I have been uninspired of late. Not much was happening. Yes the Rupee Dollar exchange rate has been soaring (or plummeting, depending on how you look at it), the stock market has been crashing, scams continue with the newest being the NSEL one, but all that was boring. We have seen all that, to use the language of our `Yuva Neta’ Rahul Gandhi, we have seen all that `boss’.
Then, it was Divine Intervention. I was struck by the light. I became a follower of His Holiness Sant Sri Asharamji Bapu. He gave me inspiration, he [or should it be He] showed me the way, He brought vim and vigor back to my life, a fresh perspective. And for that I am ever grateful. Let me tell you how this happened.
For all those of my readers who are unenlightened or who live under stones, I suggest you read and visit his official website. It is fantastic. For those of you who cannot be bothered reading the official website, permit me to give you just a few snippets of His life. Param Pujya Sant Shri Asharamji, endearingly called 'Bapu', is a Self-Realized Saint from India. Pujya Bapuji preaches the existence of One Supreme Conscious in every human being; be it Hindu, Muslim, Christian, Sikh or anyone else. They say God is inscrutable. The actions of Bapuji seem inscrutable too.
Sounds really nice does it not. When reading this, I remembered reading the website of the BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha. That says that “Bhagwan Swaminarayan took birth to reinstate the four values of dharma, satya, ahimsa, and brahmacharya. He displayed a commitment to these values from an early age. Whether young or old, Ghanshyam was a role model for all those with whom He came into contact. It was clear Ghanshyam possessed qualities that surpassed human characteristics.”
Both are fascinating stories. I leave you to draw your own conclusions. Now let us switch to the present.
There was a 16 year old girl, whose parents were blind followers of a Godman. So much so that the parents devotion caught the attention of the Godman. The parents and the girl were regular visitors to the Godman’s ashrams. One day this girl started to vomit. The staff at the Ashram promptly reached the conclusion that the girl had been possessed by, guess who, the Devil, of course. The Devil had to be exorcised. So what do they do? They ask the Godman to take charge. He promptly puts the girl in a room, takes his clothes off and starts to exorcise the devil from the girl. Folks, this is not a plot from a third grade XXX rated pornographic film. Nor is this some sort of pervert fantasy that I have written nor is it a Ram Gopal Verma or Ramsay Brothers film. No, this is what is alleged to have been done by our friend His Holiness Sant Sri Asharamji Bapu. Read the whole report here. Oh, and just by the way, this is 2013 not some Roman era mumbo jumbo.
So, now what do the parents and the girl do? They lodged a complaint alleging rape or molestation by His Holiness Sant Sri Asharamji Bapu. Once this news hit our `middia’ I have become an unashamed follower of His Holiness Sant Sri Asharamji Bapu.
I assume the story is true. I have made no personal investigation. My conclusions and biases are based only on news reports.
I am fascinated because it is clear as daylight to me that His Holiness Sant Sri Asharamji Bapu is as mortal and human as any of us. Clearly he has no Divine powers, even his attempt at exorcism seemed to have come to naught. Poor chap is now accused of rape. What has every person threatened with some jail time done? Be it Sanjay Dutt or Salman Khan or Alistair Periera all of them used every legal remedy, every connection however tenuous, every mode even slightly foul, to stay away or out of jail. What is His Holiness Sant Sri Asharamji Bapu doing? Exactly the same thing, and why not? It is his `job’ to stay out of jail, just as much as it is the `job’ of the police to put him in jail, Why is what he is doing in any way wrong? It is just that those in charge of enforcing the law have no guts, gumption, political will or what have you to actually enforce the law. Should His Holiness Sant Sri Asharamji Bapu be criticised for evading arrest? Why should he subject himself to arrest, regardless of what he has done? I repeat, His Holiness Sant Sri Asharamji Bapu is doing an excellent `job’ at staying out of jail. It is indeed sad that the law enforcement guys are a whole bunch of impotents. Or am I needlessly insulting impotents?