Shanti

“Filled with divine Light, the compassionate sage shared words of wisdom with all devotees who came to him in search of spiritual knowledge, but rarely did he accept resident disciples. Monks, householders, pilgrims, and seekers from all stages and fields of life continually thronged to Uttarkashi to be in the presence of, and learn from, this Self-realized master and erudite scholar.

When Swami Tapovanam did accept a resident disciple, the latter was trained under the strictest conditions. In all, thirty-five or so students came with enthusiasm, at one point or another, to study under him. There were very few who could undergo and survive such hardships, but those seekers who did, were blessed by the Master with supreme Enlightenment. When Swami Chinmayananda requested the sage to teach him, He told the curious ‘Chinmaya,’ that he would say everything he had to teach once only, and Chinmaya would have to repeat it the very next day; if he forgot anything, he would have to leave.

Swami Tapovanam believed that the highest Knowledge was not for everyone, but only for those who yearned and searched for it. He was, of course, an incredible teacher of Vedanta. It might have been impossible to live under the same exacting conditions, but it was equally impossible to resist his brilliance, outside and within. His teachings came from the innermost depths of his illumined being, and, as such, they were the quintessence of pure, unalloyed Self-awareness. In the hot summer season, Swami Tapovanam would retreat ninety kilometres further up the Himalayas to Gangotri. As one of his disciples, Swami Chinmayananda accompanied him.

Living conditions in Gangotri were tough. Removed from the comforts of civilization, there was no nutritious food, warm clothing, adequate shelter, or electricity for reading; and no talking was allowed among disciples, not with a disciplinarian for a Guru. Each day began with an icy cold bath in the Ganga, waking up for morning class at 6 a.m. Following the Vedic tradition, class would begin with a prayer and continued for a few hours daily. The rest of the time was spent in reflection, prayer, meditation, and service of the Guru. During scriptural study, Swami Tapovanam would read out one verse of the text, and then give the equivalent meaning in Hindi. Word by word, he explained the Sanskrit, giving the rules of grammar, as well as possible interpretations and misinterpretations of the meaning.

Aside from scriptural study, there were lessons learned daily from the austere life and living example of the Guru. Once, a basket of laddoos arrived just as the class had begun. Swami Tapovanam directed them to be kept inside. The students waited, eagerly, for their guru to distribute the delicious sweets. But, even after a few days, no laddoos appeared. Some disenchanted students, suspecting that the Master was keeping all them for himself, actually left. On the fifth day, Swami Tapovanam ordered the basket to be brought before the class. It was exactly as it had arrived with all the laddoos intact. “To the Ganga! Throw them out!” he thundered. “Just look at the quality of your minds, agitated over a paltry basket of sweets...We’re here to study the Upanishads, not to eat laddoos!”

Thus, Swami Tapovanam never missed an opportunity to teach the ideals of spiritual life and discipline in practical situations. His goal was to turn the student’s mind beyond material concerns even in their daily routines. This pure-hearted monk saw God in everything. He would often stop in his wanderings to point out the majestic scenery saying, “Why can’t man see Divinity behind the ecstatic Artist who has painted this inspired beauty?” His devotion to the holy river Ganga — which he considered as the Ultimate Truth in liquid form — drew him to always live within hearing distance of its sweet rumblings, either at Uttarkashi or Gangotri. A local sannyaasi remarked, “Gangotri and Uttarkashi lost their glory when Swami Tapovanam left his mortal coil.”

“Death is only one of the experiences that the Atman illumines. We are not that dying stuff. We are the immortal Self.”

~ Parama Guru Swami Tapovan Maharaj

“…In the summer of 1936, Chinmayanda visited the eminent sage, Sri Ramana Maharshi. When Ramana Maharshi looked at him, he experienced a thrill of spiritual enlightenment which, at the time, he promptly rationalized away as being mere "hypnotism."… In the summer of 1947, Balan arrived in Rishikesh, by the banks of the Ganges and made the one-mile hike to the Divine Life Society, the ashram of Swami Sivananda. There he went from sceptic to enthusiast, finally becoming a renunciate monk… With Sivananda's blessing, Chinmayananda sought out one of the greatest Vedantic masters of his time, Tapovan Maharaj of Uttarkashi, and devoted the next few years of his life to an intensive study of Vedanta under his tutelage… As his disciple, from 1949, Chinmayananda led an extremely austere lifestyle and underwent a rigorous study of the scriptures. His day began at 3 a.m. with an icy bath in the Ganges and sometimes ended late in the night after hours of meditation by the river. In 1951, flying in the face of orthodox Hindu traditions but with the blessings of his guru, Chinmayananda decided to bring the teachings of Vedanta to the masses. It had been traditionally a knowledge reserved only for Brahmins…

On 6 March 1965, Chinmayananda set out on his first global teaching tour, covering 39 cities in 18 countries… Chinmayananda's message resonated with heads of other faiths. One of his yajñas in Bombay was inaugurated by Cardinal Valerian Gracias, a prominent Catholic archbishop of the time. The Dalai Lama, head of the Tibetan Buddhist order, visited with him at the Chinmaya Mission ashram in Sidhbari in 1981. Chinmayananda was a supporter of interfaith dialogue and participated in many interfaith events…  On 26 July 1993, he suffered breathing problems in San Diego, California and on 29 July he had emergency heart bypass surgery at Sharp Memorial Hospital. His condition continued to be critical and he was put on a life-support system. He died on 3 August 1993.

His followers mark the date as the occasion when he attained mahasamadhi. On 7 August 1993, thousands of people were at Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi when his body returned to India. It was transported to Sidhbari, Himachal Pradesh, where it was finally laid to rest in accordance with Vedic ritual. A mahasamadhi shrine has been built there.” ~ Wikipedia

“Pure mind is Brahman; and pure mind is absolutely pure. Oscillations of the mind are its impurities. When mind is absolutely pure, it is no more mind. It merges to be the Self. The delusion is ended. Enlightenment has come. This realization is not the vision of something different, but it is seeing everything differently… The Gita offers a solution to all problems of humanity. Let us try to experiment upon these unfailing values in our own daily life, and to find out for ourselves their truth, so that we, as individuals, may bring about, if possible, a greater stability of mind, a greater harmony in our own personal and social life. We must detect smartly the rise of false thoughts, careless words, and inglorious actions. Our alertness gives us the poise to know when we go wrong and the calm courage to correct ourselves… Through prayer and meditation, let us come to feel our oneness with the infinite Lord. Let us recognize and feel the inexhaustible power in the Self. Thereafter, let us apply it entirely, with patience and enthusiasm, to our work.

How have we, the Hindus, been able to survive when all the other great cultures have risen and fallen? It was the wisdom of our rishis, their adaptability. Hinduism is like the bark of a tree; as the tree grows, the bark expands along with it. Only the non-essentials changed. The essentials, the Sanatana Dharma--the Satyam, Shivam, Sundaram ("truthful, benevolent, beautiful")--always remained intact. Other cultures were like wires wound around the trunk; as the tree grew, the wire got absorbed into it and disappeared. Don't believe what I say! This is not Christianity or Mohammedism that I am talking! This is Hinduism! Do not believe what I say! Find it yourself! Realize it! Discover it through your own mental processes! Then live it! Put it to work in your lives!”

“'How are you, Swami?'" "Physically, I am not well," came the reply from 76-year-old Swami Chinmayananda, "But I have attained shanti [peace]. Only one vessel within my heart is working. Until it stops, I will preach Bhagavat Gita." That heart which so many had relied upon for spiritual upliftment beat its last in early August 1993 in San Diego, California, nearly 40 years to the day from the founding of Chinmaya Mission. A week earlier Swami Chinmayananda had arrived in San Diego from Washington, D.C. Dr. Appa Rao Mukkamala, a long-time devotee, flew to San Diego the same day. He reports, "After a sudden drop in blood pressure on Tuesday night, Swami was put on a breathing machine in deep sedation. Quintuple bypass surgery was successful, but the heart never recovered. Swami's heart stopped on Tuesday, August 3rd, at 5:45pm.” The body was taken to a funeral home where abhishekam was done by Pundit Ravichandran. Swami was embalmed in lotus position. Swami Dheerananda, of Chinmaya Mission in Washington, D.C., said, "The experience of everyone of us who saw him in San Diego was that he has not passed away. It was as though he was sitting for his pada puja. Everyone had the same experience. His body, mind and intellect has merged with the heart of every devotee."

Swami's body, accompanied by a dozen devotees, arrived by plane in New Delhi. It was immediately transported with full police and military honor escort to the Chinmaya Estates on Lodhi Road. Thousands of people including diplomats and politicians of all parties paid their respects. Hundreds of people then joined the caravan to take Swami's body to Sandeepany Himalayas, his head ashram, located 300 miles north of Delhi in Himachal Pradesh. Following traditional Hindu custom, Swami was entombed in a specially prepared sepulcher at the ashram. Great yogis are interred not in a casket but seated in the lotus posture. Salt, camphor and sandlewood powder fill the cavity. The samadhi shrine is behind his simple living quarters and faces the majestic Himalayas.”