Sant Mat, by Swami Harinandan Baba

 Guidance About Practicing Sant Mat, by Swami Harinandan Baba  

English rendering of a discourse of Swami Harinandan Baba, the current Acharya (Teacher) of Santmat headquartered at Maharshi Mehi Ashram, Kuppaghat, Bhagalpur, Bihar, India; Swami Harinandan Baba succeeded Maharshi Santsevi Ji Paramhans in June 2007. The Hindi discourse has been excerpted from, "Shanti Sandesh" (the Message of Peace), published by Maharshi Mehi Ashram, Kuppaghat, Bhagalpur, Bihar.

- Translation from Hindi into English Provided by Pravesh K. Singh:

Evils in the World Are Committed Because of Our Unmindfulness

"jhUTh-mUTh khelai sach-much hoy, sach-much khelai biralA koy jo koi khelai man-chit lAy, hote hote hoiye jAy " [We begin with just trying to meditate, driven often by curiosity. Those who are truly serious and perfect at meditation are very rare to find. However, anyone who perseveres with honest, dedicated attempts, eventually does attain perfection.]

Initially when we sit in meditation, 'dhyAn' [true meditation, all encompassing concentration] does not take place; it is as if we are pretending to meditate. But as we tenaciously persist sincerely with our practice, one day dhyAn does happen in its true sense. Otherwise those are extremely rare to find who can do dhyAn perfectly. DhyAn has been described as "dhyAnam shUnyagatam manah" (Dhyan means the mind getting completely void of any thoughts or agitations). He who can accomplish perfect dhyAn finds that his mind has become empty. Thus Sants exhort us not to sit in the lap of disappointment (if we don't succeed in meditation) but to persevere whether dhyAn is effected or not. Suppose there is a servant who discharges all the services to his master with utmost sincerity without asking for any salary or food. Do you think that the master would not give such a servant any food or remuneration? Rather he would himself say, "Come on! You have been working for a long time. Have some food at first. You have not even asked for any remuneration. Here is your salary." Wouldn't he? Now, when a worldly master can give his sincere servant food and salary without being asked for, would the Supreme Lord keep your wages in arrears? But yes, our faith should be so strong and unwavering that we go on doing our duty rightfully irrespective of whether we get something in return or not.

This faith, loyalty and dedication precisely are the proof of your honesty. We should forsake neither three times meditation a day nor satsang (company of noble people). Those who develop the habit of attending satsang daily, feel as if they have committed some crime if they somehow miss satsang, even for a single day. Similar is the state of those who practice meditation regularly. If they don't sit in meditation as scheduled, they feel restless as if something really important has gone amiss, feel bereft of mental peace. Another thing is that only they who meditate regularly find concentration and genuine pleasure in it. Which is why, our Guru Maharaj (Maharshi Mehi Paramhans Ji Maharaj) would say, "Attend satsang daily, and meditate daily as well". If you could fix and strictly observe a particular routine for meditation, that would be even better. Get up at 3 AM, also known as 'Brahma Muhurta'. There is no disturbance at this hour. Ambiance, also, is perfectly calm. This is the best time for meditation. But only those, who observe restraint in their diet, would be able to wake up at this time. They, who eat late in the night, eat too much can not wake up in Brahma Muhurt. Sants, therefore, advise us to control our diet first of all if we want to succeed in meditation, if we aspire to achieve something. You should not hanker after eating, eating and eating. You see, we have to eat for the whole of our life. And, God provides food to everybody.

Do Simran -- Do the Meditation, By Swami Harinandan Baba

Perform virtuous acts, you will receive happiness. Also do 'sumiran' (remembering God's name, or meditating on the Divine Sound) regularly. The biggest advantage of 'sumiran' is that we do not have to pass through the painful cycle of 8.4 million species again. Those who perform true worship of God, meditate on His name, are rid of the cycle of transmigration. The condition is that meditation be done with utmost regularity. Get initiation from an adept Guru, meditate thrice daily. Whether you see anything (during meditation) or not, never ever discontinue meditation. Initially, it might appear to be a mere show, a 'useless' exercise. People often say that they are going to do 'dhyan', but dhyan does not happen in the very beginning. Dhyan is in fact the seventh limb of eight-fold Yoga (as enunciated by Patanjali).