PUBLISHED UNDER THE ORDERS of HH Acharya Maharaj 1008 Shri Koshalendraprasadji

1055 Pages·2014·16.71 MB·English

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ATSANGI EEVAN
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^ PUBLISHED UNDER THE ORDERS ^
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of
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^ H.H. Acharya Maharaj 1008 ^
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Shri Koshalendraprasadji Maharaj
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Shri Narnarayandev Desh Peeth
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^ Kalupur, Ahmedabad. ^
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Translated in to English
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^ Shri Jethalal Dhanji Savani (Kera-Kutch & London) ^
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^ First English Edition ^
^ 22th July, 2013 (Gurupurnima) ^
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Publishers
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^ Shri Swaminarayan Temple ^
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Kalupur, Ahmedabad-380 001.
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• PUBLISHERS
Shastri Swami Harikrishnadasji
Mahant Swami
Shri Swaminarayan Temple,
Kalupur, Ahmedabad.
• All Publishing Rights Reserved
• First English Edition : 22th July, 2013 (Gurupurnima)
Copies : 1,000
Rs. : 150/- (Concessional Rate)
• Book Designing :
Shri Swaminarayan Temple
Kalupur, Ahmedabad-1.
• PRINTER :
Shri Swaminarayan Mudranalaya
Shri Swaminarayan Temple
Kalupur, Ahmedabad-380 001.
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SATSANGI JEEVAN ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
FOREWORD
What is Satsang? The word is made of two syllables. The first
syllable ‘sat’ means something which always remains true and unchang-
ing. God is one entity which can never be negated. The religion
established and espoused by Him eternally remains true to its core. The
scriptures which record and retell His divine attributes and Leelas
remain true at all times. History changes with the time and interpretation
but the ‘true - sat’ scriptures remain unaltered. A devotee who abides
by the religious edicts reflected in the scriptures is called the Satpurush
(true person). The second syllable ‘sang’ means associate. The asso-
ciation (sang) with ‘sat’; God, Scriptures and devotee is called ‘Satsang.’
The person who associates and keeps the company of these three; God,
His scriptures and His saints is called ‘Satsangi.’ This scriptures shows
how a Satsangi should live his life (jeevan), therefore it is aptly called
the ‘Satsangi Jeevan.’
Upon hearing the ascendency of the evil over the pious and
malpractices and misinterpretation of religious edicts for selfish motives,
Lord Narayan decided to come on the Earth to protect the pious and re-
establish true Sanatan Dharma. He took birth independently as Lord
Swaminarayan and established a pure Sampraday. To make sure that
the Sampraday He established not only survives but thrives forever,
Lord Swaminarayan established four institutions. He built grand temples
and installed His own various Murtis, He gave Diksha to His faithful
devotees and created an army of celibate saints, He Himself wrote
Shikshapatri and asked His saints to write Scriptures and He established
the lineage of Acharyas within His own family.
It is not possible to meditate upon God for years or conduct
thousands of Yagnas in present times. To sing and listen to the divine
Leelas of Almighty God is the sure, straight and shortest path for
salvation (Moksha) in this Kali Yug. Moreover, Swaminarayan Bhagwan
says (Vachnamrut 58, Gadhada middle chapter) that a scripture describing
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the purpose of the manifestation of one’s Ishtadev and His Leelas is the
most vital means to keep a Sampraday everlasting. To this end He
asked Shatanand Swami to compile a scripture describing His Leelas.
Lord Swaminarayan blessed Shatanand Swami with divine vision and
intelligence to help him compile ‘Satsangi Jeevan’. This scripture,
besides narrating the divine Leelas of Lord Swaminarayan, is full of
sermons depicting religion, knowledge and detachment which help
nourish and strengthen devotion in Him. Just like the detachment, the
knowledge about Him, His glory and His supremacy is vital for the
devotion to fructify. The devotion in God grows manifold by acquiring
this knowledge about Him and listening to His divine Leelas repeatedly.
The Satsangi Jeevan describes Lord Swaminarayan’s generosity,
equanimity, egalitarianism, non blasphemous, detachment etc. besides
other virtues in great detail.
No one is able to describe Bhagwan’s Leelas in full, but Shatanand
Swami has come very close to achieving this goal. He has described
His Leelas and His message in great detail. Along with the ‘Shikshapatri’
and the ‘Vachnamrut’, the ‘Satsangi Jeevan’ is a very important scripture
to understand the message of Lord Shree Hari. Every Satsangi must
learn this scripture to strengthen their faith and devotion in Lord Shree
Hari.
Lord Swaminarayan says in Vachnamrut (3rd) that one must
remember Leelas of one’s Ishtadev. If we forget God at the time of
death, these Leelas remind us of Him and soul achieves great heights
with His memory. Shatanand swami says (v. 43, Ch. 70, Fifth Prakaran)
that this scripture is like a life support machine for devotees. Just as
water is the life force for fishes, the Satsangi Jeevan is the life force
for devotees. Singing the paeans for this scripture, he says that whoever
studies this scripture is saved by the poison of this world. He adds that
the Punya of reading even a small portion of this scripture is greater
than many Yagnas and great donations put together. But one must
develop interest in listening to Lord’s Katha. Swami writes (V8, Ch. 2
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SATSANGI JEEVAN ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
1st Prakaran) that one develops keen interest in listening to His Katha
only at the ascent of Punyas accumulated over hundreds of births.
Almighty Lord Swaminarayan recommends all His future devotees - us
- to read the Satsangi Jeevan for Moksha (V16, Ch. 68, 5th Prakaran).
As the scripture itself is in a narrative form, each chapter is
translated and prepared as whole to convey the total meaning rather
than a literal translation. This was decided after the consultation with and
the concurrence of H. H. AcharyaMahajshree and Mota MaharajShree.
I hope this will make a better reading.
I am very grateful to my guru, Shastri Swami AksharPrakashDasji
of Bhuj temple for his teaching. He has been a great inspiration to me.
I am also grateful to Sadguru Shastri Swami Nirgundasji of Amdavad
temple for giving his valuable time to check and correct any mistakes
in the Sanskrit script. Atulbhai Patel of Amdavad temple has given a
great deal of his time to set Sanskrit and English scripts so that they
move simultaneously for the ease of reading. I am also very grateful to
Mr. Nanjibhai Meghji Hirani of Naranpur for his continuous support and
guidance besides correcting the grammatical omission in the English
script. I am especially grateful to Mrs. Rasmitaben Kapil Rabadiya of
Mandvi and Mr. Dipakbhai Kanji Rabadia of Baladia who have given up
their valuable time in proofreading the text, carrying out necessary
grammatical additions and alterations before the final phase of publica-
tion.
I shall forever remain indebted to H. H. Acharya Maharajshree for
giving me this opportunity to serve our Sampraday and repose faith in
me despite the fact that there are many other more knowleadgeable
Satsangis in our Sampraday.
Jethalal Dhanji Savani
(Kera -Kutch & London)
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PREFACE
To fulfil wishes of Sadguru Shatanand swami, Bhagwan Shree Hari
asked swami to compose a scripture outlining His Leelas. Shatanand
swami compiled Bhagwan’s Leelas and His philosophical message in an
epic scripture called the ‘Satsangi Jeevan’. The original scripture, in five
volumes, was composed in Sanskrit. The publication of original scriptures
has been an integral and continuous process by Shree NarNarayan Dev
diocese over the years. As a part of this process, H. H. Mota
Maharajshree undertook the publication of the Satsangi Jeevan in a form
Katha - Parayan recited by Sadguru swami Harikeshavdasji. Later on,
he published the bilingual version of Satsangi Jeevan, in five volumes
and comprising the original text and its Gujarati translation by Dr. Indulal
Yagnik, which was warmly welcomed by devotees at large. Many people
argue that we do not get or have enough time to read such voluminous
scriptures. This is not so. A large number of our devotees undertake
reading and understanding our scriptures, as it is essential to understand
our Sampraday. Sampraday is nourished by its scriptures. Therefore,
one must endeavour to read such scriptures.
Our Sampraday has flourished in all four corners of the world.
Second and third generations of devotees settled in the U.K., U.S.A.,
Africa and Australasia have a genuine difficulty in understanding Gujarati
and therefore always requested H. H. Acharya Maharajshree to make
English versions of important scriptures available for them. Keeping this
need in mind, our Acharya Maharajshree directed our devotee Shree
Jethalalbhai Dhanji Savani (of Kera -Kutch and presently London), who
has previously translated the ‘Shikshapatri ArthDeepika’, to translate the
Satsangi Jeevan from Sanskrit text without any deviation, omission or
addition. Acharya Maharajshree directed Shastri swami Nirgundasji, one
of our eminent scholars, to ensure that the Sanskrit text in this volume
is faithful to the original text by Shatanand swami. To make this
scripture available at a concessionary rate, our devotees Shree Devshibhai
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SATSANGI JEEVAN ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Velji Halai and Shree Prafulbhai Velji Halai (of Surajpur, Kutch) have
rendered a great financial service in memories of their AksharNivasi
family members; namely Veljibhai Samji Halai, Amarbai Velji Halai,
Taraben Devshi Halai and Harishbhai Velji Halai. They have earned
great pleasure of Bhagwan Swaminarayan, H.H. Acharya Maharajshree
and H.H. Mota Maharajshree. Brahamchari Pujari swami Rajeshwaranandji
and Shastri swami Narayanmunidasji have also rendered valuable
services in preparation of this Granth. May Bhagwan Shree Hari shower
His blessings pleasure on all others who have contributed in any way
in publication of this voluminous scripture. I sincerely hope and request
our young Satsangis to read and study Satsangi Jeevan, which is an
important tool to understand basic philosophy of our Sampraday their
emancipation from this world.
Shastri swami Shree Harikrishnadasji
Mahant swami
Shree Swaminaratan Temple
Kalupur, Amdavad
SHRI NARNARAYANDEV DESH SCHEME
COMMITTEE MEMBR
S.G. Mahant Shastri Swami Harikrishnadasji President
S.G. Brahmchanri Swami Vasudevanandji
S.G. Swami Devprakashdasji
Hajuri Parshad Vanraj Bhagat
Shri Dasharathbhai Prahladbhai Patel Ahmedabad
Shri Ramanbhai Pranbhai Patel Ahmedabad
Shri Ratibhai Khimajibhai Patel Ahmedabad
Shri Dr. Kantibhai K. Patel Himatnagar
Shri Rasikbhai Ambalal Patel Mokhasan
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INDEX
PRAKARAN ONE
Chapter Page No.
1 Manglacharan and meeting between Suvrat Muni and 1
King Pratapsinh
2 Life of Shatanand swami 5
3 Darshan of NarNarayan Dev and start writing this scripture 7
4 Description of Badrikaashram 9
5 Arrival of sages at Badrikaashram 12
6 Darshan and veneration of NarNarayan Dev 15
7 Stuti of NarNarayan dev by the sages 16
8 State of affairs in India and arrival of Dharmadev and Murtidevi 17
9 Curse by Sage Durvasha 19
10 Vile activities of evil persons 21
11 Birth of Dharmadev and Bhaktimata 22
12 Advice to Dharmadev and Bhaktimata by Balsharma 24
13 Problems faced by Dharmadev and him meeting Ramanand swami 26
14 Birth and life of Ramanand swami 27
15 Troubles faced by Ramanand swami 30
16 Diksha of Dharmadev 31
17 Dharmadev travels to Vrandavan 34
18 Darshan of Shree Krishna Bhagwan 37
19 Bhagwan promise Dharma-Bhakti to take birth as their son 40
20 Curse of Ashwatthama 42
21 Demons cursed by Vindhyavasini Devi 45
22 Birth of Bhagwan 47
23 Kidnapping of baby Bhagwan by Krutyas 49
24 Naming of baby Bhagwan by Markandeya Muni 52
25 Karnavedh sanskar 54
26 Death of Kalidutt 56
27 Depart Chhapaiya for Ayodhya 60
28 Stuti of Bhagwan Ram by Ghanashyam Maharaj 62
29 Dharmadev defining limitation of male gurus 64
30 Yagnopavit Sanskar 65
31 Ghanashyam Maharaj Learning the scriptures 68
32 Hari Gita - Characteristics of Sadhus 71
33 Hari Gita - Characteristics of Dharma 73
34 Hari Gita - Characteristics of Gnaan 77
35 Hari Gita - Characteristics of Vairagya 80
36 Hari Gita - Characteristics of Bhakti 82
37 Demise of Bhaktimata 86
38 Stuti by Dharmadev and granting of the boons by Bhagwan Shree Hari 88
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39 Dharmadev’s advice to his two sons 90
40 Demise of Dharmadev 91
41 Final rites of Dharmadev 93
42 Shree Hari leaving home 94
43 Hanumanji defeat Bhairav and Shree Hari arrives at Pulhashram 98
44 Veneration of the Sun and granting of boon 99
45 Shree Hari at Butol and meeting Gopal Yogi 101
46 Shree Hari at Sirpur and vanquishing fake Sidhhas 104
47 Shree Hari at Kamakshi and defeat of Pibek 106
48 Shree Hari at Kapilashram and Jagannath Puri 108
49 Shree Hari’s Yatra of South India 111
50 Shree Hari arriving at Loj and meeting Sukhanand swami 115
and Muktanand swami
51 Shree Hari poses questions to Muktanand swami 118
52 Shree Hari’s stay at Loj Ashram 121
53 Muktanand swami writes a letter to Ramanand swami 122
54 Nilkanth Varni writes a letter to Ramanand swami 125
55 Ramanand swami’s replies to both letters 129
56 First meeting between Ramanand swami and Nilkanth Varni 132
57 Shree Hari serving Ramanand swami 134
58 Maha Diksha of Shree Hari 137
59 Ramanand swami anointing Shree Hari to the headship 140
of the Sampraday
60 Demise of Ramanand swami and his last rites 146
PRAKARAN TWO
Chapter Page No.
1 First Sabha and extolling the observance of Dharma 148
2 Extolling Shradhhaa and scriptures 151
3 Divine Darshan as four armed Bhagwan Vishnu 154
4 Vanquishing Meghji 155
5 Divine Darshan in many forms and manifestations 157
6 Janmashtami festival and Darshan as Lord Krishna 160
7 Narayan Gita 162
8 Samadhi Prakaran 167
9 Simultaneous presence at Akha and Piplana villages 170
10 Traits of Dharma and Adharma 172
11 Tales of Sage Vasishtha and King Sahasrarjun overwhelmed by greed 175
12 Tales of Brahma and Sage Saubhari overwhelmed by lust 177
13 Tale of Sage Rushyashrung overwhelmed by palate 179
14 Tale of King Bharat overwhelmed by infatuation 182
15 Tales of Daksha and Sage Durvasha overwhelmed by ego 183
16 Proscribing sacrificial Yagnas 187
17 Characters of Asurs 190
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