Ever since I could think and act on my own, I am more confused and at crossroads. Like the typical child of a conservative family, I implicitly followed and believed what my parents did and decades after they are gone, I still have no reasons to change that belief. Spirituality was a common faith undergoing in the family though rites were not as religiously done, more due to the social and economic conditions prevailing then rather than the belief and willingness ! I remember my dad performing elaborate sahasranamas in my early days. Then came the days of Sai bajans with the prasad being the best of attractions! Now, i realize that the many bajan songs of that time , nearly four decades after, are still fresh in my memory and I could recite them even now, without a pause ! Despite the years at Mylapore and the traditional bhakthi towards the Sankaracharyas at those times, my father never had a strong following for these acharyas and so it never got into me. I remember the streets being spruced up whenever there is a visit but, true to my parents' belief, they never excited me. But, one clear thought that was imbibed from my father was, whether you believe in some God or god men, never hurt the thoughts and beliefs of their followers !
As I grew up and started thinking on my own terms , I did realize that these enlightened elders do have something to excite people. Whether they are God or not, I couldn't care less, but so far as they are able to relieve the pains and assuage the minds of the needy in the accepted way, I am happy and I decided that we need to coexist. But, as days progressed, the way in which the learned sadhus and god men got caught in the quagmire of controversies was very disheartening, to say the least. Initial shock was the arrest and subsequent political discussions on Kanchi Sankaracharya
The latest is the controversy surrounding the property and the leftovers from Sathya Sai Baba. Everything was fine until the God men was breathing and within days of his passing away started all insinuations- cash chest at his place, unaccounted bullions being stashed away by the powers that are close to Prashanthi Nilayam, the foul publicity of 98 KGs of Gold, 300 KGs of Silver and hundreds of crores of cash.... the news, accusations , insinuations and the rumor mill doing the rounds non stop. I am not a great follower of these beliefs and I am not interested in the veracity of these but what hurts me is the falling from the pedestal of once the mighty and highly revered ! The common man who throng these seers and Sadhus- what do they expect from them? Some soothing words, guidelines to their battered soul and directions. If these gurus are going to falter- at least accused- they are left like orphans in the street. I pity them and sympathize with them.
The common man require some guiding spirits- someone to whom he /she could approach, when at cross roads. They do not require your wealth, your powers through political connections. Just advice/guide them.
A word of caution for the common man- It is your decision to choose any of these sadhus as gurus. But, in this material world, be prepared for anything. My personal opinion on the subject is different but one thing I am convinced is that there are enough Gods to follow across our temples and this should be enough through our life time. I feel i can focus on these and understand them better rather than spending my energy on living and walking Gods. God and religion are personal to everyone and you have a right to choose your path ! God Bless.
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