Anurag Sagar, A Very Gnostic Book -- Eastern Gnosis

Anurag Sagar, A Very Gnostic Book -- Eastern Gnosis

 

See the link below to the Anurag Sagar web page online with download options for the book, also MP3 satsang talks based on the Anurag Sagar by Russell Perkins recorded many years ago in New Hampshire at Sant Bani Ashram.

Anurag Sagar -- The Ocean of Love, an Epic Poem Used by the Dharamdasis and Other Branches of Kabir Panth & Sant Mat

The Ocean of Love -- The Anurag Sagar,
Edited by Russell Perkins,
Published By Sant Bani Books,
Sanbornton, New Hampshire

From the Introduction

By Russell Perkins

Russell Perkins: "Anurag Sagar occupies a very unusual place in the literature of the Masters; it is at once one of the most venerated and least known of all esoteric books. It is the Masters themselves who venerate it, and they have often made use of it in one way or another; they themselves are able to read it, but most of their disciples know it only by hearsay, mostly because it is written in the pre-Hindi dialect called Braj which, according to the leading modern scholar on Kabir, had "already by Kabir's time. . .become the lyrical language par excellence" but which is extremely difficult for modern Indians to read; it relates to Hindi as spoken today somewhat as Chaucerian or Middle English relates to our language. There are also problems of interpretation: as with other mythopoeic treatments of these themes (particularly those of Blake, who of all Western writers is closest to Kabir both in spirit and in poetic genius) the poem is dense, at times enigmatic, and always demanding; so that to understand it fully without an authoritative commentary is not easy....

"....The alert reader of Swami Ji's Sar Bachan or the books of Sant Kirpal Singh will notice many points of contact. Tulsi Sahib devoted a major portion of one of his principal books to a detailed commentary on certain aspects of the poem. Baba Jaimal Singh considered it to be the most authoritative book on the teachings of the Masters as the following account by his disciple and successor Sawan Singh shows:

"'On the fourth day I went to attend Satsang. Baba Ji [Baba Jaimal Singh] was at that time explaining the meaning of Jap Ji Sahib. Well, I started my volley of questions-so much so that the audience got tired and began to feel restless at the large number of questions I had put . . . Now he wanted to point out the way, but I had read Vedanta. When I read Gurbani, my opinion was different; when I read Gita my opinion was again different, and I was unable to come to a decision. At last I applied for eight days leave to enable me to study the teachings of Baba Ji. He advised me to read Kabir Sahib's Anurag Sagar. I immediately ordered eight copies of this book from Bombay so that I could also give some to my friends...

"'After several conferences with Baba Ji, I was thoroughly convinced and received initiation from him on the 15th day of October in 1894.'

"That Baba Sawan Singh continued to hold Anurag Sagar in high regard after he became Master is shown by the following account, written by one of his secretaries:

"'Hazur [Baba Sawan Singh] one day told Seth Vasdev, whose car is always at Hazur's disposal, that he should read Kabir Sahib's Anurag Sagar (The Ocean of Intense Love). Hazur said that without studying it, one cannot fully understand the difference between Kal (the negative power) and Dayal Mat (the Path of the true and Merciful God), nor can one fully grasp the teachings of Sant Mat.'" (Rai Sahib Munshi Ram, "With the Three Masters", Vol. 2, p.187)

Some Reflections About the Anurag Sagar (Ocean of Love)

by James Bean

In dozens of Sant texts used in the Kabir line of Masters Kabir represents the universal Master, and his gurumukh disciple Dharamdas represents the satsangi, the disciple. These texts feature a dialgoue between student and Master, Q and A sessions between "Kabir" and "Dharamdas" that provide the spiritual seeker much insight about The Path of the Masters. They also motivate the initiate to do simran (Remembrance of God), the mental repetition of God's Name(s), and to meditate upon the Sound Current every day in order to abide in the protection and grace of the Positive Power that defeats Kal (the universal mind, negative power, the Gnostic false god known as the Demiurge) in the lower worlds of illusion, mind and matter.

"The Anurag Sagar of Kabir" is an epic poem attributed to Guru Kabir that probably was authored by Sant Dharamdas or someone in the Dharamdasi branch of the Kabir lineage after the time of Kabir. It is a faithful presentation of the teachings of the Masters including Kabir. Anurag Sagar has become a great spiritual classic of the East, a kind of Sant Mat "Book of Genesis" or "Gospel" of the Four Yugas of time, vast epochs referred to as: Satya Yuga, Treta Yuga, Dvapara Yuga, and Kali Yuga. To some degree it reminds me of the Gnostic creation as well as Fall of Sophia myths found in the Nag Hammadi Library and Pistis Sophia.

The out-of-this-world mysticism of the Masters, including the teachings found in the Anurag Sagar, has been called "Esoteric Santism" by Professor Mark Juergensmeyer in his book, "Radhasoami Reality," Princeton University Press. "Esoteric Santism" is his term for the very developed, detailed decriptions of the experience of inner heavenly regions, the heaven-ascending mysticism practiced by a certain branch of the Kabir lineage known as the Dharamdasis, also by Sant Dariya Sahib of Bihar and his spiritual successors, Param Sant Tulsi Sahib of Hathras, Swami Ji Maharaj of Agra, Huzur Maharaj of Agra, Maharishi Mehi, and Sant Mat Masters in certain lineages up to the present time.
 

Download the Anurag Sagar PDF File and Listen to MP3 Satsangs Based on the Anurag Sagar, by Russell Perkins:

https://www.spiritualawakeningradio.com/anurag-sagar

 

 

Spiritual Principles of Sant Mat Mysticism

Spiritual Principles of Sant Mat Mysticism

Sant Mat Fellowship:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SantMatFellowship
{"This mysterious path is described in the holy books,
but it cannot be found simply by the study of sacred texts. It is found by the grace and guidance of an accomplished teacher."}




1. Ultimate Reality is beyond any beginning or end, infinite, beyond birth, beyond the senses, all-pervading yet beyond pervasiveness. It must therefore be understood as the Supreme Being. This Essential Element is known as the Lord of All and is the foundation of all things. This Being is beyond both the inanimate and animate aspects of nature. It is without qualities and beyond qualities. Its nature is infinite, imperishable, all-powerful. It is beyond time and space, beyond sound and beyond form. It is the One without a second. The Supreme Being is beyond the scope of mind, the intellect and the senses. This entire universe is powered by the energy of this Being. This Being is not human. It is not manifested in physical form. It has existence beyond the illusion of maya, and there is nothing that exists outside of it. It is the Being which is eternal, existing from the beginning. Santmat considers this Being as the Divine Reality and this [knowing or merging with] Being is the goal of all spirituality.

2. The individual soul is an inseparable part of the Supreme Being.

3. The physical world of nature was created. It has an origin and an end.

4. The soul bound by illusion (maya) remains in the cycle of death and birth. This is the cause of all suffering. In order to escape from this cycle of death and birth we must experience realization of this Supreme Being.

5. By practicing devotion through these four techniques: Manas Japa (recitation of the divine name [Simran]), Manas Dhyana (focus on the divine form or guru [Dhyan]), Dristi Sadhana (focus on the infinitesimal Point [Third Eye Center -- contemplating the inner Light, Yoga of Light]), and Nadanusandhana Yoga (concentration on the inner divine sounds [Bhajan, Nada Yoga, Surat Shabd Yoga, Yoga of Sound] -- the practitioner consecutively transcends the realms of darkness, light, and sound which cloak the Truth -- the Divine. Only through a human body is a person able to achieve unity with the Divine.

6. Lying, stealing, intake of intoxicating substances, adultery, and violence (including harming other beings) are the five sins to be avoided. Eating meat or fish is also considered to be a form of violence and should be avoided. The aspirants of Santmat must abstain from these vices.

7. Consider the following as the requirements to attain liberation:

Trust and belief in the Divine;

commitment to seek the Divine within;

devotion to a spiritual master;

listening to the teaching of the spiritual discourse [satsang] including study of the teaching of the saints and the scriptures;

and diligent meditation practice.

-- Sant Sevi Ji Maharaj, "The Harmony of All Religions"

The individual soul has descended from the higher worlds [the Realm of the Divine] to this city of illusion, bodily existence. It has descended from the Soundless state to the essence of Sound, from that Sound to Light, and finally from the realm of Light to the realm of Darkness. The qualities (dharmas, natural tendencies) of the sense organs draw us downward and away from our true nature. The nature of the soul (atman) draws us upwards and inwards and establishes us in our own true nature.

To go back to our origins means returning: withdrawal from the sense organs in order to go upward (by withdrawing consciousness) from the darkness to the realms of Light and Sound, in other words, to go inward from the external sense organs to the depth of the inner self. (Both of these expressions are exact special metaphors that describe the same movement.) The natural tendencies of the soul (atman) are to move from outward to inward. The current of consciousness which is dispersed in the nine gates of the body and the nine senses, must be collected at the tenth gate. The tenth gate is the gathering point of consciousness; therein lies the path for our return. It is also known as the sixth chakra, the third eye, bindu, the center located between the two eyebrows. This is the act by which we leave the gates of the sense organs and become established in the soul. We travel back from the Realm of Darkness to the Realm of Light, from the Light to the Divine Sound, and from the Realm of Sound to the Soundless state. This is returning back -- the return. This is what dharma or religion really intends to teach us. This is the essence of dharma.

-- Sant Sevi Ji Maharaj

1. Ultimate Reality is beyond any beginning or end, infinite, beyond birth, beyond the senses, all-pervading yet beyond pervasiveness. It must therefore be understood as the Supreme Being. This Essential Element is known as the Lord of All and is the foundation of all things. This Being is beyond both the inanimate and animate aspects of nature. It is without qualities and beyond qualities. Its nature is infinite, imperishable, all-powerful. It is beyond time and space, beyond sound and beyond form. It is the One without a second. The Supreme Being is beyond the scope of mind, the intellect and the senses. This entire universe is powered by the energy of this Being. This Being is not human. It is not manifested in physical form. It has existence beyond the illusion of maya, and there is nothing that exists outside of it. It is the Being which is eternal, existing from the beginning. Santmat considers this Being as the Divine Reality and this [knowing or merging with] Being is the goal of all spirituality.

2. The individual soul is an inseparable part of the Supreme Being.

3. The physical world of nature was created. It has an origin and an end.

4. The soul bound by illusion (maya) remains in the cycle of death and birth. This is the cause of all suffering. In order to escape from this cycle of death and birth we must experience realization of this Supreme Being.

5. By practicing devotion through these four techniques: Manas Japa (recitation of the divine name [Simran]), Manas Dhyana (focus on a divine form or form of one's guru [Dhyan]), Dristi Sadhana (focus on the infinitesimal Point [Third Eye Center -- contemplating the inner Light]), and Nada-nu-sandhana Yoga (concentration on the inner divine sounds [Nada/Surat Shabd Yoga] -- the practitioner consecutively transcends the realms of darkness, light, and sound which cloak the Truth -- the Divine. Only through a human body is a person able to achieve unity with the Divine.

6. Lying, stealing, intake of intoxicating substances, adultery, and violence (including harming other beings) are the five sins to be avoided. Eating meat or fish is also considered to be a form of violence and should be avoided. The aspirants of Santmat must abstain from these vices.

7. Consider the following as the requirements to attain liberation:

Trust and belief in the Divine;

commitment to seek the Divine within;

devotion to a spiritual master;

listening to the teaching of the spiritual discourse [satsang] including study of the teaching of the saints and the scriptures;

and diligent meditation practice.

-- Sant Sevi Ji Maharaj, "The Harmony of All Religions"

The individual soul has descended from the higher worlds [the Realm of the Divine] to this city of illusion, bodily existence. It has descended from the Soundless state to the essence of Sound, from that Sound to Light, and finally from the realm of Light to the realm of Darkness. The qualities (dharmas, natural tendencies) of the sense organs draw us downward and away from our true nature. The nature of the soul (atman) draws us upwards and inwards and establishes us in our own true nature.

To go back to our origins means returning: withdrawal from the sense organs in order to go upward (by withdrawing consciousness) from the darkness to the realms of Light and Sound, in other words, to go inward from the external sense organs to the depth of the inner self. (Both of these expressions are exact special metaphors that describe the same movement.) The natural tendencies of the soul (atman) are to move from outward to inward. The current of consciousness which is dispersed in the nine gates of the body and the nine senses, must be collected at the tenth gate. The tenth gate is the gathering point of consciousness; therein lies the path for our return. It is also known as the sixth chakra, the third eye, bindu, the center located between the two eyebrows. This is the act by which we leave the gates of the sense organs and become established in the soul. We travel back from the Realm of Darkness to the Realm of Light, from the Light to the Divine Sound, and from the Realm of Sound to the Soundless state. This is returning back -- the return. This is what dharma or religion really intends to teach us. This is the essence of dharma.

-- Sant Sevi Ji Maharaj