Dear Sister / Brother:
REV. MASTER IN Malaysia
January 18 -19, 2006
Report by brother Ramesh Krishnan, India
Rev. Master left for Kuala Lumpur from Brother M.V Rajesh's residence at 8:30 AM, on January 18th. The plan was to have a first stop in Malacca, go on to Seremban, and finally reach Subang Jaya (a Kuala Lumpur suburb) in the evening, where Master was expected to halt for the night. Master reached Sister Shanthi's (local prefect) residence in Malacca, at ~11:00 AM, where everyone was greeted very warmly by a few local abhyasis. Rev. Master conducted Satsangh for the abhyasis present there and after a quick meal decided to rest for the afternoon. Since Rev. Master felt quite tired from his morning journey, he decided to cancel his visit to Seremban and decided instead to go directly to Subang Jaya. He left Malacca at 4:00 PM and reached Subang Jaya, at sister Suseela Nair's residence around 6:30 PM. On arrival, Rev. Master conducted satsangh.
After the Satsangh, sister Suseela showed Rev. Master the Seminar Souvenir and the Bookmarks printed for release during the APAC seminar. Rev. Master was very happy with the effort put in by the local abhyasis towards the release of the souvenir and highlighted some of the photographs being printed in the souvenir. Rev. Master later introduced the souvenir during the Seminar, as a piece of "Memorable Memorabilia" that abhyasis would cherish long after the Seminar is over.
At the dinner table in Subang Jaya, Rev. Master patiently explained to everyone present about the various retreat centers that were being planned in India. He spoke about the first CREST (Center for Research, Education, Sadhana and Training) center which is being set up in Bangalore, India as part of the Sahaj Marg Spirituality Foundation (SMSF). It was amazing to see Rev. Master patiently explaining to the Malaysian abhyasis all the new things that he is introducing to ensure that all of us integrate faster and deeper into the Sahaj Marg system of practice.
Early next morning, Rev. Master resumed the normal routine of attending to His emails and making of preceptors. After breakfast and a brief discussion with the abhyasis present, he left for AWANA Genting Highlands Resort, the venue for the Asia Pacific (APAC) seminar. On the way, he purchased books for the CREST Retreat Center library which He plans to stock up with some of the rarest collections available. He reached the venue at 4:00 PM where he was greeted by approximately 600 abhyasis who had assembled from almost all parts of the region. They were thrilled to see their Beloved Master and with lot of enthusiasm followed Him to His room. After a brief refreshment break, he went to the Meditation Hall to conduct the first satsangh of the seminar.
The theme of the seminar is titled "Knowing vs. Feeling". Following meditation, the welcome program was presented by the children of Malaysia. The first dance consisted of children from all the ethnic groups in Malaysia (Chinese, Malay, and Indian) dancing with small lamps, offering them, and lovingly greeting our Beloved Master. This was followed by a short song from the children of Malaysia. Rev. Master requested the release of the souvenirs and took the microphone to personally add a few sentences. He remarked, "On this occasion of the Chinese new year, I want to be a little critical of the organization of this seminar. Babuji wanted lions and despite the involvement of Br. Deepak, a navy man, this has been a very timid group as they have printed only 500 copies of the souvenir. I would have printed 5000 copies and would have sold all of them." He also released a collection of bookmarks which He called the "exquisite" collection and urged abhyasis to get it, otherwise He indicated that He would buy it all. To add to this, he mentioned that he would personally autograph each of the souvenir and much to the surprise of all our brothers and sisters; he pulled up a chair and started autographing each of the souvenir. It was a festive atmosphere in front of the meditation hall with abhyasis lining up to get their hands on the souvenir autographed by our Beloved Master. The entire event lasted for around 40 minutes. After that he slowly walked back to his room, wishing, greeting, and playing with all the kids, brothers and sisters assembled.
January 20, 2006
The day started bright and early for Rev. Master with his usual load of emails and work on the computer. He conducted the satsangh at 8:50 AM. Following this he delivered his inaugural address for the APAC gathering where he spoke about the need for mutual brotherhood, love for each other and with that the need for tolerance, sympathy, compassion, caring and sharing. This was followed by a cultural program from brothers and sisters from Japan, Philippines and Malaysia. Rev. Master began autographing souvenirs and personally handing them to all abhyasi brothers and sisters who lined up over and over to meet him again and again. Moreover, he permitted the abhyasis to take group photographs with him, and his patience through this entire exercise was something remarkable to observe. At the end of it all, he displayed a gift from a brother abhyasi, shaped in the form of a dog, made of gold color, containing chocolates and wished everyone a "Gong Xi Fa Cai" (Happy Chinese New Year). As he exited the meditation hall, he danced his way out to the tune of the music playing in the background, much to the delight of all those assembled around their Beloved Master.
The evening Satsangh (Jan 20) was conducted by brother Vinod Mishra and following that Rev. Master walked in to be part of yet another cultural program hosted by the abhyasis of China, Singapore, and Malaysia. One particular item that had the audience thumping on the floor was a "Bangra" (Punjabi) dance done by a group of children from china, Malaysia, and Singapore. They demonstrated the essential teaching of our Rev. Master that cultural differences like music, dance, etc. loses significance in a gathering such as ours where the focus is on universal brotherhood, love, and oneness. Rev. Master distributed sweets to all the participants, young and old. On His way out, He kept distributing sweets to all those on the way and partaking in joyous interactions with all the abhyasis. In all this, the participants have been treated with sumptuously varied cuisine from Malaysia, India, and China. These mouth-watering spreads are being served four times a day, much to awe of everyone assembled.
January 21, 2006
Rev. Master gave the morning satsangh at 9:00 AM. Following this, Br. Padu Nellayapan spoke on the topic of ‘Roses and Thorns'. He emphasized the need to always assimilate the ‘roses' (all things conducive to spiritual growth) and avoid the ‘thorns' (obstacles to our spiritual sadhana). This was followed by a cultural program presented by the children of abhyasis from Singapore.
