(B)aithak with Shree Shree Babaji

Q: Who is a Kalandar?

Babaji: Kalandars are wandering ascetic Sufi dervishes who may or may not be connected to a specific tariqat (spiritual lineage). It is a title given to saint who is at a very high level of spirituality. They are considered chosen saints of God. They are different from other saints and they have a very strong feeling of love in them and spread the message of love and humanity. Kalandars enjoy freedom from ties and bounds of Time and Space. All the living things are given in their charge and command, every bit and part of the universe are at their disposal, but the Kalandaris are holy persons who are far above temptations, greed or lust. When people request them they feel duty-bound to listen and rectify the cause of miseries of people because they have been appointed by Nature for this very purpose. They are the ones about whom God says, “I befriend My servants and become their ears, eyes and tongue in order to make them talk, and touched through me”.

Q: What is the state of awareness?

Babaji: When you allow yourself to watch your own body, mind, all the people and things in the world around you from a serene depth inside you, you will find that from within there are answers for everything you need to understand. It comes as a feeble whisper. As if the other you inside is talking to you without you thinking. You will have insights of exactly what you need to do in order to move with the flow of life around you. Solutions to problems will come to you when you stop bothering yourself with your judgmental perceptions and become fully tuned to the people, things, situation around you.

Q: What is wisdom, knowledge and intellect?

Babaji: True wisdom is to renounce the world. Knowledge is achieved. Intellect is natural. A true salik (mureed) achieves greatness from four things: Less eating, less talking, less sleep, and less socializing. Benediction drops at three levels: in the state of hearing music, eating for purpose of obedience, speaking about the pirs. Patience is: “When a man experiences a thing not to his liking, he does not complain”. Willingness is the thing that suffering does not make him feel bad as if it has not befallen on him. Love of Pir rules over their intellect.

Q: How to live life?

Babaji: I have always maintained about living life to the fullest. How does one do that; by eating, drinking, gaming, traveling, enjoying, philandering? Nay. Just by living in the ‘now’ moment. By doing so you will always have enough to enjoy every moment of your life. What made you unhappy every moment is that you have been burdening yourself with thoughts about something that you don’t have or you are trying to hold on to something that which is no longer appropriate in the present flow of your life. Live the ‘now’. You’ll see what living life king size means.

Be yourself. Don’t try to be somebody. Create your own path and walk on it. Your beliefs alone will shape your perceptions.

Q: Do we all have purpose in life?

Babaji: Yes, we do. That you are born into a situation is a part of the destiny. A child is always born with the closed fists. As the awareness happens you gradually give away.

Q: How to kill ego?

Babaji: The only way to kill your ego is to stop being aware of the constant stream of thoughts it produces. It is hard work though. But once you start watching the string of thoughts, and not get carried away with it, you will experience emptiness.

Q: How can a person stay happy?

Babaji: Happiness? We all seem to be looking for it without knowing about it. The happy man is an active man. The unhappy man is lethargic. His mind is cluttered. He has a weak will. What is vast and infinite brings happiness, like sitting by the sea or the mountains. It is spatial. What is small and finite brings boredom. Like a small cluttered room. Infinite is happiness. What is this Infinite? When you feel that nothing and no one is separate from you and you are one with the people, animals and objects in the universe, when you see and hear and know nothing else other than what is around you – that is the Infinite. Sitting in open spaces you connect with everything around you. But, when you see or feel something obstructing you, separating you from this creation, that is the finite. You have created a space in your mind in which you have decided to stay unconnected to the space around you. You prefer to remain connected with your thoughts which bring unhappiness. You have not yet found the Infinite. You have exercised your free will to remain connected to your cluttered mind, and hence remain unhappy. Release the steam, take a break and enjoy the space around you. You will see the beauty of how every little thing is connected to you. The Infinite lasts forever but what is finite will pass away. Liberate yourself.

Q: Could karma be undone?

Babaji: Past karma can never be cancelled by any remedy except the realization and reformation of the soul. Realization comes through inner knowledge (sans bric-a-brac clutter) and determination and subsequent practical implementation of knowledge brings reformation of the soul.

Q: What is the relevance of food in our lives?

Babaji: The World, both animate and inanimate, is sustained by food. The giver of food is the giver of life and indeed of everything else. Therefore, one who is desirous of well-being in this world and beyond should make special endeavors to give food. Food should be offered with hospitality to the old, the child, and the tired traveler.

There is no better ritual in any religion than feeding a hungry being. Annadan is Mahaadan – the greatest service in any religion and is an essential part of all spiritual tradition. Giving food is not limited to feeding human beings only, but encompasses all living beings.

Q: What is your mission?

Babaji: The purpose of my “Movement” is to work towards unity. Its main object is to bring humanity, divided as it is into so many different sections, closer together in the deeper understanding of life. It is a preparation for a world service, chiefly in three ways. One way is the philosophical understanding of life; another is bringing about brotherhood, sisterhood among races, nations, and creeds; and the third way is the meeting of the world’s greatest need, love and compassion which is the religion of the day. Its work is to bring to the world that natural religion which has always been the religion of humanity: to respect one another and love each other.

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