Disciple:
Greetings, Gurudev.
Guru Shyama Khyapa:
Greetings, my son.
Disciple:
Gurudev, I want to ask you a question today. You have been involved in the path of spiritual practice for so long. Have you ever had any contact or meeting with the Mother? Has She ever granted you a vision (Darshan)?
Guru Shyama Khyapa:
This is a very significant and heavy question, and I do not have a direct answer. I have been living in this crematorium (Shhmashana) for 35 long years. I haven't even seen a ghost yet, let alone God. I wait through the nights just to see a ghost. I haven't seen one yet.
Guru Shyama Khyapa:
So, seeing God is a distant reality. However, I know one thing: I have maintained a continuous connection with Him. I have deep faith that He is the one running this world. There are many spiritual seekers far greater than me who deserve His vision. There are great sages practicing much harder, waiting eagerly to see Him.
Guru Shyama Khyapa:
But will the One who runs this entire universe appear suddenly? Understand this clearlyâHe will not appear just like that. That is why I maintain a constant connection, and I can feel that He exists. I have an intuition that He is there. But I cannot "catch" Him. I have searched everywhere, going from one temple to another to find Him.
Guru Shyama Khyapa:
I have become exhausted. My eyes have run dry. I no longer even ask God to show Himself to me. I have realized that He is extremely busy. With so many people practicing spirituality, it isn't possible for Him to show Himself to everyone. So, I sit quietly and wait. If He shows mercy, fine. He has so much workâmanaging the entire world is no small feat.
Guru Shyama Khyapa:
I haven't broken the connection; I maintain it every moment. When the time is right, it will happen automaticallyâI won't have to keep pleading, "Mother, show yourself." I am a bit of an adamant person. If She shows Herself, fine; if not, that's also fine. What would I even do if I saw Her? What would change? And if I don't see Her, I won't be sad.
Guru Shyama Khyapa:
But I can tell you this: I feel Her. I feel Her vibration every moment. I can't see Her, but I have realized Her activitiesâhow She exists, how She acts, how She runs this world, and how She runs me. I have realized this. But I haven't experienced anything like "The Mother came and stood here," or "I am feeding Her," or "She is feeding me." Nothing like that has happened to me yet.
Guru Shyama Khyapa:
I am waiting through my continuous practice. The world is going through a terrible, frightening time. On one hand, there is extreme poverty (Daridra Yog). On the other, there are astrological afflictions like Kaal Sarp Dosh and Grahan Yog. What can you do in this situation? God will not show Himself now.
Guru Shyama Khyapa:
I am tired of calling out, and my tears have dried. I don't say anything anymore. I keep my sorrow to myself. Terrible things are happening. We live in West Bengal, but the world is massive. In every country, we see chaos, crop failure, and death. It is very concerning.
Guru Shyama Khyapa:
I saw a picture this morningâa two-year-old girl was pulling on her dead mother's clothes. Perhaps she wanted milk or something else, but the mother did not respond. This is a rare and tragic sight in world history. Seeing it made even me cry. Not a single person stepped forward to take the body or care for the child. This is an ill omen. What was that child's fault?
Disciple:
Gurudev, we often hear people say, "I saw God" or "I realized God." Are seeing and realizing the same thing?
Guru Shyama Khyapa:
No, no, no. Seeing God and realizing God are not the same. You cannot "see" God the way you are describingâlike a human who comes, chats, and eats with you. It is entirely a matter of realization. You have to become so deeply involved that you merge with the idolâwhether it is made of clay or stone.
Guru Shyama Khyapa:
When the seeker's soul becomes one with that stone or clay figure, it feels as though She is there. But this is a very deep matterâdeeper than the deepest ocean. The Mother exists, of course, but "seeing" Her is a very difficult thing. And it's also true that any seeker who has truly seen Her has not survived in this world for long. They left. As long as they didn't have the vision, they lived. Once the vision is attained, a person no longer remains on Earth; they go to God.
Guru Shyama Khyapa:
The call comes, and they leave. He might manifest in the trees, the water, the sun, or the moon. He doesn't come directly before you because His power (Tejas) is so intense. We would be burned to ashes instantly. We are overwhelmed by the heat of just one sun; the Mother has the power of billions of suns. So, I would be burned to ashes if I saw Her directly.
Guru Shyama Khyapa:
However, I have realized that the Mother sometimes comes in disguise. She takes a human form to test Her children or the seeker. She plays with them.
Guru Shyama Khyapa:
I'll tell you a short story. I used to perform Durga Puja for a club called Jagaran Sangha. I did it for 32 years. One morning, before starting the puja, I called the secretary. I told him, "A woman will comeâa lady wearing a red saree with Rudraksha beads around her neck. She will ask you for a cloth. We have many cloths bought for the Puja; give her whichever one she asks for."
Guru Shyama Khyapa:
So, I sat for the puja, and the secretary was near the pandal. A lady arrived, looking exactly as I had described. She asked him, "Son, will you give me a cloth?" He rudely dismissed her, saying, "Go away now! Can't you see the crowd? I have to manage the drummers and the money. I'll give you a cloth later." She asked again, "Give me a cloth, son." He got angry and walked away.
Guru Shyama Khyapa:
He went into the pantry, and she followed him there, asking again. He insulted her and told her to come back in a few days. The lady slowly walked away and could not be found again. When the puja was over and he told me what happened, I slapped him. I asked, "What was so important that you couldn't give her a cloth? I warned you before I sat for the puja."
Guru Shyama Khyapa:
Such things have happened before my eyes. He couldn't find her again. He just kept hitting his head on the ground, saying, "Gurudev, I got confused. I forgot what you told me." Later, he tried to offer a gold ornament to the Mother's idol, but I told him it was useless. She came to you once, she asked, you refused, and now She will never accept anything from you again.
Guru Shyama Khyapa:
This is how the Mother comes in human form to test us. If you can merge your soul with Hers, you can receive Her blessings and even see Her. But this merging is very difficult. People have egosâ"I won't touch her," or "my feet might touch her." People are afraid of the Mother. But you have to merge with Her, like a child with its mother.
Guru Shyama Khyapa:
For that, you must keep your mind very high. You cannot find the Mother with a cluttered, worldly mind. You have to discard the "Six Enemies" (Shoro-ripu). These enemiesâlust, anger, greed, etc.âare dangerous. They won't leave you; they will chase you. How will you find time to call God? You won't.
Guru Shyama Khyapa:
We have come to the crematorium (Shhmashana). The word "Shhmashana" refers to a place where no one else stays. People only think of it when someone dies. We have come here in total silence after discarding the six enemies. When a person dies, those enemies leave the body because they can no longer act through it.
Guru Shyama Khyapa:
Lord Brahma created these six enemies. When they had no one to inhabitâas they couldn't find a place in plants or animalsâthey went back to Brahma. He told them, "I have created humans for you. Inhabit them and manifest your character through them." So even today, the six enemies are active.
Guru Shyama Khyapa:
This is scientific. Lust, anger, greed, attachment, pride, and jealousy are recognized by science. As long as a person is alive, they live with these. But a spiritual seeker must discard them; otherwise, they can never practice. These enemies cause great pain. The saint Ramprasad once sang, "There are six enemies within this body, Mother; tell me how to manage them. I feel like killing them all with poison."
Guru Shyama Khyapa:
If even a great seeker like him couldn't control them, we are nothing. But you must control them. They are blind; they have no vision or foresight. When lust rises, a person becomes blind. When anger or greed rises, they become blind. They don't have their own eyes; they use human eyes to do their work. They use our hands, ears, and feet.
Guru Shyama Khyapa:
So, when you ask if I have seen God, I say it is a nearly impossible thing. I am waiting. If not in this life, then maybe another. Look at how many births Buddha or Mahavira took before they finally merged with the Divine. Claiming "I have seen God" is often just human talk.
Guru Shyama Khyapa:
No one really says, "I have seen Kali." We are the ones who say Bamakhepa saw Tara or Ramakrishna saw Kali. But what actually happened, only they knew. When the qualities of God manifest in a personâtruth, good thoughts, good deedsâthen that person is called Godly.
Guru Shyama Khyapa:
Truth (Sat) plus Consciousness (Chit) leads to Great Bliss (Ananda)âSatchidananda. First, be honest. Be truthful. Then you will have the divine power (Chit-shakti) within you. And then the bliss you experience is beyond imagination. We are all sitting here, waiting for that vision.
Disciple:
Greetings, Gurudev.
Guru Shyama Khyapa:
Greetings, my son.