Fasting

The principle behind fasting is that God never takes food, and by fasting we get nearness to God and thereby absorb his condition to some extent. But it fits well with the humility of a devotee to take a little food, thus admitting that we cannot live without food, like Him. When fasting without even taking water, we boost our ego.

Taken from the book "Complete Works of Ram Chandra, Vol. 4 (1st edn., 2014)", Chapter "Pearls of Wisdom", pg. 264, by Babuji Maharaj

One would never have thought of the principle of Fasting from this perspective, that God never takes food and so to get nearness to Him, we also try to follow that. But then in Sahaj Marg, Babuji Maharaj goes further to explain that extreme demonstration of Fasting is just a boosting our ego and really not beneficial to the spiritual path. If we really put our heads down and think about it, this is really true, that very much like one demonstrates his strength by building his muscles on one extreme which is nothing but a display of ego, that I did it, on this other extreme, complete fasting is also a display of ego that I can do this, and nothing else. If I may extend this, complete abstinence of any type is a display of ego. A display of the fact that I can do it, either just for myself, or for the world to see, or for God to see, it does not matter. 

Sahaj Marg practice talks about holding onto a higher principle with all you got, so that all these petty things including all manifestations of the lower-self drops off automatically, and we are focused on one thing and one thing only, which is our goal, which is our ideal, which is what we want to become, which is not what I am now. This way, Sahaj Marg can be seen as a middle-path, with complete moderation, no excesses of any type, on either side as in complete excess on one side and complete negation on the other side. All the Masters of Sahaj Marg have lived this life of complete moderation to its fullest degree. Babuji Maharaj demonstrated simplicity and moderation in his whole life. Chariji Maharaj demonstrated what it means to work and leave the results to Him alone, and now Shri. Kamlesh D Patel, the current Master and Spiritual representative of his lineage of Gurus and the President of Shri Ram Chandra Mission, has his complete focus on Heartfulness, a simple approach to offering Sahaj Marg meditation practice to people of all walks of life all over the world. 

A Life of Service: A Sahaj Marg Perspective

"To serve entails that one's life is no longer one's own and that, in a way, one makes oneself available to deal with it. In this field, more than elsewhere, one should make choices that meet one's profound aspiration to devote oneself to service without any materialistic motive. Everyone's karma is full of opportunities to find fulfilment in keeping with one's personal capabilities. Many of our aspirants engage in service, keenly aware of this reality."

- Babuji Maharaj

In USA, we have what is called as the AAA policy, which is an Emergency roadside service. One SRCM preceptor jokingly told me once, that in Sahaj Marg also, we have a AAA policy. That is, an abhyasi who wants to follow the path of service must be "AVAILABLE, ACCESSIBLE, APPROACHABLE". As Babuji Maharaj says above, make oneself available. But, Babuji says very clearly that there should not be any motive behind this service. Even though here it talks only about material motive, as a matter of fact, the best way of approach to service is to not have any motive or expectation at all, be it material or even spiritual. Our Master, Chariji Maharaj and Shri. Kamlesh D. Patel have both mentioned time and again, about the idea of not having any expectations towards anything that we do. The only "output" of any work should be that the work or service should produce the desired results, and it is for this result alone that we work. Not for any self-aggrandisement, or for any expectation of the self. 

Another beautiful point hidden in this message above is that this life of service is a "CHOICE". This choice arises out of a deep aspiration to follow such a life, a life which is life-changing in its every sense of the meaning of that word. That is, it changes the course of life itself for that person who made that choice to serve. Sahaj Marg offers such a choice, and Shri Ram Chandra Mission organization has many such selfless individuals who have chosen this life of service, epitomized by the life of the Master, Shri. Kamlesh D. Patel and the Masters before him, who have lived such a life of complete dedication and service, to help and support those who come to them for their spiritual growth and progress. 

Biography: About Shri Kamlesh Patel

“If you want to have infinite happiness, infinite bliss, then minimise your desires, from more and more to less and less and finally to zero! Make peace with yourself.” – Shri Kamlesh D Patel

Shri Kamlesh D Patel was born in Gujarat, India and is now the President of Shri Ram Chandra Mission (SRCM) and the fourth Spiritual Master of the Sahaj Marg system of Raja Yoga meditation.

From an early age, Kamlesh Patel was interested in spirituality and meditation, and eventually came to the feet of his Guru, Babuji Maharaj in 1976 while still a student. Over the decades, Kamlesh Patel has assisted his guide, Chariji, in the management of the Shri Ram Chandra Mission, which offers the Heartfulness approach to the practice of Sahaj Marg in most countries of the world free of charge.

Kamlesh Patel is married with two sons, and is a role model for students of spirituality who seek that perfect blend of Eastern heart and Western mind. He travels extensively and is at home with people from all backgrounds and walks of life, giving special attention to the youth of today.  

Sahaj Marg: Proving science behind spirituality - The Hindu

Talk by Shri. Kamlesh D. Patel, President of Shri Ram Chandra Mission (www.srcm.org), first published in The Hindu at: http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/telangana/proving-science-behind-spirituality/article8174560.ece

If spirituality is science, is it not necessary for it to be proved beyond doubt to be believed and accepted?

Giving a scientific spin to spirituality, Sri Ram Chandra Mission (SRCM) president Kamlesh D. Patel has said ‘Sahaja Yoga’ was truly scientific and appealed to people to practise it to believe it.

Citing a Harvard study, he said an electroencephalogram test conducted on some Buddhist monks, who have meditated for more than 20,000 hours, had entered the ‘delta’ stage (fourth level) of consciousness. “Sahaja Yoga aims at attaining this stage much earlier.

Let belief be based on experience,” he said. Mr. Patel also likened the present level of consciousness among humans to a thin film of water, indicating the presence of an ocean of super-consciousness above and another ocean of sub-consciousness beneath it.

Speaking to The Hindu on his visit to the Tirupati centre of SRCM on Friday, Mr. Patel (‘Kamlesh Bhai’, as he is referred to by members of the order) said SRCM firmly believed in imparting lessons in meditation free of cost, as spirituality, he maintained, could never be treated as a commodity for sale. “If God can be bought, at what cost?” he asked. “The experience cannot be marketed but only experienced, believed and appreciated when practised with due seriousness, but certainly not [when taken up] as a flippant exercise,” he said.

Sahaj Marg on the Essence of Life

Sahaj Marg on the Essence of Life

It takes time to understand where the essence of life lies. Sahaj Marg, this way of the heart, makes one aware of the need to advance spiritually in this particular area – namely, the opening of specific points that foster real progress of the subtle being. In this regard, the work is focused on what is essential. With time, our abhyasis become familiar with certain important rituals capable of opening up wider perspectives. The opening of the heart in these specific points remains the hallmark of this extraordinary spiritual journey. 

— Babuji Maharaj

It is so interesting to read this message from Babuji Maharaj. One can see how much emphasis is made on what is essential. It is clear from this message that the key work happens in the secret of the heart, with respect to opening specific points which enables real progress. In Sahaj Marg, this is the most essential aspect, the important aspect, of this work on the heart of the abhyasi. This work done by the Masters of Sahaj Marg, Babuji Maharaj, Chariji Maharaj, and now the current Master, Shri Kamlesh D Patel, in the heart of the abhyasis, using Transmission as a tool, is the most essential thing and this is what results in the transformation of the being. With this transformation made possible, the abhyasi begins to understand the difference between what is essential and what is superfluous and thus a state of Viveka (Discrimination) is naturally developed in the abhyasi. The abhyasi's overall approach to life itself changes, all thanks to the "essential" work done by the Masters of Sahaj Marg, along with the help of SRCM Preceptors of Sahaj Marg. As Chariji Maharaj says, the Preceptors are the "Arteries" of Sahaj Marg, through which pure blood is circulated throughout the human system for its well-being. Shri Kamlesh Patel talks about how transmission flows into the heart and the work of transformation of the abhyasi begins in his book Designing Destiny. 

Music and Sahaj Marg: Chariji Maharaj

This nice little snippet is narrated by Dr. Sanskrit Kannan, an SRCM Preceptor (Prefect)

The incident happened in 1985 at Gayatri, the residence of Shri Parthasarathi Rajagopalachari, Chariji Maharaj, Spiritual Master of Sahaj Marg. 

One sister Abhyasi told Rev. Chariji Maharaj, " my music teacher says that in Kali Yuga,  music will take one to liberation ".

Rev. Chariji Maharaj " It is not correct ".

Abhyasi, " how can you say this?"

Rev. Chariji Maharaj, " music will not take you anywhere in spirituality ".

Abhyasi, " Lord Rama came before Saint Thyagaraja. He saw the Lord.  Otherwise he could not have written like this".

Rev. Chariji Maharaj,  " well, Wordsworth has written so wonderfully about Nature.  Does it mean that he saw everything? "

Abhyasi,  "No, it's all imagination ".

Rev. Chariji Maharaj, " So too in the case of Saint Thyagaraja. "

The Abhyasi got angry and said, " well you don't accept anyone as great except your Master, Babuji Maharaj. "

Rev. Chariji Maharaj laughed and said, " I am only saying what I heard from my Master. Music cannot take you to higher levels in spirituality.  I can add that had I wanted,  I could have been a great musician ".

Abhyasi, " Then what drove you away from Music and towards Sahaj Marg? "

Rev. Chariji Maharaj, laughingly, " my samskaras ".

Chariji Maharaj Narrates: Time is Relative

 Dr. Sanskrit Kannan, an SRCM Preceptor of Sahaj Marg shares this incident with us.

“Rev. Chariji Maharaj narrated us the story of Ravana.  Once Lord Brahma was going for his ablutions. Someone told Lord Brahma "Ravana was born". After a few minutes, Lord Brahma was coming back and he was told, "Ravana had died". Brahma said, "Its such a pity, Ravana is so short lived".

However, if tradition has to be believed, Ravana is supposed to have lived for thousands of years. This shows how time is relative. What had been just a few minutes for Brahma was thousands of years for Ravana."

Shri Kamlesh D Patel is the successor of Chariji Maharaj and the current President of Shri Ram Chandra Mission (www.srcm.org). In many instances after giving group meditations in Sahaj Marg, both Kamlesh Patel and Chariji Maharaj have commented how the meaning of time itself changes when we go deep into ourselves in meditation. Many times, it feels like only 5 minutes has elapsed during meditation but when you open your eyes and see, one full hour has passed by. The opposite experience is also possible that what feels like one hour long during our absorption in meditation, actually has elapsed only a few minutes on the clock. This shows how time is relative, even in our lives, when we go deeper into our sub-conscious levels.

To get a simple understanding of how time can be relative in layman’s terms, one can read this article as well: https://www.quora.com/Can-somebody-explain-how-time-is-relative-in-laymans-terms. 

Power of Prayer: Sahaj Marg Snippet

This incident happened in 1945. Rev. Chariji Maharaj narrated this incident to a few abhyasis in 1985.

One day, some dacoits entered the house of sis. Kasturi, who lived in Lakhimpur Kheri. The dacoits started to threaten sis. Kasturi with guns. She simply sat in Prayer.  Rev. Babuji Maharaj was in Shahjahanpur at that time and he received this prayer. So, Babuji Maharaj started transmitting. The dacoits, all of a sudden, threw their guns down, prostrated at the feet of sis. Kasturi and told her with folded hands, "Behenji, please forgive us, we have come to a wrong house". Saying this, they ran away. 

Rev. Chariji told us, "You see the power of the Prayer".

The aspect of Prayer is a key element of the Sahaj Marg practice. It is like a “Connecting Link”. When an abhyasi puts himself in a deep supplicant mood and offers prayer, the Master is in some way able to hear the prayer, and the prayer is answered. Chariji Maharaj says, our Sahaj Marg Prayer is like a switch, which, when turned on, allows electricity to pass through and turn on the light or any other appliance. Similarly, by uttering the Sahaj Marg Prayer just once, a connection with the Master is created, and the flow of transmission commences thereafter.

Shri Kamlesh Patel, the current President of Shri Ram Chandra Mission (www.srcm.org) has also talked about Sahaj Marg Prayer. Regarding the night-time prayer, Kamlesh D Patel said that suggest to yourself that all night through, I will remain connected to Master and as soon as I get up, I will meditate again. I will invite Master with my conscious mind now and will remain connected throughout the sleep hours. One other aspect that Kamlesh Patel mentions is the attitude of Prayer, about how very lovingly we invite Master and this love creates vibrations in the heart. This key element of love and humility is essential when we offer prayer to the divine. 

A Call to the Youth – Shri Parthasarathi Rajagopalachari

So the message I have to give is nothing very important, nothing very earth shaking, you know, nothing very profound, nothing very philosophical. It is the same call in the Vedas you see, “Uttishtatha, jaagratha, praapyavaraan nibodhata.” [Awake, Arise, having approached the Chosen One, realise your goal.] Youth must awake. Youth must realise that it is the root of society – roots – and that unless each root is nourished properly, one part of the tree will go; and that tree is our life – total life, including all of creation. Therefore the Gita also speaks of “urdhvamoolam madashaakham ashvattham praahuravyayam” – our tree is an inverted ashvattha holy fig tree. Roots are there above and the branches are here below. No use watering this. The nourishment must come from above. What is above and what is below? Above means the higher world, the higher thoughts, teachings which we have lost, forgotten, deliberately set aside. Go back to that.

(Talk given by Chariji Maharaj: Youth: A Time of Promise and for Effort, ‘Throwing off the Shackles of the Past’, Volume II, p. 243)

Chariji Maharaj, the Master of Sahaj Marg, has quoted this call of the Vedas many times. Even Swami Vivekananda has used this famous quotation, which originally is from the Kathopanishad text. This call is not just for the youth but it is for all of us. In order for one to pursue anything in life, it is necessary to be both arisen and also awake. Having said that, what is the next thing to do? It is to “Rest not, Stop not, till the goal is achieved”.

Now, what is the goal? The goal is nothing but self-perfection, inner excellence, manifesting the self within, there are so many ways of looking at the one and the same goal. The current president of Shri Ram Chandra Mission (SRCM) Shri Kamlesh D Patel has demystified the various definitions of goal by saying that the very purpose of existence is to simply excel in whatever one does. And then he said that this excellence of perfection is oriented towards the inner self, inner perfection. It is for us to listen to these clarion calls and act accordingly. 

Inner Perfection: Kamlesh D. Patel

Inner Perfection

We are moving towards perfection. Perfection in what? Not in our outer look or fancies or other stuff. It is the perfection in our inner balance, our inner flawless character, and our manners.

           

Taken from the book "Designing Destiny (2nd edn., 2015)", Chapter "Our Collective Destiny", pg. 166, by Kamlesh D. Patel

Observation: 

In one other talk, the SRCM President, Shri. Kamlesh D. Patel mentioned that life itself is given to us to orient towards perfection and excel in anything that we may do, and here he clarifies that perfection is about Inner Perfection and goes on to add the inherent need for Balance, Character and Behaviour in order to achieve this. The Sahaj Marg system of Raja Yoga meditation provides all the tools necessary to proceed along these lines and work tirelessly towards achieving this Inner Perfection. The spiritual Master of this system of Sahaj Marg, Shri. Kamlesh D. Patel, using the unique concept of Transmission assists the aspirants in achieving this perfection.