are blessed.

Q: Children go to ashram with us. Then at school, they follow a different path. Children are good at home. When they return from school, they act differently.
A: It is important to send children to good schools which follow good Indian traditions. Parents spoil the children. It is not the fault of the children. Even when the child is in the ***, parents pay donations to Christian schools to ensure admission.
Your fault that you put the children in a bad school, and you dress the children differently. Do you always sing bhajans at home? In America there are hundreds of devotees. The Christian masters came running to see Swamiji, 60 Christian teachers came to see Swamiji surprised at the commitment shown by their Indian students who are Swamiji’s devotees.
You blame the children. But you send them with worldly ambitions to expensive schools. You do not give 10 thousand rupees even, to our school. You spend lakhs even to send your child to a nursery school. You are raising a foreigner. The child has no discipline. Girls and boys cannot be told apart, the way they wear their western garb. The child dances like a dog. He falls in love, leaves. You only give birth. You do not take the responsibility for their upbringing. In inexpensive schools, if the standard of education is not good, you give them private tuition. You have no time to attend to the child’s attitude. The child sings English songs. My devotee children study in Christian schools and come to ashram also. Your upbringing is at fault. Mother has to be involved.
Pramod’s son is studying PUC only in a Hindu school. Can he not afford to send him to another school? Many who can go to USA also, have not gone.
First teacher is mother. All the time you must speak of Swamiji. Play His bhajans. All the time be after the children.
Why do I go to American so often? So beautifully they chant the Bhagavad Gita. Now all the 18 chapters of the Bhagavad Gita they are learning, within one year, so many children.
If you put the children in hostels, they get spoiled. Keep the kids at home. You put them in a boarding school in Ooty and lose the children. Too late now to cry.
You come to the ashram only to ask about your health, and job promotion. You have no time for taking care of your children. Weekends they have special classes.
24/7 you have to speak of Swamiji. Always tell about where Swamiji is, and what He is doing. Then the child will not forget tradition. Children are spoiled because of you, the parents. It is not their fault. You must get the strength to control the children. This is the truth. Absolute truth. Give them all Indian traditions and raise them well.
Before birth, you take X-ray and decide on the school, based on whether it is a boy or a girl. I don’t know whether to laugh or to cry.

Q: I was in great difficulty before coming to Swamiji. In Ganagapuram I prayed, and I had darshan of Swamiji. I did not like to believe in Swamis. He appeared like Narasimha Swami. I got frightened. I could not believe. Lion face he opened to swallow me.
Someone gave me a japa mala. My village people were tormented by some evil spirits. Many were killed. Over 100. I told my troubles to Swamiji. Swamiji said, I will take care.
I have no one but you. I prayed. He held me. Brought me here. I lost my brother. Spirit told me in a dream I will *** your wife and brother. Brother refused to come to Swamiji. He was in an accident and lost both legs. He died. In dreams spirit tells some will die. It happened. Wife got ill. But survived by Swamiji’s grace.
The spirit is adamant. Will not yield. We sprinkled the whole village. Couple of spirits. The female spirit will haunt my wife. Swamiji said chant the Hanuman Chalisa. Slowly she changed. The spirits followed us to Tenali. The female spirit chanted the Hanuman Chalisa inside my wife. Came to Tirupati, and Warangal at Siva consecration. Husband spirit was not listening to his wife to change.
It said Swamiji is my father. Bravely now the female spirit follows Swamiji, as my family member. It still has lots of vengeance.
A: He is just relieved from spitting all that was in his heart. Whatever happens, you have Swamiji’s protection. That spirit will be released.

Q: You have explained the sameness of Siva and Kesava/Vishnu. Guru and Disciple are also one, you said. How to experience that? How to transcend the threesomes, the Triputis? You gave me a second life. You are the one breathing my breath for me. You have accomplished your work through me and have given me the credit. I pray for experiencing the Samadhi state.

A: Continue your sadhana. Then you will get the Samadhi state certainly. Suddenly it may come. Any moment Swamiji may grace you. Twice his life left the body. Swamiji got the message. Swamiji said he cannot die now. Now he has accomplished an extraordinary task. You are in queue. Remain patient. You will get. I have poured back life into him twice. You have lived for Swamiji’s service only. You already have the Samadhi state. Remain in that state. Do not return to the human world. You are only a human. Swamiji is only using your body to get things done. He fought with the government and won. Before he died, he could not do it. Only after Swamiji took over his body, he is doing impossible tasks.

Q: Annam Parabrahma. Swamiji says food is ***. Dharmakeerti did Ekadasi Vratam unintentionally and was saved. How to do fasting?

A: Feeding the hungry is worship of ***. Also feeding a hungry man and protecting him.
Ekadasi fasting and doing Annadana are different. Tulasi Teertham if you take, you do not feel hungry. Such energy it gives. 10 days if a man has not eaten, and you have no food, and he comes to you, you first feed him. If you wait till your fast is over, and then if you want to feed him, the man will die. If you do not break your fast, but feed him, no sin occurs to you. You cook for him and feed him. You do not eat. No sin occurs. The ten days hunger is relieved for the man. Tell him, if he asks, tell him to fast for a day. He will happily do it, because now he had starved for ten days and you have fed him. Tell him to do japa, penance and also protect his life. Offer what you have to ***. Do not take a loan to serve Guru.

Q: On a Thursday, 12th Feb, 2015, I prostrated to Swamiji’s feet in the life-size photo in this hall. No one was here. Someone came. Dattatreya Utsava Murtis were there. He asked me in English, who is this deity? What are these dogs? Why dogs to represent the Vedas? I just told him, I will get the answer tonight and tell you.
I did Internet search and asked some friends. Dog is obedient. Sages kept dogs in pre-Vedic period. Datta Darshanam I was reading daily. I need the answer why Datta keeps dogs.

A: Swamiji sometimes asks the boys to bring, and wears pants and shirts and carries Parker pens. Whether he wears or gives away to others I don’t know. All the answers are there in all of Swamiji’s literature. All the four Vedas are faithful to Lord Dattatreya. To represent such faith, the dogs are following Datta. Vedas are faithful, and Ragas are faithful to Datta. Did you understand?

The answers received by others will answer some of your own unasked questions.

Sri Guru Datta

Speech in the evening

Sri Maha Ganapataye Namaha
Sri Saraswatyai Namaha
Sripada Vallabha Narasimha Saraswati
Sri Guru Dattatreyaya Namaha

Pavanasuta Veera Hanuman Ki Jai

Happy Deepavali. 3 days of celebration. Rows of light. Why do we keep? It is because Narakasura, the demon of darkness had captured and kept in Patala many princesses in prison. No one lit lamps in towns afraid of him and his attacks, the way during wartime we do blackouts in cities afraid of enemy attacks. Krishna killed Narakasura and released the princesses. So lights were lit to celebrate the release of the princesses, and the release of minds from fear. Like Narakasura, Krishna and Satyabhama also engaged in Maya warfare, using illusory tactics in war missiles which looked like our Bhoochakra firecrackers. Krishna fainted in the middle of the war. He then revived and killed the demon. Every arrow made a loud noise. Kings were happy that the war ended and their daughters were returned safely. They lit lamps.

Many people these days do not perform any Puja. Only celebration. New clothes, sweets, cinemas, loud *** bursts. That is all.

Satyabhama who helped Krishna in the war represents Lakshmi. She represents wealth of all types, grains, children, spiritual knowledge, victory, courage, companions to assist, and so on, the Ashtalakshmi form granting the eight types of prosperity. So we offer worship to Goddess Lakshmi. This significance of the celebration we must pass on to our children. We ourselves forget.

We have created the loud firecrackers. People burn money on them. It is a cause of kidney failures and heart failures in the weak and the elderly. Ear problems are caused. The old and the sick suffer a lot with the noise disturbance. Infants suffer a lot because they are very delicate. Small flowerpots and sparklers are okay to light and enjoy. Toxic fumes produced by the firecrackers are also bad. Many people who are employed die in the factories which make these fire crackers. Thousands of Hindu children are put into forced child labor in these factories. They are exposed to slow poison. Muslims run these factories. Avoid burning firecrackers. Spread the word. Every home with babies and aged persons must avoid using firecrackers. Hospitals get filled with accident victims during Deepavali. It has turned out to be, not Deepavali, a festival with rows of lights, but a fire *** festival. This must change.

Man is light. Heart is light. We must understand the meaning behind this festival. The light of spiritual wisdom we must acquire.

Bali Padyami is the day Emperor Bali’s ego was crushed and he got Mukti/Liberation from Maha Vishnu.
People should celebrate Deepavali by eating healthy food, and taking an oil bath or head bath.

I have lost hearing in my left ear because of this constant noise. This loud sound troubles the mind. Birds die. Pet dogs hide in the corners out of fear. Cows yield less milk. We are destroying ourselves with this bad practice of burning loud fire crackers. Yadus, the people who belonged to the clan of Krishna, killed each other like this, sparing *** the trouble of punishing them. Big fish eats small fish. It is our karma.

You have all come and have participated in the Puja offered to Goddess Lakshmi. I am very happy.

How many of you have seen Varam? Those who have not seen that special parrot must come to Mysuru and see. It talks a lot. It is an endangered bird. Many birds die at Deepavali time due to the loud noises. Mysuru Shuka Vana birds are not scared, they laugh, but become deaf. All of you must decide not to use loud fire crackers. Get new clothes instead, with the money. Go enjoy a good cinema.

Many request friendship with Gss puttu gam on facebook. I delete all their requests if their profile photo shows them not wearing a Datta vastrams. You must wear a Datta Vastram or a Hanuman Vastram. It is Prasadam given by Swamiji. You are ashamed to wear it. Also many do not wear a dot on your foreheads. You remove. You feel ashamed to wear.

In UK they wear the dot of the forehead to identify themselves as Hindus to save their lives. Swamiji was happy to see especially, all Gujaratis wearing a dot on their foreheads. Our fathers, and grandparents were traditional. But you don't wish to follow. They are selling Bindi in the bookstall. Purchase and wear a dot. Otherwise, keep a drop of coffee on your forehead. A fly will come and drink it and leave its dropping there. Fine dot it will leave on the forehead.

Wearing a dot on the forehead is not religious. It is yoga. People see into your eyes and you get their evil eye. But wear the dot. It diverts their attention towards the dot.

Swamiji had to ask the names of persons to know their religion because our people do not wear a dot. Now Christians are wearing. Swamiji is very happy to see that. Hindus must wear. From the wall wipe some paint and put it on the forehead. Or from motor repair shop get some paint or soot or dirt on finger and wear the dot. If you remove the smoke soot from the exhaust pipe on your vehicle like that, it will give more mileage. Just to get into that habit of wearing the dot before leaving home, you may try that method. Near the pipe do Namaskara. Touch the smoke black and apply on the forehead. Make it a new tradition. Bend, look, search, scratch, and everyone will begin to search and scratch also, as if someone had lost a ring.

Good it rained.
Come quietly. Take Prasadam.

Sri Guru Datta