Redemption: Gandhi shows a way out of Hell
Excerpt from Redemption Stories: Unwasted Pain by Mary Ciofalo:
The movie Gandhi inspired me - particularly one scene. In it Gandhi is fasting again to try and end the horrific riots between the Hindus and Moslems. A trio of Hindu men comes to tell Gandhi that they have stopped inciting their people, and that he must now end his fast.
One of them flings a piece of bread onto Gandhi's cot and tells him, "I am going to Hell, but you must eat and live."
Gandhi says, "Only God determines who goes to Hell. Why do you think you are?"
The man replies, "I killed a Moslem child."
Gandhi winces, then says quietly,"Why?"
The man replies, "They killed my wife and my son."
After a moment of silence, Gandhi says quietly, "I know a way out of Hell."
The Hindu man looks shocked. It is clear that he never considered redemption for himself.
Gandhi says, "Go find a child without parents and raise him as your own. But, first make sure that he is a Moslem child and raise him as a Moslem."
The movie Gandhi inspired me - particularly one scene. In it Gandhi is fasting again to try and end the horrific riots between the Hindus and Moslems. A trio of Hindu men comes to tell Gandhi that they have stopped inciting their people, and that he must now end his fast.
One of them flings a piece of bread onto Gandhi's cot and tells him, "I am going to Hell, but you must eat and live."
Gandhi says, "Only God determines who goes to Hell. Why do you think you are?"
The man replies, "I killed a Moslem child."
Gandhi winces, then says quietly,"Why?"
The man replies, "They killed my wife and my son."
After a moment of silence, Gandhi says quietly, "I know a way out of Hell."
The Hindu man looks shocked. It is clear that he never considered redemption for himself.
Gandhi says, "Go find a child without parents and raise him as your own. But, first make sure that he is a Moslem child and raise him as a Moslem."
Perumal Swami, who was an attendant of Ramana Maharshi began to act very egotistically, he caused many problems for the ashram. Soon his play was over. He became very unwell almost an invalid. All his
ReplyDeletemoney was lost and people cheated him. During his last days, he stayed on a stone bench in town asking for a few paise alms from passers-by. He went
to Bhagavan Ramana and told Him: I have done innumerable acts
of sin against you. "I am sure to go to hell. Please forgive me
but do not forget me." Bhagavan Ramana smiled and looked at him, then said: "I have
forgiven you and I cannot forget you at all. Even if you go to hell,
I shall be present there too, do not worry!"
It's worth having a look at some simple videos of Bharadwaj of Hoshiarpur. He's around 98 years old and totally sincere and magic to watch.
ReplyDelete@Anonymous #2: Shri Bharadwaj may be a gem but a recommendation has weight only if the credentials of the recommender are known. An anonymous recommendation is less than persuasive.
ReplyDeleteI have no credentials. Just an intuitive feeling that Bharadwaj is selfless. Take a look and if you don't find it so, it's all good.
ReplyDeleteWhat are credentials? People running workshops or perhaps having a Phd tacked on after your name? The life energy is intelligent, we may occupy ourselves with the feeding and care of our imagined identity, regardless the actual flows through us and manifests as what is.
ReplyDeleteThanks Yogesh for the inspiring story.
ReplyDeleteGod bless!
Nasrudin was eating a poor man's diet of chickpeas and bread. His neighbor, who also claimed to be a wise man was living in a grand house and dining on sumptuous meals provided by the emperor himself.
ReplyDeleteHis neighbor told Nasrudin, "if only you would learn to flatter the emperor and be subservient like I do, you would not have to live on chickpeas and bread."
Nasrudin replied, "and if only you would learn to live on chickpeas and bread, like I do, you would not have to flatter and live subservient to the emperor."
Of every hundred people to who come to visit Ashrams and gurus, ninety nine come to seek food for their imaginary ego. That is why so many frauds succeed in misleading many thousands of well-intentioned people. Such imposters hand out intellectual food and even the most authentic texts, and a pleasing atmosphere for feeling, and in exchange they humbly accept their dollars
ReplyDelete