This Week In History(43) -

|| 22 October ||

Vachanamrut Gadhada II-40
This is one of the few Vachanamruts in which Shriji Maharaj imparts an agna to all devotees, "From today, all sadhus and all devotees should observe the following vow: After performing puja of God, one should offer prostrations according to one’s daily practice. After this, to compensate for having knowingly or unknowingly harmed a devotee of God by thought, word or deed during the day, one should perform one extra prostration daily. This is my command; so please do abide by it."

|| 23 October ||

|| 25 October ||

|| 27 October ||

|| 28 October ||

This tithi is also known as Prabodhini Ekadashi. On this day Nilkanth Varni was initiated into the sadhu-fold by Ramanand Swami. He was named Sahajanand Swami and Narayan Muni.

Vachanamrut Kariyani 3
Shriji Maharaj reveals how a person's greatness or deceit may be revealed, "The affection that people develop for each other is due to virtues, and the repulsion they experience for each other is due to faults. But those virtues and faults cannot be discerned from an individual’s superficial behaviour. Because, outwardly, a person may walk like a cat, fixing his eyes on the floor as he walks, but inside, he may have intense lust. On seeing him behave in this manner, a person who is not wise would think, ‘He is a very great sadhu.’ On the other hand, someone else may walk with wandering eyes. On seeing him, a person who is not wise would think, ‘He is a fake sadhu.’ Inwardly, however, he may be extremely free of lust. Thus, a person cannot be judged by his superficial, physical behaviour; only after staying with him can he be judged. Because by staying with him, his activities can be observed."

Vachanamrut Gadhada III-10
In this Vachanamrut, Shriji Maharaj gives a clear and concise narration of his unique philosphy of five eternal realities, "From the Vedas, the Purans, the Itihas and the Smrutis, I have formed the principle that jiva, maya, ishwar, Brahma and Parabrahma are all eternal. Consider it as follows: Maya represents the soil; the jivas represent the seeds in the soil; and ishwar, the rain. By the will of God, an ishwar – in the form of Purush – unites with maya i. Subsequently, just as the seeds in the soil sprout by the association of rainwater, similarly, the jivas, which are eternal, arise from within maya; but new jivas are not created. Therefore, just as ishwar is eternal, maya is also eternal. The jivas residing in maya are also eternal, and they are not components of God; they are always jivas."