From the plethora of experiences that I have had connecting with the Mohanji consciousness, this particular experience stands out. Idol worship has always been a controversial issue invoking religious sentiments. Why is an idol necessary? What purpose does it serve?

Answers to such questions and more I shall address with this moorti/idol experience imparted to me by the grace of my guru. I was a skeptic about all things ritualistic (involving rituals) like mala japs (chanting deity’s name) and moorti puja (idol worship), though I myself used to do that. I used to like to worship Hanumanji’s moorti and chant his mantra ‘Aum Hanumantey Namah’ in times of distress because it seemed to work. Through chanting I used to get focused in the present and once I was completely in the present therein happened no suffering. In my experience suffering is a state of mind arising out of contemplation about the past or the future.

So it helped, but I never really experienced any moorti so to say. I was always inquisitive about idol worship. Streams of questions have tormented me perpetually. Questions like

1. Do the deities really reside inside the moorti or is it just a concept that we have built up?
2. The rituals of ‘pranpratishta’ and all are they really effective or not?
3. Are the deities aware of the guy/gal worshipping in front of them or not?

Such questions and more have always perturbed me.

The inauguration of the ‘Kripa Moorthaye Mohanji’ idol by Yashik Singh (my beloved spiritual brother) in the Meru Danda Ashram again triggered in me those same questions. Was Mohanji really present inside those moortis? And does pran-pratishta work?

In my experiential understanding: If one is completely empty i.e., devoid of any belief systems, concepts, dogmas or any rigid principles one becomes established in the state of ‘being’. Such a one gets in sync with the universe itself, the universe functions through such a one. All knowledge is available at his disposal. The only thing required to tap into that knowledge is one’s intention. If the intention happens to know answers, answers will happen. They have to happen. Answers take the form of miracles or experiences.

My intention was to find answers, but instead of relying on anything external I relied on my ‘self’. Mohanji (the universal consciousness) answered these doubts and I was once again given an experience of complete mergence with my guru’s consciousness.

In this state which I experienced on 26 February, my whole body started to vibrate and shake consecutively. I happened to be in a trance like state (neither asleep nor awake) in that state, though miles apart, Mohanji’s idol and I became one. I saw saints worshipping the idol through the idol’s eyes.

It was an amazing experience, an experience beyond words, an experience which can only be experienced. Another ‘Mergence of consciousness’ experience.

I got all my answers. Yes Mohanji’s idol does work and Mohanji resides in those idols. For the very first time, I experienced idols and understood their workings. If one surrenders to the moorti (idols) he/she is in fact surrendering to the universal consciousness. Merging with the universal Consciousness.

 

mohanji murthi merudanda ashram

 

What is an idol in fact and how can it represent the formless god?
I shall quote Mohanji himself in this regard.

Formless God is the absolute. It WITNESSES, circulates, ORCHESTRATES, experiences and finally dissolves everything. This level of equanimity is represented by idols. Man can make the image of God the way he likes. He can decorate the idol the way he likes or the way he is. He can offer many objects to the idol as he likes or as he is. He can take things from his personal idol too. In short, he can give, take, decorate, make or break and the idol remains a witness, totally free from all demands, desires or needs. just like God. Idol represents total equanimity and objectivity of God who needs nothing from you, but is always present in your life in the way or form you like to see. Man can easily connect to an object and through the object understand God as a witness without any demands. It helps man to connect to that consciousness beyond boundaries which is God. The journey from form to the formless is facilitated to the wise by the idol. All idols, animate or inanimate, including you and me, are aspects of the same God. The God who is self-sufficient and needs nothing from us. It never complains. It accepts anything you give or take. It accepts you as you are. It loves you as you are. It is YOU. Love. M

Idols are Signposts
If mergence is one’s aim, it cannot happen without surrender and witness-hood. Here I shall put this in extremely clear words- words emanating from my own experiential understanding.

“One does not need to take part in any of the blind rituals which have plagued our Hindu society since time immemorial. An idol is just a reminder of one’s self. It must be looked upon as that only. Idols are just signposts. Signposts indicating that yes, if the deity can achieve the state of beingness, we ourselves are also eligible for it. The only thing required is surrender with awareness.”

But instead what happens is “blind bhakti” for the idol without any understanding of the teachings or any thought towards living the teachings. Moortis don’t elevate. One’s selfless intentions, non-expectancy and living the teachings does.

Binding someone to the moorti and moorti alone constraining him with the chords of fear (like pandas of today are doing) isn’t liberating, but is instead generating ‘ownership of the moorti’.

No blind rituals are required. In fact I shall quote Mohanji here. “Unconditional Love is a state. Be that. Do Not do that.”

Rituals however are more doing rather than being. Idols are good, if one is surrendering to them with this awareness. Only then is one truly working towards elevation. Otherwise it’s a façade. In fact Mohanji himself scolded a ‘panda’ when he was trying to extort money during the course of our Vrindavan retreat.

A question might arise here then as to why does Mohanji himself conduct Yajnas and Homas?
Well, when a true Guru or a master conducts a fire ceremony, transformative experiences happen. I myself saw evil eyes burning in the yajna fire which was organised during the retreat. Many who participated in these yajnas witnessed massive transformations and karmic cleansing happening after the yajnas. For testimonials one may visit mohansuniverse.wordpress.com. So it’s simple. If any ceremony/ritual transforms one’s inner constitution, it is elevating. Otherwise it is binding. Detachment from everything leads to dissolution. Attachment to anything, even the guru’s idol/moorti is binding. Just Let go. Dissolute. In dissolution lies Shiva (universal consciousness).

mohanji handIn my experience, merging with Mohanji’s Consciousness means becoming Mohanji. No, it doesn’t mean that you start to speak south Indian languages all of a sudden, or have this sudden affinity towards wearing lungis/dhotis, or yearn for south Indian delicacies. NO!

Merging with his consciousness means merging with the universal consciousness. A state that can only be experienced and achieved through witnesshood and living the teachings. A question might arise here as to what are the symptoms of merging with the consciousness. In my own experiential understanding when one is merged fully with the consciousness of his master:

1) He is able to see what the master sees or what the Master wants him to see, like the Kailash trip wherein Guruji Mohanji conveyed to me his detachment when people chat ‘Emotional BS’ with him (conveyed in the blog), which I have already conveyed.

2) There is a precise understanding of things as they are occurring on a moment to moment basis. One understands that the way universe functions is not random at all, but every single event that happens within the periphery of an individual’s immediate reality carries a higher purpose with it which unveils itself at the right time. (This is further proof of one’s connection with the universal consciousness which a true guru embodies.)

3) There is complete spontaneity, which means controlling situations, instead of situations controlling an individual.

4) One is operating objectively, that is sans emotions or attachments. Being emotional differs from being sensitive. Emotions are all about attaching to people, places or things. Sensitiveness however is feeling everything, or becoming everything. Sensitiveness is about caring for others, providing for the helpless and the needy.

5) There is perpetual happiness emanating from full awareness of existence, meaning you start taking life as it is.

In a nutshell, emotions bind, sensitivity liberates.
Freedom or liberation is what one gains in his/her association with Mohanji.
A Liberated Existence.

When mergence with the consciousness is achieved, one becomes eternal! Immortal. That one becomes fully aware of his multidimensional existence. His true state is unveiled by the grace of his master. The body becomes a way of expression for that one in this physical realm, or putting this in more apt words, one reaches his/her true state.

Immortality is what everyone craves for. In my understanding Awareness of one’s self is becoming immortal. The highest anyone can strive for in his/her lifetime. A true Guru working as a spiritual catalyst.

 

Prostrations at the lotus feet of my Master Mohanji,
Love Always!


ayush and mohanji
Author: Ayush Dixit

I am Mohanji’s Disciple. Pursuing a Bachelor of technology (B.Tech) from electronics and communication stream of engineering. Currently in my last semester. For more please check out my blog dasohamm.wordpress.com

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