Host:
Hello everyone. On this auspicious evening, I begin this episode by offering my salutations to Shantikunj Ma Bamatara. A warm welcome to those who are new to the "Gupta Sadhak Shyama Khyapa" YouTube channel, and a request to our old friends to stay with us. Pronam (Salutations), Gurudev.
Gurudev:
Pronam, Baba.
Host:
Gurudev, we receive many comments on your channel from time to time. One of the most important topics—and one that I know you also find significant—is past life memories. What exactly are past life memories? And is it possible for us to regain them?
Gurudev:
No, absolutely not. Only very high-level sages might reveal them to someone, but that is a very rare case—extremely rare. And frankly, it's better not to know, because it brings immense sorrow. If you saw what you were in your previous life and compared it to your current state, your grief would know no bounds.
Gurudev:
I'll give you an example. Trailokya Swami, who was often called the "Living Shiva," was once followed by a man. This man was a beggar in a very poor condition. He kept pestering the Swami, saying, "Father, please help me regain the memories of my past life." For a long time, the Swami ignored him. But one day, he could no longer refuse and granted the man a glimpse of his past.
Gurudev:
It turned out that in his previous life, he had been a powerful king of a vast kingdom. Now, he was wandering as a beggar. The Swami asked him, "Now that I have returned your memories, what do you see? Look at what you were then and what you have become today."
Gurudev:
Knowing the truth brought him nothing but pain. Whether you were a king and are now a beggar, or were a beggar and are now a king, the memory creates a level of distress that is hard to handle. That is why it is not advisable to regain past memories.
Gurudev:
Even Bholanath (Lord Shiva) chooses to forget. He takes one step and forgets the previous one. He doesn't want to carry the burden of those memories. You see, we face so much suffering and intense pain throughout our lives; if we remembered it all, we wouldn't be able to survive it. But God has placed something within our brains—a sort of "manhole" or "black hole"—that absorbs and clears out these painful memories so they don't drive us mad. We might be unbalanced for a few days after a tragedy, but then we recover. This is a creation of God and Bholanath.
Host:
I see.
Gurudev:
Bholanath understood that if past memories remained in a person's mind, they would surely go insane or become mentally unstable. According to divine law, no one should be able to know their past life. Sometimes we see "Jatiswar" (people who claim to remember past lives), but they usually only remember until the age of 11. Once the planetary influences (Grah-Nakshatra) of the 11th year touch them, they forget everything. Before that age, they might describe their old house or identify their previous parents.
Host:
Yes.
Gurudev:
This is why my teacher, Bamtara Baba, used to say, "Don't treat anyone under the age of 11. Just chant the name of the Mother over them, but don't give them talismans or amulets." Following his words, we don't perform rituals for children under 11. We just offer blessings in the name of Ma Durga or Kali. Children are under the protection of Ma Durga. Once they pass 11, all the planetary energies begin to affect them, and that's when their various ailments and worldly sorrows truly take hold. Before that, they are essentially in the lap of the Divine Mother.
Host:
Gurudev, I've heard somewhere—I don't recall exactly where—that only children can truly remember past lives. Is there any truth to that?
Gurudev:
Yes, that's true. You'll see infants who are only two or four months old smiling or crying in their sleep or while staring at nothing. In our local language, we call this bayla. The child is "performing bayla." But in reality, at that moment, they are seeing and experiencing visions of their past life.
Host:
So, their past life memories are flashing before their eyes?
Gurudev:
Exactly. That is why they react that way. Because the baby cannot speak, we don't know what they are seeing. People just think, "Oh, the baby is smiling," or "The baby is crying." But they are observing their past.
Gurudev:
There is another phenomenon called pechua (a condition where parents repeatedly lose children shortly after birth). In the old days, if a couple lost several children, they would make a vow to Lord Mahadev. If the next child survived, they would pierce the child's nose or ears and shave their head as an offering to Baba Panchanan or Mahadev. You'll still see many men today with pierced noses or ears for this reason. Even in this age of science, these traditions and the mysteries of past lives persist.
Host:
Friends, you have been listening to Gurudev's profound insights. My question was whether we could regain past life memories. Gurudev has explained that while it might be possible through a great sage, it is not wise. Knowing your past could lead to such deep depression that it could even lead to death. Therefore, one should not try to seek out these memories.
Gurudev:
Exactly. It is against divine law.
Host:
Thank you for your guidance, Gurudev. Pronam.
Gurudev:
Pronam.