On 1st May, 20011 about 350 students of the Alumni of Bal Vikas of the city of Mumbai together with their Gurus assembled at Dharmakshetra at 10.30 am for the annual Alumni meet. The programme began with chanting of three aums followed by Sai Gayatri. District President of Mumbai Shri Nimish Pandya welcomed all and highlighted Swami’s message of looking inward through meditative introspection. This was followed by Jyoti Meditation and a beautiful Bhajan – Hum Bachpan Se Puja.
Shri Nimish Pandya stated very clearly three points that we all need to remember. Firstly, An Avtaar had come for the first time to reveal our Divinity by making us aware of our Reality. He also stressed that God resides not in temples or statues, but in the hearts of each and every one of us and lastly he concluded that the same God resides in everyone’s heart, establishing the omnipresence of the Lord and the Cosmic connectivity.
Shri Nimish Pandya also spoke about the importance of practicing what we preach citing Bhagwan’s example of “My life is my Message”. This was followed by the Bhajan – Love is my form, Truth is my Breath. He narrated Swami’s example of comparing the human body to a chocolate cover saying that we are attracted by the chocolate wrapper only until the time we taste the chocolate. So also unless we experience the divinity within we cannot overcome the body illusion.
Although, Bhagawan left his physical form and attained Samadhi on 24 April, 2011, Shri Nimish Pandya reiterated that it was just the physical form that has left us and that Swami’s message remains eternal and resonates in all of us. He also reminded us of our duty to uphold and follow Swami’s message. He then narrated the story of a follower of the Chinese Saint Confucius who gave up his life for restoring the Master's written messages which were sinking in water. Much like that, he mentioned that a true devotee / follower would give up one’s life to uphold the message of the Lord. He then spoke about Swami’s message of the importance and relevance of Meditation and Prayer. He said that Swami never fails to listen to a prayer and a sincere prayer never goes unanswered. He cited the example of Prashant Vaidyanathan, a Bal Vikas student who earnestly prayed and cried for Swami’s Vibhuti. Despite already having completed the Darshan for that day, Swami came back and answered Prashant’s sincere prayer and materialized the sacred Vibhuti much to Prashant’s delight. Several Bal Vikas students both present and past then came forward and narrated their experiences with Swami and how their lives were touched by Bhagwan. Their experiences reinforced the ideals that Swami conveyed through His messages. All the experiences emphasized Bhagwan’s omnipresence and omniscience.
Shri Nimish Pandya then conveyed a powerful message emphasizing that the real change within us is to remove the barriers of our mind. He quoted Swami’s saying – 'Master the mind and become the Mastermind'. The entire session was interspersed with soul stirring bhajans that reverberated warmly all over at Dharmakshetra.
Towards the end, Easwaramma scholarships were handed out to deserving girls, all of whom over the past several years have demonstrated excellence in academics. The Bhajan – Hum Sabh Milkar Mangal Gaayein followed. The function concluded around 1 pm with Swami’s Aarthi followed by Prasad.
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Bal Vikas Ex Students Meet - May 1, 2011 - Dharmakshetra, Mumbai