Sadhguru Sri Sharavana Baba
Sri Murali Krishna Swamiji, fondly addressed as Sadhguru Sri Sharavana Baba is widely believed to be the living incarnation or Avatar of Lord Muruga (Karthikeya). Born in October, 1979 in a village called Sreekrishnapuram in Ottappalam taluka of Palakkad district in Kerala to Smt Lakshmi Ammal and the late Sri Krishnankutty Gupthan, He is the eighth son of the blessed couple. He suffered many privations in his early childhood. Born into a poor family, he worked very hard to maintain his family.
He exhibited several unquestionable signs of His divinity from the very early years. Sadhguru Sri Sharavana Baba is a World Preceptor. Babaji says that His mission lies in spreading love and understanding among humankind. His love has no barriers of race, caste, gender, nationality, religion or community. His reach is local and universal. He once said: “There is only one religion, the religion of love and there is only one language, the language of the heart.”
Sharavana Baba is a Sadhguru, (a living self-realised master) or World Preceptor. In the hallowed traditions of (the Eternal Religion), the Sadhguru is none other than the Supreme Self in human form! Ever established in communion with the Supreme Self, such a Master takes human birth to guide humankind to understand and overcome the nature of its own creation. They take human birth out of their infinite love and compassion to deliver humanity from bondage.
Their utterances and actions are completely selfless. They have nothing to gain; on the contrary, they have everything to give! If our hearts are open, we cannot but receive their Grace! This is because they permanently reside in the Universal Spirit! Since 1997 Babaji has been providing darshan (spiritual audience) in various bhavas (divine moods or states of consciousness).
Babaji has irreversibly changed the lives hundreds of thousands of his devotees who come to seek His blessings. Their numbers grow exponentially with every passing day! None leaves disappointed. In a beautiful Satsang Swamiji once said: “The Grace of the Sadhguru is infinite and has no limit. When a seeker is with the Sadhguru, it is important to understand that both positive and negative experiences are a sign of divine Grace.” There is profound beauty in these words! This means that it is important to understand that everything that happens to us happens for the good or to put the matter differently, we are meant to be where we are.
The workings of the law of karma are deep. When we seek refuge at the feet of the Sadhguru, the Sadhguru bears our karmas because unless those karmas are borne by somebody, they cannot be neutralized. It is the Sadhguru who bears all these karmas. What would otherwise take the seeker ten years to complete, the Sadhguru accomplishes in ten minutes. But there is still a deeper meaning to these utterances. Our minds are conditioned to receive certain experiences as positive and certain experiences as negative. Sadhguru Sharavana Baba advises us to keep in mind that both good and bad experiences are a reflection of God’s grace because both are meant to elevate the disciple and deepen his or her spiritual journey.
Sri Ramana Maharishi once said that evil, by its very existence, warns us to keep away, while good by its very nature, compels us to emulate its example. In other words, both experiences have a purpose.
As Babaji expresses it: “The mantra ‘Aum’ is like a bow. Our words are like arrows. When it is aimed carefully with love, it results in goodness. If it is not aimed properly, it results in evil. We can perform good and bad deeds even with our words. Surrendering to God is the only way to rid ourselves of mental and physical ailments.”
In our ignorance, we often believe that it is we who go to receive the blessings of a Sadhguru but this is not true. It is actually the Sadhguru who pulls the seeker to his or her presence. In fact, it is not possible to come in the presence of a Mahatma without the Mahatma willing such an encounter.
Swami Vivekananda once said: “Obedience to the Guru without any question and strict adherence to the Guru’s words is the secret of success.” In the time that we have known him, Sadhguru Sharavana Baba has taught all of us the priceless value of faith, devotion and surrender. The more we try to pattern our lives according to our individual wills, the more resistance we discover, but the more we try to tune ourselves to his wishes, the more harmony we experience. The most valuable lesson we have learnt from our beloved Sadhguru is the value of faith, devotion and surrender.
Babaji emphasises the need to perform selfless actions that are in harmony with our temperament, our ability to help our fellow beings and our real nature because “this will result in wealth, grace and happiness, but like butter separating itself from milk, this is a gradual process.” If love is the central force of His mission, selfless charity is its vehicle. This includes distributing free food; clothing; medicines and books to the poor and needy.