Bhubaneswar 2nd September 2024

Daaji began the day with a meditation session followed by a discussion on Bhakti. Daaji shared some revealing insights into the times of Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. In the evening, his meditation and Q&A session was followed by a soulful performance.

“During the meditation I was drawn towards the days of Shri Chaitanya Mahaprahu and I was wondering how those days must have been during the time when he started the bhakti [pure devotion] movement. I had a glimpse of it; it was pure love radiating from hearts. And with the blessings of the Hierarchy I was immersed in that love for the Lord. It was a very gripping type of bhakti they had for the Lord—did they ask for anything in the way we make transactions with God? I don’t think so. And that is what made their bhakti pure and everlasting: the vibrations are still here in the air. And so we are able to dive into those moments, feel them; what is needed to do so is a simple heart with some level of purity within. Simplicity and purity will lead us toward true bhakti for which Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu stands tall—he stands taller among all the bhaktas [devotees] in the world.”

During all of Daaji’s travels, the meditation sessions conducted by him are telecast live on the Heartfulness YouTube channel. This enables practitioners around the globe to join at their convenience and meditate with Daaji from the comfort of their homes. On that particular morning, the condition, which prevailed after the meditation, was one of profound silence. When Daaji was requested to address the audience he began by saying with a smile, “What to say? After having such a satsangh [group meditation], silence draws you so much inside that it is difficult to speak!

Daaji then shared some revealing insights into the times of Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu [a 15^th-century Indian saint and spiritual leader who is said to have pioneered the Bhakti Movement in worship of Lord Krishna].

“We think that bhaktas like Meera gave up, sacrificed so much but all these are our observations based on who we are. Would a mother ever say, ‘I sacrificed all my time for my baby?’ It’s normal to be drenched in the love for the Lord, there is no sacrifice with it. If ever in your life you think that you are sacrificing half an hour in the morning [referring to morning meditation] and half an hour in the evening [referring to evening Cleaning], then you better not meditate at all. Each of these half hours prepares us for the rest of the day and each half hour everyday prepares us for life—a life that would eternally remain, with each breath, in absorbency, in constant remembrance, and in love of the Beloved.”

After the session Daaji went back to the Mayfair Hotel and took rest. Later in the day, Shri Sameer Anjaan met Daaji and joined him for the lunch along with a few more guests.

In the evening, Daaji returned to the meditation hall to conduct yet another meditation session. He answered a few questions thereafter. Here are some insightful snippets from Daaji's answers.

“In an organization there is a difference between its member, its associate, its disciple, and its devotee. According to Babuji Maharaj, ‘a real member of this [Heartfulness] organization is the one who has the highest goal in mind’ but that’s not enough. Are you doing something about it to attain that goal?”

“Speaking for myself, when I do anything in remembrance of my Master, when I devote my work to my Master, I enjoy the most.”

“There will be times in almost every practitioner’s journey when he/she won’t feel like meditating and lose interest in it. At such times, read the literature of the Mission, take individual sittings from preceptors, and attend group meditation sessions, that’s all. It will revive the joy of meditation. And then again there will be a slump. This happens when we move from one point [energy vortex/chakra in the spiritual anatomy] to another point. So a dry feeling or a slump means that a practitioner is ready to move to the next point.”

Post the Q&A session there was a soulful performance by Sniti Mishra, a trained Indian classical vocalist. The session was graced by the presence of Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia ji, the world-renowned flautist and his team. Daaji and Panditji sat in the audience, listening intently to Snitiji’s performance and occasionally exchanging a few words. The musical evening was further elevated by the exquisite renditions of Shri Santosh Sant, a student of Panditji and a renowned flautist in his own right.