by Sri Sandip Dasgupta
I am delighted to report that by His Grace, the North American volunteers of Saccidananda Society organized a wonderful evening of His revealed bhajans at the LePetit Trianon in San Jose, California, on May 29, 2011. The function was attended by close to 110 individuals which included local devotees and seekers, as well as followers from New Jersey, Colorado, Canada, and Luxembourg. In this editorial, I will try to briefly describe that joyous evening.
As the attendees entered the venue, they were greeted by a life-size picture of Sri Sri Babathakur blessing everybody with both His hands. A beautiful Rangoli of fresh flowers had been offered at His lotus feet by Ms. Aditi Mukhopadhyay. At the registration booth, attendees were handed a folder of Saccidananda Society containing a CD entitled “Voice Divine” that included selected quotes of Sri Sri Babathakur. Each attendee was also given a specially prepared brochure containing a short introduction to Sri Sri Babathakur, Saccidananda Society, a list of publications and the meaning of the emblem of the Society. The brochure also contained translations of the bhajans that were to be presented later that evening. Several attendees browsed through the publications and the CDs of Saccidananda Society – some also chose to purchase a personal copy for themselves. The stage had been beautifully decorated by Mr. Tapan Kundu who enlarged a photograph of our Master (approx. 4ftx5ft in size) and got it printed on canvas. The elegant floral decorations for the stage were also done by him. (see picture below).
The program began with Mr. Partha Guha giving an inspiring speech on the All-Divine Master Sri Sri Babathakur, His unconventional teachings, and His ‘missionless mission’. He introduced the theme of our program, ‘I-Reality,’ and explained the original nature of the revealed bhajans, stressing the fact that these were not composed bhajans but had rather been revealed to Sadguru Sri Sri Babathakur at different times, mainly after prolonged samadhis (a state of deep trance). Mr. Guha concluded his speech by introducing the artists -- Ms. Shaoni Mitra, an accomplished singer from Kolkata, India, accompanied by the equally well-known Mr. Debashis Ghosh on harmonium, Mr. Pritimoy Goswami on tabla and Mr. Tapas Rajderkar on the Manjira.
Ms. Shaoni Mitra began by paying homage to our Sadguru through an excellent rendering of the bhajan --- ‘prem se bhaja mana sri guru charana .…’. Ms. Swapna Banerjee, who had the good fortune of being in contact with the Master for a very long time, came on stage next to introduce the DVD of Sadguru Sri Sri Babathakur . The DVD was subtitled in English, enabling the audience to follow Him easily.
The video captured our Sadguru singing one of His revealed bhajans – ‘vishudha cid ekarupam sadasat vilakshanam ….’ followed by a speech explaining the meaning of the bhajan in English along with the description of the True Nature of the Self. One of the most poignant moments of the presentation was our Master asking, ‘I accept all of you as my Self, can you accept me as your Self?’ Further expanding on the True Nature of ‘I-Reality’ and the ‘Science of Oneness’, He emphasized that ‘the I is all positive and all negative’ and that the ‘universe is a passing show’. The DVD ended with the Master singing another revealed bhajan --- ‘bhulo na mon, bhulo na mon ….’ (Do not forget, O mind … forget not your very own Self I-Reality ….).
The video presentation was followed by a brief note from Soubhik Patranabis, an old devotee of the Master, speaking of his experiences with the Master and pointing out His philosophy of ‘many in many, many in One, One in many and One in One’, which summed up the idea of the ‘Science of Oneness’ as revealed to and explained by Prajnanpurush Sri Sri Babathakur. Soubhik then introduced the next two bhajans to be sung by Shaoni Mitra and the DVD presentation of Mr. Kedar Bodas, singing the bhajan --- ‘nahi hoon main jiva kabhi ‘(This body is not the Real I). Mr. Kedar Bodas, a veteran classical singer and the son of the eminent musician Mr. Narayan Bodas, had learnt the bhajans under the direct tutelage of the Master and has single-handedly rendered most of Sri Sri Babathakur’s revealed bhajans. Unfortunately, he was unable to attend the program because of visa-related issues.
Shaoni Mitra rendered two more bhajans -- ‘anande bhaja mana’ and ‘giridharilal mere madan mohan’ each of which was preceded by the translations read out by Swapna Banerjee. Soubhik Patranabis further introduced the last video of Sri Sri Babathakur’s discourse on I-Reality emphasizing that everything we experience in our everyday life is only possible because of the eternal presence of the Real I. Without the existence of our very Being (our True Nature), we cannot have any experience. He strongly reminded us that we are not the slaves of our mind. We have to rise above it and discover our True Nature within us which is always with us even if we are not aware of It.
Finally, Mr. P.C. Lahiri, an ardent follower of Sri Sri Babathakur, recited the ‘Song of I-Reality’ that reveals the True Nature of our Real Self; how and why have we forgotten our ever-pure, ever-free, ever-fulfilled and ever-blissful True Nature which is, was, and shall always be Sat-Cit-Ananda (Saccidananda); how can we regain this lost paradise to be completely free from the ignorant, mischievous, and painful game of our mind, intellect, and ego (inner being).
The program concluded with the recitation of the purna mantra by Sri Subbu Venkatakrishnan. As per Sri Sri Babathakur’s instructions, Prasad was served to all attendees. The success of the program left all attendees filled with a deep sense of bliss and fulfillment. The thirty odd volunteers felt blessed to have received an opportunity to organize such a unique event.
We (the volunteers of Saccidananda Society) surrendered completely to Him, and He ensured the success of the program. The attendees continue to provide positive feedback on the content and the quality of the program. The volunteers of the North American Chapter sincerely hope to continue with this effort and opportunity to share Sri Sri Babathakur’s message with an eager and wider audience.
Ms. Shaoni Mitra began by paying homage to our Sadguru through an excellent rendering of the bhajan --- ‘prem se bhaja mana sri guru charana .…’. Ms. Swapna Banerjee, who had the good fortune of being in contact with the Master for a very long time, came on stage next to introduce the DVD of Sadguru Sri Sri Babathakur . The DVD was subtitled in English, enabling the audience to follow Him easily.
The video captured our Sadguru singing one of His revealed bhajans – ‘vishudha cid ekarupam sadasat vilakshanam ….’ followed by a speech explaining the meaning of the bhajan in English along with the description of the True Nature of the Self. One of the most poignant moments of the presentation was our Master asking, ‘I accept all of you as my Self, can you accept me as your Self?’ Further expanding on the True Nature of ‘I-Reality’ and the ‘Science of Oneness’, He emphasized that ‘the I is all positive and all negative’ and that the ‘universe is a passing show’. The DVD ended with the Master singing another revealed bhajan --- ‘bhulo na mon, bhulo na mon ….’ (Do not forget, O mind … forget not your very own Self I-Reality ….).
The video presentation was followed by a brief note from Soubhik Patranabis, an old devotee of the Master, speaking of his experiences with the Master and pointing out His philosophy of ‘many in many, many in One, One in many and One in One’, which summed up the idea of the ‘Science of Oneness’ as revealed to and explained by Prajnanpurush Sri Sri Babathakur. Soubhik then introduced the next two bhajans to be sung by Shaoni Mitra and the DVD presentation of Mr. Kedar Bodas, singing the bhajan --- ‘nahi hoon main jiva kabhi ‘(This body is not the Real I). Mr. Kedar Bodas, a veteran classical singer and the son of the eminent musician Mr. Narayan Bodas, had learnt the bhajans under the direct tutelage of the Master and has single-handedly rendered most of Sri Sri Babathakur’s revealed bhajans. Unfortunately, he was unable to attend the program because of visa-related issues.
Shaoni Mitra rendered two more bhajans -- ‘anande bhaja mana’ and ‘giridharilal mere madan mohan’ each of which was preceded by the translations read out by Swapna Banerjee. Soubhik Patranabis further introduced the last video of Sri Sri Babathakur’s discourse on I-Reality emphasizing that everything we experience in our everyday life is only possible because of the eternal presence of the Real I. Without the existence of our very Being (our True Nature), we cannot have any experience. He strongly reminded us that we are not the slaves of our mind. We have to rise above it and discover our True Nature within us which is always with us even if we are not aware of It.
Finally, Mr. P.C. Lahiri, an ardent follower of Sri Sri Babathakur, recited the ‘Song of I-Reality’ that reveals the True Nature of our Real Self; how and why have we forgotten our ever-pure, ever-free, ever-fulfilled and ever-blissful True Nature which is, was, and shall always be Sat-Cit-Ananda (Saccidananda); how can we regain this lost paradise to be completely free from the ignorant, mischievous, and painful game of our mind, intellect, and ego (inner being).
The program concluded with the recitation of the purna mantra by Sri Subbu Venkatakrishnan. As per Sri Sri Babathakur’s instructions, Prasad was served to all attendees. The success of the program left all attendees filled with a deep sense of bliss and fulfillment. The thirty odd volunteers felt blessed to have received an opportunity to organize such a unique event.
We (the volunteers of Saccidananda Society) surrendered completely to Him, and He ensured the success of the program. The attendees continue to provide positive feedback on the content and the quality of the program. The volunteers of the North American Chapter sincerely hope to continue with this effort and opportunity to share Sri Sri Babathakur’s message with an eager and wider audience.
Om Tat Sat!
Saccidananda! Saccidananda! Saccidananda!
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