Mahavatar Babaji

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Mahavatar Babaji a drawing from Autobiography of a Yogi, commissioned by Yogananda and

based on his own meeting with Babaji
Part of a series on

Hindu philosophy

stika

Samkhya

Yoga
Nyaya

Vaisheshika

Mmms

Vedanta

Advaita Vedanta
Vishishtadvaita

Dvaitadvaita

Dvaita

Achintya Bheda Abheda

Bhedabheda

Nstika

Crvka

jvika

Jainism

Buddhism

Other schools[show]
People

Acharyas[show]
Poet-Saints[show]
Yogin[show]
Philosophers[show]

Mahavatar Babaji (IAST: Mahvatr Bbj) is the name given to an Indian saint by
Shymacharan Lahir and several of his disciples[1] who met Mahavatar Babaji between 1861 and
1935. Some of these meetings were described by Paramahansa Yogananda in his book
Autobiography of a Yogi, including a first hand telling of Yogananda's own meeting with
Mahavatar Babaji.[2] Another first hand account was given by Yukteswar Giri in his book The
Holy Science.[3] All of these accounts, along with additional meetings with Mahavatar Babaji, are
described in various biographies[4][5][6] of those mentioned by Yogananda.

Mahavatar Babaji's given name is unknown, so those who met him during that period all called
him by the title first given to him by Lahir.[2][6] "Mahavatar" means "great avatar", and "Babaji"
simply means "revered father". Some of the encounters included two or more witnesses
discussions between those who met Mahavatar Babaji indicate that they all met the same person.
[2][4][5]

Contents

1 Childhood
2 Quest for self realisation

3 Reports of meetings, 18611966

o

3.1 Shymacharan Lahir

3.2 Disciples of Shymacharan Lahir

4 Traditional legends

5 Visiting Mahavatar Babaji's cave at Kukuchina

6 Modern claims and popular references

7 See also

8 Notes

9 Further reading

10 External links

Childhood
There are very few accounts of Babaji's childhood, one source of information is the book Babaji
and the 18 Siddha Kriya Yoga tradition by Marshall Govindan.[7] According to Govindan, Babaji
was named Nagarajan (king of serpents) by his parents. V.T. Neelakantan and S.A.A. Ramaiah
founded on 17 October 1952, (they claim at the request of Babaji) a new organisation, "Kriya
Babaji Sangah," dedicated to the teaching of Babaji's Kriya Yoga. They claim that in 1953
Mahavatar Babaji told them that he had been born on 30 November 203 CE in a small coastal
village now known as Parangipettai, in Tamil Nadu, India.[8] Babaji's Kriya Yoga Order of
Acharyas Trust (Kriya Babaji Sangah) and their branch organisations claim his place and date of
birth.[8] He was a disciple of Bogar and his birth name is Nagarajan.[7][8]
In the writings of Paramahansa Yogananda in his Autobiography of a Yogi, many references were
made to Mahavatar Babaji including from Lahir and Yukteshwar.[2] In his book The Second
Coming of Christ, Yogananda states that Jesus Christ went to India and conferred with Mahavatar
Babaji. This would make Babaji at least 2000 years old.[9] According to Govindan's book, Babaji
Nagaraj's father was the priest of the village's temple. Babaji revealed only those details which

he believed to be formative as well as potentially instructive to his disciples. Govindan

mentioned one incident like this: "One time Nagaraj's mother had got one rare jackfruit for a
family feast and put it aside. Babaji was only 4 years old at that time. He found the jackfruit
when his mother was not around and ate it all. When his mother came to know about it, she flew
in blind rage and stuffed a cloth inside Babaji's mouth, nearly suffocating him, but he survived.
Later on he thanked God for showing him that she was to be loved without attachment or
illusion. His Love for his mother became unconditional and detached."[7]
When Nagaraj was about 5 years old, someone kidnapped him and sold him as a slave at
Calcutta (Now Kolkata). His new owner however was a kind man and he freed Nagaraj shortly
thereafter. Nagaraj then joined a small group of wandering sannysin due to their radiant faces
and love for God. During the next few years, he wandered from place to place, studying holy
scriptures like the Vedas, Upanishad, Mahabharata, Ramayana, Bhagavad Gita.

Quest for self realisation

According to Marshall Govindan's book, at the age of eleven, he made a difficult journey by foot
and boat with a group of ascetics to Kataragama, Sri Lanka. Nagaraj met Siddha Bhogarnathar
and became his disciple. Nagaraj performed intensive yogic sadhana for a long time with him.
Bhogarnather inspired Nagaraj to seek his initiation into Kriya Kundalini Pranayam from Siddha
Agastya. Babaji became a disciple of Siddha Agastya. Nagaraj was initiated into the secrets of
Kriya Kundalini Pranayama or "Vasi Yogam". Babaji made a long pilgrimage to Badrinath and
spent eighteen months practising yogic kriya taught to him by Siddha Agastya and Bhogarnathar.
Babaji attained self-realization shortly thereafter.[7]
They (who?) also claim that these revelations were made by Babaji himself to S.A.A. Ramaiah, a
young graduate student in geology at the University of Madras and V.T. Neelakantan, a famous
journalist, and close student of Annie Besant, President of the Theosophical Society and mentor
of Krishnamurti. Babaji was said to have appeared to each of them independently and then
brought them together to work for his Mission in 1942.[10]

Reports of meetings, 18611966

Shymacharan Lahir
Main article: Lahiri Mahasaya
The first reported encounter with Mahavatar Babaji was in 1861, when Shymacharan Lahir
(called "Mahsaya" by disciples, devotees, and admirers) was posted to Ranikhet in his work as
an accountant for the British government. One day while walking in the hills of Dunagiri above
Ranikhet, he heard a voice calling his name. Following the voice up the mountain, he met a "tall,
divinely radiant sadhu."[6] He was amazed to find that the sadhu knew his name.[2][6] This sadhu
was Mahavatar Babaji.

Mahavatar Babaji told Lahir that he was his guru from the past, then initiated him into Kriya
Yoga and instructed Lahiri to initiate others. Lahiri wanted to remain with Mahavatar Babaji,
who told him instead that he must return to the world to teach Kriya Yoga and that "Kriya Yoga
sadhana would spread through the people of the world through his (Lahiri's) presence in the
world."[6]
Lahir reported that Mahavatar Babaji did not give his name or background, so Lahiri gave him
the title "Mahavatar Babaji." Many sadhus in India are called Babaji, and sometimes even
"Babaji Maharaj", which has caused confusion between Mahavatar Babaji and other sadhus with
similar names.[6]
Lahir had many meetings with Mahavatar Babaji, recounted in several books, including
Paramhansa Yogananda's Autobiography of a Yogi,[2] Yogiraj Shyama Charan Lahiri Mahasaya
(Lahiri's biography),[6] and Purana Purusha: Yogiraj Sri Shama Churn Lahiri,[11] among others.
The references of Sri Lahiri mahasaya in Sampoorna Sripada Vallabha Charitam, as the guru of
Sri Shirdi Saibaba and initiating him to kriya yoga.

Disciples of Shymacharan Lahir

Several disciples of Shymacharan Lahir also said that they had met Babaji. Through discussion
with each other, and the fact that some of these encounters included two or more witnesses, they
confirmed that the person they saw was the same sadhu that Lahir called Mahavatar Babaji.[2][6]
[12]

In 1894, at the Kumbha Mela in Allahabad, Yukteswar Giri, a disciple of Lahir, met Mahavatar
Babaji. He was surprised by the striking resemblance between Lahir and Mahavatar Babaji.[2][5]
Others who met Babaji also commented on the resemblance.[6] It was at this meeting that
Mahavatar Babaji instructed Sri Yukteswar to write the book that was to become Kaivalya
Darshanam, or The Holy Science.[3] Yukteswar had two more meetings with Mahavatar Babaji,
including one in the presence of Lahiri Mahasaya.[2][5][6]
Pranabananda Giri, another disciple of Lahir, also met Mahavatar Babaji in the presence of
Lahir, at Lahir's home. Pranavananda asked Mahavatar Babaji his age. Mahavatar Babaji
responded that he was about 500 years old at that time.[4]
Keshabananda, a disciple of Lahir, tells of meeting Mahavatar Babaji in the mountains near
Badrinath around 1935, after he became lost wandering in the mountains.[2] At that meeting,
Pranabananda reported that Babaji gave him a message for Paramahansa Yogananda, that "I
won't see him this time, as he is eagerly hoping; but I shall see him on some other occasion."[2] In
his book Autobiography of a Yogi, Paramahansa Yogananda wrote that Mahavatar Babaji visited
him before his journey to America and addressed him saying, "You are the one I have chosen to
spread the message of Kriya Yoga in the West."[2]
Other disciples of Lahir who reported meetings with Mahavatar Babaji include Kebalananda
Giri[12] and Ram Gopal Muzumdar, who recounted meeting Mahavatar Babaji and his sister,

whom he called Mataji.[2][6] In addition, a disciple of Trailanga Swami, Shankari Mata (also
called Shankari Mai Jiew) met Mahavatar Babaji while visiting Lahiri Mahasaya.[2][6]

Traditional legends
Legendary powers and age have been attributed to Mahavatar Babaji by the disciples of Lahir.
These stories have led many to believe that Mahavatar Babaji is a legendary person, rather than a
real sadhu that was seen by numerous witnesses from 1861 to 1935.
Paramahansa Yogananda, in his Autobiography, described Mahavatar Babaji's role on earth:
The Mahavatar is in constant communion with Christ; together they send out vibrations of
redemption, and have planned the spiritual technique of salvation for this age. The work of these
two fully-illumined mastersone with the body, and one without itis to inspire the nations to
forsake suicidal wars, race hatreds, religious sectarianism, and the boomerang-evils of
materialism. Babaji is well aware of the trend of modern times, especially of the influence and
complexities of Western civilization, and realizes the necessity of spreading the self-liberations
of yoga equally in the West and in the East.
In addition, Babaji is reputed to be ageless, according to some accounts, and about 500 years old
around the late 1800s, according to Pranabananda.[4] Yogananda reports that, according to the
disciples of Lahir, nobody knows Babaji's age, family, place of birth, true name, or other details
"dear to the annalist's heart."[2]
According to Yogananda's autobiography, he has a sister called Mataji (meaning "Holy Mother")
who also has lived throughout the centuries. Her level of spiritual attainment is comparable to
her brother's, and she lives in a state of spiritual ecstasy in an underground cave. Although only
three pages in the book are dedicated to her, she is described by Ram Gopal as "young and
surpassingly lovely" as well as a "glorious woman."[2]
Yogananda frequently prayed out loud to "Babaji-Krishna."[13]

Visiting Mahavatar Babaji's cave at Kukuchina

Kukuchina (locals spell it out as Kukurchina) is a hamlet which is around 20 kms from
Dwarahat. At the 15th km from Dwarahat on the way to Kukuchina is the Dunagiri Mandir.
Kukuchina is the most nearest point which could be reached through road and to start the trek to
Babaji's cave. If travelling from Delhi, the easiest way is to board the Ranikhet Express, which
leaves Old Delhi railway station at 2230 hrs for Kathgodam. It is better to get down at Haldwani,
the station prior to Kathgodam, because it is from Haldwani bus-stand buses leave for Dwarahat
or Ranikhet. It is understood that there is one State owned roadways bus which leaves for
Kukuchina directly from Haldwani, at 0730 hrs. However, it reaches Kukuchina in the late
evening and after halting for the night at Kukuchina itself, it leaves Kukuchina for Haldwani the
next day early morning at 0630 hrs and reaches Haldwani around 1400 hrs. The one way fare
from Haldwani to Kukuchina is around Rs.230/- (as on May 2015). Alternately, if countinous

journey is not preferred, one can reach Ranikhet from Haldwani, which takes approximately 6
hours and then from Ranikhet to Dwarahat which may take another 90 minutes. From Dwarahat
one has to board a shared jeep which may charge somewhere between Rs. 40 to Rs. 50 for one
way travel upto Kukuchina. For those who can afford for taxi, can hire taxi from Haldwani
railway station itself, which do needs a good homework on the tariff and a pretty bargain.
The Yogoda Satsanga Ashram at Dwarahat is nearly 1.5 kms away from Dwarahat bus stand.
Members of the Satsanga alone have the privilege to stay at this ashram. Non-members can
either prefer to stay at Dwarahat, which preferably has choice of hotels / resort (primitive range)
or if one desires to stay away from the hustle bustle of market, Joshi restaurant at Kukuchina is
suggested. This is a paying guest house, wherein the tariff for one night varies from Rs. 750 to
1800 depending upon the accommodation. There are rooms and cottages in the guest house. The
guest house consist of a meditation hall too, which facilitates group meditation, if you plan a
group trek to Babaji's cave. Very simple food (dal & roti) can be ordered in advance to Shri
Joshi, who runs the guest house. Caution, there is no choice other than Joshi's guest house, if you
want to buy food. Cooking your own food is also ruled out. Beware! if you are one who would
need medical attention, there is no medical help available, except for the Gods whose abode is in
the adjacent Himalayas.
Morning is the best time to start the trek towards Babaji's cave; because the weather in the hills is
unpredictable. 25 meters from Joshi restaurant (actually a tea shop), there are 2 trek paths - one
to Pandav Kholi and other to Babaji's cave. The entry to Pandav Kholi can be identified by a
small welcome arch at the beginning of the trek; whereas to Babaji's cave, it is a simple pathway.
The distance from Joshi's restaurant to Babaji's cave is around 2.5 kms to 3.0 kms. Walking all
alone the entire path, one can immerse oneself in the scenic beauty of the mountains and thus get
into that much needed meditation mood. The entire path is mostly deserted, except you can find
one or two cattle boys or girls. The entire path is a mixture of sand & gravel. Sign boards in
small size which indicate direction to the cave could be found to your left. However, these sign
boards are not so prominent. After 30 to 40 minutes of the trek one may feel exhausted; for the
normal trekkers it is advised that they carry along with them water or energy drinks. They can sit
and relax for a few minutes and then proceed. After all you are there to enjoy the journey to the
cave. By sitting and relaxing one can have a view of the majestic posture of the mountains and
the tall mountains will make you feel humble. A normal trekker may take anywhere between 60
to 90 minutes to reach Babaji's cave. Before reaching the cave you will be coming across Smriti
Bhavan which is a concrete structure. If desired one can meditate here also.
Sitting with closed eyes within Babaji's cave is a bliss. You choose to meditate, pray or simply sit
and observe yourself. It is simply peace within the cave. The silence of the mountains perked up
with croaking voice of insects and humming of bees makes it a perfect stage to meditate. It is
suggested to leave the cave by 2.00 pm because it is better to reach Kukuchina before dusk starts
settling down. Those who are physically and mentally strong can adventure to climb further up to
reach Pandav Kholi which is another 60 to 90 minute climb; but there are no sign boards on the
path from Babaji's cave to Pandav Kholi (8800 ft above sea level). Having a magi at Joshi's

restaurant after the trek will quench your hunger and provide the physical energy to have a good
sleep in the room or cottage.

Mahavatar Babaji - an immortal yogi and his

mission

Compiled By Hitesh Vashist

"In the hands of the Divine Father is the key to our Evolution. He is the one whose mission is to
assist the humanity in their quest for God Realization and spread the Universal message of
"Unconditional Love and Peace". He is the Collective Elohim out of which many awakened
beings continue to take birth and work for his mission. Yugas may come and go; this secluded
Siddha has retained his physical body for ages."
Mahavatar Babaji is a Himalayan Mahayogi who is living on Earth in his 1800 year old immortal
body. He is the founder of Kriya Yoga, a vidya that involves various breath techniques for
physical, mental, emotional and spiritual purification & evolution. Nothing much has been said
about his birth as he is considered to be the one who is beyond birth and death. But as per the
experiences of Yogi S.A.A.Ramaiaha and V.T. Neelakantan, Babaji was born on 30th
November, 203 A.D. in a small village now known as Parangipettai, in Tamil Nadu, India. Born
in the family of Nambudri Brahmins, his parents named him Nagaraj which means 'King of
Serpent'. He was titled as Mahavatar Babaji by one of his direct disciples, Shri Shyam Charan
Lahiri who reintroduced the science of Kriya Yoga to the world. Paramahansa Yogananda in the
Autobiography of a Yogi' described the appearance of Babaji as, "The deathless guru bears no

mark of age on his body; he appears to be a youth of not more than twenty-five. Fair-skinned, of
medium build and height, Babaji's beautiful, strong body radiates a perceptible glow. His eyes
are dark, calm, and tender; his long, lustrous hair is copper-colored. Sometimes Babaji's face
closely resembles that of Lahiri Mahasaya."
Siddha Boganathar and Siddha Agsatyar are known to be the teachers of Babaji under whose
guidance he blossomed to become the greatest Siddha the world has ever known. Most of the
times whenever one hears of Babaji, one thinks of Kriya Yoga. But he is much more than Kriya
Yoga. His mission includes helping humanity to gradually realise God, and through the resulting
Universal Vision of Love, a transformation of this world into a Divine Paradise. Babaji's mission
has included the assistance of some great souls like Adi Shankaracharya, Sant Kabir, Lahiri
Mahashaya who Babaji himself appeared to initiate. Babaji prefers to work anonymously but
continues to spread light through hundreds of his accomplished disciples. He is one of the most
accessible of all the ascended masters. His work continues to take shape through the work of all
who turn to him as their source of inspiration. The one who expresses pure love in thought, word
or deed is welcome to work under his guidance. He provides the three great vehicles to everyone
in order to work for his mission. These are Sadhana, Self-Surrender and Service. To manifest his
mission, one needs to give up the ego consciousness, serving selflessly, without attachment to the
fruits or results of the action. The "Universal Vision of Love" starts with loving oneself. One
should love and nourish each and every part of one's being: the physical, vital, emotional, mental
and spiritual. His work directs the saddhak to feel oneness with self & Babaji first and then
expanding one's feeling of identity to include the known ones. Ultimately, it amplifies to feel
oneness with the entire creation, where one sees Divinity in everyone.
Where there is love there is Babaji. By learning to communicate in the language of love with
Babaji and everyone, one can feel the transformation in their life and significant others, and
resolve the myriad problems that humanity is facing in many domains. Throughout infinity this
Eternal Master continues to watch over mankind till it gets liberated. Like a broadcast station, he
beams his Unconditional Love and acceptance to all who look for world transformation through
self transformation.

According to Marshall Govindan's book, at the age of eleven, he made a difficult

journey by foot and boat with a group of ascetics to Kataragama, Sri Lanka. Nagaraj
met Siddha Bhogarnathar and became his disciple. Nagaraj performed intensive
yogic sadhana for a long time with him. Bhogarnather inspired Nagaraj to seek his
initiation into Kriya Kundalini Pranayam from Siddha Agastya. Babaji became a
disciple of Siddha Agastya. Nagaraj was initiated into the secrets of Kriya Kundalini
Pranayama or "Vasi Yogam". Babaji made a long pilgrimage to Badrinath and spent
eighteen months practising yogic kriyataught to him by Siddha Agastya and
Bhogarnathar. Babaji attained self-realization shortly thereafter.[7]
They (who?) also claim that these revelations were made by Babaji himself to S.A.A.
Ramaiah, a young graduate student in geology at the University of Madras and V.T.
Neelakantan, a famous journalist, and close student of Annie Besant, President of
the Theosophical Society and mentor of Krishnamurti. Babaji was said to have
appeared to each of them independently and then brought them together to work
for his Mission in 1942.[10]

"Mahavatar Babaji (IAST: Mahvatr Bbj) is the name given to an

Indian saint byShymacharan Lahir and several of his disciples[1] who met
Mahavatar Babaji between 1861 and 1935. Some of these meetings were described
by Paramahansa Yogananda in his book Autobiography of a Yogi, including a first
hand telling of Yogananda's own meeting with Mahavatar Babaji.[2] Another first
hand account was given by Yukteswar Giriin his book The Holy Science.[3] All of
these accounts, along with additional meetings with Mahavatar Babaji, are
described in various biographies[4][5][6] of those mentioned by Yogananda.

"Mahavatar Babaji's given name is unknown, so those who met him during that
period all called him by the title first given to him by Lahir.[2][6] "Mahavatar"
means "great avatar", and "Babaji" simply means "revered father". Some of the
encounters included two or more witnessesdiscussions between those who met
Mahavatar Babaji indicate that they all met the same person.[2][4][5]
There are very few accounts of Babaji's childhood, one source of information is the
book Babaji and the 18 Siddha Kriya Yoga tradition by Marshall Govindan.
[7] According to Govindan, Babaji was named Nagarajan (king of serpents) by his
parents. V.T. Neelakantan and S.A.A. Ramaiah founded on 17 October 1952, (they
claim at the request of Babaji) a new organisation, "Kriya Babaji Sangah,"
dedicated to the teaching of Babaji's Kriya Yoga. They claim that in 1953 Mahavatar
Babaji told them that he had been born on 30 November 203 CE in a small coastal
village now known as Parangipettai, in Tamil Nadu, India.[8]Babaji's Kriya Yoga Order
of Acharyas Trust (Kriya Babaji Sangah) and their branch organisations claim his
place and date of birth.[8] He was a disciple of Bogar and his birth name is
Nagarajan.[7][8]
In the writings of Paramahansa Yogananda in his Autobiography of a Yogi, many
references were made to Mahavatar Babaji including from Lahir and Yukteshwar.
[2] In his book The Second Coming of Christ, Yogananda states that Jesus Christ
went to India and conferred with Mahavatar Babaji. This would make Babaji at least
2000 years old.[9] According to Govindan's book, Babaji Nagaraj's father was the
priest of the village's temple. Babaji revealed only those details which he believed
to be formative as well as potentially instructive to his disciples. Govindan
mentioned one incident like this: "One time Nagaraj's mother had got one
rare jackfruit for a family feast and put it aside. Babaji was only 4 years old at that
time. He found the jackfruit when his mother was not around and ate it all. When his
mother came to know about it, she flew in blind rage and stuffed a cloth inside
Babaji's mouth, nearly suffocating him, but he survived. Later on he thanked God
for showing him that she was to be loved without attachment or illusion. His Love
for his mother became unconditional and detached."[7]
When Nagaraj was about 5 years old, someone kidnapped him and sold him as a
slave at Calcutta (Now Kolkata). His new owner however was a kind man and he
freed Nagaraj shortly thereafter. Nagaraj then joined a small group of
wanderingsannysin due to their radiant faces and love for God. During the next
few years, he wandered from place to place, studying holy scriptures like
the Vedas, Upanishad, Mahabharata, Ramayana, Bhagavad Gita."