transformation of Ronald Nixon
- the amazing story of an Englishman who was inaugurated in 1928 in Vrindavan in the Krishna-Bhakti.
Krishna Candra (www.ananda-dham.com)
He was born in 1898 in a Christian family in England. He studied English literature and then he wanted to devote himself seriously to the study of Buddhism, which was impossible for him but due to the outbreak of World War II. He was called up and had occupied Belgium in 1918 as the German army, he flew with the Royal Air Force attack.
all aircraft of the English were shot down and he saw his pilot buddies all fall to their death. Even Nixon's plane had crashed, had not intervened in a supernatural power and knocked the stick. When his aircraft has slid downhill, he lost consciousness and awoke only in a military hospital in London.
In his convalescence, he asked who had brought him there from Belgium, and how it was possible he would have survived the crash, which he could answer no one. At the hospital, he heard several times in the half-dream, a clear voice that winning bids, "I have saved you, and you'll find me in India"
soon as he was on his feet, he was looking for an opportunity to go to India . At the time just was the Rector of the University of Lucknow, Jnanendra Nath Cakravarti, in London, who was looking for an English teacher. Deeply impressed by Nixon's intellectual brilliance, but also because of his interest in oriental philosophy, he offered him the post.
He was living in Lucknow in the house of the professor and his wife Monika Devi, one highly educated, but deeply religious woman. Dr. Cakravarti was one of the leading Theosophists of his time, a friend of Blavatsky and Besant.
addition to his job as a teacher was Nixon continued his search for that voice. He studied Pali and read the original Buddhist texts and practicing Buddhist meditation. He soon felt that the voice did not come from here. He learned Sanskrit and studied the Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita and the Srimad Bhagavatam, which moved him deeply.
The key figure, however, was Monika Devi. Outwardly, she was considered a modern woman who travels with her husband to Europe and America, in social occasions has always all, jokes and stories told. But it was also a mystical side, which remained mostly hidden. Only if Bhajans were sung about Krishna, then they just sat still and motionless and tears constantly gobbled down her cheeks. In such moments one could imagine that she was in a completely different world at home.
But that was exactly the page in it, Nixon did not escape. Sometimes he saw them disappear in the middle of the party and come back after hours with tearful eyes. When he secretly followed her once, he saw her unconscious in front of a small image lie. He waited for hours and she woke up again and shone over his face. They exuded an incomprehensible peace.
Nixon felt that it now this mysterious voice saying in the London hospital years ago to him, was very close. Now he wanted to know everything. The next day she called
Nixon in her room and told him: "Every body is the imperishable soul to the Centre. When you awaken the soul out, one is an entirely different personality. As you can see the Supreme Soul, Bhagavan and his feet embraced. He kept calling me and I can not resist. He came into my life.
I was also initially interested in theosophy, but the philosophy of the Gita, I felt as comprehensive. So I once went to Vrindavan and took spiritual initiation of Balakrishna Goswami of Radha-Raman Temple. Since there have I absorbed in Krishna Prema-sadhana. Actually, I would like to keep my orientation a secret, but Krishna is so insulting that he would sometimes simply drags himself into his indescribably wonderful community. "
since Nixon began with bhakti-sadhana under the guidance of Monika Devi. She took him to Vrindavan with the Radha Raman temple. Initially it did not allow in the priests, as well as England destroyed the temple. As he stood in front of Radha-Raman, it was clear to him that he got home. He had called him, years ago. It was this voice that had saved him in England. The journey of infinite lives in the desert came to an end.
Jnanendra Cakravati received the Post of Rector of the Hindu University in Benares. to keep the students from Lucknow asked Nixon, because they loved him and were impressed by his erudition, his clarity in philosophical thought, and above all his complete absence of selfishness.
But he only wanted to learn more of Monika Devi, and so he adopted a simple teacher-hiring and had a lot of time in the holy atmosphere of Varanasi. Here he began diligently and persistently with his yoga practice. "With his innate British doggedness and toughness," Sri Aurobindo once wrote about him.
As he once boasted a lecture on the aura of Shiva, he asked an ultra-modern Indians set what he called Westerners have found to worship because in this dirty town of dust and noise? With a beaming smile, he replied. "Gold-dust, my friend, and the music of the Ganga"
1928 Nixon wanted to sannyasa (the monastic life) got from her. Monica went to Vrindavan and was himself the sannyasa initiation and henceforth was called "Ma Yasoda. Nixon called them "Krishna Prem.
It was incredible. A woman who was born in luxury and all they wanted was available, was now a nun, and cut off her hair. Prem Krishna was perhaps the first European to Vaishnava initiation received. He traded his European Clothing in the saffron robes of a Hindu monk, has Tulasi worn around the neck and a Tilak on his forehead.
Prem Krishna was on his travels, always with a small Deity of Krishna. In Madras he met at a conference on an English woman who was really shocked to see an educated Englishman, who understood clearly as a Hindu - Tulasi chains around his neck and dressed in saffron clothes - for it was an anachronism in the 20 . Century. She could not restrain himself and scolded him: "Are not you ashamed, you renegade, to communicate with these natives, and to parody the features of superstition, to betray your country and Christianity to offend? "She raged on, Prem Krishna while she quietly smiled, contributing more to their anger. "What have you gained after you have your country, your culture, your religion have left behind" He looked at his little Deity and said beaming. "I got him, Madame, my Krishna"
Yasoda Ma, their Moti daughter Rani and Krishna Prem established in 1931 an ashram at the foot of the Himalayas, 27 km from Almora walk away. They called him "Uttar Vrindavan" (the higher ground Vrindavan). A small dusty path led away and the last 3 miles were even too steep for the horses. The ashram was a floral paradise.
Gertrude Emerson, the daughter of Ralph Waldo Emerson lived near Almora and Prem Krishna sometimes visited the ashram.
"Every few years he came to us. In the ashram there was no radio and no newspapers. With us, he took the newspaper in hand, she glanced briefly and remarked, "As I can see, there are still the same news as a few years ago. There is a war, higher taxes, so many dead in a disaster, accident ... But somewhere really happen? "
We heard on the radio (this was during the Second World War) sent the news from Delhi. He sat down in the seat and learned yoga Sanskrit verses. "Do you hear the radio at all," I asked him. "Yes, speaking from another planet, a kind of unintelligible background noise."
Later, the Ashram family was expanded by two Englishmen. Madhava Ashisha, who came from England to work in the Second World War as an engineer in India. When the war was over, he allowed himself a short holiday in the Himalayas. He heard about the Ashram, Prem Krishna visited and stayed in the same ashram. He never went back to England. The other was Dr. Alexander, who had retired from the post of medical superintendent in Lucknow. He took Ma as his guru and then remained in Uttar Vrindavan.
Yasoda Ma said at the inauguration of Ronald Nixon:
"Even if you do not only experience more in entire life, then you must give up the path is not" The Affection never works in the half-heartedness.
Then she said to him: "Krishna consciousness is something immediate. If you experience during the first 6 months, no taste of eternity, you've wasted time. "
one hand, it needs the determination to go on forever, is even feel anything more and experienced, and the other, it requires the jump in the presence of God, no conditions is. "Are you willing to give anything without getting something for it?" Asked Krishna Prema its guests very often.
experiences are a sign of reality, and yet they are too insubstantial to come and go like the wind. Many had opening experience, but not the faith to go on.
Take the changing world (his experience) is true, without being in it (them) to lose.
Enlightenment is a not easy, but very subtly. Pade pade uparamed, buddhi drithya grihitaya (Bg 6.25) Just like falling asleep.
And yet it requires the urgent need to know exactly where it is necessary to take the plunge. To cross the chasm is not enough a couple of small hops.
The epilogue in his book "Initiation into yoga" is:
"The finest wood is from the most slow-growing trees. The one who expects that he is drafted after a few months to a Yogi, or even after a couple years of practice will certainly be disappointed. But he who can summon the honesty and courage to face all that was hidden in the catacombs of his mind, and has the Berharrlichkeit to go on, occur even if difficulties in the interior and exterior, is humble, recognizing that all what he has done, really only the first few steps on a huge huge voyage, the one it is sure to gain something that he would not even give up when he the whole world would get it. Sri Krishna says in the Gita from the fact that a seeker of yoga far beyond the hopes and fears beyond the ordinary religion and even the smallest progress in this vital task (dharma) released a greatest of fear (BG 6:44 and 2:40)
One night, when Krishna Prema was alone in the ashram, he heard a voice that had called him. "Dada, Dada" (brother).
He was surprised, but could not see anyone and went back to sleep. Then he heard a sweet call out from the temple. "Dada, I'm cold."
A tremor ran through his body. He ran into the Temple inside and saw that a window was open. He covered Gopal with a Chaddar and asked him: "Thakurji, you're cold, too?"
down a stream of tears flowed Gopal cheeks.
Krishna Prem was shaken, could take but with great effort together and wiping the tears from Gopal with his own night gown.
wept Why Krishna? Krishna Prema him but only asked if he cold.
In Caitanya caritamrta Krishna himself says:
Sakal Jagat mora .... (CC 1.3.15-16)
"All over the world, I am honored to have reverence and due to the fear of consequences if it does not. Dedication, weakened by such devotion is seems to me not really attractive. "
Krishna is not only omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient, and always in his self-satisfied (Atmarama). His Comprehensiveness of which includes also the antithesis pararama, God, that depends entirely on his devotees and can feel no pleasure without it. The whole world is looking only on one side of the majestic aspect, but Vrindavan gives an insight into the souls of the confidentiality of pararama.
is Here God is not independent - the Bhakta bathe him, he gives him to eat, sing and dance for him in love, and he will take on their service with love and enjoy it. He enjoys it because he really longs because it exceeds the exchange of love its completeness, its omnipotence, its infinity in the frenzy of love.
tendon implies incompleteness. The infinite Lord of all draws, preserves and dissolves again, never lack. Oblivion covers his lover, Infinity that he is really hungry now and really long for the exchange with the soul. And he's cold.
This is part of his incredible size - the Lord that is always beyond all worlds and is associated feelings, feels similar to how a common perception within the world. But while he remains in his affection. This phenomenon of love is in the Vedas as the ultimate perfection of the Absolute.
"Life is like a wild river that all beings, men, women, children, animals and all of nature entrains the sea of death. Things seem stable because they flow straight with us - but everything rushes back to dissolve. Arranging all do not help us because they stuck in the same river. There
Repealed unit only when executed reached the shore. . The shore of the river, which is always very close, is God - with what you name him whatever ansprichst "
(Yoga of the Bhagavad Gita)
When he was asked what his understanding of grace, he replied: "If someone in this world of dust and noise themselves fully as "atma-Hutier" (sacrifice), gave themselves consumed in the flame of divine love, then there is a tremendous explosion - that is grace.
Krishna Prem's relationship with Radha-Krishna became more intimate over the years. Sunila and his wife Arati were his pupils. They lived in Allahabad and occasionally came to visit Almora.
had after the second world war they have no money for the long train trip and Arati sold her gold bangles to see their spiritual master again.
After several days in the Ashram Prem Krishna came with a gold bracelet from the temple and asked Arati, because what they did with theirs. She did not disclose, and looked shyly at the floor.
Krishna Prema smiled and told her that he knew everything and that Radharani had told him of their desire to come here in the Ashram. She would have given him the bracelet from her now for her. She fell to the ground unconscious and when she awoke, she washed her own tears with the feet of their spiritual master. Although
Prem Krishna had many Western students, even many Indians accepted him as their teacher. He was respected as a living Vaishnava saint. Although not a mission, he organized the distribution and lived for 30 years in the solitude of the ashram in the mountains, so he wrote it three literary works ("search for truth," "Yoga of the Bhagavad Gita" and "Yoga of Kathopanishad") and countless letters to friends in India and outside. In these letters, he gave insight into his personal devotional practice and his accomplishments.
In his introductory book "Initiation into yoga," he writes,
"One of the biggest obstacles to address the truth of the general belief among religious people that the truth is written in a book, which for them then that" constituted holy book " .
He admits, of course, that sacred texts of great help for represent the seekers, "but the attitude of blind acceptance of what is written in a book is certainly a hindrance, and holds one, the true gain. The book consists of a few black characters on a white sheet and what these signs mean one depends on the ideas in our minds, and this in turn from the experiences you went through in this world. The Scriptures are Srutis - if the content is owned by a verwirktlichten soul, they have suddenly fascinating substance. The reading is then the recollection of the impression one could get in the presence of the saints. But without this vital contact with the contents of the books are pretty worthless. "
"Our own desire for truth resonates as an echo reflected in the study of sacred texts.
If the innermost conscience then confirmed the sacred texts, and you realize that this is only the written record of effective nachlebbaren experience, it does not matter from which the tradition comes to us. Then you put away the historical dating of the text and consistency with previous own beliefs and is dedicated with all my heart. The trail is part of the experience will be open.
The soul has to go first and foremost a distance and perceive the presence of this inner guidance, before the presence of the outer Guru is necessary or helpful in the first place. "
The path that would inspire his readers for what Krishna Prem, "is a road that has existed in all ages, in all countries, although the names that have called him, were quite different.
Those who follow this path, form a fellowship, which goes much deeper than family ties. Even if one is never met before, you can feel the closeness ... a true counterpoint to a world of greed and competition. "
" This path has a troubled relationship with organized and official religions. Although the path is the common hidden basis of all religions, he is still very little in common with a religion. The teachers of this path have experienced almost universal hostility from the side of organized religion. "
In this way, there is according to Krishna Prema no shortcuts or psychological tricks by which one could hate transform into love, greed with serenity and stupidity into wisdom.
"These conversions are not a simple task and there is no mechanical way to do it. It takes several lifetimes to prepare and no one can walk this path if he is not dedicated with great care -. Incomparably more attention than we had ever invested in anything of this world "
" Permanent consistency and compliance in all perception questions is important only for small minds. The true seeker plunges confidently into the uncertainty of being. He leaves the castle of the alleged security. Our first cause, Sri Krishna is preparing, in particular security. But he is not touched only in the desire for security, but only in the burning desire to own Him
(All these quotes are from his book "Initiation into yoga")
His larger work, "Yoga of the Bhagavad Gita begins Krishna Prem with a challenge of those writings. He has both the sectarian appropriation and possession of the Gita back from the fundamentalist tradition, and the purely intellectual way of reason.
"In history, every teacher who has invoked the Vedantic authority, a commentary on Gita written to show that it supports their view. As a result, there are comments from written from different angles: monistic, dualistic, pantheistic, theistic, those that emphasized the yoga of action, others that emphasized knowledge (gnosis or jnana) and loving devotion to God DU. All of these perspectives on life find their principle in the Gita and the universal call to them indication of its Comprehensiveness and their authoritative status. "
" The path of the Bhagavad Gita is not the privilege of Hindus nor any denomination. It can - Are recorded in all religions, or exists beyond all formal religions - more or less deeply buried. That is the reason why the Gita, although Indian origin, is likely to be the seekers around the world tourist trail, clue and guidance.
In his book "Yoga of the Bhagavad Gita Krishna Prem quotes extensively from the Upanishads, Plato and Plotinus, theosophical works, from the teachings of the Buddha from the perspective of Theravada and Mahayana, both from Christian texts, British Romantics, boys studies and refers and modern psychology.
Yasoda Ma Prem Krishna and have always been closely together.
Many people came with questions in the Ashram. Yashoda Ma was sitting there and told them to Gopal (her pet name for Krishna Prem) ask of them could answer perfectly. He said. "One word from her move a lot more than 10 lectures from me," The devotion to the Guru, from which all this knowledge, it was always the central focus.
Yasoda Ma also had deep love for their Gopal.
Dilip Kumar Roy, one of the most famous singer of India attended the lectures of Krishna Prem at times. He then put the question to Ma: "If only the soul is really why I work then still under the illusion that the envelope is the essential reality and appreciate it more than everything else in the world? "
" We appreciate the body as it is animated by the Lord and lives, "Ma said with a smile," He makes him so lovable. But we note, as long as we have not found Him. Then you can see quite clearly that nothing in the world just for themselves there - separate from Him. And if you recognize him as the dearest of all friends, you have to tell you then you should appreciate Him, meditate on Him and sing His name? Then you will not be able to sing anything other than his name. Consider but Gopal (Krishna Prem). Could dissuade him something of His feet? You can try it. Offer him a heavenly kingdom or girl - I can tell you that he will not even look for them. Why? Because he had a glimpse of His beauty. All the beauty of all worlds together seems beside pale and empty - useless trinkets. Dilip, I assure you that this is not theory, but I speak from direct experience, "In the fall of 1938,
Prem Krishna with Yashoda Ma to Prayag in order to be treated by competent doctors. For many years she suffered from various ailments and she could not even bring itself out of bed. But even in this age of suffering she beamed from her emaciated face and a serenity flowed from their nature.
Whenever someone spoke to her health condition, she said that he is not worried need to worry about, because the Lord had blessed her with an indescribable peace that her constant companion was and what all the physical pain more than offset.
"This body is really like a cage. The one who resides in there, the effective person and you should only ask after him and ask him. I saw right away that this soul, the bird of happiness, entirely independent of this body exists. So what makes for from now, when the cage is broken? "
When she left her body in 1944, it was a dark cloud of sadness that spread through the ashram. Prem Krishna was cremated as her body at the waterfalls of Dandeshvara, he was exhausted, tired and sad back late. When he had slept in the early morning hours still, she appeared in his dream and said, "Why are you still asleep? It's time for Bhajan, "After a while, she added." You can rest assured that I am always with you - just like before, "" If you are now so close, I'll never see again? " he asked with tears in his eyes. "We will meet in cinmaya (transcendental) Vrindavan again," was her reply. Their presence, he felt constantly until in 1965 he gave up his body.
Since the beginning of the 30 years passed Krishna Prema Ma and every winter to Vrindavan and it developed a warm relationship with the Radharaman Balkrishna Goswami Temple. Krishna Prema
This friendship has become familiar with the concept of Caitanya Mahaprabhu. For a long time he had doubted the identity of Gauranga as Sri Krishna, Krishna to him in a dream revealed that Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, he was none other than himself.
Krishna Prema was addressed later in Vrindavan often with the nickname "gaura-prema-Nidhi" (an "ocean of love for Gauranga"). After
the passing away of Ma Yasoda he started in 1948 a long pilgrimage to South India. In Tiruvanamalai he met Ramana Maharsi.
Every day the saint was sitting on his bed, many meditators sat around him. When Krishna Prema sat in the overwhelming silence, he heard just then a voice asked him over and over again: "Who are you? Who are you? "
He tried to ignore that voice, but she came over and over again like an unwanted visitor and knocked on his door. So he formulated a response: "I am eternal servant of Krishna" At once the voice turned into: "Who is Krishna," he said, "Nanda Son. "But the inner questioning went wild and just listened to does not matter how many times Prem Krishna gave answers" he is Lord of all hearts, he is the source of all avatars ... ". Deeply troubled, he left after a while these "silent" meditation and then went back again into the hall. The questioning was straight back on. So he called Radharani. She revealed herself to him: "Nothing exists outside of Krishna, there is nothing to him. How can you describe it in full? Krishna Krishna! "
When he sit down again the next day to the meditator, he smiled to Ramana. He understood that it was he who raised all these questions. As Krishna Prem now closed his eyes, hugged him, an infinite peace. In the silence he addressed a question to Ramana: "Can I ask humbly, who are you" Involuntarily he just had to open his eyes and saw that Ramana no longer sat on his bed. The seat was empty. He closed his eyes and opened them again the next moment. Ramana sat back exactly as before. He noted that this being not really lived in the world of names and forms.
This silent conversation between these two great souls shows different approaches of the transcendence of knowledge. The Jnani research on and on and realizes that any insight is always provisional. He must be prepared have not yet recognized the stick over and over again everything up. The Bhakta is his life and soul of this unknown, yet the next opponent and from there is her out so lovingly that he would like to respond to this love but these have intensified love. Everything he learned as a gift, a revelation of the concentrated form of all beauty and love.
Ramana Maharsi then spoke in a narrow circle of his disciples several times about Krishna Prem and said that he was a rare combination of a Jnani and a Bhakta.
contribution to this journey Ronald Nixon and Sri Aurobindo and the Mother.
Tiruvanamalai he went from on to Sri Rangam where He was allowed in the temple to make an amazing experience. When he bowed to Sri Vishnu, he lost external consciousness and suddenly saw smiling Radha and Krishna standing before him and heard the magic flute Govinda.
Krishna Prema once wrote: "If you want to attain the eternal, you have your boat from your well known and reasonably secure coastal water and dear to the other side sat long. On his deathbed he said the last words: "My ship is sailing now like this." On 14 November 1965.
On 26 November writes the President of India, Dr. Radhakrishnan, "I am deeply saddened to hear, that Sri Krishna Prem has moved on. I have heard so much about him, but had never been lucky to meet him personally. I know that he was not common. . We have lost a great soul on this earth "
Shortly before his death, he writes Dilip Kumar Roy:" Man is mortal passes as ahuti (a gift), the flame of the immortals. Self-offering must be totally and unconditionally. But it is all that is not essential to what is always full of substance. This is the complete replacement of selfishness by Krishna's sweet will "
sources.
- Sri Madhava Ashish, "Sri Krishna Prem through the eyes of a disciple"
Krishna Prema, „Initiation into Yoga: An Introduction to the Spiritual Life » (London: Rider and Company, 1976), According to the foreword by Sri Madhava Ashish, this essay was originally written around the start of World War II. The first part of the essay had been published as "The Search for Truth" in a volume of that title, published in Calcutta in 1938. [Sri Krishna Prem, The Search for Truth (Calcutta: Ganesh Chandra Bose, 1938).]
- „Yoga of the Bhagavad gita“
- Dilip Kumar Roy, Yogi Sri Krishna Prem (Bombay: Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, 1968)
- Andrew Rawlinson, ”Sri Krishna Prem/Ronald Nixon," The Book of Enlightened Masters: Western Teachers in Eastern Traditions (Chicago: Open Court, 1997)
- Narendra Nath Kaul, "Preface" and "A Biographical Note," Writings of Sri Krishna Prem, An Introduction (Bombay: Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, 1980)
- OBL Kapoor, "Sri Krishna Prem and Yashoda Ma," Braj ke Bhakt (Aravali Press, 1992)
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