Paratpar Guru (Dr.) Athavale moulds seekers with guidance and His own conduct !
From 1989 I had the opportunity to participate in the workshops conducted by Paratpar Guru (Dr.) Athavale in Mumbai. At that time, even though I was successful in worldly life, my mental state was not good. In such a perilious mental and spiritual state, He took me under His protection. Keeping me at His feet, He bestowed many spiritual experiences in my personal life. This Paras (Philosopher’s stone) in the form of ‘Gurumouli’ transformed my life completely and fulfilled the purpose of my life. To express my gratitude, I offer these flowers unto the Holy feet of Paratpar Guru (Dr.) Athavale, who is a form of Shri Vishnu. (Part-3)
7. Helping seekers completely in spiritual practice by making them aware of their personality defects
I was performing the satseva of propagating Spirituality in the Districts of Mumbai and Solapur. I was making many mistakes due to my personality defects and ego. I was not receiving Bliss from the satseva. Once when Mr. Madhav Deshpande from Worli (Mumbai) and I went to meet Paratpar Guru (Dr.) Athavale, He told us the following.
A. Instead of giving your own opinion about propagating Spirituality, give an objective review by looking at it with sakshibhav (Observer stance) and speak only what is asked.
B. Satseva should be performed wholeheartedly and with the bhav that it is your own mission.
C. One should have prembhav (Spiritual love without expectations) like Mr. Tanpure and Mr. Baban Valunj. Spirituality means developing closeness with people, going closer to God. To achieve this, one must increase prembhav.
D. One must understand the subtle dimension, the intended meaning.
E. One must continue making efforts till the answer to a question is received, an obstacle is resolved and the desired outcome is achieved.
F. Seekers should come together and learn.
G. You should listen to co-seeker Mr. Madhav Deshpande and learn from him.
H. Now your negativity has ended. In the next two months, you will become positive.
8. Guidance on the propagation of Spirituality in Mumbai
The number of satsangs should be increased. Pay attention to the youth. The number of youth seekers should be increased. By March 2000, Mumbai, Thane and Raigad Editions of Daily ‘Sanatan Prabhat’ will commence. We will need more 2-wheelers. ‘Sanatan Prabhat’ can be transported through trains.
9. Seeker had the spiritual experience of Paratpar Guru (Dr.) Athavale being an Incarnate personage
9A. Paratpar Guru (Dr.) Athavale proving His Incarnation by getting spiritual practice performed from an ordinary individual : Paratpar Guru (Dr.) Athavale introduced spiritual practice to an ordinary individual like me and got it performed too. For this, He worked very hard. Anyone can teach a good and clever student and get him on the merit list; however, it is very difficult to teach a dull student and get him on the merit list ! My case is similar. Actually God washed Saint Janabai’s clothes, milled grains for Her and worked as a servant at Saint Eknath Maharaj’s house. Only God descended onto the Earth (by Incarnating) to perform the mission. The very fact that He can do this proves His Incarnation. From the following situations, I learnt what makes Paratpar Guru (Dr.) Athavale an Incarnate personage.
9B. Experience of Paratpar Guru (Dr.) Athavale’s Priti
9B 1. Paratpar Guru (Dr.) Athavale taking seekers’ empty teacups to the kitchen when they were performing satseva : Mr. Pralhad Nemade and I were performing satseva in the Sevakendra as suggested by Paratpar Guru (Dr.) Athavale. Mr. Nemade was working in the State Bank as a co-administrator. After drinking tea, both of us placed our cups close by, and after talking about satseva, we were going to take them to the kitchen. Just then Paratpar Guru (Dr.) Athavale came there and took away the 2 empty cups. Before we could say, ‘We were about to take them to the kitchen’, He said, “Doesn’t matter, I am going to the kitchen anyway. You can continue doing satseva”. Then we felt very bad. We realised our personality defects of lack of promptness, considering own seva more important, etc. From His action, we learned the extent to which seekers should help each other.
After remembering such incidents, I remember Saint Janabai’s bhajan which was sung by Saint Bhaktaraj Maharaj – ‘I am in genuine pain for failing to serve You’, and this awakens my bhav.
9B 2. When a seeker returned from a journey, Paratpar Guru (Dr.) Athavale going to the ground floor and carrying his luggage : Paratpar Guru (Dr.) Athavale was living on the 2nd floor. I had never seen Him going downstairs for a walk or work. Once at 6 a.m. I reached the ground floor of the building where Paratpar Guru (Dr.) Athavale was staying. I had returned from Solapur after propagating Spirituality, and after freshening up, I was going to leave for my office. I was carrying two bags. While climbing the first step of the staircase, I saw Paratpar Guru (Dr.) Athavale in front of me. He took one bag from me. I said, “I can carry both the bags and climb up. Why did You come downstairs ?” Paratpar Guru (Dr.) Athavale replied, “I came down to relax my feet”. Actually, He must have seen me from His balcony. He came down knowing that since the lift is closed at that time, it would be heavy for me to carry two bags. He helps even an ordinary seeker like me because of His Divine virtues of thinking of others and intense prembhav. Actually, God came to carry my luggage. This example proves that He has made me light by carrying my physical, mental and spiritual baggage.
Both the abovementioned incidents are engraved on my subconscious mind.
9C. The one and only Paratpar Guru (Dr.) Athavale helping seekers not only at the physical but also at the subtle and spiritual levels : He has done everything for me despite my personality defects and ego and me not performing any satseva for Him. I feel that so far I have not helped seekers and have not participated even in the smallest way in Paratpar Guru (Dr.) Athavale’s mission. He helps seekers so much at the physical level that we cannot even fathom how much He must be doing for us at the subtle and spiritual level ! For this, I express gratitude a million times at His Holy feet.
10. Helping seekers become self-sufficient by performing spiritual practice
In the workshops, Paratpar Guru (Dr.) Athavale would tell us – ‘Teach a man how to fish, and you feed him for a life time !’, meaning, instead of giving someone money for his daily living, make him capable of earning money by working. Paratpar Guru (Dr.) Athavale makes seekers self-luminous. Despite being a psychiatrist, He invented the Path of spiritual practice known as ‘Autosuggestion Yoga’.
By implementing this Path of Yoga, a mental patient develops a personality like an average individual by taking autosuggestions and working on personality defects and ego removal process. An individual with an average personality can develop a strong personality like a Saint by performing spiritual practice and becoming self-sufficient.
11. Gratitude expressed by the seeker with the realisation that being accepted by a revered Guru such as Paratpar Guru (Dr.) Athavale’ is a great fortune !
Since I met Paratpar Guru (Dr.) Athavale, I have experienced that, ‘The giver is giving with a thousand hands, but my begging cloth is torn’. When my mental and spiritual states were deteriorating, Paratpar Guru (Dr.) Athavale removed me from worldly attachments and connected me with the eternal Truth. Not only this, He also blessed me with the satsangs of other Saints, Saint Bhaktaraj Maharaj and He Himself. He prevented me from getting entangled in Saints’ and His physical body and worldly temptations. He made me self-sufficient in spiritual practice and gave me eternal Bliss. I cannot describe in words how fortunate I am to be accepted as a disciple by such a Guru ! This is possible only due to His grace. For this, I express gratitude a million times unto His Holy feet.
– H.H. Shivaji Vatkar, Sanatan Ashram, Devad, Panvel, Maharashtra.