MA ANANDAMAYI

MOTHER ANANDAMAYI

Mahamahopadhaya Gopinath Kaviraj M.A.

Late Principal,Government Sanskrit College,

BENARES.

It was on a fine autumn morning in 1928 that I first came to know the name of Mother Anandamayi. I was getting ready to go to college, -I had not then retired- when the late Mahamahopadahaya Pt. Padmanath Vidyavinoda, M.A. came and met me in my house and informed me that Mother Anandamayi of Dacca had come to Benares.He presented me with a pamphlet written by the late Mr.Kunja Mohan Mukherji alias Swami Turiyananda on Mother and on the miraculous deliverance of his son from an impending snake bite through Her grace. He said to me that the sight of Mother absorbed in Samadhi was really an ennobling one and he asked me to go and see Her, if possible. This commendation from the lips of a person who was known to be a fastidious critic of men and things and who spared none from his attacks, seemed to me to carry special weight.

Mother was staying then in the house of Kunja Babu at Ramapura.I made up my mind to see Her there. Accordingly I went to Kunja Babu’s place in the evening where both Kunja Babu and his elder brother Sasanka Babu (the late Swami Akhandananda) very kindly undertook to help me in having Mother’s ‘darshan’. They introduced me to Bholanathji immediately and the latter took me to a small room on the ground floor where I found Mother absorbed in Samadhi surrounded by a number of bhaktas. Bholanathji was anxious to see Her come back to Her senses soon and made various unsuccessful attempts to that end. knowing that a trance must be allowed to run its full natural course and that every artificial method of breaking it up was fraught with grave risks, I asked him to desist from doing anything calculated to interrupt it. I was waiting for Her return to normal consciousness. but noting that even in two or three hours Her condition did not come down to normal and apprehending that it might take an indefinitely long time, I returned home with the intention of coming and seeing Her next day.

It was on the 6^th September that I paid my first visit to Mother. I came to learn that She had come a day or two earlier and also that this was the second time She had come to Benares. Her first visit having been in 1927 on Her way to Hardwar on the occasion of the Great Kumbha Fair.

I came back to Mother’s place on the7th as already arranged. In fact I came twice every day during Her short stay at Benares till the 12^th September. I remember I did not miss a single day on this occasion. It is difficult to analyse after a lapse of over17 years my first impressions of Mother and to explain in words what exactly I then felt. I can only say that what I actually saw with my own eyes far exceeded anything of a like nature I had ever seen before-it was a dream, as it were, realised in life. During the few days Mother was at Benares, Kunja Banu’s house presented a spectacle of festive jubilation where an unending stream of visitors continued to flow in every day from before sunrise till after midnight. The doors of the house were kept open all the time and everybody was always welcome. High officials, pandits, university students, shopkeepers, sadhus, sannyasis, priests, lay men and men in the street-all flocked in numbers, each in his own convenient hour, to have a glimpse of Her darshan, to pay their respect to Her and if possible, to exchange with Her a few words. People of both sexes, of all ages and of all ranks were to be found in the crowd. Some came to have Her darshan only, a few to have their doubts solved, while others still were there out of mere curiosity. The beauty of it was that all felt a sort of magnetic charm in Mother’s personality, so that those who had come once out of curiosity could not resist the temptation of coming back again, no longer out of curiosity which had been satisfied but owing to some mysterious attraction. The fact is that all felt that they were like little children in the presence of their own mother. The bleakness of cold formalities was replaced by the warmth of familiarity and intimacy. Mother behaved with them as with Her own children -dear, affectionate and very familiar. There was not the least reserve in Her look nor any sort of constraint in Her expression. The whole atmosphere was one of a friendly gathering imbued with vivacity and joyousness.

Every evening a sort of informal meeting would be arranged in the courtyard where the visitors would be seated round Mother and ply Her with questions. She used to reply to each question resolving the doubts of the inquirers with a few short sentences in Her sweet and inimitable manner. As the enquirers hailed from different cultural levels and represented different intellectual and spiritual points of view, it is only natural that the questions should range over many different topics, and be of varying interest and value. It was wonderful how mother tackled all these questions with the same ease and spontaneity and without requiring a moment’s reflection to deal with even the most abstruse and knotty problems brought before Her. Her replies were as a rule very pertinent, going straight to the heart of the questioner, couched in a language remarkable for its terseness and expressiveness. Every word that fell from Her lips carried weight; and humour too was not wanting when occasion demanded it. Mother as a conversationalist was seen at Her best in those days -it was a quality to which everybody who has had the privilege of talking with Her in later years is in a position to testify. It was interesting to observe that She maintained an attitude of strict reticence in regard to questions which were not bonafide in nature but were either academical or intended to elicit opinions likely to hurt the feelings of others.

Different ‘kirtan’ parties vied with each other in singing daily before Her the glories of the Divine and His Name. Individual devotees with a melodious voice considered it a distinct honour (to themselves) to be permitted to regale Her with their songs.

On such occasions generally, when the music flowed spontaneously out of the deeper feelings of the singer’s heart, and also on other occasions when in the course of conversations a crucial point was reached it was observed that Mother’s appearance became aglow with bhava and the normal gave way to the supernormal. It seemed as if Her usual personality with which Her ‘bhaktas’ were familiar was replaced for a while by an altogether different one. At such moments various unusual phenomena were observed. ‘Stotras’ and ‘mantras’ of an extraordinary kind used to gush out of Her lips with a rapidity which made it practically impossible for any one to record them.* The language of these utterances was unique; it was not, strictly speaking, Sanskrit nor even any of its derivative vernaculars, though there were a few Sanskrit words here and there. several words were unfamiliar and even the so-called Sanskrit words did not perhaps convey their usual sense. Besides, very often monosyllabic ‘Bijas’, known or unknown, were interspersed. The pronunciation was so perfect that even a conjunct sound. made up of several consonants without any intervocalic linking, was distinctly audible. Sometimes on these occasions Mother melted into tears or ejaculations, or even would become rigid and pass into a trance-like condition.

*In subsequent years attempts were sometimes made to record these spontaneous utterances, which were held to be as valuable as the shrutiss revealed to the Rishis. In Bhaiji’s Matri darshan (p.46-52) some illustrations of this are to be found. The difficulty experienced in recording these was two-fold : firstly, these were generally of a sudden emergence and there was no knowing when they would come. Even Mother Herself did not know. Secondly, it was really impossible to reproduce them exactly, except through some mechanical device. There was also the fear lest some letters might be missed or alteration or corruption made in their transcription as Her utterances deserved to be treated as Mantras. Besides other considerations, the constancy of the phonetic value of each sound had to be maintained, this represented an additional difficulty.

The trance-like state was also induced in those days when ‘bhaktas’ offered flowers at Her feet or in other ways tried to propitiate Her. The response was immediate.

There was a difference of opinion at that time concerning the precise status of Mother. Some held that She was a Goddess in human form -Kali according to some, Durga according to others, Sarasvati or Radha according to others still. Some thought that She was a human aspirant, who had attained perfection in this life, after a series of births during which Her spiritual progress had been continued. Others again entertained the view that she was a Brahmavadini [one who follows the doctrine of Brahman] as of yore or perhaps an Incarnation of the Divine come down to earth to relieve its sufferings. She was identified with Sukadeva by some and with Sri Krishna Himself by others. People of worldly nature used to think that some higher spiritual entity, human or celestial, was in possession of Her body and utilised it as an instrument to serve its own ends. A certain gentleman then living in a house adjacent to my own and working in one of the local High schools, went to the length of telling me that Her case was clearly one of obsession, though by a good spirit and that it was desirable to bring back the soul from the control of the spirit. This gentleman, who was old and had the reputation of being a practical Tantrist of long standing, claimed to have the power of restoring Her to Her normal condition, provided the Her husband and father were agreeable. He was under the impression that the appointed course or evolution of Her life was being impeded in this way and that in the interest of Her own spiritual welfare this setback should be removed. It goes without saying that nobody cared to attach any importance to these words. One day, the great speaker, the late Swami Dayananda of the Bharat Dharma Mahamandal, came to see Mother and had a personal talk with Her. Though the interview of Swamiji was intended to be more or less of a private character, it was arranged that the late Sasanka Babu and myself would be allowed to be present on the occasion. Swamiji put several questions to Mother which She readily answered.

Thus:-

Swamiji,-Mother, what are you in fact? People hold different views regarding you and no agreement seems to exist. What do you have to say of yourself ?

Mother,-You want to know what I am. Well I am what you consider me to be -not more not less.

Swamiji,-What is the nature of your Samadhi? Is it ‘Savikalpa’ or ‘Nirvikalpa’? Does mind then persist?

Mother,-Well, it is for you to decide this question. All that I can say is that in the midst of all apparent changes of state in body and mind, I feel, I am aware, that I am always the same. I feel that in me there is no change of states. Call it by any name you like. Is it Samadhi? Several such questions were put and answered.

These few days of Mother’s stay at Benares sufficed to convince me of the greatness of Her personality and the unusual sanctity of Her life. I learnt Her past history from those around Her, including Bholanathji, Sister Gurupriya, Saanka Babu and others, and I still remember with delight those happy occasions when Mother Herself condescended to narrate the story of Her early life and its development at Bajitpur and Dacca. It was a story of gripping interest to us all.

This story which relates to Her earlier life at Astagram, Bajitpur and Dacca, much of which has since been recorded by Her admirers and devoted followers and Her story of Her later life throw a flood of light on Her unique personality.

The greatest thing that struck me most in those days in Her was Her personality. Her physical features were magnetic. Her smiling countenance, the sweetness of Her expression, the simplicity of Her life and behaviour, Her unassuming and genial manners, the cordiality and warmth of Her relationship with all, coupled with Her extraordinary holy life and wisdom made Her an object of universal attraction and adoration.

A few useful references:

Sad Bani (Bengali)1937 by (Bhaiji)

Do (English)1937 (on this site in English, French, Spanish and Italian)

Matri darshan (Bengali) 1938 by (Bhaiji)

Sri Sri Ma Anandmayi by Gurupriya Devi

Part I (1938) Part II (1938) ,,

Part III(1939)PartIII(1945) ,,

The last Part brings the story up to 1937. [In 2005, there are 19 volumes in Hindi, whose six have been translated into English]

Sri Sri Anandmayi Prasanga-by Amulya Kumar Dutt-

Gupta, Part I (1938), Part II (1941). [In 2005, 3 volumes translated into English]

During succeeding years I was privileged to come in closer touch with Her and to know Her more intimately. But it is not possible for me to state what Her exact role is or what particular rank is occupied by Her in the spiritual hierarchy of this country. That different persons should hold different opinions regarding Her personality is of course natural. For in a matter like this, a correct analysis on intellectual basis is not possible and an ordinary human judgment cannot yield any useful result.

Still however an attempt is being made here at the request of friends to discuss briefly some of the most prominent features of Her life and character. It is expected this discussion will not be taken as amounting to a final solution of the problem, for it offers no solution at all. It is intended rather to serve as a possible aid to a clearer appreciation of Her or as a suggestion in that direction. The basis of this discussion is furnished by the data in Her own utterances, whether embodied in books already published or awaiting publication, or otherwise.

Firstly, it is well known that Mother received no diksha or initiation of any kind from an external Guru and also that She Herself does not give diksha to any body. In other words in the technical language of the shastras She claims to be neither a Guru nor a Sisya.

But an informal diksha, not one taken from an outside agency, -She certainly had. We know that this informal diksha took place in the month of July or thereabout in the year 1922 when She was twenty-six years of age. Mother Herself admitted this fact shortly afterwards to one of Her cousins. This diksha was not of the usual type known to us but it did represent the initiation of a certain spiritual activity within Her body, an activity which did not owe its origin to any source other than Her own self. In the conventional language of the world it may not be termed diksha at all, but it is recognised as such in the traditional teachings of the mystical science. That a systematic course of sadhana including physical disciplinary exercises, followed this event in Her life is well known. In the tantrik literature it has been made abundantly clear that diksha is a spiritual necessity, though it is true that in every case external ceremonials or other forms of activity may not be needed. Inner diksha consists in an act of self-purification. The kind of diksha is determined by the intensity of the Divine Power of Grace descending upon the soul. So far as the fundamental variety of this purifying process is concerned, we have to recognise four ultimate types viz. Anupaya, Shambhavopaya, Shaktopaya and Anavopaya. When the descending grace is extremely powerful the first type of diksha follows as a natural sequence. With diminishing power the others are employed. In Anupaya diksha perfection is realised at once. In Shambhavi diksha or even in Shakti diksha the necessity for external kriyas as an aid to inner purification is not recognised.

In the history of mysticism it is recognised everywhere that in exceptional cases illumination is possible and this takes place even when an external source is lacking. We know of the Pratyekabuddha who neither received his wisdom from any previous Buddha nor communicated it to others. He was a Buddha no doubt, having attained to enlightenment, but he was neither a shisya in relation to an earlier Buddha nor a Guru in relation to a future Bodhisattva or Buddha. Had he been a Guru he would have been a perfect Buddha (samyakam buddha ). The illumination in this case had its source within.

In the Vedic literature we come across cases of Rishis who having been blessed with spontaneous illumination were the seers of mantras which are associated with their names. This self-generated wisdom is really an example of the so-called Pratibha Jnana of which we read so much in the Patanjali and other Yoga systems and the tantrik literature. The origin of Pratibha Jnana is explicable as the result of Divine Grace descending on the soul of a man.

The Grace or Shakti which comes down on the matured soul, is of different degrees of intensity. These degrees belong in the main to three categories-intense, mild and dull. Each of these three varieties is again subdivided into three classes, so that there are altogether nine degrees in all. If grace of the second degree counted from the beginning, descends on the soul, it is not required to have recourse to a Guru for illumination and one gets the Light from within. This Light is spontaneous and does not come from an external source. In such cases the necessity of an external Guru is dispensed with. But the prarabdha karma remains and the body which is an outcome of this karma persists till the karma is worked out through Bhoga. When grace of the first degree descends the prarabdha itself is destroyed. And with the exhaustion of prarabdha the impure body also falls off. The question of an external Guru does not arise in this case, as in the case of the second degree of Grace.

In Sant literature we hear of Swayam Siddha Sants or persons who are saints from the very birth and not due to the accident of knowledge from an external source. These men take no diksha from others, but they are in a position to give diksha to deserving candidates. These great Souls descend from transcendent regions, specially from the Divine World, beyond the Cosmic Mind and the Great Void. And when embodied, their centres of consciousness never come down below the middle of the two eye-brows. In the literature of other countries also the record of similar cases is not altogether wanting.

I do not know if any of the above types of self-generated illumination is analogous to the nature of Mother’s personality. It seems that Mother is not comparable to a Pratyekabuddha, for, while a Pratyekabuddha is exclusive and isolated in his blissful seclusion, indifferent to the fact of Universal misery, Mother is too keenly sensitive to the sorrows of the world to remain contented with an isolated existence, even if it were possible. All Her thoughts and activities have their bearing on the amelioration and transformation of the world. And as a matter of fact She has always that Cosmic and Trans-cosmic Consciousness precluding any possible exclusiveness of outlook.

We know of cases of souls which are always perfect and which dwell permanently on the Divine Plane as eternal associates of the Divine Person to whom they are related as inalienable aspects of the integral whole. These souls are very similar in nature to the Svayam Siddha type mentioned above. As a matter of fact they are not subject to the action of ignorance or Time Spirit and are never required to come down to earth except in company with the Supreme Lord during His descent or at other times as directed by Him in regard to the time, place and manner of descent. Such souls considered from the standpoint of spiritual status and attitude are varied in nature. It would be unfair to place Mother under this category, for the simple reason, that while these souls are characterised by a sense of intimacy with the Divine which seldom encroaches on identity, Mother represents an integral self-awareness which never tolerates even in the slightest degrees an idea of separation or distinction from the integral Central Being. Her confession concerning Her consciousness of identity with the Cosmic and the Supercosmic existence and with all the powers and attributes associated with it, is a clear argument against the inclusion of Mother in this category.

The view which accepts Mother’s personality as a case of Avatar may be dismissed with a few words of comment. The question of Ansha or Kala (partial) Avatar may be left aside, but it seems to me that even the possibility of a plenary Avatar is excluded in Her case. The fact is that every Avatar, unless he is of the plenary type, represents an aspect of the Divine Power and can never represent the Divine Essence or even the Divine Person in toto. In several cases the Avatar are self forgetful Divine emanations whereas in others in which self-consciousness is retained, integral consciousness seems to be always lacking. In case of the Plenary Avatar also, if there be any, unbroken consciousness of his plenary nature does not appear to exist. A careful study of Mother’s utterances and a critical attitude towards Her life and activities would perhaps reveal the fact that Her case is altogether different. She herself has confessed to some that She never loses Her supreme self-consciousness. Samadhi or no Samadhi, She is where She always has been; She knows no change, no modification, no alteration; She is always poised in the self-same awareness as a supreme and integral universality, transcending all limitations of time, space and personality and yet comprehending them all in a great harmony.

She has said times without number that Her body is not like that of an ordinary person generated through prarabdha karma under the dominating influence of ignorance and that She has had no previous life to account for Her present existence; nor will She have a future life in continuation of and for the adjustment of Her activities in the present life. The fact that She was aware of Herself and conscious of what was happening around Her Immediately after Her birth is an illustration to show that Her self-awareness was born with Her and was not the effect of either Her so-called diksha or Her so-called sadhana in Bajitpur.

Mother says that all Her activities are really spontaneous and not prompted will or purpose, nor influenced and colored by desires. Will-power is not the spring of Her actions. The untrained will of the lay men and the trained will of the Yogi are equally absent in Her and what appears like the will is only an expression of the Great Power beyond the will working from within. She distinguishes between Mahasakti and Ichchaskti, saying that while the former is like the fire, the latter is like the smoke that issues out of it. Ichchasakti or Will-power cannot exist in a person who, whether considered as an individual or as the universal, is essentially impersonal. The power of the Impersonal or the power which is Impersonal expresses itself in the Cosmic Mind as the universal will and in the individual as the individual will, but in itself it can hardly be described as will of any kind. It is Pure, Ineffable and Absolute. Of course, there is such a thing as the Divine Will, but we have to interpret it as identical with the Supreme Power rather than as will analogous to the human will though it must be admitted that the human will and the Divine Will are in a sense the same Power.

Will implies self-limitation to certain extent even though that limitation is an imposition by itself on itself. What is technically known as karma is really an outcome of the individual will of man with an egoistic background and functioning under ignorance. Freedom of will implies a removal of this limitation. If the limitation is self-made its disappearance is equally self-initiated. In the Self which is really free from all limitations, the will is absolutely free. In other words it is not will in the ordinary sense of the term but is an expression of the Divine Power, free and unobstructed in its functioning. That Mother has no will of Her own as distinguished from the so-called Divine Will shows that all Her movements take place spontaneously and the She does not hold Herself responsible for any of them. Her movements are guided neither by any considerations of the future. They are confined to the present and they rest there as in the heart of Eternity.

From this it might be inferred that She is always in a state of purity and that what comes to pass in Her life is determined not by Herself as She appear to us but by the forces working from above. Her system is like a stringed instrument giving out notes, not of its own initiative but in response to shocks or vibrations received from outside.

It is very difficult for a man to conceive a personality which is so impersonal or the Impersonal actually embodied in such a Person. In Mother we have a curious combination of these contradictory elements, for which reason, one finds it so hard to form an estimate of the truth of Her Being. Will-power being really absent, the absence of karma as a moral force becomes intelligible. That Mother is untouched by karma of any kind need not therefore be an enigma. There being no previous karma the origin of Her body is to be explained by the play of the Supreme Power, either in itself or as reacting to the collective aspirations of humanity. As to why the Supreme Power should have expressed itself in a particular human body is a question to which an ordinary man is not in a position to reply.

The experience of Sarvatmabhava [ feeling of being the soul of everything] to which all mystics look forward to, after their realisation of the Self, is found to be a normal experience with Mother even in Her earliest days. The fact is so patent to all acquainted with Her life that no illustration is needed to substantiate it.

The true ideal of Samadhi which Mother has held out before Her admirers is intended to show that She does not attach undue importance to the Static Brahman realisation or to the Dynamic one. She places the Supreme Truth as consisting of and yet exceeding both these lower truths. The gradual evolution of the human soul in the direction of this Absolute Reality is represented by Her as an integral spiritual movement in which there are certain relative poises. Chitta Samadhana, bhava Samadhana and Vyakta Samadhana [absorption respectively in consciousness (or deep memory), inner experience and manifestation] are the three successive stages of inward development leading to its culmination in what is called by Her as Purna Samadhana [full absorption]. The first stage stands for the incipient condition of the evolutionary movement in which the mind is dried up and rendered light and inflammable, owing to the elimination from it of the waters of worldly desires and passions under the influence of inner culture in the form of meditation or otherwise. Just as dry fuel, free from all moisture, takes fire easily and burns, in the same way the mind thus purified catches easily the fire of knowledge and becomes aglow. This spiritual condition, usually known as bhavashuddhi or purity of bhava, is called Chittasamadhana. It arises under the influence of the Supreme Reality through different channels of expressions. Human nature being divergent, it is not strange that in some cases this state should represent an overpowering of the mental structure of the aspirant under the pressure of divine sentiment.

The second stage, called bhava Samadhana, represents a more advanced condition than the first one. In this state the seeker remains immersed in the integral bhava, insensible to the stimuli of outer nature. The body becomes, as it were, paralysed under the domination of this bhava. Outwardly speaking, the body loses its mobility and power of responsiveness and becomes more or less like an inert clod, though inwardly the bhava which has influenced it, begins to flow on in an uninterrupted stream. When this state matures into perfection what is left behind is only the play of the Integral Idea having unified the outer and inner elements of human nature. In this stage the individual being is charged and permeated the integral bhava and there is an overflowing of it into outer nature. In other words, the integral bhava fills up the entire mind of the sadhaka and flows over into the world outside him.

The third stage is called Vyakta Samadhana. In this condition the fire of knowledge burns as fully within the individual as it does outside. The soul is then absorbed in one undivided Universal Being. Even in this state the duality of Form and Formless persists. But in the next stage which represents perfection and is called Purna Samadhana all sorts of dualities melt away, having been for ever transcended in the Supreme Unity of Absolute Truth. This state is Transcendent and yet immanent, is Nirguna as well as Sarguna, Sakara as well as Nirakara at one and at the same time, and yet it transcends both. This is really the so-called Bhavitita condition free from the ripples of thought vibrations. This is Samadhi in the proper sense of the world, for it signifies Samadhana or completion of every sort of activity and thought, a state beyond ignorance as well as beyond knowledge. The stability of the body and the mind is based upon concentration on a particular principle or vision which, in the end universalises itself, dissolves the egoistic sense remaining within it and stands out in its unique splendour. In course of time, this sense of basic unity also disappears. What is left behind is beyond the power of mind to grasp or of words to describe. This appears to be the highest perfection of Nirvikalpa Samadhana. Mother says that in this state all the activities of the body, even the vibrations of the cells, are stopped and that if the condition continues for along time the body is likely to be destroyed. But one whose descent has for its object the welfare of the world continues in body as long as such continuance is necessary in the interest of humanity. This is a state of Mahayoga and is to be sharply distinguished from the Yoga of the ordinary class. While an ordinary Yogi retains his sense of physical identity to the last moment of his life and is subject to action, a Mahayogi is above such limitations and is immune from the necessity of any action initiated by himself.

It is evident from the above that the state of Mahayoga bears a faint resemblance to Mother’s own condition, with this difference that while Mahayoga is the logical culmination of a series of prior sadhanas, Mother’s state, as such, was not evolved with Her and will disappear with Her.

There is a tendency in some quarters to consider Mother as belonging to the category of a devata. These people are inclined to think, each according to his own point of view, that She is a normal human being but is celestial in origin. In reply to the contention of these persons it may be said that there is no specific ground to regard Her in this light. That different devotees saw in Her person different heavenly manifestations is easily explicable on the hypothesis of their unconscious predispositions crystalised into visions of the gods and goddesses associated with their subliminal mind and may also be interpreted as due to the action of the Supreme Power functioning as Will through Her body. That She herself as an individual did not exercise any will-power is to be assumed on Her explicit disowning of the use of such a power. It is the intensity of bhakti in a worshipper which visualises its object in a concrete form. The function of a Supreme Power is of course assumed. We know of three layers of beings -one connected with the earth plane, the other with the intermediate plane and the third with the heavenly plane, -known respectively as Men, Siddhas and Devas. Knowing Mother as one does at present, one cannot pretend to say that from the standpoint of Brahmavidya [the science of Brahman], the distinction of the three classes counts for much. The phenomena attributed to Mother are easily intelligible on the assumption of Her being endowed with Brahmajnana irrespective of the fact that She is Human or Siddha or Divya. As regards the question of Her descent as a Siddha or as a Devata, it may be studied on the analogy of the problem of Her descent as a Nitya Siddha or Swayam Siddha mentioned above.

There is another point which needs elucidation in connection with the question of Mother’s identity. We always find that in spite of apparently diverse attitudes or poises in Her mind and body, She always feels Herself as one and the same. This awareness of unity in the Self is not affected in the least by Samadhi or Vyutthana [dispersion] nor even by three normal states of walking, dream and dreamless sleep. Samadhi and its effects on the system are not minimized nor are we going to attach undue weight to Her playful outer movements. Underlying both the same self-vision persists, neither clouded by the world, nor clarified by the withdrawal of the senses and the mind inwards. In the midst of tumultuous uproar She maintains an unbroken silence and in the depth of Her silence She speaks out eloquently. This shows that in judging of Her we should not allow ourselves to be led by our considerations of Samadhi or Vyutthana. This being so, we cannot explain the whole study of Her diksha , sâdhanâ and upasana and even of Her illumination and attainment of Supreme Knowledge except as mere play, intended probably to serve as an example to ordinary humanity. One would thus find in Her a dual personality representing on the one hand the luminous peace of the Silent Self and on the other a self-imposed playful attitude displaying like a kaleidoscope the shifting visions of a series of dramatic pictures bound together by certain bond of affinity or sequence, the secret of which is hidden from the view of ordinary men.

We know very well that in every stage of Her life Mother played Her part admirably well consistently with the laws of propriety befitting Her role, and yet behind all these appearances She retains the self-same and eternally self-revealed consciousness. It is therefore a very difficult task to try to describe Mother as She really is. She has appeared differently to different persons and even if these differences are contradictory we can quietly accept them full well that in a higher synthesis even contradictories may meet together. These differences need not be obliterated in the interest of a particular view point. Naturally we do not and cannot, know all the phases of Mother’s life; and that the little we know of a particular phase we know imperfectly. She is too near us to be seen in Her proper perspective and as for ourselves we too, shall have to rise up to the height and attain to broad out-look in which an attempt may be made to study Her properly. What is really needed is to feel that She is to feel that She is Mother and we are Her children and that as mere children we cannot be expected to know Her as She is but as She shows Herself to us in response to our cravings. It really becomes us to behave as infants crying out in the night and invoking Mother with an inarticulate language for Her actual descent and benediction.

ANANDAMAYI: A MYSTIC ROSE

Dr. Mahendra Nath Sircar M.A. Ph.D.

I met Mother for the first time in 1929 at Dacca where I went in connection with the Indian Philosophical Congress. I made a point to see Her. I was advised to do so by an esteemed friend of mine who used to know Her intimately. I was told that Anandamayi was endowed with rare spiritual gifts. I am always eager to come in personal touch with men and women of spiritual gifts specially where the visions are genuine and are not tampered with borrowed intellectual ideas.

Anandamayi had little privilege of schooling; She is almost unlettered and did not, in Her youth, enjoy the fellowship of spiritual men and women. As the housewife of an humble family She used to keep Herself engaged in Her household duties. She had no world outside Her own and near relatives’ house. She was an extremely simple village girl completely unsophisticated, far removed from the ways and manners of modern civilized life. This was my impression when I saw Her for the first time in a house at Ramna, Dacca. She was sitting alone in a fairly big room and I arrived there when the sun had gone down the horizon. There was a light in the room and on enquiry about Her I was asked to go inside. I did so. The very sight gave me the impression of a soft human being, delicate, and fair like a flower. She was that day not very communicative but the very few words that were exchanged produced a visible effect. She became indrawn and began to sink in Herself. She became completely silent but not less communicative; Her silence was most eloquent. Anandamayi was beautiful in Her appearance but as She went deeper in Herself She became more radiant and more expressive in Her mood of thought and cast Her sweetness and silent grandeur in that atmosphere of quiet. Our first meeting ended in silence.

The news of our meeting was circulated on the congress by a scholar from Bombay. I was requested by the illustrious professors from Bombay, Poona, Madras and other parts of the country to take them to Mother. Next day all assembled in Her place; the house was full. A professor of the Wilson College led the discussion and I was the interpreter. The discussion lasted for three hours and all kinds of questions, mostly philosophical, were put; and Anandamayi was ready with answers spontaneously and immediately. There was no hesitation, not the least conscious thinking, nor the least sign of nervousness in Her. Her answers hit directly the point, free from the metaphysical technique. The whole assembly enjoyed Her keen intelligence, ready wit and eloquent expressions. The questioner was heard to say that during his travels in Europe and America he had not come across a lady so unlettered yet so wise. Towards the latter part of the discussion, Anandamayi was evidently withdrawn into Herself, and in a moment of inspiration uttered one or two Sanskrit sentences. It could not be caught and so it was not recorded. The whole assembly broke out in joyous wonder at the profundity of Her wisdom, the fluency of Her expression and the luminosity of the smile in Her face.

Some years elapsed, I saw Mother again in Benares twice, and She gave me an almost identical impression, with this difference that I saw Her now more conscious and composed. The unconscious and the spontaneous in Her were withdrawn and She now had become the conscious teacher and interpreter of Her experience. She had become more intellectual. She

no longer radiated like a silent flower moving at every waft of spiritual inspiration, now still, now breaking out in over-powering sweetness of cadence in vocal music. She had now become a keen logician, ready to cross swords with the adepts in the art. The intellect in Her now had become more keen and could see and measure the foundations of Her experience and faith.

At times She soared into the sublime region of intellectual intuition and felt the total existence in its widest commonalty spread. She emphasised the undivided-ness of existence and realised the transcendent silence with intellectual calmness tinged with subdued emotional fervour. I once enjoyed a trip with Her on the Ganges last April and heard eloquent description in mood of exaltation about Her all-pervasiveness and Her immanence in every thing. Herself being one with the core of existence, She does not always enjoy this height. She often identifies Herself with human miseries and suffering and shows Her anxiety to carry their burden of Her shoulders. She is not now prone to lapse into Her silence, which is natural with Her, but is keen to take on Herself selfless service to inspire and guide and offer a soothing balm to suffering humanity. Now She feels Herself saturated with cosmic life, thought and bliss. She feels Herself in the cosmic beat of being now, and again She is far beyond in the inaccessible silence. Anandamayi once said, “Everybody’s satisfaction is my satisfaction. Everybody’s happiness is my own happiness. Everybody’s misery is my misery”. At other times She said, “There is no misery anywhere; because I have no misery. The sun and moon are my forms; Agni (Fire) and Vayu ( Air ) are my powers.” In another moment of inspiration She said, “ I do not wait for your spiritual readiness. Like the flowing Ganges I go on bestowing my compassion on all. This is my nature. This is my being.”

Anandamayi does not exaggerate the sublime wisdom as to the oneness of being but she thinks that before the adept is consciously and permanently established there, he feels the expansiveness of being and he acquires powers. This is the natural fruition of so serious a search. The final fruition comes after the affirmation of expansive being through the graded scales of existence. The highest comes beyond the cosmic and super cosmic experiences in the beatitude of inexplicable silence.

Like the great compassionate Buddha, Anandamayi expresses Herself as carrying out Her existence for the redemption of humanity. My association with Her is not intimate enough to pass judgment upon this express declaration. This much I felt on more than one occasion that She had a kind heart and a chastened being which could evoke fine sentiments, which could carry thoughts into ethereal atmosphere and could produce waves of blissful aroma through the hearty. Anandamayi always appeals to me as excelling in esoteric wisdom and an unfettered love. Love is Her being, sweetness is Her expression. About Her esoteric wisdom it will be sufficient to say that according to Her own testimony many planes of existence are open to Her, and the master spirits from the higher planes contact Her. She seems to be under the influence and possession of Divine Mother; She is so much identified with Her that at times She could be seen assuming the Divine Form under the high stress of inspiration. Under the stress of the Divine power Her supple being gives way and becomes a vehicle of Divine expression.

Her chief instruction is to make unconditional surrender to the Divine through the heart. Surrender opens the inner being, makes it aspiring and fit for receiving; finally it identifies the aspiring soul with the Divine in the inmost cavity of the heart. Everything then becomes easy; for the undulations of our being are then removed, and it stands unmasked in Divine light and splendour. Once the being has the touch of the Divine, the impressions become deepened with the habitual upward bent of the being. A great force comes down purifying and shaping the being and making it fit for greater consummation, viz, revelation of the profound wisdom, undimmed light and sure power. Anandamayi’s frail being stands illumined with a rare light elevated with a rare vision. She has become veritably a Spiritual Rose emitting an uncommon sweetness, a rare delicacy and fine waves of bliss. I have seen Her photograph, taken immediately after awaking from ecstasy. It indicated the impress of heavenly charm upon Her face. It is like a spiritual twilight, half-conscious and half-unconscious of the receding light, a play of heavenly light and shade. She was then like a lotus, listless in the Sun’s light, enveloped by the darkness of the dusk.

MA ANANDAMAYI : a New power on this Earth

G.C. Das Gupta, Principal (retired)

Secondary Teacher’s Training College, Baroda.

There is now a chaos in the affairs of the world. Man faces a cataclysmic crisis. The foundations of human civilization are crumbling, threatening the entire culture and the very existence of man. Never was the need for spiritual revival so urgent, the search for a life of truth and non-violence so desperate as now. The soul of man struggling helplessly within the coils of his self made prison, craves most eagerly for light and deliverance. In this oppressive atmosphere of the world, laden with bitter feud and misery, Mother Anandamayi stands as a beacon-light to struggling humanity, holding out a message of hope and cheer, of eternal bliss and peace.

Before Mother Anandamayi our mind and intelligence retire baffled and overwhelmed. In Her presence we feel like on standing at the foot of the mighty Himalayas with higher and higher peaks spreading out in endless panorama before our vision in their bewildering beauty and variety. Like the Himalayas too, Mother Anandamayi sends down from Her great heights endless streams of love and purity that sustain and uplift a countless number of people on this Earth.

Mother is Herself the embodiment here below of the supreme Matri Shakti. In Her presence the young, the adult and the old, all feel the warmth of a mother’s love and affection, deep and boundless. There is the same loving kindness for all. No body feels slighted. On the contrary, every one feels blessed, receiving Her grace, according to his capacity and needs. The saintly people find in Her words a glow of divine wisdom, while the worldly and the sinful feel an inner awakening for a higher life. In Her company an urge to live a better life becomes insistent. A new enthusiasm seizes us and pulls us up from the dull routine of the transitory pleasures of our physical existence. One is struck with amazement when one finds Mother sitting for almost the whole day, calm, serene and even smiling amongst streams of men and women, boys and girls, amongst the old and the decrepit and the sick, all eager to catch Her glance, waiting for hours together in a mood of devotion and expectancy. The mysterious influence that radiates from Her person can neither be explained by reason or traced to any palpable source. But it is still there. We can feel it in our hearts. It is a rapture to listen to the easy flow of Her soft, soothing words which, like the invisible rays of light, heal our hidden sores and brighten up the darkest corners of our hearts.

Like the rays of the Sun too, Her divine motherly love for the fallen, for the distressed and for the bereaved, descends always silently everywhere, down to the inmost depths of one’s being, and transforms one anew, curing all the mental maladies that eat away one’s vitals. With a mysterious divine presence She permeates every fibre of Her children’s heart. There is no material, moral or spiritual rod nor any national or international scale that we know of, to measure Her greatness and grandeur, Her sweetness and solemnity and Her love and compassion for all created beings (bhûtânukampâ) from the tiniest fly to the noblest of saints.

We hear of many Incarnations of God in the persons of prophets and seers sent down by the Divine Shakti for the regeneration of the world; but Mother Anandamayi appears to be a unique phenomenon in the history of man. In Her the intensely human and the essentially divine meet in perfect harmony. She has a radiant personality and serene self assurance, the like of which cannot be found elsewhere. The beauty, joy and luster which Her presence sheds all around are supremely Divine. We get the impression that only a fraction of Her Self deals with the human affairs while an immense reserve of power is held up in the background. She lives and moves about amongst all types and classes of men. Wherever She goes She brings an illumination in the minds and hearts of men where no earthly light can penetrate. A merciful shower of bliss floods our parched-up souls when we happen to meet Her whether in a vast concourse, or in a Railway Station or in an ashram. She does not go into the house of any private individual; a temple or an ashram or a dharmashala is always a welcome place for Her temporary residence.

“This body belongs to you all. Do God’s work according to what you think best”- was the message which She once transmitted to Her children. She stands aloof and above all controversies and sectarianism with unruffled dignity and serenity as a symbol of unity, mutual love and truthfulness, all persons finding a common meeting ground in and through Her. The above message signifies an absolute dedication of Her all for the good of humanity. She does not talk about politics or of any particular religion or social code. Her conversation directly bears on God, the primal source of all unity and power, love and devotion, sacrifice and selfless service, tolerance and goodwill for all created beings.

She advices that every man or woman, boy or girl should set up a relationship or link with the creator by devoting five or ten minutes at a specified time everyday, for the meditation of God; and no worldly thoughts whatsoever must be allowed to creep in during that short interval. This short period is to be dedicated for life to God and spent in making the mind absolutely void for the play of the Devine forces, so that the individual soul may be pulled up and find an outlet to plunge into the Infinite.

Generally in her ashrams, silence is observed for an hour or more, when there descends a heavenly spell of peace and tranquility too deep for expression. one feels as if one’s self has become merged in, in that ecstatic calm. An atmosphere of mystic expansiveness then widens the horizon of our mind, we come to feel the littleness and worthlessness of our daily squabbles and aimless pursuits. She symbolises, at that time, oneness of all the tiniest sparks of our life merging together for the time being, into one holy flame of Mother’s body.

Whenever She talks, She pours out a flood of sweetness upon all persons present. In Her easy, penetrating but joyful way She explains, elaborates and discusses the highest problems of philosophy in such a simple and homely manner that it carries conviction to the learned as well as to the ordinary men and women. Her mode of approach is direct, charming; an inner glow accompanies all Her words which imparts to them wonderful force and vitality. The varied problems of everyday life as well as the subtle ones of the spiritual plane are all one to Her. With a few plain words or simple suggestions She solves them to every body’s entire satisfaction.

All Her activities are ever directed to the uplift of the human soul whose clouded vision is responsible for all the disasters of society. She enables all persons to pass through the trials and tribulation of worldly life with strength and determination, as well as through all the difficult, intricate paths of spiritual progress or sadhana. Sometimes Her silence becomes more eloquent and effective than Her words.

Those of us that have had the good fortune to come under the influence of Her magnetic personality have always felt that She is like “a star that dwells apart” from all the transitory toils and turmoil of earthly existence; yet She, with