NEWS BRIEFS

APRIL 2007

Indian Medical Association in Delhi

The Indian Medical Association (IMA) had invited Sant Rajinder Singh Ji Maharaj to speak to its members about meditation and health at the headquarters of IMA in East Delhi. Welcoming the spiritual Master, Dr. Harsh Vardhan, former health minister of Delhi, explained how Sant Rajinder Singh Ji Maharaj’s background includes both science and spirituality making him unique in both fields.

The spiritual Master then addressed the audience, explaining the scientific evidence that supports meditation as a tool for leading a healthy lifestyle. He also spoke about the spiritual significance of meditation. He said there are realms beyond the physical existence, regions that exist concurrent with this physical world. The gateway to rise into these other regions is the single or third eye.

He said through meditation our soul rises above body-consciousness and realizes its true identity. He detailed the scientific research on near-death experiences and their astonishing similarities from patient to patient. He explained the technique of Jyoti meditation, meditation on the inner Light. The audience then received a practical experience of meditation using this method, one the spiritual Master has taught to hundreds of thousands of people all over the world.

Following this, he answered questions. When asked how meditation is helpful for doctors, the spiritual Master explained that meditation relieves stress and lowers blood pressure, therefore it should be considered as a preventive medication. He also said a healthy mind and body are by-products of meditation, whereas the main benefit of meditation relates to our soul. When we invert our attention, we are making progress to our ultimate destination, which is self-knowledge and God-realization.

When asked, "Can we change our destiny by doing meditation?" he replied, "Yes, definitely."

He then explained that by practicing meditation regularly, we can achieve the state where we do not make any karma for ourselves. This helps us become liberated from the wheel of transmigration.

Arrival in Naperville, Illinois

On Wednesday, March 21, Sant Rajinder Singh Ji Maharaj returned to Naperville, Illinois from Delhi. Speaking that evening at the Science of Spirituality Center, he talked about the conferences and excursions that had taken place in India during the last couple of months and requested others to speak about their experiences as well.

Internet Broadcast

On Sunday, April 8, 2007, Sant Rajinder Singh Ji Maharaj’s discourse was made available live on the internet to people all over the world . In the West, he said, this Sunday marked the Easter holiday, celebrating the resurrection of Jesus. The Jewish holiday of Passover also falls at this time of year and had begun earlier in the week, commemorating the liberation of the Hebrew people from slavery. In the Sant Mat tradition, April 2nd is venerated as the day when Hazur Baba Sawan Singh Ji Maharaj (1858–1948) passed from this physical existence into Mahasamadhi (the soul’s merger in the True Lord). Baba Sawan Singh Ji Maharaj was the first Master in the Sant Mat tradition to bring the teachings of Sant Mat to the West and had prophesied a great spiritual awakening throughout the world.

Sant Rajinder Singh Ji Maharaj then quoted a verse from Sant Darshan Singh Ji Maharaj:

The garden of the heart is parched and the air itself is athirst.

O Cupbearer, pour out pitcher after pitcher on the bosom of the earth.

Our True Self, he said, is parched as is a garden seeking water; it is seeking divine nectar which will nourish its soul. This nectar, he said, is the Holy Word. The spiritual Master then described four gifts we receive on the spiritual path which help us in our quest for union with the Divine. The first, he said, is the gift of satsang, where our soul can get a boost of spiritual energy, referring to a gathering for the purpose of learning Truth ("sat" means truth; "sang" means gathering). The second gift is that of meditation which strengthens our connection with the Lord. The third is the focus on ethical living and an introspection diary to weed out those areas which trouble our spiritual life. The fourth one, he said, is selfless service. When these four gifts are practiced our soul can bloom and its sweet fragrance spread to others.

He then discoursed on verses by the 13th century Sufi mystic, Baba Farid who wrote:

Remembrance of God in the first part of the night is like gathering flowers.

Remembrance of God in the early hours of the morning is like flowers fructifying.

Those who stay awake the whole night receive God's grace.

For more information about Sant Rajinder Singh Ji Maharaj and his schedule, click here.