It was a pleasant evening on the 4th of March as nearly 700 participants from various parts of Tamilnadu assembled at the Ramakrishna Kalyanamandapam, Coimbatore. They were eagerly awaiting the Sahaj Mantra initiation from Smt.Bhanumathi Narasimhan, whom we affectionately call Bhanu Didi.
Exactly at 6.00 P.M. Bhanu Didi gracefully entered the hall to a thundering ovation by the participants and as soon as it settled down, she made us to do some warm up/stretching exercises before the Guru Puja. With pin drop silence in the background and only the melodious voice of Bhanu Didi chanting the Slokas renting the air, the Guru Puja gave a blissful start to the Meditation Course.
Three Sahaj Teachers assisted Bhanu Didi to render personal initiation to the participants and within the next couple of hours everyone in the hall started practicing Sahaj meditation as per the instructions given. It is a mantra-based meditation wherein we were given a mantra or sacred word that needed to be repeated silently to invoke meditation. We are not supposed to share it with anyone. Thus the first day began with initiation and the participants were asked to be compulsorily present during the next two days for practicing it and to learn more about the sanctity of the meditation.
On the second day we had a wonderful session which began with stretching exercises and Bhanu Didi guided us to a blissful Sahaj Meditation. After this she spoke about how the Sahaj Meditation allows the conscious mind to settle down deeply into the self. She said when the mind settles down, it can let go of all tensions and stress and can center itself to the present moment. We can find true happiness only in the present moment because only during those moments we are free from the misgivings of the past and the apprehensions about the future. She gave us some insight into the three Gunas and its impact on our body and mind and also a glimpse on Gurudev’s speech about the five types of dreams.
Third day after the meditation, my friend Mr. Nambi asked Bhanu Didi a question on why the meaning of the mantra was not disclosed. She explained it with a beautiful story and said that the meaning of the mantra was not significant, but honoring and preserving its sanctity was very important. The mantra is required just to invoke the meditation. In the concluding session we were led to a wonderful Satsang by Bhanu Didi. The crowd enjoyed the blissful bhajans.
As for my personal experience, I have heard people saying that happiness is in the journey and not in the destination. The cause and the centre of happiness are well within us and not outside us. In our day to day life, to fulfill our material needs, we having been putting a lot of efforts shifting from one activity to another. Yet, there are still a few things in life wherein effort is not at all required, particularly the ones that govern our mind. The Sahaj Meditation gave me an opportunity to go through such an experience. A simple mantra could calm my mind and take me to stillness and provide me a deep rest that too, with just twenty odd minutes of my time. It is absolutely amazing. I have been practicing it regularly for the past six days and could feel the refreshing and energizing effect after each meditation. I get relieved from the persistent agitation of the mind at least for some hours every day. I am grateful to Poojya Gurudev for imparting me this talent to free my mind and to experience the peace within. I realized the meaning of HIS words, “Let go of all your efforts, searches and desires, for God can be felt only in deep peace and stillness.”
I also had an opportunity to attend a Guru Puja at the residence of Sri.Rajasekar & Smt.Guhamathi who have come from Qatar (Gulf). After the Puja Bhanu Didi sang “Abhayam Abhayam Amma” the resonance of which, is still etched in my memory. I met Bhanu Didi and acquainted her with our website www.aolcbe.org and the
E-Magazine Lighthouse. She is truly an angel with a gifted voice. Simplicity, enthusiasm, serenity, wisdom and wit being part of her nature, she is a true inspiration for all of us.
Smt.Sashirekha Vengatesh, Sri. P. Mohan, Art of Living Teacher and their team of volunteers deserve all our appreciations to have arranged such a memorable event which was an excellent opportunity for so many of us to do the Sahaj Samadhi Meditation Course, happening here after a very long gap.
M.Gopalakrishnan.
Photos courtesy Smt. Sashirekha Vengatesh, Sri.Chittaranjan Das and Sri. Jothi Ramalingam
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