Tomorrow is our monthly pada puja for Gurudeva on Chitra nakshatra. So, we're thinking about Gurudeva and the future. Gurudeva has been appearing in the monks dreams and talking about a glorious future. The Saivite Shastras talks about how Yogaswami comes to pujas done in his name. This applies to Gurudeva now, too. The pujas actually come to where he is in the inner world, if they go deep enough.

Unedited Transcript:

Tomorrow is our monthly Chitra puja for Gurudeva. In thinking of that, I was thinking about Gurudeva and the future.

Gurudeva has appeared to a number of monks in their dreams and talked about a glorious future. "Don't think about the past. Don't be sad in the present. But, let us think about the future. It is going to be quite wonderful and let us create it together."

There was a very nice event recently which gives us a sense of the future. We had a family of twelve originally from Guyana, who are now in New York, who came up three generations. They got off their cruise ship for a few hours. All of them dressed impeccably in Hindu clothing, even the youngest, came up and spent a few hours here. Worshipped in the temple, sang their hearts out, went out to Iraivan and so forth. We were very uplifted by their stay. In departing, they were very generous. They gave nine thousand dollars to the Iraivan Building Fund. But most interestingly, they enjoyed their visit so much that they said, "Well, next time we come back, we are going to charter a plane and bring a group of pilgrims here. This is such a wonderful spot."

It is just a sign of the future. What we have here is so unique, such a wonderful vibration, such a beautiful setting, such a religious Aadheenam, such devout devotees that it really impresses sincere pilgrims and they want to come back. They feel this is something very, very special. Particularly, something special outside of India. Where on the mainland do you find what we have here? Nowhere.

That they are going to come back was to me, a tangible event reflecting Gurudeva's statements in dreams about a glorious future. If they feel that way, how many others will feel the same way? Imagine when Iraivan is functioning, what will be the volume of sincere pilgrims coming? It could be quite substantial.

Of course, we are not measuring success by quantity but that is part of the future. It is more the quality that I am referring to. How struck they were, how respectful, how much they got out of their visit here. Plus, how uplifted we were by their presence. They were so beautifully dressed, so devotional, such sincere pilgrims. It was a pleasure to host them.

There are some useful quotes in the Saivite Shastras that refer to Yogaswami. But, we can now apply them to Gurudeva as well. They describe where Yogaswami is in the inner worlds and how he comes to pujas that are conducted in his name. It all applies to Gurudeva at this point. To quote, "There are other rooms in the inner mind as well. One governing each of the four winds and another for your Guru in which his Guru lives." I imagine that is where he is right now. Probably redecorating, knowing Gurudeva. Shopping at Wal-Mart and redecorating!

"These rooms of which we speak are like caverns of the mind. In them, we do our work, walk around as you do. We bring everything to us rather than go out to it. Like you do with television and radio. When you close your eyes, you live inside your head and think. This is similar to these thought caverns in the inner mind. They can be created by us in any way, simple or extremely complex, as you build the insides of your house in the outer mind. Your Master's Guruji lives in a simple cavern, as that was his association with the inside of a small room in his ashram in Sri Lanka. He could make it larger with but a twinkling of the eye. But he sits there in deep samadhi, radiating darshan to the sanctified places that do puja in his name. When a puja is conducted in his name, his wall opens up and he is at the puja. He does not go to it, it comes to him, if the vibration of the puja penetrates deep enough."

I put that last phrase there in bold, "if the vibration of the puja penetrates deep enough". So it is not automatic. It is like we were talking about temple worship some time in the last few phases. You go to the temple and your mind is on something else. You don't get the same benefits as if you are thinking about your worship. Particularly if you prepare for it in advance, you get even more benefits. This is the same idea but it applies to those conducting the puja. They need to be focused on what they are doing. Just sitting there conducting puja to Gurudeva and thinking about something else doesn't necessarily go deep enough. Those doing the pujas need to be thinking about Gurudeva and be attuned to his vibration enough for this process to work.

It is a very interesting idea that Gurudeva comes to the puja by the puja coming to him. It is in reverse.