u/par_bhai_tu_hai_kaun

Shri Kunj Bihari Shri Haridas 🌸🌸

Vraj dhaam ki Jai 🌸🙏🏻

Shastro ne Vraj dhaam ko, Yamuna ji ko sakshat Thakur ji bola hai 🌸🌸

The land of Vraj is the very life breath to a Rasika. It is the very realm where nitya vihar (the eternal divine pastimes) flows continuously, without stopping for a single moment.

There is a common misconception that the ultimate goal of Rasikas is to reach Goloka. In truth, Goloka is attained by those who have sweetness (madhurya bhava) mixed with awe and reverence (aishwarya mishrit madhurya). Similarly, Dwarka Dhama is attained by those who have a sense of awe mixed with sweetness (madhurya mishrit aishwarya), while Vaikuntha is attained by those who have pure awe and reverence (aishwarya bhava). Nikunj (the heart of Vraj Dhama), however, is exclusively attained by those who possess pure, unmixed Maadhurya bhaava for Priya Priyatam (shuddha madhurya bhava).

This same infinite, eternal Vraj Dhama is projected onto the earthly plane. What we see on Earth is the Prakat Dhama (the manifest realm), and this same Divya Dhama (divine realm) in its complete swaroopa is attained by those who completely immerse themselves in rasopaasana.

When Sri Bhaiji Maharaj left his physical body, Pandit Sri Gaya Prasad Ji witnessed a divine vision of him entering Sri Vrindavan Dhama in the form of a sakhi, carried on a palanquin by other sakhis. While news of Bhaiji's passing arrived much later, Pandit Ji had already told his followers early on that Bhaiji had entered the nitya lila (the eternal divine pastimes of Radha Madhav).

Coming to the title, this divine Pada (verse)—which is generally sung during Samaj Gayan (congregational singing) in Vrindavan—was composed by Sri Bhatta Devacharya Ju, the 15th-century Jagadguru Nimbarkacharya of the Sri Nimbarka Sampradaya. He recorded this verse in the Yugal Shatak, also known as Aadi Vani. It is called Aadi Vani because it stands as the very first composition written in the Vraj language by a Rasik Acharya.

ब्रज भूमि मोहिनी मैं जानि। मोहनि कुंज मोहन वृन्दावन मोहनि जमुना पानी। मोहनि नारि सकल गोकुल की, बोलत मोहनी वानी। श्रीभट्ट के प्रभु मोहन नागर, मोहनी राधा रानी।।

~I have come to know that the land of Braj is enchanting. Its groves are enchanting, Vrindavan is captivating, and the nectar-sweet River Yamuna is also enchanting. All the women of Braj are divinely enchanting, and they speak only sweet, nectar-like words. Shri Bhatta Devacharya Ji Maharaj says that his Lord, Krishna is captivating, and Shri Radha Rani is also completely enchanting.

You may listen to this pad gayan :

https://youtu.be/jSokG3BpKJE?si=BnitigEhdIDr8oAx

Sri Bhori sakhi ji writes:

कोटि विश्व ऐश्वर्य सुख, नहिं जु एक कण तूल। सो रज तोकौं खेल है, मेरी जीवन मूल ॥

~Shri Hit Bhorisakhi Ji says, 'O beautiful one! The happiness derived from the opulence of millions of universes cannot equal even a single grain of dust of this Vrindavan. You consider brushing away and discarding this dust as mere play, whereas it is the very life-giving elixir (Prana Sanjivani) of my soul.

Sri Radha Sarveshwar Vijayate 🌸🌸

Shri Nimbārka Shri Harivyaasa 🌸🌸

Jay Jay Sri Radha Vallabh Hit Harivansh 🌸🌸

Jay Jay Shri Kunj Vihari Shri Haridas 🌸🌸

वैशम्पायन उवाच

गीता सुगीता कर्तव्या किमन्यैः शास्त्रसंग्रहः । या स्वयं पद्मनाभस्य मुखपद्माद् विनिःसृता ।। (Mahabharata 6.43.1)

Vaishampayana said:

What is the need of collecting and studying various other scriptures? The Gita alone should be sung beautifully (heard, chanted, read, contemplated, and deeply imbibed), because it has emerged directly from the lotus-like mouth of Lord Padmanabha (Narayana) Himself.

🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸

The unique position of Bhagavad Gita amongst several gitas (the reason why all Vedanta acharayas starting from Adi Shankaracharya commented only on Bhagavad Gita and not any other gita to support their philosophy):

गीतासारं प्रवक्ष्यामि सर्वगीतोत्तमोत्तमं कृष्णोऽर्जुनाय यमाह पुरा वै भुक्तिमुक्तिदं ।

I shall describe the essence of the (Bhagavad) gītā [i.e., gītāsāra], that is foremost among all the gītās and which Kṛṣṇa imparted to Arjuna in olden days and which yields enjoyment and emancipation.

-Agni Purāṇa 381.1

Swami Sri Ramsukhdas ji maharaj, the celebrated author of Sadhak Sanjivani which is published by Gitapress spent his whole life reading, reciting and contemplating gita, even after spending more than 90 years this way he was still finding several other understanding on reading this text, the reason why his commentary is bereft of any sectarianism and meant for anyone who wants to uplift his consciousness and advance in real spirituality (not the one that's sold).

Swami ji never ever in his life allowed anyone to take a single picture of his, that's why despite living till mid 2005 there's not a single picture of him available to anyone. Even he wrote a will that there should be no grand function or something after his departure and even not to inform the masses. Not a single disciple he ever initiated, and he always asked people to read gita as gita is the words of Bhagavan himself, it's capable of elevating anyone to the level of real sant/mahatma.

One should listen to discourses of such elevated masters, his discourses can be listened on gita seva app (and on YouTube as well).

🌸 Narayana Narayana Narayana Narayana 🌸

Before coming to our main topic we should be well aware that stories of Punarjanm(reincarnation) are not limited to India and Hindus only but can be found all over the globe, even those people who know nothing about Dharma etc have narrated such stories in countries like USA etc, now here's a famous brief story of Punarjanm before we proceed on to our main topic:

The Titu Singh (Toran Singh) reincarnation case is one of the most thoroughly investigated and famous reincarnation Stories in India. Originating near Agra, it details the story of a toddler who recounted his previous life as a murd-ered radio shop owner.

In his previous birth he was a man named Suresh Verma, who owned a wealthy radio shop (Suresh Radio) in Agra. On August 28, 1983, while sitting in his car outside his home, he was shot de-ad less than four months later, on December 10, 1983, a boy named Toran Singh (affectionately called Titu) was born into a modest family in a village near Agra.

When Titu was just 18 months old, as he began to form his first sentences, he started exhibiting unusual behavior. He told his grandfather to "take care of his wife and children" and stubbornly insisted that his real home was in Agra. By age four, he described his previous life in rich detail, naming his shop, his wife (Uma), and recounting the exact details of his murder

When Titu's family finally took him to Agra, the toddler immediately navigated the streets to Suresh Radio on his own, broke into tears upon recognizing Suresh’s widow, Uma, and correctly recalled private details of their marriage and household that only the deceased man could know.

Even in a private conversation between that toddler and that woman, he revealed several secret things that was known to her and her husband only thus he cemented his claim of being her husband in his previous life

Currently He serves as the Dean of the Faculty of Naturopathy and Yogic Science at the University of Patanjali in Haridwar, Uttarakhand.

Now coming to the main point of this post why only a chunk of people can remember their past lives and not majority?

This exact question was asked by the mother of universe, Mata Parvati to lord Shiva as why certain human beings are born as Jatismara (those who possess the rare gift of remembering their past births) in Mahabharat (the southern manuscript) Anushashan parva chapter 227:

उमोवाच।

भगवन्मानुषाः केचिज्जातिस्मरणसंयुताः। किमर्थमभिजायन्ते जानन्तः पौर्वदैहिकम्। एतन्मे तत्वतो देव मानुषेषु वदस्व भो।।

Mata Parvati Asked:

O Lord, why is it that certain human beings are born endowed with the recollection of their past lives? What is the reason they enter this world possessing knowledge of their previous physical existence? O Divine One, please explain the absolute truth of this phenomenon among humans to me.

Lord Shiva answered:

तदहं ते प्रवक्ष्यामि शृणु तत्वं समाहिता।।
ये मृताः सहसा मर्त्या जायन्ते सहसा पुनः। तेषां पौराणिको बोधः कञ्चित्कालं हि तिष्ठति।।तस्माज्जातिस्मरा लोके जायन्ते बोधसंयुताः। तेषां विवर्धतां संज्ञा स्वप्नवत्सा प्रणश्यति। परलोकस्य चास्तित्वे मूढानां कारणं च तत्।।

I shall explain that very truth to you; listen with a deeply focused mind. Those mortals who die suddenly and are quickly reborn retain the consciousness and knowledge of their previous life for a certain period of time. Because of this, they are born into this world endowed with the rare awareness of their past births. However, as their age and worldly intellect grow, that memory eventually fades away like a d--ream. For those who are ignorant or doubtful, this phenomenon serves as the ultimate proof of the existence of the afterlife."

Now we can connect the dots as how TiTu was born just 4 months later after disposing his previous body.

Also we can make sense that for those who are not given enough attention while they make such claim being a toddler they will eventually forget their previous lives completely resulting in those stories not coming to public eyes while in the case of titu he still can narrate that story in some portion (not as clearly as before) because of repetitive attention to him on this subject.

Now Mother Parvati asked an another question that is also seen in the world that many people narrate that they had left the body but again came into their body:

She said:

भगवन्मानुषाः केचिन्मृता भूत्वाऽपि सम्प्रति। निवर्तमाना दृश्यन्ते देहेष्वेव पुनर्नराः।।

~O Lord, some people, even after having passed away just moments ago, are seen returning to life once again within their very same bodies."

Lord Shiva answered:

तदहं ते प्रवक्ष्यामि कारणं शृणु शोभने। प्राणैर्वियुज्यमानानां बहुत्वात्प्राणिनां वधे। तथैव नामसामान्याद्यमदूता नृणां प्रति।। वहन्ति ते क्वचिन्मोहादन्यं मर्त्यं तु यामिकाः। निर्विकारं हि तत्सर्वं यमो वेद कृताकृतम्।। तस्मात्संयमनीं प्राप्य यमेनैकेन मोक्षिताः। पुनरेव निवर्तन्ते शेषं भोक्तुं स्वकर्मणः। स्वकर्मण्यसमाप्ते तु निवर्तन्ते हि मानवाः।।

~I shall explain the true cause of this to you; listen closely, O beautiful one. Because a vast multitude of living beings pass away at any given moment, and because many humans share the exact same names, the messengers of Death sometimes get confused. Out of this error, they mistakenly carry away the wrong mortal.

However, Lord Yama—who is entirely unbiased—knows the perfect truth of every soul's deeds, what is completed and what is left undone. Therefore, when these mistaken souls reach his abode, Yama himself releases them. They return to their bodies once again to live out the remainder of their destiny. Indeed, as long as a person's worldly karma remains incomplete, they are bound to return to life."

Note- As the timeline of Devatas are different from that of humans we see these things happening suddenly.

You may watch the following video to listen to such a story:

https://youtu.be/5teKK-aNiGk?si=fgzEBKih1nvO6ZCG

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Those who want to read such real life mind boggling stories should purchase gitapress books : 1. Parlok aur Punarjanm ank code 572 and 2. Parlok aur Punarjanm ki Satya ghatnaye code 888

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These readings of scriptures, coupled with real-life evidence, should act as a guiding light for us, leading us toward acknowledging the truth of the nature of this world (as described by Lord Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita 8.15: दु:खालयमशाश्वतम् — this temporary world, which is full of miseries)."

Also, in my opinion one should keep visiting hospital areas, cremation ground etc as visiting those places help us remaining grounded acknowledging our stature, and also such experiences help us in developing Vairagya (detachment) towards the mundane world that is necessity towards escaping this cycle of birth and death.

Hari Sharanam 🌸🌸

Found these slides in my archive as I had made this back then in 2023 itself, so thought of sharing it with devotees.

Sri ji is compassion personified, she's the source of all compassion that can be seen across the existence, she's the eternal supreme bliss of supreme truth, being devoid of her whole existence appears dead, her glories are sung all over the scriptures describing her as supreme tatva herself.

To what extent her glories can be described? as Sri Sita Astakshar Stotra says she knows no anger and bestows compassion on even those who try to harm as in following examples:

When Sri Rāma had directed his amogh(infallible) weapon (taking up a blade of kusha grass) against Jayanta, the son of Indra who had dared to harm Sri Jagadamba, it was Sri ji herself who pacified the lord and saved that crow.

She granted moksha to even demoness of lanka.

Sri Vishnu Priyaye Namaha 🌸🌸

Read the following post as well:

https://www.reddit.com/r/hinduism/s/AFaIjczx6I

So this pastime was performed by ageless great devotee of Krishna who was also ashtang yoga siddha yogi, Sri Devraha baba himself. Baba mostly lived near Yamuna ji and sometimes near Sarayu ji.

This was narrated by Malookpethadhishwar Sri Rajendra das ji maharaj and he heard this pastime from the disciple of Devraha baba himself with who experienced this pastime in person.

It was summer, the water level of Yamuna ji had decreased significantly, and many insects and bugs were visible in water, Baba’s elevated wooden platform (Machaan) was located near the river as he always used to live over Machaan, so a proposal was brought to him from Rajeev Gandhi and his minister Buta Singh (who often used to come to Baba for darshan) suggesting that since the Yamuna was not in a good state in Vrindavan, around Delhi, a nice arrangement could be made at Rajghat to set up his platform there. The request came directly from Rajiv Gandhi, who was the Prime Minister at that time.

Since Buta Singh did not have the courage to speak directly to Baba, the close sevak of Baba, who is currently the head of the ashram, Sri Devdas ji maharaj narrated, Buta Singh, who was very close to Rajiv Gandhi, came to visit him. People generally try to reach great saints through those who serve them. Buta Singh pleaded and urged the disciple until he agreed, saying that Delhi would be a much better fit for Baba’s stature, whereas the current location had nothing to offer. He suggested that building the platform before the city's waste mixes into the river would ensure clean water.

Sri Devdas ji admitted that his mind was influenced by the allure of Delhi, so he approached Baba while he was on his Machaan and stood below to propose the idea. He told Baba that since he preferred living on the banks of the Yamuna, they could build a platform in Delhi where the water was perfectly clean, questioning what was left for him in Vrindavan where the water had become polluted and harmful to his health.

Hearing this, Baba suddenly became filled with divine anger. He picked up a small earthen pot that was kept near him and smashed it hard against the disciple's forehead. The pot shattered, and Baba scolded him fiercely, saying that the disciple must be under some negative material influence to speak so disrespectfully about Shri Yamuna Ji.

Baba clearly declared that Yamuna Ji is not some mere river but the manifest cosmic mother, Shri Krishna Himself, and the Supreme Brahman. He was deeply saddened that despite living in Vrindavan for so long, the disciple had failed to understand her glory. Baba emphasized that the river is not polluted, but rather, the human intellect has become impure, whereas Yamuna Ji remains eternally divine.

Baba was not happy with his sevak, Later that night, the Inspector General of Police from Agra, who was a devoted follower of Baba, arrived along with the Deputy Inspector General for a visit. Baba told them that the intellect of the sadhu living with him had become polluted because of Buta Singh's influence, which is why he was seeing filth in the Yamuna. When the officers admitted their own ignorance and asked to know her true nature, Baba became highly emotional seeing the conditions of souls and decided to to shower his special compassion over those souls. Even though it was night, he ordered everyone, including the disciple, to go down and behold the Yamuna so their minds could be purified.

The disciple recalled that as they went down, they witnessed a sight so glorious that he had never seen anything like it even at Yamunotri. The river flowed as a magnificent blue stream, where every single grain of sand on the riverbed was shining, and a divine light was radiating from the water. It was not just him; all the high-ranking officials saw it too and were filled with goosebumps. The fish and turtles in the water were not ordinary creatures but divine beings. Baba then asked them from Machaan to submerge themselves completely to wash away the sins of lifetimes.

Despite wearing their regular clothes, everyone immediately jumped into the river in the middle of the night. **After they returned from this divine experience, the Yamuna appeared in her usual form again.

Baba always maintained that Shri Yamuna Ji is the foremost authority, the soul, and the very life breath of Braj, and she must never be treated disrespectfully. In their ashram, whenever milk is boiled, the very first portion is always offered to Yamuna Ji, even before it is offered to Sri ji and Thakur ji.**

Sri Rajendra das ji maharaj shared that he originally had doubts about bathing in the Yamuna due to the low water level, but after hearing this glorious pastime, his own hesitation vanished. He bathed thoroughly, performed his morning prayers, and paid his respects.

He concluded by praising the immense power of the great yogi, Devraha Baba, who could grant ordinary souls a vision of the divine Yamuna ji just by his mere sankalpa, such is the greatness of realised devotees of the lord ✨✨

Jai Yamuna Maharani

Jai Yogiraj

Śrī-Rādhā-Kṛṣṇāya Samarpaṇam-astu 🌸🌸

काहू के बल भजन को, काहू के आचार ।
व्यास भरोसे कुँवरि के, सोवत पाँव पसार ॥ ✨✨

प्रीतम के प्रान प्यारी, प्यारी जी के प्रान पिय। प्रेम रासि एक रस, दोऊ छवि देखहीं॥ तृपित न होत क्यों हूँ, बढ़त अधिक रुचि, छिन-छिन चौंप नई लागै नैन न निमेषहीं ॥ 1

रीझि-रीझि रंग-भरे उमगि लोइन ढरे, अंक-अंक रहे भरि विवस विसेषहीं ॥ 'हित ध्रुव' यह गति हेरि कैं मगन भईं, सखी सब ऐसैं रही मानौ चित्र रेख हीं ॥ 2

~श्री राधा श्री कृष्ण के प्राण हैं और श्री राधा के प्राण हैं श्री कृष्ण। ऐसे प्रेम-राशि युगल परस्पर एक दूसरे की छवि का निरंतर अवलोकन करते रहते हैं, तथापि किसी भी प्रकार तृप्त नहीं होते, वरन् उनकी रुचि अधिकाधिक बढ़ती ही जाती है। [1]

प्रति क्षण रूप-दर्शन की नई-नई उमंगें उठने के कारण युगल की नेत्र-पलकें लगती ही नहीं। उनके आनंदपूर्ण नेत्र रीझ-रीझ कर प्रेमनीर ढलकाते रहते हैं। वे रस-विवश हुए परस्पर एक दूसरे को अद्भुत अंक में भरते रहते हैं। श्री हित ध्रुवदास जी कहते हैं कि युगल की ऐसी प्रेम-विवश स्थिति का अवलोकन कर रस-मग्न हुईं सब सखियाँ ऐसे स्तब्ध रह जाती हैं, मानो चित्र की रेखाएँ हों। [2]

~ Bayalees Leela of Shri Hit Dhruvadas ji ✨

This entire existence is nothing but a playground for the supreme lord:

क्रीडासक्तजालककरतलामलकवृन्दवन्महाविष्णोः करतले विलसन्त्यनन्तकोटिब्रह्माण्डानि ।

:Just like a handful of gooseberries rolling around effortlessly in the palm of a child lost in play, infinite billions of universes casually sparkle and spin within the palm of Lord Maha-Vishnu.

~Tripad Vibhuti MahaNarayanopanishat 6.8

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क्रीडते भगवांल्लोके बालः क्रीडनकेरिव न प्रमातुं महाबाहुं शक्योऽसौ मधुसूदनः

The lord sports in the world like a child with his toys.This powerful lord Madhusudana cannot be comprehended. (Brahmānda Puran 2.73.95)

I found a beautiful pad of Surdas ji where he explicitly mentions the unity between Srimati ji and Rakhumai, this position is also there in the oldest Radha Krishna Centric sect on this earth i.e Nimbārka Sampradāya.

रुक्मिनि राधा ऐसें भेंटी। जैसे बहुत दिनन की बिछुरी, एक बाप की बेटी ॥अंतर कतहुँ कछू जिय नाहीं, एक प्रान द्वे देही। सुर स्याम यह कौतुक कीन्हों, प्रगट करन सनेही ॥राधा मुख चितवति रुक्मीनी, रुक्मिनि मुख राधा। दुहुँ मिलि एक रूप भईं दोऊ, मिटी भेद की बाधा ॥हरि कह्यो सुनहु प्रिये तुम दोऊ, तुमहिं हमहिं नहिं भेदा। सूरदास प्रभु एकहिं आतम, कहत पुरान अरु वेदा ॥

~Rukmini and Radha embraced each other in such a way, as if they were daughters of the same father who had been separated for many days. There was absolutely no distance or division in their hearts; they were like one soul residing in two bodies. Surdas says that Krishna (Shyam) created this wondrous sight to manifest the true nature of pure love. Rukmini gazes at Radha's face, and Radha gazes at Rukmini's face. Meeting together, they both merged into a single form, and the barrier of distinction was completely destroyed. Lord Hari (Krishna) said, "Listen, my beloveds, both of you—there is no difference between you two and me." Surdas says that the Lord is the one singular Supreme Soul, as proclaimed by the Puranas and the Vedas.

Had to generate an image from gemini as I couldn't find any such painting.

I found a beautiful pad of Surdas ji where he explicitly mentions the unity between Srimati ji and Rakhumai, this position is also there in the oldest Radha Krishna Centric sect on this earth i.e Nimbārka Sampradāya.

रुक्मिनि राधा ऐसें भेंटी। जैसे बहुत दिनन की बिछुरी, एक बाप की बेटी ॥अंतर कतहुँ कछू जिय नाहीं, एक प्रान द्वे देही। सुर स्याम यह कौतुक कीन्हों, प्रगट करन सनेही ॥राधा मुख चितवति रुक्मीनी, रुक्मिनि मुख राधा। दुहुँ मिलि एक रूप भईं दोऊ, मिटी भेद की बाधा ॥हरि कह्यो सुनहु प्रिये तुम दोऊ, तुमहिं हमहिं नहिं भेदा। सूरदास प्रभु एकहिं आतम, कहत पुरान अरु वेदा ॥

~Rukmini and Radha embraced each other in such a way, as if they were daughters of the same father who had been separated for many days. There was absolutely no distance or division in their hearts; they were like one soul residing in two bodies. Surdas says that Krishna (Shyam) created this wondrous sight to manifest the true nature of pure love. Rukmini gazes at Radha's face, and Radha gazes at Rukmini's face. Meeting together, they both merged into a single form, and the barrier of distinction was completely destroyed. Lord Hari (Krishna) said, "Listen, my beloveds, both of you—there is no difference between you two and me." Surdas says that the Lord is the one singular Supreme Soul, as proclaimed by the Puranas and the Vedas.

Had to generate an image from gemini as I couldn't find any such painting.

For long I have been seeing the blind devotion to viral Katha vachakas, their blind followers are left with 0 sanity now and can't bear any valid criticism against them.

Second slide is from the following video, the followers of Indresh Upadhyay calling learnt acharya of Vallabha sampraday congressi and what not?:

https://youtu.be/0UucRNURppU?si=mnD_BqX8c3aM5i4x

Context of the video : Indresh Upadhyay often makes fake claims on Vallabha sampraday, this video was made by an acharya of the Vallabha sampradaya as a response to his fake narration

These people have learnt few words and would paste those everywhere such as you are doing ninda and Vaishnav apradh, in reality they don't understand these terms at all.

Coming to our post:

Over the last few years, devotional (bhakti) content has exploded on social media. This surge is mostly due to the powerful, practical words of Sri Premanand Ji Maharaj. Cricketer Virat Kohli’s visit to him in 2023 also drew millions of youngsters toward Maharaj Ji, which was a great thing.

However, this boom brought many other speakers into the spotlight. Today, their followers view them as realized masters (siddhas). The problem is that these followers are completely blind; they refuse to accept even a single piece of scriptural criticism against their favorite katha vachaks.

Let’s look at Indresh Upadhyay as an example. Since he belongs to the Ramanuja Sampradaya, we must first understand how a real acharya is defined by his own acharya Swami Vedanta Deshika, also one of the greatest acharyas in Hinduism in general, wrote clearly about this.

In his text Nyasa Vimshati, he writes:

सिद्धं सत्सम्प्रदाये स्थिरधियमनघं श्रोत्रियं ब्रह्मनिष्ठंसत्त्वस्थं सत्यवाचं समयनियतया साधुवृत्त्या समेतम् ।दम्भासूयादिमुक्तं जितविषयगणं दीर्घबन्धुं दयालुंस्खालित्ये शासितारं स्वपरहितपरं संश्रयेद्देशिकेन्द्रम् ॥ १ ॥

~One must take refuge in a true spiritual teacher (Desikendra). He must belong to a genuine sampradaya, have an unshakable mind, be sinless, and know the scriptures inside out. He must be truthful, pure, free from pride and jealousy, and fully control his senses. He is a lifelong well-wisher who lovingly corrects his disciples and focuses entirely on spiritual welfare.

In Srimad Rahasya Traya, he writes:

आचिनोति च शास्त्रार्थान् आचारे स्थापयत्यपि ।स्वयमाचरते यस्माद् तस्माद् आचार्य उच्यते ॥

~An Acharya is one who completely masters the scriptures, guides his disciples on the path of righteous conduct, and personally practices exactly what he preaches.

Now, let's look at Indresh Upadhyay’s actions and see how they completely contradict his own words:

1. He constantly preaches about the glories of Vraj Dham and how one should live a simple life there. Yet, he went to a luxury grand hotel to some other city to host his own wedding, instead of sharing the joy with sadhu sant mahatmas of Vrindavan.
2. He married a divorcee. Before the marriage, her entire past identity was wiped out—her name was changed, her social media handles were deleted, and a new identity was manufactured to fool the public. In Sanatana Dharma, a traditional acharya who gives diksha (initiation) to others is absolutely forbidden from marrying a divorcee. This shows how untruthful he is.

His followers would come with a memorised line that he set a standard; really by altering her whole identity and fooling people?

3. His Katha-s are branded as Bhagavat Kathas but in reality he narrates random, stories. His kathas are not actual scriptural discourses; they are just folk stories (lok katha) and musical entertainment. Do that but don't brand yourself as Bhagavat Katha Vachak, somewhere he knows he wouldn't be able to pull huge audience with real Bhagavat.

4. He frequently makes fake, fabricated claims about the Vallabha Sampradaya.

5. Despite being initiated into Ramanujacharya’s sect, he never applies his sampradaya's traditional tilak. He rarely speaks about his own acharyas, choosing instead to talk about other sects while spreading misinformation.

This shows standard of his loyalty to his own sect.

6. While on the stage, he speaks like a deeply detached people. In reality, his lifestyle is the exact opposite. He is just a singer and an entertainer who blurts out whatever comes to his mind.

He is not the only one. Look at Dhirendra Krishna Shastri the famous Bageshwar Baba. He is famous for performing some miracles. I wouldn't say he can't have some basic siddhis, but having some basic siddhis does not make anyone an acharya or an authority on Dharma for there are many people like him but not that famous. His conduct goes completely against scripture, like traveling to Dubai to meet figures like Bu Abdullah. Just like his friend Indresh, he has almost zero knowledge of the actual scriptures.

These people also have grand PR team.

These people do not deserve to be called acharyas. Their kathani (what they preach) and karani (what they do) are miles apart. They are nothing but businessmen (katha vyaparis) charging massive amounts of money to entertain people in the name of devotion.

Devotion that ignores scriptural rules is not true bhakti—it is chaos (utpaata). Srila Rupa Goswami explicitly warned us about this in his masterpiece, Bhakti Rasamrit Sindhu (1.2.101):

श्रुतिस्मृतिपुराणादिपञ्चरात्रविधिं विना ।ऐकान्तिकी हरेर्भक्तिरुत्पातायैव कल्पते ॥ १.२.१०१ ॥

~Devotional service to Lord Hari that completely ignores authorized Vedic scriptures—such as the Śruti, Smṛti, Purāṇas, and Pañcarātra—is not genuine devotion. Even if it looks intense, it is merely a public disturbance (utpāta) in society.

It is time for people to wake up and stop following these entertainers blindly.

Why they should be criticised?

Because they are pushing people away from the Scriptural injunctions, altering scripturally established traditons, not everything can be justified as bhakti bhaava.

Now a days people are considering viral people as realised mahatmas, which is far from the truth if seen from scriptural standards.

And when people respond to those viral people that how they are going against scriptures they are called Vaishnav apradhis.

Meanwhile Bhagavan:

श्रुतिः स्मृतिर्ममैवाज्ञा यस्तामुल्लङ्घ्य वर्तते ।आज्ञाच्छेदी मम द्रोही मद्भक्तोऽपि न वैष्णवः ॥

~The Śruti (Vedas) and Smṛti (Puranas/Dharma Shastras) are My direct commands. Anyone who breaks these rules is breaking My law and acts as My enemy. Even if such a person claims to be My devotee, he is not actually a true Vaishnava."

Hara Hara Mahadeva everyone!

The 2 volume set of Siva Mahapuran published by Gitapress which generally costs 800 is now available at just 557 on Amazon due to some discount , many of my friends purchased it so you can get your copy as well. It's such a good offer 🙌🏻 the seller name is - Cocoblu retail.

Note- don't assume I'm making this post for any kind of promotion or something lol, it's just I like to spread awareness regarding our texts.

The dhyāna of lord Ākāśa Bhairava is provided in the Ākāśa Bhairava kalpam, a tantra text in the form of dialogue between Mata Parvati and lord Śiva.

Atha Dhyānam:

रक्ताम्बरं समालेपं भूषणं रक्तलोचनम्। रक्तवर्ण लसद्धीवं रक्तकुण्डलं संयुतम् ॥ २॥ रक्तकेयूर मुकुटं लसच्चन्द्राद्धं शेखरम्। प्रसन्नममृतोन्मत्तं इक्षुकोदण्डपुष्पेषु प्रणताभीष्टिसिद्धिदम् ।।३।। पुण्ड्रचापसहस्त्रकम्। कार्मुकेन शरैर्दिव्यैः पूरिताशावकाशकम् ॥४॥

~The deity is dressed in red clothing, his body is smeared with red paste and adorned with red ornaments. His eyes are red, his neck has a reddish hue, and he wears red earrings. His armlets and crown are also red. A crescent moon shines beautifully upon his forehead.He is joyfully intoxicated from drinking nectar. He grants the heart's desires to those who seek his protection. In his one thousand hands, he holds bows made of sugarcane and arrows made of flowers. The entire sky is filled with the presence of these bows and arrows.

Three forms of Lord Ākāśa Bhairava:

श्री शिव उवाच रहस्यं शृणु कल्याणि भैरवस्य महात्मनः । सर्वलोकैक रक्षार्थं तव वक्ष्यामि तत्वतः ॥१॥ यदा लोकहितार्थाय लीलयाकाशभैरवः। त्रिधा विभज्य चात्मानं रक्षते सर्वदाखिलम् ॥ २॥ आकाशभैरवं पूर्व द्वितीयञ्चाशुगारुडम् । शरभं तु तृतीयं स्यात् रूपत्रयमिहोच्यते ।। ३

~Lord Shiva said:

Listen, O Auspicious One, to the secret of the Great Soul, Bhairava. For the protection of all worlds, I shall reveal this truth to you in its essence. For the welfare of the world, Ākāśa Bhairava playfully divided himself into three forms, he did so to protect the entire universe at all times. The first is called Ākāśa Bhairava, the second is Āśu Garuda, and the third is Śarabha. These are declared to be His three forms.

First pic- Lord Akasha Bhairav. Second pic - Three forms emerging from him.

Nārāyaṇa Nārāyaṇa Shiva Shiva 🌺

Bihar toh aise hi badnaam hai 😅

Note- This post just serves as an introductory post to divine concept of ParaŚiva.

In Śaivism lord Śiva is the absolute reality transcending all 36 tatvas (in Śaivism there exists 36 tatvas unlike 25 tatvas of Samkhya), now when a person hears this term he gets reminded of a being smeared with Tripundra on forehead, having matted hair and three eyes, holding a trident in his hand and adorned with a snake in his neck - This is what a general hindu thinks of when he hears Siva but the conception of ParaŚiva transcends all these forms and attributes.

Lord Śiva is one of the most praised and worshipped deities in Hinduism, from Vedas to Mahabharata to Puranas everywhere his glories have been sung, which generally provide us an idea of Lord Siva and his supremacy but when we read Śiva Purāna and other texts along with Saiva agamas we get the insight of who Śiva really is especially according to main dualistic schools of Śaivism.

There are several sects of Śaivism, Śaivism is basically divided into two fold - Ati Mārga and Mantra Mārga, former is related with ascetism and sects like Lakulisa while the latter one compirses of Siddhanta and Bhairava school of thoughts (Kāsmiri Śaivam).

I'm not going in more depth (wrt historicity) as for that matter one may refer to works and articles of Alexis Sanderson. My aim is to just present a brief idea of how the conception of ParaŚiva differs from that conception of Śiva a general hindu holds.

There are 28 Śaiva agamas which are generally read along with aṣta prakarṇa-s such as Tatva saṃgraha of Sadyojyoti, in these works the knowledge of ParaŚiva tatva, 36 tatvas are elucidated.

ParaŚiva is the supreme absolute (Pati), all bounded jivas are Paṣus and there's Pāsa that binds all jivas, only with the anugrah of ParaŚiva one can transcend all limitations (Pāśa-s) and attain liberation.

Now coming to our topic:

What a general Hindu knows as Lord Śiva is, according to Siddhanta, SrikanthaRudra who's generally described in Puranas as in those lilas (pastimes) of Halāhala Pāna (the drinking of Poison) etc, he's the brahmāṇdādhipati and reigns atop Brahmāṇda in his Rudra loka and also does lila on Kailas of Bhumanadala occasionally.

Srinkaṇtha form is beyond SrikanthaRudra and this form of Lord is generally described as supreme in other samhitas of Siva Purāṇa barring Vayaviya samhita.

Though SadaŚiva, Maheshwar and ŚrikaṇrhaRudra are also considered Suddha tatvas beyond 25 but these positions are not absolute as Śiva Purāṇa talks about life span of these forms in final samhita called Vāyaviya samhita, to quote that briefly: (Siva Puran 7.1.8.24-28)

ब्रह्मा विष्णोर्दिने चैको विष्णू रुद्रदिने तथा | ईश्वरस्य दिने रुद्रस्सदाख्यस्य तथेश्वरः || २४ || साक्षाच्छिवस्य तत्संख्यस्तथा सो ऽपि सदाशिवः | चत्वारिंशत्सहस्राणि पञ्चलक्षाणि चायुषि || २५ ||

~A day of Viṣṇu is the life-time of Brahmā. A day of Rudra(SrikanthaRuda/the layman understanding of Siva) is equal to the life-time of Viṣṇu. A day of Śiva is equal to the life-period of one Rudra. A day of Sadāśiva is the life-period of Śiva. A day of Sākṣāt Śivā(ParaŚiva) is the life-period of Sadāśiva. The life-time of the latter(SadāŚiva) is equal to the life-period of five hundred and forty thousand previous deities

Further in next verses:

This Kāla functions as directed by Sākṣātśiva. O Brahmins, this is the period of time of creation as mentioned by me. This Kālāntara shall be known as a day of Parameśvara. Parameśvara’s night shall be known to extend so long. His day is the period of creation. His night is the period of dissolution. But understand that he has neither day nor night as we conceive them. (These days and nights are mentioned just to give us an idea)

So Beyond SadāŚiva exists the supreme absolute, ParaŚiva is the ultimate absolute reality, beyond all names and forms, The Lord Shines as absolute, divinely beyond everything.

Now I'm quoting few more Such Verses as to illustrate that how ParaŚiva doesn't act directly but through these murtys like of SrikanthaRudra as said in Śiva Purāṇa Vayu Samhita purva bhāga chapter 31 :

सर्वं शिवो ऽनुगृह्णाति न निगृह्णाति किंचन | निगृह्णतां तु ये दोषाश्शिवे तेषामसंभवात् || २२ ||

ये पुनर्निग्रहाः केचिद्ब्रह्मादिषु निदर्शिताः | ते ऽपि लोकहितायैव कृताः श्रीकण्ठमूर्तिना || २३ ||

ब्रह्माण्डस्याधिपत्यं हि श्रीकण्ठस्य न संशयः | श्रीकण्ठाख्यां शिवो मूर्तिं क्रीडतीमधितिष्ठति || २४ |

~Śiva blessess every one. He does not curb any. It is impossible to attribute to Śiva those faults which are usually present in those who kill. The instances of killing and curbing pointed out with regard to Brahma and others are those of the activities of Śrīkaṇṭhamūrti performed for the welfare of the worlds. Surely Śrīkaṇṭha has the overlordship of the universe. Śiva presides over the Mūrti Śrīkaṇṭha in the course of his divine sport

Now if Lord ParaŚiva doesn't have any form and he doesn't act directly then whose forms are those and who are they?

Answer:

SrinkaṇthaRudra (the layman's understanding of Śiva) is a Vidyeshvara, these beings have almost been cleansed of Mala-s (the limiting agent), and their body is made up of Bindu unlike that of Brahmā and Vishnu whose bodies are made up of Prakriti and hence look of these almost perfected beings are used while meditating on Lord Shiva. In reality Lord Śiva doesn't have any form eternally and ŚivaLinga is the representation of his Niṣkala form (formless).

(ParaŚiva is Niṣkala eternally though he alone is worshipped in Niṣkala-Sakala and Sakala forms too).

Ending with the quotation of TatvaPrakāsika (one amongst Aṣta Prakarṇa-s of Bhojaraāya):

शुद्धविद्यातत्त्वनिवासिनां मलपाकात् परमेश्वरप्रसादाच्च पदप्राप्तिः । एतेषां विद्येश्वराणां च शरीरं बैन्दवम् । अष्टादशशतरुद्राणां शरीरं मायीयम्। ब्रह्मविष्ण्वादीनां शरीरं प्राकृतम्। अष्टादशशतरुद्राणां विद्येश्वराणां च स्वरूपमिव साक्षात् परमेश्वरस्य सकलानि स्वरूपाणि पूजाविधिषु ध्येयानि ।ब्रह्मविष्णुशरीरस्य प्राकृतत्वात् परमेश्वरानुग्रहस्य पूर्वमसम्भवाच्च ब्रह्मविष्णुशरीरवत्परमेश्वरः केनापि न ध्यायते। ब्रह्मविष्णुपदं पशुभूमिः। रुद्रपदमीश्वरपदमुभयं पतिभूमिः ।

~The bodies of those as well of the vidyeśvara-s are made of bindu and those of the one hundred and eighteen Rudra-s are made of māyā. The bodies of Brahmā, Viṣṇu, etc. are made of prakrti. The forms of the supreme Lord should be meditated to be like that of the one hundred and eighteen Rudra-s and that of the vidyeśvara-s during the acts of worship, etc. As the bodies of Brahmā and Viṣṇu are made of prakṛti and as the grace of Śiva was not present before, the supreme Lord is never meditated by anybody to be resembling Brahmā or Viṣṇu. The positions of both Brahma and Viṣṇu belong to the level of bound selves (paśu) [whereas] the positions of both Rudra and Īśvara are situated in the worlds of the supreme master (Pati).

Note- This view is totally different from that of Kasmiri Śaiva which holds the position of absolute oneness of Siva i.e everyone's real identity is Śiva alone.

Namaha Parvati Pataye Hara Hara Mahadeva 🌿🌿

And these people dare to mock hindus on their beliefs 😁