The July Celebrations
This account of the great Bandhara held in the memory of the Master’s Master, Baba Sawan Singh Ji, from 26th to 28th July, 1970, was prepared by the Sat Sandesh staff at Sawan Ashram.
The 27th of July arrived rainless in Delhi, but it was humidly hot in Sawan Ashram where the birth anniversary of Baba Sawan Singh Ji, the Master’s Master, was being celebrated – attended by approximately thirty thousand people from all parts of India.
Perhaps the chief difference this year was the bustling arrival of the television experts from all India Radio and Television, who busily pushed their way through the thronging crowds. They must have been thankful for the absence of rain; as surely were the devotees who have often over the years sat faithfully and cheerfully for the five or six hour Satsang sessions in the pouring monsoon rain, facing the prospect of more sopping wet clothes to don afterwards from out of their sodden luggage. However, those very damp occasions held their own special kind of quietly excited devotion.
Had it rained this year, very few of the Sangat would have huddled in the wet for lack of coverage; for, due to the recent hard-pressing efforts of Bibi Hardevi Ji, the Ashram now has a number of newly constructed rooms and halls which will do much to solve the problem of accommodating the many thousands who attend the three principal yearly functions at Ruhani Satsang. The short television film – shown to the viewing public on Indian TV screens on Thursday, 29th July – included a talk by the Master at Satsang, and close-up interview impressions from the visiting speakers of different religions, who voiced their feelings of respect for both the Master and Baba Sawan Singh Ji. The talk that Master gave on this occasion is summarised on page 5. [See the link: ‘Protector and Protection’; Editor’s Note, 2011]
A number of religious speakers took part in each Satsang – one on the evening of the 26th, and again on the morning and evening of the 27th. As is usual at large programs, the Master spoke last and briefly. During the various meditation sittings, many among the Sangat’s mixture of initiated and non-initiated saw the Radiant Forms of the Master, Baba Sawan Singh Ji, Kabir Sahib, Guru Nanak and other Saints. On Wednesday, 28th July, four hundred and fifty-four people were initiated into the Holy Science of Spirituality, marking the conclusion of the celebrations held in sweet memory of a Great Master Who walked the earth giving Light and Life to tormented, blind humanity.
The Master’s children arrive at His feet via diverse channels. Some are encouraged by friends; some ‘accidentally’ wander into a Satsang being held in their own town; a lucky few are even guided personally from within by the Master’s Radiant or Spiritual Form. Among the fortunate brethren who received the priceless boon of the Holy Naam on the 28th were two dear souls, husband and wife, from the southern part of India. The following day found them sitting joyfully at the Master’s feet. They explained to Him that for many years they had held devotional puja – a Hindu ritual –, attended by the public, to worship God in His various forms, and to show particular respect to Lord Shiva. The Master smiled, and commented that He too had worshipped Lord Shiva as a small child, with His parents.
Now we know,
they explained,
that without a doubt, only You will give us salvation.
The Master asked them why they were so sure of that, and the husband replied,
Because, during our devotions, Lord Shiva himself came and gave us Your name and address, and that’s how we came here; so we know You are our True Guru. But what do we do now? Do we continue with the puja or not?
The Master gently asked them if it was good for a wife to have one husband or many.
Oh, of course, only one,
they both replied.
Then is it not clearly better to have one Lord, and a single-pointed attention in worshipping Him? We should, however, be thankful to the persons, for whatever we have learned from them.
Gratefully, they acknowledged the simple truth in the Master’s common sense explanation. It was yet another demonstration of the Master’s often repeated maxim that Truth is One, but man makes it varied and complex on account of the want of right understanding.
Summary of Master’s Talk
The Master spoke on integration, which today is one of the most highly discussed subjects in India and the world. He said that True Integration can be achieved only at the level of man or the level of soul.
Due appreciation can be extended to the World Fellowship of Religions, which has so far succeeded in removing narrow-mindedness to some extent and gaining some cooperation between religions. They, however, aspire to even greater achievement in integrating their own followers in every part of the globe: all Hindus to join together, all Christians, all Muslims, and so on, to form pillars of strength within each religion. But for how long will the toleration last? While either politically or personally selfish motives exist beneath all efforts – individual or collective – tolerance will not last, for tolerance can live only in the hearts of selfless men and women.
All Great Masters Who came in the past have had the same life’s mission before Them: to bring all children of God together on one platform, that they may gain right understanding and have right thoughts, words and actions. True Integration already exists within man – it is not something separate to be formed – but it is a matter of realising it. As man, we are already One, with the same inner and outer physical construction. As soul, we are already One; each being a drop of the Ocean of All-Consciousness, each controlled by the same Controlling Power which is controlling the whole of creation. Man can only realise all this in the company of One Who is Himself fully realised and is competent to raise the soul above body consciousness and give it an experience of the Truth. All True Masters give out the same teachings and revive this old, old Truth which never changes and which is for all mankind. Even today there are sincere students who are putting these very facts into their daily lives. Herein then lies the answer to the problem, for having once accomplished True Integration within man as an individual, as mankind is made up of individuals, True Integration of the whole human race will follow as a natural course, bringing True Brotherhood, True Knowledge and lasting peace all over the world.