Conversation during an Indian music recital, “find the lost American seekers”, 1987-08-06
I am really overwhelmed, really overwhelmed by your love and devotion.
May God bless you.
You don’t know how happy I feel to be with you here. And I have been rather very upset about the future of America, the way things are moving. I’ve been thinking what should we do? Should we take all the Sahaja Yogis from here to India and settle there?
[Applause]
Or bring more Sahaja Yogis from abroad to strengthen you here? It’s very sad that there are so many Americans whom we have not been able to locate and that they are lost somewhere. You have to find means and ways of bringing them. After seeing you I see a great hope.
I hope all of us put together, we will do something great. We will be able to get some more and more Americans. How many times I have been here? But was difficult. Let us see what we can do. I do not know if they have scheduled Me to come this year again. If they have, I might come for 2-3 days to San Diego again and we may have a nice public program here.
But first of all, you all have to prepare yourself. You have to be very, very much embedded in Sahaja Yoga, just like lotuses. So that people feel the fragrance of your presence and they come to achieve their Self-realization and to enjoy life as you all are enjoying. You have to pray for it, you have to meditate for it. I am sure maybe this year I might come again for at least 3-4 days here.
May God bless you.
I hope you are enjoying this house which I saw just, in a short time. I didn’t know what sort of house it is and I hope you are comfortable. Now I didn’t know what to buy for this Ashram. So, I have got a little present for you. And then [name of Yogi ] told Me that this is the only thing that is less in Ashram. So, I said, “All right, it’s a good idea”.
So, how many are staying in this Ashram? Raise your hands.
Sahaja Yogi: How many are staying here?
Shri Mataji: And the rest are staying alone or separately or they have another Ashram?
Sahaja Yogi: We have another Shri Mataji all collective, Shri Mataji.
Shri Mataji: Huh?
Sahaja Yogi: We have another Shri Mataji all collective and people are living separately.
Shri Mataji: I see.
Another Sahaja Yogi: We come from Canada, Shri Mataji.
Shri Mataji: I beg your pardon?
Sahaja Yogi: A lot of people have come from Canada also.
Shri Mataji: Today?
Another Sahaja Yogi: Vancouver, from Vancouver they have come.
Sahaja Yogini: Santa Cruz.
Shri Mataji: Ah! I see all the way.
Is Vancouver close to this place?
Sahaja Yogi: Quite far.
Shri Mataji: As much close as it is to London, is it?
[Shri Mataji laughs]
[In Marathi: What’s the program now?] What’s the program now?
[In Marathi. Please give me some water]
Sahaja Yogi: Shri Mataji, the musicians have been practicing. So, whenever You are ready, we can have them.
Shri Mataji: I’m ready.
Sahaja Yogi: OK.
I am sorry for being late but we had to go and buy these presents for you. And then we got delayed.
Shri Mataji: So, I’ll have some water. Let’s have the music.
[Shri Mataji speaks in Marathi: Please give me water and tea. First, I would like to have some water.]
[I can have some tea now]
Shri Mataji: What happens? Is she crying?
Sahaja Yogini: She just got up when you came. Normally, she does not cry.
Shri Mataji: Sharayu, can you give Me my spectacles?
[The singer is praising Lord Rama]
Shri Mataji: What a beautiful voice!
[Applause]
Very beautiful voice.
[Shri Mataji in Hindi: The singer’s voice has got the beauty of a Bengali singer.
What does the singer do for living?
Sahaja Yogini: [The answer is not clear.]
I am very happy you are learning our music is and it’s such a rare thing to hear such a beautiful music.
Shri Mataji: Wah, wah.
[Applause]
[Shri Mataji in Marathi: Is she teaching in the university?
Sahaja Yogini: Yes.
Shri Mataji: Both of them?
Sahaja Yogini: Yes.
[Inaudible]
Shri Mataji: Wah, wah.
[Applause]
Shri Mataji: Is she herself teaching in the university? [Inaudible]
Shri Mataji: Where does the singer stay?
Sahaja Yogini: In the university.
Shri Mataji: In Santacruz?
Sahaja Yogini: No, in San Diego. Once the Yogis had received an advertisement in their mail
Shri Mataji: So, the Yogis started joining these classes?
Sahaja Yogini: Yes.
Shri Mataji: So, they are giving private lessons and also teaching in the university?
Sahaja Yogini: Yes, they do both.
Shri Mataji: Who is giving lessons in the university? Is it the husband?
Sahaja Yogini: Her husband is giving instrumental music lessons. And she is teaching vocal.
Shri Mataji: Her voice is really sweet. It’s God’s gift.
Sahaja Yogini: The singer is from Calcutta. The husband has a lot of Sahaj qualities. Inaudible. “Durga Mata, Kali Mata”. Inaudible.]
[Applause]
[Shri Mataji in Hindi:
Shri Mataji: (To the singer) You teach also so well and sing so well. You have a very good voice. I could not imagine that in such a place (USA) we can find such good singers. Very good.
Singer: Thank you
Shri Mataji: (To the singer): Do you teach here also?
Singer: We have started a school in which we are teaching.
Singer: My husband teaches instrumental music.
Shri Mataji: Very good, it’s a very good thing.
Singer: We need your blessings.
Shri Mataji: My blessings are always there for music and also for you.]
It’s very, very rare to hear such beautiful voices and such beautiful music.
[Shri Mataji in Hindi, to someone: Please, come.]
You are very lucky people I wish others could also have it in America to have someone like that to teach the music and. You find it very interesting? it’s difficult also. Indian music is very difficult.
[Shri Mataji speaks in Hindi:
Shri Mataji: Who is he?
Sahaja Yogini: He is the husband
Shri Mataji: May God bless you.
Shri Mataji (to the Yogini): Are they from Calcutta?
Shri Mataji (to the husband singer): This Yogini is praising you. It’s really surprising that you have come so far and trying to spread your music. It’s a very beautiful thing.]
Singer: I just pray by my music, that’s the only thing I have. So, that’s the way I can [Inaudible.] Just pray by my music.
Shri Mataji: Little loudly, through words, I mean.
Singer: I have my music. So, I can pray God, just playing music.
Shri Mataji: That’s the best way to pray, isn’t it?
Singer (in Hindi): If you permit, I would like to play some more music.
Shri Mataji (in Hindi): Of course, you can play.
[Shri Mataji in Marathi: They are very young.
Sahaja Yogini: Yes, Mother they are young.
Shri Mataji: How did they come to the USA?
Sahaja Yogini: As students.
Shri Mataji: Yes, to study. Who is playing the tablas?
[Inaudible]
Shri Mataji: He has not come, the son of Al Rakha and co?
Sahaja Yogini: They live in San Francisco.
Shri Mataji: Oh, so they have not come.]
[End of part 1]
[Part 2]
[Applause]
10:45
[Shri Mataji speaks in Hindi. Kalatit]
Shri Mataji: Wah, wah.
You all must try to learn, all right?
If you start from a very young age you can do it. And some people I know have started very late.
[Shri Mataji speaks in Hindi about the guru of the musician in Calcutta.]
Shri Mataji: I never knew about this kind of a thing that is going on here. You are just very lucky people to have somebody like Allauddin Khan Hassan. Oh, he’s great, absolutely great, no doubt about it.
[Shri Mataji speaks in Hindi.]
Their guru was a Realized soul. And he was in a place called Maihar [in Madhya Pradesh] where my father was a political adviser to the king. We always used to go to that museum. He as a very strict man, very strict and extremely sweet. As far as the music was concerned, he was very, very sweet. Sometimes, you see, he would play to us.
I remember, once, he respected my father very much because my father was such a connoisseur of music. And one day, Ravi Shankar, he was sitting there. And my father said, “Why don’t you play sitar? I would like to hear.” So, Ravi Shankar, he said, “Please, don’t ask me. I don’t want to play.” He said, “Why? What has happened?” He said, my father said, “What has happened? Why not play?” He showed a big lump here on the head. He said, “See now? Do you see this? I was playing out of tune a raga and my guru has hit me here already. Now, you don’t ask.”
[Shri Mataji is laughing]
Musician: That’s his father-in-law.
Shri Mataji: He was is father-in-law but later on. That time they were not yet married when I knew them, they were not married, later on he married Anapurnaji. Also, their marriage and all that, I know how it happened, and big fest [unsure]. And in the night, one day, his guru came alone in Kasav [unsure].
A wonderful person he was. And he has picked up somewhere a little deer and he was feeding the deer with a bottle, a little deer, little. And so, he liked Me very much, he used to. I was a little girl that time, but still. So, I said, “What are you going to do with the deer?” He said, “I must find out the mother of this deer, somehow, because no use keeping the deer with me. It must go to its mother”.
And he was a great pujari of Durgaji, surprisingly. He was a Muslim but used to worship Durgaji. He used to call Me “Ma” when I was a small girl before him, but still. He was very found of Me. I used to go quite often and even after my marriage I went with my husband once there. It was a wonderful place that Maihar, a small little place.
But he was very good at, what we call, a percussion instrument “pakhawaj”. And he said, “Why I came to Maihar? Because the wood of Maihar, here there’s beautiful jungle, and in this jungle, I found a special wood which make beautiful pakhawajs”. It’s a big thing, you know this percussion instrument. But the way he used to play- he knew many instruments. He’s a genius, absolutely a genius.
And with great ease, he used to play. But a very strict master, a very strict person. And that’s how he brought up such great people. All of them are very great. Ravi Shankarji, you must have heard his name. Then Annapurnaji is his daughter. She’s another genius, genius lady full of knowledge about [inaudible]. So, I am happy that Ali Akbar Khan is here and he is luckily teaching you music. I hope all of you will take a real opportunity of learning music.
May God bless you all.
[Shri Mataji speaks in Hindi]
The other day, I heard Strauss music, Strauss from- in Germany. He was German but when he came to Petersburg, he played valse and beautiful tunes. And we were there for about three and half hours, in Russia, and the music was so beautiful, we never knew how the time passed. So, even in your classical music, you all have to become experts. It’s easy after Realization. As you can see, their guru was such a master. After Realization, it’s very easy to achieve it. I hope you’ll do your best to learn some music from these people, it would be a good idea. It’s all God’s scent. Thank you very much.
[Shri Mataji speaks in Hindi]
Shri Mataji: She’s learning, you are also learning music? How many of you are learning? Let’s have how many of you are learning. Three of you, good.
Musician: The music is for the whole life; how can we learn within a couple of years?
Shri Mataji: Yes, all your life you say that way, really. I know.
[Music, “Bhavani, Dayani”]
Shri Mataji: Wah, wah.
[Applause]
Well done!
[Shri Mataji speaks in Hindi]
In Switzerland you know, Phil is there.
Sahaja Yogi: Hu?
Shri Mataji: Phil, he plays very well. And Antonio from Rome. He is a piano player; he is a very good piano player. But now, he has become [Cut in the audio]
[Shri Mataji speaks in Hindi]
And in London, there is one Patricia. She’s another very well know piano player and she has picked up this. You have so many musicians now in Sahaja Yoga, so many of them. For this Guru puja, we didn’t know how to manage the time. Three nights they were singing! [Shri Mataji is laughing.] And playing something.
Have you seen the poster of Guru puja?
Sahaja Yogi: Yes, Shri Mataji.
Shri Mataji: Beautiful, isn’t it?
[Shri Mataji speaks in Hindi]
All those in favour of my coming this year to America, please raise your hand.
[Applause]
May God bless you.
[Applause]
May God bless you.
We already have, I think, arranged that I’ll be here in the whole tour, I think there’s fifteen or sixteen days they have given Me on a day [unsure]. But I wanted to find out what was your reaction to it.
[Laughter]
Sahaja Yogi: Only sixteen days, Shri Mataji?
[Laughter]
Shri Mataji: Sixteen days! After going from here, after going from here, continuously I am travelling. First of all, I ‘m going to [inaudible] from here. Then of course, I’m going to-
Sahaja Yogi: Switzerland.
Shri Mataji: France for this [inaudible, jam mashed?]. Then coming back to London, going to India. There I will be for the- I’m going to Calcutta, Bombay, Delhi. Calcutta for the Navratri puja. Then I ‘ll be back to Switzerland for the Shiva puja.
[Shri Mataji speaks in Hindi] Then I will be from Calcutta.
After that, now October, it is something like fourth October they have- second October they say but we are having it on the fourth because that’s a Sunday. And after that, I’m going to tour America. [Shri Mataji speaks in Hindi]
[Applause]
Italy will be Diwali puja, for two months again, till I think, till the second of December. And then I go to India again, you all are expected to come. It goes on like this.
Today, that lawyer saw my passport and he was stunned. He said, “Mother, how do You travel so much like that!”
So, that is how it is going to be. Now, I’m very happy you want Me to come here for this program. I’ll be able to inform you when I go London. They will tell you what they have decided.
[Shri Mataji speaks in Hindi]
I hope you are comfortable in this house.
Sahaja Yogini: More than comfortable.
Shri Mataji: It’s very uniquely done I must say, the architect who he is, I was wondering. [Shri Mataji speaks in Hindi] It’s very well done.
[Shri Mataji speaks in Hindi about Sahaja Yoga]
May God bless you all. May God bless you.