About Ashrams

March 11, 1996

Dear Parents,

By God's Grace here all is fine and going on as usual. Hope you are all well there.

Yes, your Shasta house sounds like a real, quiet ‘ashram’. Indians are used to living in the midst of overcrowding and activities, so every Indian ashram seems to be like that. I remember a quote from Ramdas – “Better not to stay in an ashram. Ashrams don’t make saints, but saints start ashrams!” Ashrams seem to be places for worldly people to have satsang for a few days. Ashramites seem to be (generally) for people who want to spend their life doing service, not meditation. You’re probably better off in the nice, quiet Shasta home! Still it’s nice to visit India where the holy inspiring vibrations of saints cannot be denied. Although Jnaneswari has assigned a busy schedule for me, I feel inspired by her company and by the holy place. I do my best to find time to be alone. Once a month, as per tradition, for four days ladies shouldn’t go into the Mandir, so I use that time to lock myself in the room and stay in silence & resting.

Love,

Divya

_______________

Farmers Have Come

April 2, 1996

Dear Parents,

Divya conveys her namaskars. Here, it is starting to boil – but it’s not yet very hot for me. However, several residents have left for the summer, saying they cannot bear the heat. We seem to be settled here to enjoy God in the form of oven rays, inside and out.

Everything is going on quietly here, not many visitors and residents are also leaving. Yesterday the school children left on summer holiday. One SRF devotee has come here for a month of meditation (an Indian). Too bad – right at the three months of the year when the farmers have come to collect fruits from the mango and cashew nut tree groves, which occupy ¾ of the ashram. She tries to sit in the wide open beautiful nature to meditate, but complains that no matter where she goes, the village farmers are there - loudly talking, shouting to locate other members, plucking fruits in far off areas, staring at her, shaking trees and filling their baskets with fruits. In this season there is no escape from the jungley workers. One can only see the noises as God – then all seems quiet as usual! When the mind is calm, outside also seems calm. When the mind is restless we also recognize only restlessness outside. (Farmers are only here March to June every year).

May God bless us to completely purify our hearts and minds, then the Blissful reflection of God will be the only thing we recognize everywhere, at all times. Hope all is well there!

Loka Samastha Sukhino Bhavantu.

Love,

Divya

__________________

Experience the Latent Divinity

May 15, 1996

Dear Parents,

Excuse me but, for hundreds of years people have been talking of and worrying about “massive changes” that never come. Of course, slowly big changes come but they creep up so quietly that we hardly notice them. Yes our lives are changing slowly, due to new inventions and changes in the world, but it is nothing like the serious life-disrupting upheavals that some people expect. Life goes on. We will survive and adjust; or die and go to heaven or be reborn again – so what is there to worry about? Our only work is to see all as God, as His Play, and keep our inner center of peace unchanged.

Sorry to hear that you are having trouble with the neighbors. There is nowhere in this creation that is free from outside disturbances! Everywhere there is some imbalance; this is the nature of creation. In the world there is clashing amongst personalities and in the forest there are mosquitoes, ants and snakes. As long as the ears work, noises will be everywhere. I remember often those golden words, “Lord, change not others, change me.” The only way to get peace is to adjust and be happy.

Although we are on the spiritual path for years, struggling hard to realize God, we are forgetting the very basic sadhana, the only thing we need to do. The only way one will experience the latent Divinity is PURITY. And the only way to be pure is to BE FILLED WITH THE THOUGHT OF GOD. The one and only way to do this, in this world of differences and disturbances is to SEE HIM EVERYWHERE. This is the one basic sadhana that will fill us with God-thought and make us pure. Impurity sees diversity. Purity sees Oneness - unity in diversity.

Many are the stories of saints attaining great powers, great concentration and wonderful spiritual experiences, but without the basis of purity all efforts are in vain - a downfall is certain. All our efforts should be to strive to be peaceful in all situations, to love Him in all. This is no easy task! But striving thus is more fruitful then a whole lifetime of trying to sit in meditation and crying, praying to God for control of a monkey mind. First one must imagine the whole world and all people, as one shining light, as God only. Then one will be peaceful and when one sits in meditation, the mind will automatically be calm.

Two helpers have left now, and there is only an old, bent lady Parvatamma, and one teenage girl Kumari (gone all day for typing classes in the next town over) helping Jnaneswari. Therefore I have a couple of extra duties in the morning (sweeping and mopping the six inner rooms, and daily scrubbing the puja vessels). Never mind, only takes an hour and it’s Mandir seva.

May God grace us with Realization of Him! Loka Samastha Sukhino Bhavantu!

Love,

Divya

_____________

Busy Here Lately

June 1, 1996

Dear Parents,

It has been busy here lately for me. Several devotees and back-side (Mandir) helpers have left or gone on vacations. Extra works like polishing puja vessels daily (brass etc), sweeping and mopping several rooms, doing inside puja as well as being called by the bent-up old lady Parvatamma, who looks after kitchen duties (her pains have increased and she’s finding it difficult to continue, so she calls me to do odd jobs) – as well as normal duties like library etc. Never mind – only, about two more weeks then school will start again, and the children will come – they will come to help and I’ll have free time again.

A few days ago Jnaneswari took me and a couple of others in the car to Kakinada (1 ½ hours away by car) to the function of Jee Ar Swami opening his new, own ashram. This is the sanyasi bent on leaving everyone and wondering alone on a pilgrimage to see temples! Now he’s starting his own ashram (13 acres) and has a big group of initiated disciples. The problem in India – their attachment to exemplary people forces the objects of their adorations to start ashram!

It is hot here now, with plenty of power cuts (usually 11 AM till 5 PM besides other times, so we can have sweat bath for hours everyday) and plenty of mangoes (said to cause heat in the body – why God made it a summer crop is a mystery). My health is OK I think – only a bit tired from full day of work. Anyway, when one’s mind is fixed on dedicating all to God, one does not notice outside situations much. Jnaneswari, although put to trouble also by the lack of assistants (she has to do cooking daily, sweep her own cottage etc), she doesn’t like to see me working too much. This afternoon she caught me washing pots and pans and shouted, “Get up! Get up! What are you leaving meditation and unnecessarily creating work! I’ll have someone else do it!”

Loka Samastha Sukhino Bhavantu.

Love,

Divya

______________________

Library Duties Ending

June 16, 1996

Dear Parents,

I have been kept busy lately. 10th June was the 14th Mahasamadhi anniversary of Swami Omkar. The Mandir received a surging crowd of 100 devotees. All went off calmly, in an organized way. One boy (in his 20’s), a Brahmachari (training to be a sanyasi) gave daily discourses. It was sweet to hear his baby-like voice, expounding deep truths from the Upanishads in a simple way (in Telugu of course). He was overflowing with pure devotion and utter dedication to the Path - how nice to see devoted young people!

Anyway, for the function the absconding helpers returned, releasing me from the meritorious seva duties. (Jnaneswari doesn’t like to see me work and often complained about how I voluntarily took up cleaning work. She would rather have it left undone then see me work!) Now I have free time again. However, my library hours are full of activity. One Ashramite (elderly gentleman) has expressed a desire to do seva, namely the library! He requested me to hand over the duty to him. Of course – why not! Now, to prepare for him I’m getting all in perfectly orgnaised condition. I don’t know what other duty Jnaneswari will give me, if anything.

Jnaneswari is going to Chinmaya ashram from 14-27 June, with six ashramites. She had planned for me to come also, but I saw the travelers were made up of extrovert talkers - five out of the seven people - so I told her I preferred to stay in the quiet ashram. You know how I never had any desire to see new places or things. I'm always content staying in one quiet corner alone.

Hope you are all well there. May God Bless all to enjoy joy, peace and health! Loka Samastha Sukhino Bhavantu.

Love,

Divya