Trust in GOD and NOT God Men!

I am deeply wounded today by watching the videos on the recent scandals that happened on the so called 'spiritual gurus' or swamis. The list is getting longer... Kalki in Chittore, Saraswathi Baba in Delhi, Nityananda in Bangalore, Dayanand Pandey in Delhi and many many more. The list goes on as you google, youtube or bing. Looking at all of the news most of the time today, my own sentiments and faith is questioned now? Doubt and suspicion is at its peak? Satya Sai Baba who I follow is still in ambiguity in my mind. Sai Baba told me once in response to my question "What should I do to have immense faith in you?". Satya Sai Baba answered to me "Love me as you love your mother and wife." For that matter if I love anyone like I love my mother and wife, I will have immense faith. In Indian culture it is a common saying "Athidhi devo bhave, Acharya devobhave etc etc etc." It is also very common to say thanks in gratitude for help someone did by saying "You have come like God, or God sent!". Before going to Puttaparthi for Satya Sai Baba, I used to tease Sai Baba's photo in our Commerce Tuition Center. "Hello Meshaaru! Good evening!". Later when I returned from Puttaparthi after seeing Satya Sai Baba for first time, my best friend Rajesh asked me a question. "Ram do you think Sai Baba is God?". I told him, Yes!. "Because, when a person does small help, we will show immense gratitude and say "You are like God, you helped me". Sai Baba is doing great service to humanity with his hospitals and water supply project etc. Definitely he has divinity", is what I said. This is very common specially in India, in reference to doctors in expressing gratitude, they say, "You have saved my life like God!" Upon continuity with the same person, "like God" will eventually change to "You are God!" Read on...!

Seeing God in everything is spirituality. But making everyone God is non-spiritual. It is time for introspection of my own faith, belief in the so called "God men!" of today and their contemporaries.

The Hindu scriptures do say that there is God in everyone and everything. But, that I guess is interpreted in a different manner thinking that everyone is God. God is in everyone. God is everything. God is Endless. God has no definition. God is (Sthanuvu) meaning, static and beyond expansion. NO! Everyone is not God! So, when a persona like Gauthama Buddha, who attained enlightenment becomes one with God then becomes God! When this state is achieved, one is beyond wealth or world. The so called God men of the present time, are NOT GODs as they are failing the basic test of renunciation and are so vulnerable to temptation. They are the ones who try to attain God, but are unsuccessful in their attempts to do so. In their endeavors to attain God, they are deriving great benefits of immense spiritual knowledge, which when comes to preaching few are able to carry out successfully to a certain time or extent. When the final test of practice, many of them or maybe all of them are failing to pass the practical test of TRUE renunciation. As there is a dearth of people who take nothing but only the 'so called' spiritual path. In comparison to the population of earth, the percentage is very low. With the rise in the problems and changing scenarios around the world, people are facing more problems or at-least feeling more it. These people turn to God for help. In the process of turning to God for help they are looking for miracles to happen. In doing so, they are choosing a path with immense faith that they will get help from these spiritually learned. So, they cling to one or multiple of such organizations or institution that they believe will help them in taking a spiritual path. As they are going with an expectation, the initial steps are extravagant and attractive. But, going deeper, these institutions are misleading the people, as they already know that the ones who have committed to the organization will strive in their own pursuit to spirituality. These people are vulnerable to situations of exploitation. And in majority of the cases, money, power and wealth plays a key role as these organizations are lobby for huge business contacts. Most of them who benefit because of the contacts they gained through these organizations, would not mind to part with the small portion of their profits in the name of donations. Or would not mind to "Invest" when they see a potential to grow their own contacts and business. The funds are freely flowing. To give of a very recent example, an acquaint of mine, who started a new business recently, was happy to get a temple poojari as his first client. It is because he is confident that the poojari will surely get him lot of contacts as there will be many number of people who will be coming to the temple. So, the poojari is actually paying only the cost for getting his work done, and this business is OK to forego the profit for the benefit of getting more clients reference from Poojari. This is a classic case, I guess now.

Regarding the foreigners, that are flocking in numbers. Yes, they too are coming to India only to seek spiritual awakening. Because, the world recognizes India as the land of spirituality and culture. When the foreigners come to India with a hope, some of them do get enlightened again by the spiritual discourses and talks given by these so called 'God men'. They would only get a portion of it, and change a portion of themselves. But there is the other portion within them which is their original themselves because of their origin or whatever. They can't and will not forsake completely what they originally are that too in a short span of time. But, because of the power of the 'Truth' in the scriptures they are amazed and see real benefits. At the same time they will not change themselves completely, but there will come a major transformation. In the process there is also an exchange and culmination of cultures. For which, I have no comments now, as it is another topic all together. The foreigners who are coming are coming for the spiritual awakening are mesmerized by the mantras of Hare Rama and Hare Krishna as they are truly powerful. At the same-time holding on to the mantra all through the life is equally challenging and a test in itself. Those who are able to derive benefits of Indian spirituality are able and willing to donate whatever it is. These true test for these so called "God men" comes to play. Some of them get invites to foreign lands and they make trips to foreign lands too in the name of spiritual healing or spreading the message and end up falling prey to the temptations.

And the so called 'God men' who are also vulnerable are not able to gain control on themselves when they are put to test. They want to acquire more and quick funds in dollars and get more followers and be more of everything. In this pursuit, the so called "God men" will fail themselves and remain as a 'man' or worse not emerge out as devil or evil. Scriptures have warned initially that anyone who takes up the path of spirituality should stick to it, else the punishments for failing will be severe to the extent of becoming devils. So, these so called 'God men' failed turn out to be devils and demons. So truly.

The fundamental flaw is in thinking that these spiritually learned people are Gods. The person who learned the Vedas, Puranas or the Great Epics like Bhagawat Gita or Ramayan or Bhagwatham are have only mastered a subject, preached through their good communication skills and are able to 'Sell' their spiritual knowledge. The flaw from the Guru's is when they are selling this knowledge rather than distributing it free of cost. If you see, the ones who have actually written these Epics and Hindu Scriptures left it free to the community for a better living. Still the real 'Truth' in Vedas, Puranas, Upanishads and the like holds good. The flaw is not in the scriptures, but in the people who learn and interpret them and preach their false interpretation to others.

Though the scriptures mentioned that a Guru is required to easily attain the spiritual path they have never mentioned that one cannot attained spiritual path individually. By having a Guru you may seek clarification of some complex spiritual thoughts or seek a reference or direction to take the spiritual path. If the Guru is TRULY a RIGHTEOUS person, then

Yes it is true even to this day and moment and forever the Guru Mantra,
"Guru Brahma, Guru Vishnu, Gurudevo Maheswarah
Guru saakshaath prambrahma, Tasmai Sri Guravenamaha."

This is valid upon a condition that Guru is Truly Guru. One great sign of a True Guru is renunciation. Guru's need no wealth, no followers, no money and no bodily pleasure. A true Guru needs no sex. If the so called 'God men' self proclaimed Gods, need to be true Gurus, then they should be passing this test of renunciation and be able to take Truly Sanyasam. These people are failing on their path towards becoming Gurus. They haven't attained the True Guru stature. But with the population and the benefits of improved marketing skills, with advantages of communication and technology, they are gaining popularity falsely, very quickly and prematurely. So early in fact that they themselves are prone to be vulnerabilities of temptation towards wealth, pleasure, money and sex. These so called God men are themselves falling prey to the false admiration and false worship. The biggest reason could be because they are also getting paid in return which is beyond the comprehension to those so called 'God Men'. They just are getting carried away to the heights only to have a free fall flat form those immense heights.

Definitely, everyone has something good to say. But, I feel not to be obsessed about a person who master the holy scriptures and consider him as God. It is just like a degree in any specialization like math, science, computers or management. Spirituality is another degree and a person who masters this will be able to provide solutions to life in general. Because, the Hindu scriptures have answers to all questions. Because, very few individuals take this as specialization and as their life, say the number is like one in Million. And the population is so huge these days, that you can find a gathering at every single event even at a flop show. With the advancement of technology and communications, the message can spread across the whole wide world the very same moment, live so to say. These people who attained these spiritual degrees will be able to attract huge crowds with their spiritual knowledge. It is not in the person, but it is that spirit of India and Hindu scriptures that anyone who learns and masters these scriptures can attract any number of people. At the same time, the scripture also says that anyone who learns this scriptures should also put it into practice, which even more difficult. When putting it into practice there will be several challenges. The truly learned Gurus should resist to all kinds of temptations every moment, always, continuously and forever. The moment they succumb to these temptations, these Gurus are falling prey to them and failing to pass the tests to attain their true spiritual state of being and continue being Guru!

In these testing and tiring times, should I keep my faith un-shattering, have blind faith or should I be practical and open my eyes if at all I have been keeping them closed all these years. Should I accept the reality and move on to a better state.

Yes, I guess the right thing do is NOT to trust so called Spiritual Gurus / Swamiji to an extent of "Nava Vidha Bhakti". Get to the true meaning that God is in every one, so knowing God is knowing ones own self. Looking inwards and if you want to practice "Navavidha Bhakti" then do it to ones own self , even the final stage is "surrendering oneself to ones own self" and NOT falsely to the so called "God men". Stop encouraging the concept of "God men" and look at these people as "Servants to God". They only have to fulfill their duty and they are to serve humanity with their spiritual work. They are NOT Gods and some of them are not even as good as human.

At the end of this blog, all said and done, I am no longer hurt. I am happy for knowing these incidents. It helped me to think more and get the deeper meaning and value of Hindu Scriptures and Culture. There is no flaw in the scriptures. The flaw is only in those who are unable to strictly follow the scriptures. I have no faith in God Men now. I have renewed faith in God and Spirituality.