Evolution of Love 2

Baba Bholanath (Late Ramani Mohan Chakravarty)

In this world he has the credit of being the husband of Sri Ma. His character is especially
praiseworthy and astonishing. He is the main receptacle to receive and unfold the Leela of the
descent of Mahashakti onto this earth. Being the chief companion of Sri Ma in all the Universe, his
ideas, and way of conducting himself were of the highest.
In Bajitpur, he was the eyewitness of Ma’s Sadhana Leela, the leelas that stunned as well as
delighted him. He never questioned these actions but his interest grew. With time as Sri Ma’s
powers became public talk and a crowd of the curious swelled at their home Bholanath remained
unperturbed and calm. Contrary to the prevalent system of ‘Purdah’ (veil) he brought people face to
face with Her, carefully managing them as they turned into devotees, and later disciples.
Bholanath faced objections from his own relatives and friends. But never did he stop Ma in
Her leela. Occasionally, being a human being, he got excited over certain trivial matters - when Ma
Herself would beautifully manage the situation. At times he got worried when Ma went into
samadhi for long hours. He would then do kirtan and japa to bring Her back to worldly
consciousness. At that time nobody was allowed to touch Ma’s body without Baba’s permission. He
was definitely an outstanding soul with a character full of dynamism. In 1922, Bholanath became
Her formal disciple. He remained Her faithful guardian until the last (1938).
As the number of devotees swelled, so their life-style changed. This change was very ably
managed by Bholanath, who gave each turn of life a definite shape. In between if She would travel
incognito, either he himself would accompany Her or he would send some respectable person with
Her.
Ma was his spiritual Guru on the one hand, and a loving, obedient wife on the other. It was
Ma’s kheyal that Bholanath rarely intervened in Her way of doing things. But if that did happen,
Ma would convince him of Her own way of doing things.
Sometimes, Ma would employ unique ways of putting forward Her ideas and suggestions.
At times, adamant like a child, Bholanath would stick to what was in his mind. He had a
very helpful nature and Ma never went against his wishes.
Here is one example — they were invited to some devotee’s place for puja, and Bholanath
wanted a goat sacrifice after the puja. However the devotee was not inclined to this idea. But since
Bholanath had said it, the sacrificial animal was brought. The devotee disclosed his feelings to Ma
who asked him to wait and see.
They took the goat to the Kali temple for sacrifice. On reaching there, they came to know
through the priest that it was ‘Sudi Dashami’, a day on which no animal could be sacrificed. The
next day, Bholanath completely forgot about it.
Now what did Ma do at the time the goat was being taken to the temple? She merely raised
Herself from Her reclining position.
During the Dhaka Religious Congress, in 1927, many delegates came to Ma for serious
philosophical discussions. Aware of Ma’s samadhi and Her divine experiences, the delegates were
stunned to hear such quick, simple and straight answers from Ma who could hardly read or write.
Bholanath started his sadhana in a shack near the Siddheshwari Kali temple, while Ma lived
in the only room in the Ashram premises to help him in his sadhana. She had restricted the
meetings with devotees to ten minutes each, for his sake. For two months, Bholanath’s sadhanacontinued, during which time he went through several spiritual exercises and moods. During this
period, he initiated many Ashram Brahmacharis and others.
From 1930, he himself started doing Kalipuja at Ramana ashram - where he also established
a beautiful Panchavati. In Ma’s presence, he planted a Banyan, Asoka, Neem, emblic myrobalan
and peepul tree there and got a ‘Beej Mantra’ for planting each tree.
When he was doing his sadhana at Siddheshvari, he had seen the headless image of Kali.
When he disclosed this to Ma, She suggested he should visit Tarapeeth and continue his sadhana.
Bholanath went there and put up in the veranda of the temple. There, despite flies and mosquitoes,
Bholanath did his sadhana for several days at a stretch without leaving his seat even once. It was in
Tarapeeth, that he stopped his habit of chewing tobacco. In just seven days he attained a very high
state of spiritual bliss.
Bholanath noticed that Tara Ma’s jewellery was taken off in the night, and again in the
morning She was redecorated with it. Now he remembered the headless figure of Kali which he had
seen resembled Tara Ma.
After the Ramana ashram was opened in 1929, daily functions were held with Ma being the
focus. In three years, She attracted a massive following. Yet, without the slightest hesitation She left
Dhaka in 1932. She left all — Her established Ashram, thousands of followers, all facilities — for
an unknown destination! Evidently She had little difficulty in coping with extreme situations. They
went to Raipur, Dehradun which was liked very much by Bholanath. Nobody was known there, nor
could they speak the local language to make acquaintances. Hence, Bholanathji quickly renewed
his sadhana. Perhaps this may he one of the reasons Ma left Dhaka.
Bholanath went on a pilgrimage to Gangotri and other places and then stopped at Uttarkashi
for his sadhana. He lived there on an open veranda facing the north flowing Ganges. Here he
practiced severe austerities in his food during the two years of his very serious meditation. Ma
came once in that period to see him. He attained to spiritual heights.
The people of Uttarkashi loved and adored Bholanath, who had gradually transformed into a
different personality. With Ma’s blessings, Bholanath’s sadhana was accomplished with the
installation of a Kali image at Uttarkashi (1935) where he did his rigorous meditation. Ma and Her
followers were also present on the occasion.
Bholanath enjoyed Naam kirtan very much. He would spend ten-twelve hours without
getting tired and even without drinking water. In Shahbag, Ma’s father, playing the Do-tara led a
kirtan group in some splendid recitals. When he got tired, Bholanath could not restrain himself and
would take over so that kirtan went on without a break with new words and changes in the tune. He
sang loudly, his voice reverberating in the surroundings.
In 1938 it was the turn of Hardwar to host the Kumbha Mela. Ma and Bholanath were put
up in the bungalow of Dr. Pant. In the early morning, Bholanath and party would start their kirtan
with sandal paste on the forehead and garland round the neck. After holding it for a while in the
bungalow's courtyard and in the presence of Ma, they would go out into the streets of this holy city
doing ‘Nagar Kirtan’. Many passers-by joined him in what turned out to be three hour moving
recitals.
The main Kumbha bath was on 14 April 1938. On that day, when Bholanath and his
disciples went to the Brahmakunda for the holy bath, Naga Sannyasis present there bathed him with
great care and devotion. Only they would know what they saw in Bholanath, but some of the
special spiritual exercises that Bholanath did there remained a secret during his lifetime.
While Ma returned to Dehradun after the holy bath, Bholanath stayed there for ten more
days. He returned to Dehradun on 24 April with high fever and a stomach ache. Soon the symptomsof small pox appeared and he became seriously ill. Ma took upon Herself the entire care of
Bholanath which confused even the doctors attending on him. During this time, Bholanath
started calling Her Ma, Ma, like a child.
Ma said, “Somehow proper care was being taken... Why does it happen, do you know?
Everything is the same, the disease, the patient, and the medicine. One must not think about
consequences of the patient when nursing him. The care should be aimed towards the satisfaction,
and contentment of the patient. That’s why everything happened spontaneously when it was
required.”
Affected by small pox, there was great pain in Bholanath’s body. Ma asked him, whether
the suffering was too much. He nodded in the affirmative but could not speak. With great care, She
appeared to caress his body but actually she did some ‘kriyas’. She asked him again how he was
feeling then? Bholanath indicated there was no pain, he was now very happy. In the evening,
Bholanath was shivering. So Ma covered his body with his new saffron coloured clothes.
Sometime back, when the taking of sannyas by Bholanath was discussed, Baba said to Ma,
“I have considered you as my Mother, but I cannot make this feeling public. When I will take
Sannyas, the first alms I will ask from you will be calling you Ma in public.”
Ma asked him, “Do you remember the sannyas mantra?” "Yes", he said. The mantras were
being uttered within Bholanath.
Ultimately, realising Ma’s real form, Bholanath addressed Her as ‘Ma’ and attained Nirvana.
At that moment of his ‘Mahanirvana’, Ma’s palm was placed on his ‘Brahma randhra’. Bholanath
left his mortal coil, pronouncing the sannyas mantra amidst kirtan recital at the Kishenpur ashram
on 7 May 1938.
After the death of Bholanath, Ma disclosed, “For long, Bholanath had a bent of mind
towards sannyas. He wanted to take ‘dandi’ sannyas from some big saint of the ‘Tirth’ order".
When he said this to Ma, She supported and asked him to go ahead with his plan.
Bholanath, however, became angry at Ma’s response. He hoped Ma would go against his
wish to take sannyas. If the situation had been one of a family, then it would have been normal.
But here it was different. Ma further said, “At Kailash Mansarovar the sannyas mantra came out of
This body and continued for the next day also. This body saw Bholanath taking a bath at
Manasarovar and said, 'if you wish, you can take the sannyas mantra coming out of This body'.
Bholanath said he knew better mantras to pronounce. His words were partly true because he had
taken down several mantras from sannyasis while at Uttarkashi.
This body told him, what it felt had to be said. It is up to him to follow the suggestions or
not. After some time, Bholanath was seen repeating the same mantras coming out of Sri Ma’s lips.
On the previous night before the Hardwar Kumbha this body had a kheyal that She should
remind Bholanath about the sannyas mantra. Next day, Bholanath returned from his bath and said,
he had done everything needed.
So Bholanath’s sannyas at Manasarovar remained a secret in his lifetime and came to be
known only after his death. He was given the name of Tibatanand Tirtha.