My Kailash Yatra = BABA

August 6, 2002

KAILASH YATRA = BABA

We are going on kailash Yatra this month with 65 Samratchana Devotees. I am on viradham & fasting. I have gone on Kailash yatra & ManasaSarovar 9 times by God's Grace from 1992 to 1998 & even done the Inner parikrama. This will be my Kailash yatra for the 10th time.

A Mahaan, when He is in severe penance & rigorous fasting & viradham, His body becomes very delicate & soft .It becomes very extra sensitive. So, those times,when I am in extreme fasting, if anybody comes close to me, during those viradham days, it will be an aversion.

If you see me during the viradham days, my body will be very delicate & soft like a baby.So, it feels like nobody should touch. So, people who are ignorant ,do not know the physical sufferings the body undergoes, when the negative wave touches a positive body.

A Mahaan's feet is so auspicious. People are under the wrong impression that he has to fall & touch the feet. Wherever a God's or a Mahaan's feet if on the earth, If he touches the sand, that is more than enough.

When I went to Kailash for the first time, I got Ganesha’s Darshan & then I got Ambals darshan. When I completed my Kailash yatra, I went to Thiruvannamalai. In those times, I have been very close to Visiri Swamigal( Ramsurat kumar Swamigal). I used to be with him for days & hours talking with Him & being with Him.

I was telling my experiences of my Kailash yatra to Him.He asked me, " This BEGGAR could not go to Kailash, You have gone, tell me something about Kailash." & He used to make me sit & was listening to me & then I was telling Him about my yatra & I told that there was only one shortfall, that I didn’t get Shiva’s darshan this time. Can u believe this , when He said " On 23rd , January, evening 5 to 6p.m, a military officer came walking with you, He is only SHIVA!" I & that military officer were happily talking & walking. Can u believe ? that SHIVA came in the guise of a military officer. I didn’t understand this. Only after Visiri Swamigal told me, I understood, since the subject what the military officer spoke was only Spirituality & nothing else. This is only Experience.

Experience is , Shiva wont come in the way you see in the photos having long hair( jadamudi) & with a snake in his neck, He could come in anyform ,he could even come in the guise of Adishankarar with a shaved head or could come in pyjama kurta or wearing silk dhothi like Shivshankar Baba. This , I have understood from my experience. GOD WILL COME IN ANY FORM.

Our former Late Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru wrote, that the only dream which was not realised in his life time was that he didn’t get the opportunity of going to Kailash.He had always cherished the beauty of the Kailash mountains & had been his dream world. The dream which was not fulfilled by Jawaharlal Nehru ,it was fulfilled by me,With God’s grace, I had the opportunity of going on Kailash yatra from 1992 to 1998, nine times.

More than 2500 years back, when there was no proper facilities, Bhagwan Adishankarar had gone for Kailash yatra by walk & got Pancha Lingams & Soundarya Lahari as prasadam from Kailasa Nathar.This we know fm the book" Sankara Vijayam". From the Thevaram Thirumurai, we know that Sundarar , went to Kailash on a white elephant sent by god. Seraman perumal Nayanar told the Panchatchara mantra for the white horse & reached Kailash. & Ovvaiyar with the Blessings of Ganesha had reached Kailash.

Karaikaal Ammaiyar felt that it was wrong to walk with her legs to kailash , since the mountain was Shiva & she walked the whole kailash trip on her head. Appar swamigal ,when he was walking towards kailash, he was tiredly limping, struggling hard & pulling himself to walk. So, seeing his problem & difficulty & his True devotion to God, God made him dip in Thiruvaiyaru pond in south India & there itself gave him kailash darshan. & Shiva sent Agathiyar to South India & in south Pothigai in Kalyana theertham, God gave him the darshan of Shiva Kailash in Wedding kolam. Dwarka Sankarachariar had got direct Shiva’s darshan in the kailash tip- mentioned in "punitha payanam’ which baraneedharan wrote.

Kailash is at an altitude of 22000 feet. Before going to ManasaSarovar, there is a place called Rakshandal, where Ravana had done penance there.There is a big lake where the Rakshadal used to bathe. By custom, you should not bathe there & not drink water. When you are walking round this lake, in a distance you can see Kailash mountains in different hues & combinations.

ManasaSarovar Lake is like an ocean at an altitude of 17000 feet with 300 feet depth & 200 feet wide. In 2 days, we do the Pradashanam, while walking past, there are 8 Buddha viharas.In the winter season,it is snow. & in the summer, it melts & f sunrise to sunset, with the light’s display ,it brings colourful hues to the lake.Here big crows,water birds & rabbits can be seen. We can enjoy & immerse in the natural beauty of this place.We can see Anna Paravai, which separate the milk from the water & drinks only the milk, we can see in this ManasaSarovar Lake.

In the puranas, it is told that in the middle of ManasaSarovar Lake, there is karpaga Virutcham & a very big lotus flower is there. What comes in Mahabharatha "bindu saagaram" is this only. In Jain books, "Padma Urrudha" ,around this lake ,there are Jambu trees in 7 rows. So this is only " Jambodveebam". Lamas believe that the way to the cave to Kailash which is unseen to our eyes , is there in this ManasaSarovar Lake.

Kailash is at an altitude of 22000 feet. Kailash Pradakshanam takes fm 3 to 4 days.after 90km, 2nd day, in Dolma Pass,its little difficult in climbing this for several km. Tibetians have written the mantras in stone around kailash & they put the stones together in a heap & at its tip, they keep Buffalo’s horn , in the position facing kailash mountains & they worship it. They Chant this mantra "OM MANI PADMINEA NAMAHA" ,also with rotating a prayer wheel in their hand & they do the pradakshanam of the kailash mountain. Some Lamas ,even put their whole body down ,like Anga pradakshanam around kailash for some days.

When you are doing Pradakshanam round Kailash ,we can see the small pond, called "Gauri Gundam" where Goddess Parvathi took bath & did Shiva Pooja. It is in a depth, if you hv a healthy body & confidence in mind , you can go down there & get the sacred theertham. You can immerse in imagination the divine scene which Muruga & Ganesh fought for the Gnana Mango fruit( Gnana pazham).

In Kailash yatra, there is outer pradakshanam & the Inner Pradakshanam.Only if you done 13 times outer Pradakshanam ,only then you are given permission to do the Inner Pradakshanam. Whoever have not done 13 times outer pradakshanam & who went for Inner pradakshanam, they say, there have not come alive.There are Icemen, they eat men, they say. And there are wild forest buffalos & Polar bears.In my 9 th time of kailash yatra in June/ July 1998, I did the Inner Parikrama. For the first time, by God’s grace, this opportunity came for the Samratchana group to do the Inner parikrama.There the special feature was the yagams were done for 1 & half hours there.

When I finished the Kailash Pradakshanam , when I returned to Thaklakot on a Guru Paurnami day, I met Kanchi Jayendra Saraswathi Swamy & spoke to him for a long time.

During his Kedarnath pilgrim trip, a sadhu fm Ramakrishna Mission , saw a 70 year old lady suffering from severe sickness & being in unconscious state & he felt pity for her & said "Amma, You have undertaken this difficult pilgrim yatra alone.Okay,you come along with me half a mile down, there is a place to stay, from the medicines I have , I will cure you & then you can start towards kedarnath. So that old lady said "Aiyya’, I thought you were a very good person. You are showing me the way to a deep ditch. I will take a step ahead towards God , even if I have to be die in the process. I will be very happy. But you want to pull me back half a mile back from God. Sorry!! I don’t want your help. "She said.

When you get such a kind of determination & devotion in the holy trip, then you wont feel any difficulty.

In Thirumalai, Ananth Azhwar was daily tying garland from his hands & daily used to walk & do service & do pooja for god. One day, a snake bit him, Inspite of it he never stopped anywhere on the way, & straight walked to Thirumalai & finished his pooja. So, God came in the guise of an old man & said "What is this? You could have taken treatment for snake bite & then you could have come". So, Azhwar said" Swamy, If I had died of snake bite, then others would have given me bath & sent me to Vaikundam. Without dying, since I directly came to Thirumalaiyan, for me, it is directly Vaikundam. "He said. So, with such Bhakthi & devotion & True faith for God, if our Holy Pilgrim Trips happen, we can immerse in the Divine Grace of God.

Dr.Swen Hedin , a foreigner had written in his book ‘TRANS HIMALAYAS" –had described the beauty of the Kailash.This is a place filled with Peace & divinity.There is no words to describe the beauty of kailash in the world, in any language. Cant explain the dreamscene which is in front of our eyes, floating in the sky. I have experienced the calmness, serenity & the Bliss ,which I have not experienced in any Mary’s Church.I cannot forget this beautiful scene till my death.

Another tourist "August Gansser" had written in his book " TAROME OF GOD Keezhkathiya Samayangalin Adhaara Sruthiyaanadhu, I have seen in one Temple. That Temple is an Icemountain which shines & glows when the sun’s rays falls on it.It is the World’s Mosat sacred Kailash mountain. It is the God’s Residing place.

"Whatever difficulties were there in the Kailash yatra, when we think of the Kailash nathar darshan & the Beauty of ManasaSarovar & feel happy & all the difficulties dissappear.

IF YOU ARE ABLE TO LIVE LIFE WITH DIVINE THOUGHTS. YOU BECOME GOD. LOVE IS GOD, LOVE ALL , LOVE IS ALL.

LOVE AND BLESSINGS = BABA

COME! CHAT LIVE WITH SHIVASHANKAR BABA on this Friday , August 9th, 2002 , evening 4p.m IST at www.astrology.sify.com

SHANKARAM SHIVA SHANKARAM

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