[My first visit to Banagram Ashram]
Guru Maharaj has a lot of incidents with the person whom I was talking about earlier. I thought I will say some more about it but it will not happen now. It can be mentioned at any time later.
But the Paramananda devotees should not worry, they will get everything because the events have been recorded.
This time, we will go back to the night of December 26, 1983 under the banyan tree of Banagram Ashram where ‘Nagen Mandal’ was sitting quietly and saying something to me about Guru Maharaj. Nagen was also telling me about some notable incidents of Guru Maharaj that happened with him. The day before, I came to the ashram for the first time and Guru Maharaj detained me almost for three days ! After some words that night, Nagen left and I also went to take rest in the cottage or prayer room near Beltala (the area beneath the marmelos tree), where the maharajs and the brahmacharis were also at sleep .
The next morning when I woke up and went to the bathroom, I saw some devotees like a swarm of bees who went out as if to collect honey, they were going towards Guru Maharaj’s kuthia. After finishing my morning-work, I also went to that way.
When I reached in front of Guru Maharaj’s kuthia, I saw that Guru Maharaj already sat for sitting on the south side (not on the east side) varandah. Then I was no longer so distrustful but already became very soft towards Guru Maharaj. As I approached, I bowed my head to Him and He said, “Will you leave today? Then leave after lunch.” Hearing His words, I was getting surprised a little ! Because He stopped me on 25th December, afternoon, 26th December- morning and afternoon. He stopped me three times and now He was giving me permission Himself!!
However, I did not feel sad that time thinking that why He did not leave me in the morning(as He told me to leave Ashram, after meal) ! Rather, in the meantime, I had slowly started to love Him, and not only Him_ the Ashram and the people of the Ashram also. So, I was then feeling happy thinking that I became able to stay one more time in the Ashram. Of course, I was also happy in mind thinking that I could stay in the ashram more, if He again wanted to detain me ! But when I thought I had to leave the Ashram, I was feeling sad a little !
As most of the devotees left the Ashram, the sitting-place was almost empty that day. I thought I would sit closely to Guruji as the front line of the seat(of the sitting) was empty. But I saw that it was not a simple thing to come near to Him. It was as if a complexity was working in my mind. I saw that whenever He was talking__ a beautiful smile appeared on His face and because of that, He looked so beautiful !! But I was also noticing that as many times He was talking with His eyes on me, my eyes were going down automatically !
The sitting lasted for 2-3 hours that day. A few people were at sitting but He was talking so nicely__ about the history of the Ashram, about some of the events during His stay in the Himalayas and about some of the foreign devotees .
I left after lunch but I said to my mind I will come again soon ! I heard that there will be a festival in the Ashram on ‘Falgun Sankranti’ ( the last day of the Bengali month ‘Falgun’). So, then I will come again !!
[To be continued]…….
[Translated by Rajarsi Basak, a student of class Ten of Dhatrigram and corrected by Ramprasad Das, a former student of Paramananda Mission.]
Guru Maharaj has a lot of incidents with the person whom I was talking about earlier. I thought I will say some more about it but it will not happen now. It can be mentioned at any time later.
But the Paramananda devotees should not worry, they will get everything because the events have been recorded.
This time, we will go back to the night of December 26, 1983 under the banyan tree of Banagram Ashram where ‘Nagen Mandal’ was sitting quietly and saying something to me about Guru Maharaj. Nagen was also telling me about some notable incidents of Guru Maharaj that happened with him. The day before, I came to the ashram for the first time and Guru Maharaj detained me almost for three days ! After some words that night, Nagen left and I also went to take rest in the cottage or prayer room near Beltala (the area beneath the marmelos tree), where the maharajs and the brahmacharis were also at sleep .
The next morning when I woke up and went to the bathroom, I saw some devotees like a swarm of bees who went out as if to collect honey, they were going towards Guru Maharaj’s kuthia. After finishing my morning-work, I also went to that way.
When I reached in front of Guru Maharaj’s kuthia, I saw that Guru Maharaj already sat for sitting on the south side (not on the east side) varandah. Then I was no longer so distrustful but already became very soft towards Guru Maharaj. As I approached, I bowed my head to Him and He said, “Will you leave today? Then leave after lunch.” Hearing His words, I was getting surprised a little ! Because He stopped me on 25th December, afternoon, 26th December- morning and afternoon. He stopped me three times and now He was giving me permission Himself!!
However, I did not feel sad that time thinking that why He did not leave me in the morning(as He told me to leave Ashram, after meal) ! Rather, in the meantime, I had slowly started to love Him, and not only Him_ the Ashram and the people of the Ashram also. So, I was then feeling happy thinking that I became able to stay one more time in the Ashram. Of course, I was also happy in mind thinking that I could stay in the ashram more, if He again wanted to detain me ! But when I thought I had to leave the Ashram, I was feeling sad a little !
As most of the devotees left the Ashram, the sitting-place was almost empty that day. I thought I would sit closely to Guruji as the front line of the seat(of the sitting) was empty. But I saw that it was not a simple thing to come near to Him. It was as if a complexity was working in my mind. I saw that whenever He was talking__ a beautiful smile appeared on His face and because of that, He looked so beautiful !! But I was also noticing that as many times He was talking with His eyes on me, my eyes were going down automatically !
The sitting lasted for 2-3 hours that day. A few people were at sitting but He was talking so nicely__ about the history of the Ashram, about some of the events during His stay in the Himalayas and about some of the foreign devotees .
I left after lunch but I said to my mind I will come again soon ! I heard that there will be a festival in the Ashram on ‘Falgun Sankranti’ ( the last day of the Bengali month ‘Falgun’). So, then I will come again !!
[To be continued]…….
[Translated by Rajarsi Basak, a student of class Ten of Dhatrigram and corrected by Ramprasad Das, a former student of Paramananda Mission.]