“The Voice of the Upanishads.”
Wondering at the simplicity of Mother’s enunciation of the vedantic truth, the old man said-Is it He, Mother, the Brahman that you have referred to, the one who is free from delusion? Why all this for Him? My master initiated me with the mantra ‘Aham Brahmaasmi’ (I am Brahman). My master is Khadar Masthan Now-a-days, one Mr. Chakrapani has been initiating people in his place. Even he has been initiating people into this mantra, ‘Aham Brahmaasmi.’.
Mother expounded the Nature of Brahman for the old man “Aham means ‘I’ (am). The mantra means ‘I am Brahman’. That is, I who am Brahman, am existing always as ‘I’ (in all creatures); this is I am existing as Brahman,’ The I which manifested as I and you’ is Ahamkara Brahman. I’ manifested as I and you means the state of duality-that is Ahamkara Brahman (i. e. Brahma manifested as ego). Even in this state the Brahma-ness is not absent. The state of I existing as I alone (in all) is Aham Brahmaasmi.”
The old man listened to the voice of the upanishads speak to him, in rapt attention and said, “How wonderful are your words, The one who has no delusion is Brahman!” Please elucidate it again for me. My revered master gave me the Taraka Manrra: I have become full (Paripurna). My master used to tell us that delusion must go, but he never told us that the one who is free from delusion is Brahman. Mother, tell me how we can get rid of delusion.”
“What’s there to be said?-when the (appointed) moment arrives, delusion will be dispelled by delusion only.”
The old man could not grasp the meaning of Mother’s reply and requested her to explain it. Just then Khasim came there and told Her that one of his kith and kin died and that he is going there, and left Her.
Mother resumed the conversation: “You have kept your grandson in clothes, thinking that he is dead. But he is alive. When you thought that he is alive, how carefully you looked after him! You know that the body is transient. That’s what your master had taught you. You wept for that (the trancient) all the while!”
‘Mother, did I weep for the body?’
“What else did you weep for ?”
‘I can’t explain the cause (of my grief), Mother’.
“But you think of it now, why grief overtook you.”
Strangely enough a host of black ants crawled up the old man’s leg. The old man brushed them away, moved a little to a side and stood there.
“Why did you move, child ?”, Mother asked him as though She did not notice the ants.
“The ants are stinging my leg’
“But it’s after all the body!”
‘Ofcourse!’
“They have stung what’s after all transient! Why did you feel it a pain? Who has felt it?is it the one who is transient, or is it the one who is eternal ?”
‘Atman is eternal.’
“How am I bothered about Atman? They say it can’t be known and can’t be seen (perceived). All that I can see and hear is only the body.”
How can it be the body that speaks with you? It’s the mind.’
“Of what kind is that?”
You will know it if you become the cause of it.’ “Do you mean the cause of the mind?**
Come to my master; I will see that you are taught “
“I will consider you to be the master himself; teach me!’ ‘My master did not give me that authority. Moreover you are a young girl: you don’t have the money offering (Dakshina).”
“What is Dakshina?”
“Words too big for a small girl! he muttered, not hearing the words of Mother.
“You are elderly, but your words are like those of a child! Now here comes our Khasim. I will stay here only for this night. We can talk about it later—”
‘Shall I teach you insight?’
“It’s enough if I can perceive the Real as it is. I don’t want insight. Tell me about it as it appears. The Real appearing as It is is itself insight.”
Not so, child! there is what’s called the Internal Yoga. It needs altogether a different way of looking at things. The black pupil of the eye is turned inside; that’s insight.”
Then came Khasim. The boy slowly sat up.
“Oldman, you take the boy in your hands. We will (all) sleep in the temple of Lord Bhavanarayana tonight and we can disperse tomorrow,” Mother said.
Mother, it’s late hour now. They wanted me to sup but I did not. There is no question of it where people are deeply mourning. I was anxious about you and so I hurried to this place. Are n’t you hungry?’
No. But we will secure something for the old man to eat, and fetch some milk for this boy; then we will rest for tonight somewhere”.
‘Shall we sleep in the Temple, Mother? Khasim asked her,
“Wherever you please.”
‘You yourself suggested earlier that we sleep in the temple tonight!’, the oldman said wondering to note how Mother impels other people to act according to Her will, while they imagine that they are deciding their own actions!
“Oh! we propose to do several things. But do all of them materialise? Just a little earlier, when you wanted to dispose off the body, you did not find the means. Ofcourse that turned out to be for our good. Perhaps, if some doctor examined him, he would n’t have permitted us to dispose off the body, recognising that the boy was alive!” Mother subtley tried to make them believe that she did not bring him back to life..
‘But everyone said that he was dead! Even I felt so. There was no breathing!”
“Life impulse is not breath itself. One can live even with the
‘My master said that it’s possible only for yogis.’ breath suspended.”
“Did your master tell you where the life impulse rests?”
‘He did not tell me; but it seems to me”
It’s already late. Let us talk about it there.”
‘Let’s move Khasim interrupted and tried to take young Mother in his arms. Mother wanted him to carry the boy but Khasim did not understand to whom Mother was referring,
“It’s the boy whom we considered to have died- He didn’t die. His life impulse was just suspended.”
Khasim was surprised to hear that.
‘No. I have seen him. He seemed to be dead!’
“That’s it! That which is appearing to be absent constitutes Illusion.”
The old man was overwhelmed with joy on hearing the start ling new definitions of old concepts uttered by her now and then. He was provoked to blurt out his best and said, ‘We can talk about it later. I wish to tell you a lot. You are likely to grow into one of great devotion (to God).’
The grand old man’s awareness of Mother’s ability to raise the dead boy is overclouded by his own desire to play her teacher.
Khasim took the boy in his hands: all of them walked to wards the temple. On the way, Khasim and the old man had tiffin in a hotel and the boy took some milk. As soon as they reached the temple, Khasim and the boy fell asleep in a corner. The old man resumed the earlier conversation. Child, dil you not understand what is meant by Inner Yoga which I explained to you earlier??
“No, child-“
‘My master told us that the experience that it is the Absolute Beyond is Perfection. He made us full with just two rupees!’
“After all, what is it that you tell me?””
‘I will tell you later; but you said a little earlier that every. thing is done by me for my sake. What is it?’
“For whose sake are you taking your food?”
Earlier, when I gave up eating, our old woman wept. That’s why I am eating. I wanted to give up taking food to destroy the instincts.”
“She wept because you were eating before giving up.’
‘I was eating because my parents habituated me to taking it.”
“You made it her habit to feed you with her hand. So she wept. Leave alone the case of food. For whose sake did you marry?’
“Even that was performed by my parents.’
“Agreeing to that is for your satisfaction!”
‘Yes.’
“Your physical demands afterwards,-are they for your sake, or for their sake?”
You are too young to talk about such matters, girl!’ What deliberations are these for an old man with a young girl?”
‘But you do not seem to be a young girl (in your attitude).”
“Do you have the elderliness about you?”
‘Oh! I only wanted to tell you some words of devotion!!”
“Mere words of devotion devoid of real faith will be like this only!!”
Mother sat silent. The old man did not like it. He longed to hear her speak and to look upon her unusual form. It was not enough if she was before him. She must speak.
‘Please repeat the words that you spoke near the boy! They were very nice.’
“But you admonished me saying that I am too young.”
‘Did I chide you? I only said that you should not speak ment of this my birth.’
like that. Please tell me something that would lead to the fulfil
“Words do not constitute fulfilment.”
Struck by the bomb-shells of her words, he said, ‘Are you the goddess of speech? Do you utter sayings of Natural Wisdom?”
“Your nature is of one type and mine is of a different type. What can I tell you then?”
‘You tell me what you have told me yesterday evening.’
“Oh, it’s nothing. I say that whatever a man does is for his own sake. You may accept it if you like, or reject it.”
“Tell me child, tell me when my child was in danger, you waited on him. Oh, I forgot, shall I return the ring?’
“I did not give it with a view to take it back. Giving is for my satisfaction. Whatever one does, that is, whether one does good or evil, caresses, takes his food or abandons it, or goes to bed without food out of anger all this is for one’s own satisfaction. For all these, one’s own mind is responsible. They say, ‘Money. centred is this world.’ But it is not so. ‘Self-centred is this world’. (i. e. Mother modified and improved upon the Sanskrit saying Dhana moolam idam jagat). Perhaps it only means that one’s self is itself wealth. Wealth does not simply mean money. While one exists, to obtain certain things, money is needed. If one exists and has all the things needed, there’ll be no need of money. It will be all right if there are things even if there’s no money. But it’s not enough even if there is money when these things are not available. Even if there are a lakh of rupees in the pocket, if the needed thing is not available in the market, the money is valueless, In my view, the things are the wealth. They are not different from one another. ‘Money-centred is this world’ is not a saying of scriptural authority. It was the utterance of one who had no money in his pocket when it was needed.”
Having lost himself in the miracle of her speech, charmed by the melody of her voice, the old man said
As I hear your words, I feel that I am listening to the voice of the upanishads- they are so fine!’
“What’s it that is not so fine? Is it my form?”