Ram Dass What s in a Temple?

Transcription

1 and HANUMAN TEMPLE NEWSLETTER Nov ember 2003 Taos, NM Ram Dass What s in a Temple? By Ram Dass The Hindu tradition recognizes the ashram/temple as the guru s body. The ashram is Maharaj-ji s body. When we gather, we bring together all of our separate love of Maharajji. This collective love takes form through kirtan, making chai, serving somebody, the children s laughter, and the preparation of food as prasad (one of the tenets of Maharaj-ji is to feed people). To make this a reality, we come together on scheduled occasions. Those of us who have had Maharajji s darshan recall how through his aura we powerfully felt his presence and it filled our hearts and souls. We would like the temple to radiate that presence by imbuing this Body with our collective love of Maharaj-ji. All who come to the temple will receive the benefit of his grace-full presence, including us. The temple provides a theater for his lila. It enables all who come to be involved in his play.the board and caretakers enjoy the game of interpreting the signs from Maharajji (devotees dreams, visions, and personal experiences) to manifest his blueprint for the ashram and temple. We know he will make it a place to nourish our souls a place of love that involves us in his lila. It s exciting to serve on a board where each member is trying to interpret the data as to Maharaj-ji s mission, putting together the puzzle of Maharaj-ji s instructions for making the ashram and temple possible to contain that compassion of love. He is the force of compassionate love. The new temple for Hanuman will be a beacon that radiates the light of Hanuman. Hanuman, in his new temple, will draw many Eastern and Western devotees from around the country. Maharaj-ji serves as a deep pure well that gives pure water. I, for one, want to drink of His presence. The Lilas emanating from His celestial body still continue uninterrupted. People experience His Grace continuously, even after his Maha Samadhi. He is a divine being and is above life and death. The stories about Baba s lilas will ever remain a mystery for mankind. From the New book of Baba s lila s, Divine Reality by Rajida 1

2 Keeping It All Together By Vishnu A short report on our infrastructure and grounds. This spring a long time dream was finally realized when the ashram was able to purchase one-quarter acre from our nearest neighbor, Steve Archuletta. This moved our southern boundary back 72 feet from the old fence line that practically touched the corner of the sunroom. The expanse and difference that it made in our ashram front yard cannot be expressed adequately in words. At the same time, in the flurry of activity that always precedes bhandara, we have at long last hooked up to the Taos Community Sewer System and dispensed with our old septic system, which was badly in need of repair. While the trench was opened, just a few short days before the celebration, the board decided to install a natural gas line in the same ditch to eliminate our dependence on the more expensive propane. The gas line will pay for itself in the energy savings over the next two years. We now have the support system in place to facilitate our planned new temple construction! One of Baba s Devotees Painting Ram on the new fence Keeping Track Treasurer s Report 2003 Jai Gurudev. It is a privilege and blessing to serve Baba and his ashram. The treasurer s role has been an exciting journey, with lots of blessings and good fortune. Before I was invited to join the board, I d often be asked by visiting devotees how the ashram was run. My answer was donations and mostly by his grace. I had an easy faith that Baba is taking care of everything. After I started to pay attention to accounts and bank balances and payments, etc., I realized that my answer was still accurate, especially the part about his grace. For some time that became hard to see as I got caught up in worrying about different projects and payments. Fortunately, I had sense enough to trust him even when it felt difficult. As we enter the winter, with a fair balance and projects mostly done, I am so thankful that he takes such good care of us. It has been a good year for the ashram. Last year s benefits, and the one this year, added a nice bump to our income that helped pay for this year s big project hooking up to the city sewer system, which cost almost $40,000. This is an important step in planning for more construction, i.e. the new temple. Thank you Ram Dass, Ram Rani, and all. We also received serious support from old devotees. One gave us a large donation that helped to pay for the sewer hook-up. Another gave us a low-cost, no trouble loan that helped us purchase the quarter-acre adjoining our land. In general, our regular sources of income for the ashram have kept pace with the needs. Donations have stabilized over the past few months after dropping for some time and sales at the puja dukan are rising as we improve the mix of items. We also have a new shopping website that we invite everyone to visit ( pujadukan). We have been careful with expenses while keeping the quality of ashram life 2 in mind. We do not charge for anything (other than shopping), keeping us in alignment with what Baba teaches us and in a hyper-commercialized world, this is a wonderful gift. We are one of the few places where people do not feel someone dipping into their pocket all the time. We have a new office manager, Terry Ellis. He has been the treasurer at Lama Foundation for three years and is very skilled, both as an office person and jazz pianist. Manasvini, our longstanding puja dukan manager, is still doing a great job tracking the myriad details involved. Their devoted efforts make a big difference to the ashram s functioning and I d like to thank them. Also, I d like to thank Chandra, Colleen, Courtney, Jill, Krishna Priya, Ram Rani, Sam, and Taylor for their seva and support at the office and puja dukan. The ashram is planning a significant capital campaign. A few people have offered to help us think through and implement this fundraising. If you have any interest, experience, or skills in this all-important arena or a bulging rolodex please contact me directly. In general, if you have any questions about the ashram and how you can help us financially, please me. I have had wonderful conversations over the past year and half with people who want to sponsor meals, donate for construction, pay for festivals and so on. If you feel a prompting from your heart, me at punya@laplaza.org. It is a blessing to be at Baba s ashram and sit with Hanumanji, chant the chalisa, celebrate the sunset, enjoy His Prasad, and slurp the chai. It is a gift of Spirit to listen to stories about Baba, come for festivals, celebrate Sivaratri with snow on the ground, sing at 4:00 AM for Guru Purnima, cook vast meals for Hanuman Jayanti. Thank you for all that you do that makes it possible for the ashram to keep offering these and so many other gifts to our growing satsang.

3 Namaste, Ram Ram. We had a most wonderful summer season at Sri Neem Karoli Baba s Taos Ashram, with many guests coming for Hanuman-ji s darshan. Each week, even on the weekdays, the visitors increased. Many families came on pilgrimage from places such as India, England, California, Texas, Colorado, Virginia, and from all around the globe. Saturday is my favorite day at the ashram, when many guests arrive to see Hanuman-ji, and we share a great feeling of family and tradition. We take prasad and chai together and talk of Hanuman, Maharaj-ji, and Shiva. What a gift to have this in America. Thank you, Sri Neem Karoli Baba! We celebrated Diwali with lots of sweet prasad, chai, singing of eleven Hanuman Chalisas, kirtan, a small dhuni fire and a bhandara. Many people came, the children enjoyed sparklers and some fireworks, and Caretaking it was a very beautiful and peaceful e together a beautiful d caretakers caretaker team Gauri Dassi, h Coppola, Jaco Miller and Denise h (Denise Miller) has since gone to India. We thank her for One of Baba s her seva here. Caretakers Sara Honeycutt, Brian Flynn, and Jeff Jagadish have moved on since last spring and we would like to thank them for their seva to Sri Neem Karoli Baba. And a big thank you to Chandra as office manager. Chandra and her family have moved to San Diego. We wish them all the best. Blessings and Love to all Glory Gauri Dassi Joy Dean: I met Baba for the first time in 1984, while reading Miracle of Love with Glory Dassi. After that, He was everywhere. Taos had been calling me for many years and when I moved here in February 1987, and first visited the Temple and saw Baba, I knew why! Seva at the temple has always been a joy and I am now honored to be serving as a caregiver. Chooch Coppola: I asked the universal energy to make joy, beauty, community, hard work and growth a part of my life and guess where it dropped me off? Thanks, Baba! From time to time, satsang may submit an article about a personal experience of Maharaj-ji or Hanuman. The following article was written by Ram Rani, who had a serious automobile accident in September Carma I was in a car accident on Sept. 11th on my way to Taos from Austin, Texas. Anyone observing the accident right after it happened would have agreed with what the helicopter pilot reported into his radio as he viewed the accident from above: Looks like I ll be bringing in some corpses. The car had rolled four times, leaving a path 500 feet long. Yet miraculously, my sons, Amar and Jai, who were asleep in the car, both walked away unhurt. I, on the other hand, lay unconscious, bleeding profusely from the head. Despite their own shock, the boys had enough presence of mind to wrap my head in Maharaj-ji t- shirts (which we were bringing to the puja dukan for bhandara) to staunch the flow of blood. The helicopter ambulance flew me to the hospital in Santa Fe, where the gash on my head was stapled together, my neck put into a brace to prevent further injury, and tubes brought oxygen, food, and meds into my body. After a week in Intensive Care, coming in and out of consciousness, I was moved to the Rehabilitation unit for several weeks before I was able to return home. During the week I spent in Intensive Care, I remembered only one thing from the accident itself Maharajji s hands holding my head as it was hanging out the smashed door of my car. My blood was dripping from between his fingers as he cradled my head, protecting my skull and face from bouncing on the ground. While I have little memory of that week in IC, I do recall Maharaj-ji s presence quite vividly. Sometimes it was as if my blood and bones and my whole body were filled with wind. He was all around, inside and out... and all over. I had to ask him to move over on the bed, so fully was his presence in every cell of me. When I came fully back into consciousness I asked him: Why did 3 you save me Maharaj-ji? What do you want me to do with my life? What followed was not an intuition but more a conversation similar to one that a father might have with his daughter. It was very clearly communicated that he wanted me to make Hinduism more familiar in the West. Essentially, he was asking me to make use of the Ph.D (which I finally completed this summer) that he himself asked me to pursue back in And then in a very light-hearted manner he added with a laugh: And build that Hanuman temple! Now when well-meaning friends and loved ones assure me that soon my life will go back to the way it was, I tell them that that s impossible. The old me died in the accident. The me that got weighed down in recent years by the stress of completing my Ph.D. and the aspect that doubted my devotion (Continued on page 4)

4 Austin Rocks Memories of the Austin, Texas, Fundraiser on July 5, 2003 By Saraswati I arrived in Austin one of the scheduled performers for the Fourth of July fundraiser for the new Hanuman Temple and was taken directly to Ram Rani s home. Right away, I met devotees from the area who were busy with their tasks for the final organizing of the Big Event. In the following days, I met more and more volunteers there were so many of them! The night before the Event there was a grand gathering of volunteers. They all felt like long-time friends! Open hearts, selfless service. One of Baba s Auctioneers I walked around the cavernous performance hall before the doors opened up for the all- day fundraising event. So many people scurried around setting up. Smiling and laughing as they worked, these generous volunteers were willing to drop their own tasks to help others. Even the luxurious lodging for the performers was offered by devotees. All in all, the week I spent in Austin was like being in one of Maharaj-ji s ashrams. A palpable feeling of love permeated the entire experience. Jai Hanuman. XOXO*** Love Money to Build Hanuman s New Home ***XOXO It s time to build Hanuman a new home in Taos. The original makeshift building where Hanuman lives was long ago outgrown by the number of devotees coming to the Ashram. After years of work by many members of the satsang, we have drafted a Master Plan for the Ashram with a professional planner that will soon be ready to submit to the Town of Taos. Past issues with the Town over use of the Ashram property have been resolved and our legal bills paid off. In another significant step, the Ashram has finally been connected to the municipal sewer system, relieving a malodorous overload on our leach field and completing a prerequisite for further building. As Maharaj-ji was sometimes known as Tutti [Toilet] Baba because of all the latrines He built at Kainchi, we think He must be pleased! And thanks to a loan from a satsang member, the Ashram has purchased a small piece of property from our neighbor, Steve Archuletta and his family, which will improve our traffic flow. Maharaj-ji encouraged buying as much property as possible around His ashrams, and the Master Plan includes buying more adjacent property. Hanuman s new temple is intended to be a simple but beautiful structure that will combine the aesthetics of Taos adobe and Hindu mandir. It will have more space for people to be with Hanuman at festival times, and provide a sacred home for Hanuman himself. The old temple space will become a dining area and satsang space, the present caretaker house with the office and Puja Dukan will be renovated to include additional dharmasala space, and a new bathhouse will be constructed. As Hanuman-ji s message of service and devotion radiates out into America, this new temple will embody the grace and love we receive from Maharaj-ji and provide a more comfortable home. He always looks By Rameshwar Das after the needs of His devotees, and He built many Hanuman temples in India. This new temple will remind us constantly of Him and enshrine His teachings of love and service. Maharaj-ji said, All the money in the world is mine. The roughly $1 million that will be needed for this project is all here under His blanket. How it will manifest is a mystery. But we are all His family all beads in His mala. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to share in the blessings of building Hanuman s new home. Every offering, small or large, is welcome. There will be all kinds of ways to give, including volunteer labor and skills, such as the monkey army we will need to make adobe bricks as we get closer to construction. While our culture doesn t have a temple tradition like India s, and we don t pass the plate, we trust Maharajji will open our hearts as this temple comes into being. To date, about $38,000 has been given to the temple building fund. Some $70,000 has already been spent on the new sewer connection and the small addition of land. Another $300,000 is needed at this time to keep us moving along in the right direction right to His lotus feet. ( Carma continued from page 3) and his existence perished forever in that accident. What was born in its place (with Maharaj-ji himself as the midwife) was a deeper awareness that informs the way I move in general as well as that which moves me. The distinctive memory of Maharaj-ji s hands and arms protecting me then and now is something that informs my every moment. I know that I was saved so that I could serve him. I feel so blessed. 4

5 PUJA EXCHANGE MAIL ORDER For more items, visit our new website shopping cart at vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv Books Miracle Of Love $23 Beautiful new edition with previously unpublished photos. A classic collection of Maharaj-ji stories. By His Grace $18 Treasured stories of Maharaj-ji, by Dada Mukerjee. The Near And The Dear $18 Indian devotees stories of Maharaj-ji, as told by Dada Mukerjee. Divine Reality (NEW) $35 Over four hundred stories of Maharaj-ji s lila compiled by Ravi Prakash Pande Rajida, including beautiful color photos.(backordered, please for availability) Prarthna Priti $5 A complete book of the prayers and songs done at Kainchi for Aarti, complete with beautiful photos. The Birth Of The Ganga (NEW) $25 Beautifully illustrated story of the mythological origins of the river Ganga. Harish Johari Devi (NEW) $20 An introduction to the meaning of Goddess worship in our time,with color photos. Devdutt Pattanaik Shri Hanuman Chaleesa $7 Original Hindi, transliteration and translation of the Chaleesa and many other prayers to Hanuman. Hinduism, A Way Of Life $10 A book on standard Hindu practices, customs and worship. Sitansu S. Chakravarti DVD & VIDEO Maharaj-ji Darshan $20 Eighteen minute video, of darshan footage, including Baba chanting Ram Ram continuously. Fierce Grace (NEW) $30 DVD Vivid archival footage from hippiedom s glory days with intimate glimpses of Ram Dass today. Shawls Prayer Shawls $25 Beautiful large rayon shawls, with Sri Sita Ram or Hare Krishna Hare Ram. Color - Pink CD s Hanuman Chaleesa $18 A fund raiser for the Taos Ashram, Chaleesas sung by Jai Uttal, Geoffrey Gordon, Diana Rogers, Jai Lakshman and Carolyn Shapiro. (Great for learning) Sundarakand The Beautiful Story $18 A retelling of the most beloved chapter of the Tulsi Das Ramayana by Sara Ransom. Unveiled $18 Evocative chants by Diana Rogers with music by Jai Uttal, Geoffrey Gordon, Steve Gorn and others. Kirtan: The Art & Practice Of Ecstatic Chants $25 Double CD of blissful kirtan by Jai Uttal, featuring Manose (bansuri), Bhima Karma (mridanga), Daniel Paul (tabla) with a spoken introduction to kirtan and bhakti yoga. (NEW) One Home (NEW) $18 A mix of unique world percussion and devotional vocals. Great for Dancing and listening with chants to Shiva, Krishna and Sita Ram. Geoffry Gordon AH (NEW) $22 Double CD A re-mastering & re-release of Bhagavan Das classic chanting album, includes a video message, liner notes, photos and a recipe for chai. Door Of Faith (NEW) $18 Krishna Das first solo outing (without the Kirtan posse) creates an interesting and profound space, rarely captured in a recording. Malas Sandalwood, 108 beads $21 Wrist, 27 beads $9 Rudraksha, 108 beads $21 Wrist, 27 beads $9 Order Form on Page 6. 5

6 Incense All Natural Surya $2.50 Ruby Flora, Jasmine, Nag Champa & Amber Ras Bihari Lal $2.50 Maharaja, Everest, Parijat, Vrindavan Flower, & special Sandalwood Dhoop, Stick & String $2 Pure ancient Ayurvedic incense for puja & temple use Photos Poster of Baba sitting on bridge 21x26 3/4 $35 13x21 $15 Poster of Baba with a letter 15x13 $15 T-Shirts Hanuman Temple benefit Photo t-shirt, beautiful full color photo of Hanuman-ji encircled by Benefit for the Neem Karoli Baba Hanuman Temple, Light Up Your Heart With Love. Colors: Red, Black, Sky blue & Cream Sizes: Medium, Large & X-large $18 Baba Love a retro t-shirt with a silhouette of Baba and a cartoon caption with a heart with the heading Neem Karoli Baba Ashram and Hanuman Temple Colors: Black, Olive & Grey Sizes: Medium, Large & X-large $18 Pendant of Maharaj-ji & Hanuman $6 CUT HERE Ship To: (Name) # Mix & Match, choose from 2 photos of Baba, 2 photos of Hanuman, 1 of Kainchi Durga. all are 4 x6 Laminated - 1 side $5 Laminated - 2 side $8 Un-laminated $2 Order Form Please make payments to: Neem Karoli Baba Ashram, Drawer W, Taos, NM , or call (505) , or , pujadukan@nkbashram.org or visit us at (Phone) (Street add.) (City, state, zip) (Fax) ( ) ITEM QTY. PRICE ITEM TOTAL Airfare to India raffle tickets - $20 ea. or 6 for $108 Shipping and handling is not charged for raffle tickets and donations. SHIPPING AND HANDLING Up to $10.00 $2.95 $10.01 to $25.00 $4.95 $25.01 to $ $50.01 to $ $10.95 $ and up $14.95 CC ORDERS Cardholder name Type of card Card # Exp. Date / / Signature Subtotal: Shipping & Handling: Tax Deductible Donation: Total: 6

7 Vastness of Heart By Anasuya Over thirty years ago, I fell in love with Maharaj-ji and my whole relationship became one of devotion. He was unlike anyone I ve ever known. To me he was the embodiment of compassion and emptiness. It was like being near a black hole in the universe, a personality was there but no one was home, only the love of the whole universe pouring through him. His physical presence was so powerful it always brought me to tears. On the bus or taxi on the way to Kainchi, I would start to feel him. Within a mile or two of arriving, my chest would start to ache and tears would come to my eyes. He is still a part of my daily experience although it is not always possible for me to feel his presence without his body. But Maharaj-ji did say things to me, often one- liners, pithy instructions that along with my heart connection continue to guide me today. During a recent six-week retreat at IMS in Barre, whenever I encountered difficulty, Maharaj-ji s words came to help me. When I first met Maharaj-ji I was confused about my spiritual practice. I had been initiated by a baba at the Kumbha Mela a disciple of Deoria Baba who gave me a mantra; I thought he was my guru. Next I went to a Goenka course and really connected with the Buddhist Vipassana practice. Then I met Maharaj-ji and, after a few days, he had my heart. So I was confused, particularly about the guru/chela relationship. What does it mean to take initiation with someone and then find out that your heart is somewhere else? Was this a really bad karmic thing, like breaking a vow? Did I have to confess? Would I be in big trouble? Who was my guru? I was experiencing a lot of inner turmoil. In this mood I came to see Maharaj-ji. Without my saying a word, he looked at me, held up his finger and said Ek guru. There is only one guru. At that moment I knew it was all okay. There is only one guru, God, the truth, whatever we call it, and I didn t need to worry and get caught up in cultural conceptual norms. How wonderful! Maharaj-ji was beyond sectarianism. He had gone beyond the beyond. He didn t crave devotees. On the contrary, he was always telling us to go. When we went to visit the cave of a renowned saint who had died, Sombari Baba, Maharaj-ji said, You must go. Saints are like nectar to the bees. When you hear of a saint, you must go see them. Once when Raghu was going to New Delhi, he told Maharaj-ji that he was going to the Canadian Embassy and Maharaj-ji said, You will see a very high lama. Raghu had never before met any Tibetans. As it turned out, he met Kalu Rinpoche there. It is this vastness of heart and vision that makes Maharaj-ji my guru. He allows me to follow my Buddhist practice and teachers with a clear heart. During my retreat I had a day of doubt about my practice. I remembered that once Maharaj-ji had cleared up 7 my guru question, I encountered another problem. What about my practice? I was doing Vipassana, but what about that mantra I had been given? And should I be doing a Buddhist practice when I had a guru who was devoted to Ram? Every time I meditated I prayed to Maharaj-ji for an answer. One day he told us all to leave his room and then pointed at me and said No, you stay. You have a question for me. I was dumbfounded and, as happened often, I could barely remember what it was that I wanted to ask. After a minute or two, I asked, through K.K. Shah who was translating, Am I doing the right sadhana? Maharaj-ji looked at me and said, Teek hai. (It s okay.) Once again he cut through all my mental neurosis in the simplest way. It s okay. What I m doing is fine! Then he leaned forward and said, Do you think that by coming to temples like this it brings you closer to God? At that moment it was like a Zen koan. I realized that I really didn t know the answer. I experienced not-knowing in a very deep way, and my heart opened. I burst into uncontrollable sobs. Maharaj-ji was asking, What s the matter? and calling for hot milk. Finally I could speak enough to say I was just feeling a lot of love. Thirtytwo years later, when I was sitting in retreat, doing Vipassana and Metta and incorporating some Dzog Chen practice, I began to worry about my meditation practice until Maharaj-ji s words came back to me clearly. It s okay! I offer these stories to help anyone else who struggles with doubt and confusion. Maharaj-ji s heart and mind is vast and his words, so simple and direct, remind me not to get caught in the narrow, tricky, ways of my mind. RAM RAM. May all beings be happy.

8 Taos Ashram Celebrations 2004 MAHA SHIVARATRI Wednesday February 18, 2004 HANUMAN JAYANTI Saturday, April 3, 2004 GURU PURNIMA Friday, July 2, 2004 MAHASAMADHI BHANDARA Saturday, September 5, 2004 DURGA PUJA Begins Thursday, October 14, 2004 DIWALI Friday, November 12, 2004 Many thanks to Meena and Nick Patel and the Staff of Colortech Printing, Inc, in Denver for so generously donating the printing for this newsletter. Neem Karoli Baba Ashram Drawer W, Taos, New Mexico Non-profit org US Postage Paid Denver, CO Permit 991 Address service requested