Swami Chidananda

[Guest guest]

Dear Devotees in TBP,

 

Love and Love alone....

 

I have been hesitating to write this message to you all for the last

two days. Am I eligible to write it? was the question haunting me.

But, today, I decided to write to you to let you know and also show

how Great Saints live even after they left the body.

 

Pujya Swami H.H. Chidananda Maharaj, the President of Divine Life

Society, Rishikesh, entered into Mahasamadhi on Thursday, 28 August

2009 at 8.11 p.m., at the age of 93 years. I learnt this sad news

around 10.00 p.m. and at 11.00 p.m. a few of us left for Rishikesh by

cars so as to participate in the rituals of Jalasamadhi of His mortal

coil, before Sun rise on 29 August 2008.

 

From the below reproduced Will of the Pujya Swamiji, one can easily

assess the greatness and simplicity of this Great Soul vis-a-vis our

attachment to all kinds of mundane things. Please read, though a bit

lengthy.

 

To

The Trustees of the Divine Life Society Trust,

both collectively as the D.L.S. Trust Board,

as well as official individual members of the D.L.S. Trust.

 

This clear-cut directive and various instructions contained therein,

is given for your attention and necessary action without deviating

even one whit from it in action as well as in spirit. I thank you for

your compliance.

 

This directive is being given in my capacity as the seniormost inmate

of the Sivananda Ashram, DLS Hqrs. both from the point of view of my

physical age as well as from the point of view of the length of the

duration of my stay in this Ashram of Gurudev as well as the length of

the tenure of my discipleship to Gurudev Bhagavan H.H. the late Sri

Swami Sivanandaji Maharaj.

 

I am giving herein below the detailed instructions that comprise the

directive just mentioned in foregoing paragraph. Whenever and wherever

my departure occurs from this physical body (which I have been

occupying and residing in for well over 3 quarters of a century) the

disposal of the physical remains will be done as follows only. The

authority with which I give this directive derives from the fact that

except three beings, I am the only person who exercise the whole and

sole authority over the physical vehicle through which I act. The

first is God, the Supreme Being who ordained the formation of a body

to receive me when HE sent me down here and HE also took up residence

in it as the Antaryamin and secondly, the two natural parents of this

body who were responsible for the formation of its structure and

additionally the mother personality who kept and nourished the body

within herself for the traditional 9 months and gladly and willingly

underwent the aches and pains and difficulty of delivering it at its

destined time.

 

Next to these three I have the sole and maximum authority over the

body both from the point of view of long ownership and a prolonged

duration of sole tenancy of full 84 years, a period that nears the

last decade that is required to complete a century.

 

The body will not be brought over to any place desired by the Divine

Life Society Authorities or important persons or devotees of the

Divine Life Society Organisation. Only these instructions will be

carried out. It will be carried out by those persons who constitute my

junior helpers and almost always travel with me and accompany me

during my tours outside Headquarters Ashram. Normally they are Swami

Sharanagatananda and Swami Yatidharmananda etc.

 

The body shall be disposed off the same day of my departure of it

provided this is not late evening at sunset or after sunset. In which

case, it should be disposed off early dawn just before sunrise. This

is in order that people could have their bath after sunrise,

immediately after the disposal is finished.

 

The body shall not be buried under the ground. Bhu-Samadhi should not

be given.

 

The disposal shall be done in the manner of the bodies of the

sannyasins belonging to Adi-Sankaracharya's Dashanami Sannyasa Order

and the Sampradaya generally prevailing.

 

Wherever the departure from this world occurs, nearby local people

will identify a place with a flowing river nearest to the place of

demise. By proper arrangement the mortal body will be shifted by

suitable road transport to the bank of the river decided upon with

minimal spiritual rituals, the body should be taken to the midstream

and bestowed Jal-Samadhi. The entire rite from start to finish should

be done within three hours of the arrival of the dead body at the

finish should be done within three hours of the arrival of the dead

body at the river bank site. Chanting of Gurudev's name, chanting the

Mritunjaya Mantra 5 times and culminating with the chanting of Pranava

(OM), a minimum of 16 times will be the only chanting permitted upon

this final moment. The name Chidananda will not be articulately

uttered by anyone present. After the group or the party that has very

kindly done this task has taken its purifying bath, they will arrange

feeding of brahmins, feeding on a large scale of school children, poor

beggars, feeding of leprosy patients and feeding of cows, dogs, cats,

monkeys, birds and ants and should be done with earnestness and

sincerity. This is pleasing to the Lord Almighty, our creator. During

feeding of Human beings, suitable dakshina should be given to one and all.

 

Divine Life Society Branches and DLS devotees will be informed only

through the columns of the Divine Life Journal of the next month issue

after the demise. There will be no information by telegram, telephone

or speed post letter or courier letter.

 

All school children of the Muni-Ki-Reti Primary School will be treated

to a very tasty and sumptuous feast and with Dakshina to all. The

Teaching Staff will also be included. No other Ashram would be

informed. A Tokri of fruit and prasad will be sent to the local police

Thana in our neighbourhood. All the drivers of the taxis, tempos and

threewheelers will receive suitable prasad, both consumable and usable

for a longer duration upon a more permanent basis. The exact items of

the last mentioned prasad is left to be decided by the Guru Niwas

upstairs residents like Swami Pranavaswarupananda, Swami

Sharanagatananda, Swami Yatidharmananda, Swami Guruprasadananda, Swami

Chitswarupananda.

 

It is also a special item in this directive that the following list of

persons should not be in-charge of the disposal process and should not

be given any prominent authority to interfere in the carrying out of

these instructions. They may only act as observers (without active

participation) and witness things being done.

 

They are:

Sri Swami Ramaswarupananda Saraswati

Sri Swami Sivachidananda Saraswati

Sri H.D. Sharmaji of New Delhi

Sri K. Arumugham of DLS Branch, Pattamadai

Sri V. L. Nagaraj ji of Bangalore

 

Thank you again for your compliance without deviation.

Hari Om Tat Sat!

 

You can see all other details and photos of Jalasamadhi in this link:

http://www.sivanandaonline.org/html/misc/mahasamadhi-2008/lifesketch.shtm

 

Hari Om, Love and Love alone....

 

P. Gopi Krishna