Shreejibapa Victory to Lord Shree Swaminarayan Swamibapa · aim). In His great philosophical text, the Vachanamrut, Lord Shree Swaminarayan described the fundamentals of the religious

Shreejibapa Victory to Lord Shree Swaminarayan Swamibapa

Excerpts from the Vachanamrut ofSupreme Lord Shree Swaminarayan

AMRUT SAGAR(Ocean of Nectar)

Translation and CollationTranslation and CollationTranslation and CollationTranslation and CollationTranslation and Collation

Sants and DisciplesPublished byPublished byPublished byPublished byPublished by

Maninagar Shree Swaminarayan Gadi SansthanShreeji-sankalp-murti Adya Acharya-pravar

Dharma-dhurandar 1008Shree Muktajeevan Swamibapa Suvarna Jayanti

Mahotsav Smarak TrustShree Swaminarayan Mandir, Maninagar

Gujarat, Ahmedabad - 380 008 India

ISBN - 978-93-81074-31-2

[email protected]

SwaminarayanGadi.com

First Edition19th February, 1969

Samvat 2025, Falgun Sad 3

Second Edition24th August, 2014

Samvat 2070, Shravan Vad 14Shree Swaminarayan Mandir

Kingsbury Grand Opening - London U.K.Copies - 6000

(Total Copies - 10,000)

Publication Cost : INR 10Sponsor Subsidised Cost : INR 2

GraphicsShree Mukta Graphics

Shree Swaminarayan Mandir, ManinagarAhmedabad - 380 008 Gujarat, India

PrintingShivkrupa Offset Printers, J&K Block,

Ravi Estate, Dudheshwar, Ahmedabad.


IntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionSupreme, Purna Purushottam Lord Shree

Swaminarayan manifested upon the Earth to bringa renaissance to the faltering ideals of the religiousdecree and to protect His loving disciples. Heestablished the Swaminarayan religion and spreadHis tenets and philosophy in a remarkable manner.When the monsoon rains fall, entire regionsbecome drenched with water, and then when theSun emerges again, all other flames becomeinsignificant. Similarly, before Lord ShreeSwaminarayan manifested, the world had becomeimmersed in a mire of sin. At such a time, themerciful Lord appeared to show the radiant pathof salvation. His remarkable teachings swiftlyspread everywhere and masses were inspired tofollow Him. Just as the roar of a lion brings frightto all the animals in a jungle, the internal enemiesthat were instilled in countless people, such as lust,anger, greed, avarice, were cast aside by theprowess of the ‘Swaminarayan’ name.

Purna Purushottam Lord ShreeSwaminarayan advocated that God has a discreetform but is not merely a formless mass of lustre.He stopped animal sacrifices from beingperformed and freed people from superstition andblack magic. Vile practices that were prevalentwithin society were eliminated from society by


Lord Shree Swaminarayan’s command. Theseincluded ‘sati’ (killing of a widow on her husband’sfuneral pyre) and ‘doodh piti’ (drowning of a newlyborn daughter in milk). People of all statures ofsociety, including the lawless Kathi and Kolitribesmen, became devout disciples and abidedby the moral stipulations that Lord ShreeSwaminarayan had decreed. Vulgar ritualsperformed during wedding ceremonies wereforbidden. Lord Shree Swaminarayan advocatedthat His disciples should live a life of honour,devotion, reverence and discipline.

Furthermore, He presented the world witha summary of all the scriptures, in the form of theShikshapatri - those who abide by the universallybeneficial instructions given in the Shikshapatriattain the four great achievements of human life;Dharma (religion, fundamental duties of life); Arth(wealth); Kaam (achievement of good and virtuousdeeds and actions); Moksh (salvation, the ultimateaim). In His great philosophical text, theVachanamrut, Lord Shree Swaminarayan describedthe fundamentals of the religious decree, spiritualknowledge, renunciation and devotion. He gavedescriptions of the soul, worldly afflictions, deities,and incarnations. He explained the manner toperform devotion, attain God, use abilities for


furthering yourself and strengthen your soul, andremain firmly attached to the shelter of God. LordShree Swaminarayan described the qualities of atrue ascetic, and the manner in which to attainsuch saintly virtues. The types of liberated souls(Muktas) were elucidated. He showed the mannerof renouncing affection for the physical body andremaining focused on God. All these narratives arecontained in the sublime scripture, theVachanamrut. Lord Shree Swaminarayan createdthis magnificent text for the salvation of souls, andpresented it to the world.

Just as a rosary for chanting the sacredname of God contains 108 beads, the teachingsimparted by Lord Shree Swaminarayan have beendistilled into the 108 verses contained in thisscripture, Amrut Sagar - Ocean of Nectar.

This English translation has been createdby Sants and disciples, with the blessings of HisDivine Holiness SwamishreePurushottampriyadasji Maharaj, Acharya of ShreeSwaminarayan Gadi.

Publisher


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AMRUT SAGAR

1. I have manifested, together with theseSants, in order to bestow salvation to souls.Therefore, if you obey My commands, Ishall take you all to the abode from whereI have come; you should all realise that youhave already attained salvation.Furthermore, by having firm trust in Meand doing as I command, I will protect youfrom dire miseries, or even a seven-yearfamine. If you were to face a crisis fromwhich there is no reprieve, I will stillprotect you, but only if you completelyobserve the religious decree of this Satsangand remain associated with it.

2. If the pain of a scorpion sting was to beinflicted on a disciple, I wish for a thousandtimes more pain to be inflicted on Me, butMy disciple should be free from that painand remain contented.


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3. I sat on Garud (the eagle that is the vehicleof Vishnu) and went towards Vaikunth andBrahm-mahol. However, Garud was unableto fly there, so I flew alone and went tothe abode of Shree Purushottam, which isabove all. There, I saw that only I amPurushottam; there is no other who isgreater than Me.

4. What am I like? If I were to nudge theEarth with My big toe, the lands of infinitelymany cosmoses would quake. The suns,moons, stars, etc., are all lustrous due toMy lustre. If someone understands Me inthis manner and develops a determinationfor Me, his mind never strays away fromGod, i.e. from Me.

5. The very same Lord of that abode, themaster of the Muktas that transcend Akshar,and He who is Par-brahm ShreePurushottam, is presiding within thisSatsang. Only someone who has suchdetermination attains Brahm-dham.


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6. The twenty-four incarnations havemanifested from the very same God whopresides within this Satsang; He Himself isthe Incarnator of them all. He is presentomnisciently within all souls.

7. The God that you all have attained todayis the cause of all, the Incarnator of allincarnations and the Lord of Akshardham.

8. Limited powers have been revealed byother incarnations, whereas all the prowessand powers have been revealed throughthis Incarnation [Shreejimaharaj]. Therefore,this Incarnation reigns as supreme.

9. The only controller of all activities and theone master of all is indeed, this God.

10. Whenever a soul attains a human body inBharat-khand, the incarnation of God orthe sadhu of God will definitely be presenton Earth.

11. The same God who presides within thiscosmos is the master of all.


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12. This Satsang is extraordinary and all thedisciples of this Satsang are just like theattendants of God in Shwet-dweep,Vaikunth and Golok. I swear in the nameof God and His disciples that this disciple[Gopalanand Swami] is superior to theattendants of God that reside in thosedivine abodes that are beyond all others.

13. The salvation of a soul results from onlyunderstanding this; everything occurs bythe will of the pragat (manifest) Lord ShreeSwaminarayan. Nothing occurs due to thewill of entities such as time (Kaal), deeds(Karma) and the material world (Maya).To understand that God is indeed the doerof everything is the principle cause ofsalvation.

14. Time (kaal), deeds (karma) and the materialworld (Maya) are unable to entrap someonewho has a firm determination for, and anunderstanding of God, within his heart.


11AMRUT SAGAR

15. These auspicious virtues can be acquiredby a Sant if he has an ardent determinationabout the Murti of God.

16. Someone who has a firm resolution aboutthe pratyaksh God feels completelyaccomplished by the darshan of that Godand does not have any other desires. To sucha person, God forcedly reveals His prowessand His Murtis which are in His abode.

17. If a soul develops as much faith for thepratyaksh God, who exists in the form ofthe guru, as he does for the paroksh deities,he attains all of the achievements that aredescribed as being worthy of attainment.

18. To attain the pratyaksh God is the higheststatus (param-pad)

19. Someone who has attained the sakshat Godachieves nothing but salvation, regardlessof whether he remembers God during hisfinal moments or not. God always protectshim.


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20. One should recognise only LordPurushottam as being the creator of all andomniscient. Having such an understanding,along with a determination in the Murtiof the pratyaksh God, is the cause ofdeveloping an extraordinary love for God.

21. Disciples of God attain the same qualitiesas God, but the sentiments of one being theMaster and the other a servant still remain.

22. The greatest amongst all means is to firmlytake the patronage of God. God becomesextremely pleased by this.

23. Regardless of how sinful a person may be,he becomes completely pure and attainsthe state of fearlessness (abhay-pad) [eternalsalvation], if he associates with the trueform, who is God.

24. The disciple who attains a determinationabout God, coupled with knowledge of Hisglory, becomes fearless.


13AMRUT SAGAR

25. Even slight strength for God’s Murti is ableto protect one from great danger.

26. The extent to which one’s evil thoughts areabolished is based on one’s determinationabout God and appreciation of His greatness.

27. Someone who has a firm determination inthe Murti of God may or may not experiencethe trance state; he is still in a constantstate of nirvikalp trance.

28. God becomes pleased only with someonewho regards Him to be the creator anddestroyer of the universe and understandsHim to be murtiman.

29. From the perspective of the cause of all,Lord Purushottam, nothing except for thisLord Purushottam exists.

30. A person should have determination forGod solely for the salvation of his own soul.It should not be for the attainment of anyobjective.


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31. Listening to the Bhagwad-Gita orShreemad-Bhagwat from a person who hasno determination and knowledge about theglory of God does not lead to salvation.

32. A diamond is required to cut anotherdiamond, but nothing else can cut it. In thesame manner, one’s determination in Godcan only be achieved through God, and thedarshan of God can only be attained throughGod.

33. A person who has the devotion of Godwithin his heart has an inclination (vrutti)of mind that he always abides by the exactwishes of the Lord and His Sants. Such isthe courage within his heart. He nevereven mistakenly says that he will obeycertain commands and not others.

34. God’s clothing, jewellery, vehicles, theattendants in His service, and the food,drink, etc., that come into contact withHim, are all free of the attributes of Maya.


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35. The divine actions of God will be recognisedas divine by a disciple and non-disciplealike. However, when God performs humandeeds, they are like that of other ordinarypeople. Having the intellect to recognisethe divinity in these actions and in nomanner perceive flaws in God’s actions,constitutes devotion to God.

36. Ekantik religion can only be attained fromsomeone who has himself attained thestatus of Ekantik religion.

37. Behaving dispassionately is the duty of anEkantik disciple.

38. Whoever wishes to attain salvation shoulddevelop enmity towards his own mind.

39. Someone whose mind is not dispassionateand merely physically performs vows andpenances does not achieve any great benefits.

40. Antar-drashti comprises of contemplatingon the Murti of God within oneself and


16 AMRUT SAGAR

fixating on it; or focussing on an externalMurti of God. If one’s inclination remainsanywhere apart from the Murti of God, itis referred to as bahya-drashti.

41. If after having the darshan of God or afterlistening to discourses about Him, onecontinuously contemplates and deliberatesabout these, a sakshatkar about them isattained. Otherwise, even if someone spendsan entire lifetime having the Lord’s darshanand listening to discourses about God, hedoes not attain a sakshatkar.

42. Those who make efforts for their ownsalvation may seemingly have limitedintelligence, but are in fact extremelyintelligent.

43. Someone, who is attentive in worldly affairsand seemingly has an astute intelligence,is in fact a dense person.


17AMRUT SAGAR

44. A disciple of God certainly experiencesdistress at seeing the distress of anotherdisciple.

45. If someone is trying to kill a disciple of Godor cause him pain, and another personcomes to save him and becomes hurt oris even killed in doing so, the scriptureshave stipulated that such a person becomesfreed from the consequences of the fivegrave sins, such as the killing of a Brahmin.Such is the efficacy of having allegiance toa disciple of God.

46. Having performed the one aspect of thenine-fold devotion that affixes his mind toGod and does not allow volitions aboutanything other than God to occur, thatperson should realise, ‘this is my propensity’.

47. If devotion towards God exists within someone’sheart and he understands the glory of God,he never demerits a disciple of God.


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48. Only someone who observes the vartmanof remaining devoid of lust is dear to Me.Such a person and I have a firm relationshipwith one another, both in this world andin the world thereafter.

49. Someone who has the following sixtendencies never attains contentment, eitherwhilst alive or after death: firstly greed forwealth, etc.; passion for remaining in thecompany of women; partiality of the tonguefor tastes; arrogance about the body;affection towards those who are aversefrom God; and affection for relatives.

50. Ekadashi may be said to have been observedwhen the ten indriyas and the eleventhmind are detached from their respectivesensations and enjoined to God.

51. Just as a sour or bitter taste can never beexperienced by licking the sky for ahundred years, the soul and Brahm cannever be seen without having upasana forthe Murti of God.


19AMRUT SAGAR

52. Many become accomplished (siddh), manybecome all-knowing (sarvagna) and somebecome deities (devta). In this way, theyacquire infinitely many kinds of greatness,or attain the highest status (param-pad).They attain these due to the strength oftheir upasana towards God. Withoutupasana, no accomplishment is possible.

53. One should remain in accordance with thereligious decree, have upasana for theMurti of God, listen to and sing about theepisodes of God, and recite His name. Thesefour means are the only fundamental causesfor a soul to attain salvation.

54. If someone who wishes to worship Godgets the opportunity of offering his servicesto Him and His disciples, he should considerit to be a great fortune for him and servethem. Furthermore, that service should beoffered only to please God and for theattainment of salvation, and it should be


20 AMRUT SAGAR

performed with devotion. One must notperform such service for accolade.

55. All the forms that evolve from Maya arefalse because all those forms are destroyedby time (Kaal). However, the Murti of Godthat presides in God’s Akshardham, and theforms of the attendants of that God, i.e. HisMuktas, are all true, divine and immenselylustrous.

56. A man goes to the home of a tailor andasks him to make him a coat. If, when hewears the coat, he regards the tailor asbeing his father and the tailor’s wife as hismother, that person should be considereda fool. In the same way, the soul wears acoat in the form of the body, which issometimes born from a Brahmin couple,sometimes from a couple of a lower caste,or from any one of the other 8.4 millionspecies. Someone who believes himself tobe the body, and the parents of that body


21AMRUT SAGAR

to be his true parents, is a fool and shouldbe considered to be like an animal.

57. ‘I am a soul, which is independent fromthe body.’ Adopting this virtue, of havinga conviction about the soul (aatma-nishtha),gives rise to all other virtues.

58. Arrogance about the body (deh-abhiman)is the one flaw within which all otherfaults exist.

59. One’s soul has passed through numerouslifecycles. It is said that the amount ofwater in the ocean is equivalent to theamount of milk drunk by each soul fromits mother’s breasts. In all those lives, it willhave died in numerous different ways. Still,it is not dead; it is exactly the same as italways was. Even during that state ofignorance, when it believed itself to be thebody, it did not die. So now that it hasattained the knowledge about its form, howcan it die? That soul should be believed tobe one’s own form.


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60. Without meditating on God, no-one shouldexpect to perceive or visualise the soulmerely by contemplating about it.

61. Only someone who has eliminated hisinherency with the five sensations canencounter and experience the bliss of God.Only such an individual attains thepleasures of God.

62. Except for the Murti of God, all othermaterial words and objects are perishable.

63. To someone who has been blessed with thebliss of God, the pleasures of the worldlysensations seem equivalent to hell.

64. Maya is extremely binding and unbearablyhorrific to someone who is averse to God.However, for a disciple of God, that Mayais very blissful.

65. Any miseries that a disciple of Godexperiences are a result of his breach ofGod’s commands. Whatever pleasures he


23AMRUT SAGAR

experiences, are due to his adherence toGod’s commands.

66. A person should keep an affiliation withsadhus and should disassociate himself fromthe company of immoral people. After hehas disassociated himself from badcompany, and has contact with sadhus, theego within him relating to his body vanishesand the sense of attachment towards hisrelatives disappears.

67. Matters related to the Murti of God cannotbe understood merely from the scripturesby one’s own efforts. That elucidation iscontained within the sacred scriptures, butit can only be understood when a Sat-purush manifests on the Earth and it isheard from him. It cannot be understoodfrom the sacred scriptures with the strengthof one’s own intelligence (buddhi) alone.

68. Having firm affection towards a Sat-purushis itself the means of visualising the soul.


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It is even the means by which the gloryof a Sat-purush is recognised, and themeans of attaining the shakshat darshan ofthe Lord.

69. Someone who abides by the commands ofa Sat-purush remains independent, as asoul.

70. A person should develop congruency onlywith a Sant who has attained the pragatLord, and maintaining a congruency withthat Sant, he should believe that Sant to behis own form.

71. The Sant sustains the entire world. The factthat he tolerates disgrace from eveninsignificant souls is due to his immensegreatness. Someone who possesses suchpatience is an extremely great person.

72. Each fault that someone perceives in aMota-purush (Sat-purushs), comes andresides within that person’s own heart.


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73. The only way for a soul to attain salvationis to obey the commands of a Sant withouthaving any doubts.

74. A firm affection for God can only bedeveloped by associating with a Sat-purush.

75. What is the Maya of God? Havingcongruency with one’s body andpossessiveness towards anything related toone’s body, is called Maya.

76. The antah-karans of a soul changeaccording to the company one keeps.

77. If the sensations that a soul experiencesthrough the five senses are pure, one’santah-karans also become pure. If theantah-karans become pure, a perpetualremembrance of God remains in that soul.

78. My mind never becomes satiated bylistening to the episodes about God, singingabout His glory, narrating about Him, ormeditating on Him. You all should also dothe same.


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79. In order to please God, a disciple of Godshould completely discard the five sensationsand not have affection for any object thatcould impede his affection for God.

80. I very much like the kind of devotion thatis offered with enthusiasm and withoutjealousy.

81. If a person has focussed his inclinationsolely towards God and possesses thesentiments that a wife has for her husband,his mind does not become pleased byseeing anyone else.

82. Having such affection for the Murti of Godis called chaste devotion (pativrata bhakti)

83. Someone who has affection for his belovedGod never violates His command andalways behaves in a manner that pleasesHim. That is the characteristic of affection.

84. No other thoughts arise in a disciple whohas an intense love for God, except forthoughts relating to God.


27AMRUT SAGAR

85. For a disciple of God, it is very difficult tokeep his inclination attached to worldlyobjects, whilst a worldly person finds itvery difficult to keep his inclination towardsGod.

86. A sin committed elsewhere is destroyed ata holy place; but when committed at thatholy site, the sin becomes so embedded intothat person, that it cannot be eradicated.

87. There is no deed more virtuous than thatof serving a disciple of God; and there isno other sin equal to the sin of beingtreacherous towards a disciple of God.

88. Associating one’s mind, deeds and wordswith a sant who possesses the thirty-twocharacteristics incorporates all the otherspiritual endeavours that exist for theattainment of salvation.

89. My nature is such that if someone betraysa Brahmin, a meek person or a disciple of


28 AMRUT SAGAR

God, I detest that individual so much thatI do not even like to look at him.

90. Envy is characterized by the inability totolerate the success of someone else andbecoming joyous at his demise.

91. God forgives all other offences, but He doesnot forgive the betrayal of His disciple.

92. Whoever wants to eliminate his arroganceshould understand the greatness of Godand Sants.

93. God and His Sants become pleased withanyone who remains absolutely firm in hisobservance of the five vartmans and doesnot allow any flaws to arise in these.

94. An angry nature is the religious decree ofa wicked individual. A tranquil nature isthe religious decree of an ascetic.

95. If the tongue is completely conquered, allthe other indriyas are also conquered.


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96. One must never have pride in front of afirm disciple of God, even if he is simpleand meek.

97. A disciple of God should hold on to thewish-fulfilling gem, in the form of God’sMurti, and must never disregard it. Then,he will then attain everything.

98. A person who becomes free from theblemish that is Maya, becomes equivalentto God. This means that just as good or baddeeds cannot bind God, such a Mukta toocannot be bound by them.

99. Due to Laxmiji’s immense affection forGod, she sometimes becomes merged intohis Murti. At other times, she is separateand remains in his service. In the sameway, a disciple is sometimes enjoined withinGod’s Murti as a result of his intenseaffection, while at other times, he ismurtiman and remains in God’s service.


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100. Whilst singing devotional songs to theaccompaniment of musical instruments suchas the mrudang, sarangi, saroda, tal, if onedoes not remember God, then that singingis equivalent to not having sung at all.

101. If one leaves the body whilst contemplatingabout God, an immensely superior statusis attained.

102. Whilst God continues to test us more andmore, we should become more and moredelighted and think, ‘the greater the painsthat God will make me endure, the strongerHis acquiescence towards me will be, andHe will never remain far from me.’

103. God becomes extremely pleased with adisciple who has indifference such that hehas no concern about his own physicalcontentment and instead endures whateverpains he is inflicted with.


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104. The pleasures of the material sensations areseparate from each other, and suchpleasures are insignificant and temporary.Ultimately, they are the cause of endlessmisery. When related to God, the bliss ofall the sensations is experiencedsimultaneously and that pleasure isimmensely extraordinary, and is constantand indestructible.

105. The scriptures have referred to nobetter achievement than having aconstant inclination of one’s mind onthe Murti of God, because the Murti ofGod is just like a wish-fulfilling gem(Chintamani).

106. There is no greater gain from having ahuman body than to attain a constantcontemplation about God in one’s heart.

107. Without an appreciation of the greatnessof God’s Murti in this manner, a person


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may try millions of other means, but aperpetual contemplation of God’s Murticannot be achieved.

108. The Lord’s power is so great that merelyby uttering the name Swaminarayan duringhis last breathing moments, even the mostsinful person is relieved of all his sins andthen resides in Brahm-mahol.


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Shreejibapa Victory to Lord Shree Swaminarayan Swamibapa · aim). In His great philosophical text, the Vachanamrut, Lord Shree Swaminarayan described the fundamentals of the religious