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Prabhushir's last few years

During last few years the great man was moving lonely while remaining absorbed within his Self. Now his highly wholesome Karmas required him to come to the light. Though imbibed with enlightenment he had so far been moving like Jadbharat in a way no one could come to know of his inner state. Now he started flowing like a river of devotion and turned the truth-seekers at När, Kävithä, Täräpur, Simardä etc. towards true religion by virtue of his enlightenment and devotion. By divine grace he came to the full light as the enlightened devotee at Sandesar near Agäs Rail Station.

 

 

 

 

By his quiet ambrosial shower of ‘Know thyself’ he was cooling down those, who were feeling the heat of continually blazing worldly life. Many liberation-seekers, who were attracted by the amazingly quiet and impressive personality of the great man, and who were eager to gain their well being in his presence, wished that it would be better if he stayed at one place. For that purpose they thought of setting up a permanent abode like Äshram, where thousands of religion-oriented people could get the benefit of his contact.

This Äshram thus arose out of the eagerness of many people; and since Laghuräjswämi did not keep well, he had to stay here. Once known as a forest-monk on account of his moving in the wilderness with a view to materializing Shrimad’s instructions within himself, he now became steady in Äshram. He applied colors to the woody environment of Charotar. Like butter turning out of milk, this lively Äshram of Charotar became the sweet ambrosial fruit of his later life.

In spite of the indifferent health prabhushri never looked back while prevailing for his as well as others’ benefit. By virtue of his grace Ravajibhäi Kothäri met the tranquil ecstatic death in the Äshram, Dähyäbhäi Desäi in Nadiäd, one lady in Narodä, brother of Dr. Shäradä Pundit at Ahmedabad, and Mänekji Sheth in Indore. While reading about that in Updeshämrut we also feel inclined to have the fortune of such ecstatic death.

Muni Mohanlälji also had such ecstatic death on September 6 1932 in the presence of his holiness in Äshram. He was one of the seven monks, who had resorted to the graceful Lord. while initially being instrumental in guiding the truth-seekers towards the right path, he had been the obligator of the liberation-seekers. He was celibate for the entire life, and had stayed in obedience to Laghuräjswämi since the very beginning of Äshram.

His exclusively firm faith, trust, affection, devotion and loyalty to the graceful Lord as well as his simplicity, absolute state and such other virtues are worth remembering forever. His great obligation upon this Äshram and upon liberation-seekers is also worth remembering. Having remained in contact with the graceful Lord, he had been a support to Laghuräjswämi in his old age.

During the middle of 1936 the condition of H.H. deteriorated. On the 8th day of the month of Vaishäkh (round about May) after performing Devvandan as usual he asked Äshram’s inmates to recite Apoorva Avasar (the poem ‘Unprecedented Occasion’). As the highly contemplative poem of graceful Lord came to the end, the pious soul of the great man got absorbed in ecstasy and leaving his mortal remains he proceeded towards the immortal abode. Infinite obeisance to the sacred feet of the blessed Holiness as well as to the divine eternal path of liberation indicated by him!

By remaining the living spirit of Äshram from 1920 to 1936 H.H. Laghuräjswämi made it an unparalleled, live spiritual abode of devotion, place of wholesome contact and pursuit of liberation. Thereby he turned thousands of liberation-seekers towards the right path. While listening to what he said from tiem to time for the well being of liberation-seekers, those residing by his side had taken notes to the extent possible. Those notes have been compiled and published in Updeshamrut.

During his last years he had repeatedly emphasized as under.
“Adopt only graceful Lord Shrimad Rajchandra as Guru. His is the biggest shelter; he constitutes the sailing vessel. We worship him and that being the safest road, we ask to treat it as true and resort to the same. That is the only right view. While inserting fanciful concept therein if someone treats us or any other person as worshipful, that would be his self-indulgence and he would get the consequence thereof. Do not cling to the person, who provides the information. One, who can bend like a golden wire, would deserve it. He, who talks of so and so as enlightened, has still retained the fancy; he is stuck with self-indulgence. One needs to remain exclusively devoted to the graceful Lord with utmost affection. All the enlightened persons are covered therein; all the worshippers of the enlightened are also covered therein, he is not left out.”

“All other foot steps are covered within the foot steps of an elephant. Similarly devotion of all the enlightened is covered in devotion to the graceful Lord. As such, it is necessary to keep aside all different views and to turn the approach exclusively towards the commands of the Lord. That is identical to turning the gold wire into the desired shape.”

During his instructions at the time of Diwäli in 1934 his holiness had said as under.

“We are saying what lies at our heart. Every particle of ours is imbibed with affection towards him. Graceful Lord is our lifeline. We feel elated where he is adored. To us he is all in all; only that is admissible to us. It would be your privilege to do so. Only highly fortunate people would do that. We safely say that those, who would hold to that belief, will gain the bliss; those who have that trust, faith and conviction, would terminate the worldly wandering.”

“I have not experienced the soul, but it has been experienced by the truly enlightened (Graceful Lord and endless number of other enlightened beings). I accept the nature of soul as seen by graceful Lord. I go to his shelter in order to realize the same. In this life I want to do only that. I want to believe that my soul is pure like that of the liberated Lord as seen, known and experienced by the graceful Lord. Though I have not experienced it, I want to have that belief, faith and conviction in every trace of my body. It would be my great fortune, if that much faith stays in this life.”

“Whatever be the misery or disease, even if the life comes to the end, my faith should stay steady… We hold worshipfulness towards those, who have faith in graceful Lord, because they are abiding by the Truth.”

In his last instructions he had said:

“Do not think of this or that as enlightened. Have faith only in graceful Lord and think, ‘I have not known the soul, but it is surely as known by the enlightened graceful Lord. I have not experienced it, but I want to do so.’ Conceiving of the soul as it is experienced by the enlightened leads to omniscience.”

“The soul adopts three modes, viz. external, internal and absolute. Where does it abide? From the absolute point of view it abides within itself, in salvation. From the practical point of view it can be considered embodied, but from the absolute viewpoint it is bodiless and connectionless…. One has not known that soul, but it can be realized, when explained by the enlightened. When curdling substance is mixed in milk, the milk turns into yogurt; it gets thickened. Similarly when an enlightened person anoints the eyes with the ointment of knowledge, the liberation-seeker learns about the Self. When one recognizes the true nature of the enlightened, he can also become enlightened. For that purpose, however, it is necessary to have interaction with the enlightened. In other words, that happens when one worships him with total devotion, and knows him thoroughly.”

“Is soul or consciousness an ordinary thing? The extra-worldly is its esteem, which can hardly be described! One has to worship, to pray to it; it is worshipful. Take care of it; think of it; contemplate over it; love it and have affection towards it.

Aho! Aho! Hun Mujane Kahun, Namo Muj Namo Muj Re;
Amit Fal Dän Dätärni, Jehani Bhet Thai Tuj Re. Shänti.

(Oh1 Oh! I am addressing to myself, ‘Bow to me; bow to me’;
Invaluable is the gift from the Donor, whom you have come across. Bliss.).”

The graceful Lord Shrimad Rajchandra and H.H. Laghuräjswämi thus dedicated their lives in this age to attainment of the supreme state, and have gained unique status in the line of the great torch-bearers of Gujarat. That is the invaluable heritage forever to the mankind. Our repeated obeisance with utter humility to such desireless great men! Let their ascetic force lead to the universal bliss!