Nityananda- the one who knew “eternal happiness”

From his being, grace and divine bliss are constantly poured

Nityananda means “eternal happiness” (nitya- eternal and ananda- happiness). His name was a definition of his condition, always being in divine consciousness, in divine ecstasy.

This state that represents him is described by Swami Muktananda in his work “Maha Siddha Yoga – The Secrets of the Path to Perfection“.

 

“Oh, Bhagavan Nityananda, my Master, you have lived in great austerity. You were always surrounded by countless objects, but your hands did not touch them and your gaze did not rest on them. You lived in an isolated place, in the jungle to which, back then, there was no way in. Now the place has become a sanctuary; thus an existence of siddha is crowned.
You knew the past, the present and the future. Even if you only uttered one word, he was never in vain. You were the very embodiment of renunciation, you who were permanently immersed in the fullness of inner ecstasy. This continuous experience of inner ecstasy is the natural state of a siddha.

You were constantly absorbed in bliss. Your very name was a bliss (Nityananda means eternal bliss). When you laughed, joy and ecstasy emanated from every cell of your being, as if your body had disintegrated under the pressure of that endless joy. You have always spoken in aphorisms. Even if you only spoke a very short word, it was as meaningful as a long speech. Sometimes you remained silent for two or three days in a row. This is the extraordinary way of being of the siddha-si. “

He was also known as Bhagwan Nityananda.

Its origin is rooted in mystery

It is said that he was found in a forest by an old lady around 1896. The old lady had a family, but she took it to a friend who really wanted to have children, but couldn’t get pregnant. She adopted him with great joy and gave him the name Ram.

Unfortunately, he died when the little one was only 6 years old.

He was taken care of by the lawyer his adoptive mother worked for. Although he was not his child, he felt an inexible attack on him and a desire to protect him. Thus, he took him on his travels. During these journeys, arriving at a temple of Krishna, Ram proved that he had special esoteric knowledge, a fact also confirmed by an astrologer who said that he was a being with a high spiritual level.

Around the age of ten, arriving in the holy city of Benares, Ram told his lawyer about some divine visions he had and that it was time to break up to devote himself to spirituality.

He spent about 6 years in the Himalayas and then moved to Kannagarh, where he meditated in a cave, gaining the state of nirvikalpa samadhi.

Because he didn’t have water nearby, he created a stream of water in the cave, which from that moment on flows continuously. Since that time the site has become a place of pilgrimage called Guruvan.

Different forms of samadhi

Samadhi, the ultimate state of divine ecstasy, is the state in which we find the outer universe within us. I mean, the limited being becomes one with divinity. The ultimate goal of any spiritual seeker is full communion with God. The man gets to feel free, alive and happy.

There are many forms of samadhi.

Savikalapa samadhi is the first stage, the superficial one, and represents the state in which there are still changes in the mind. In this phase, analyses and syntheses, investigations and abstract reasoning take place.

Nirviklapla samadhi is the state in which man transcends all mental fluctuations, i.e. both thoughts and emotions. Man feels free, unlimited and overwhelmed by divine bliss. When this state becomes continuous and natural, one attains the state called Sahajavastha, which is the condition of a living liberated.

But not only that, the yogi can retain this state as a state of background while being present in the world, always connected to his divine nature, to the infinity of his heart. He always feels free, alive and happy regardless of the external circumstances.

Mahasamadhi is the ultimate form of ecstatic identification with the Divinity. It is the last stage, the highest of the completion of consciousness, which, however, involves the total depsrence of the yogi’s consciousness by the lower structures. So it means that the yogi leaves the physical plane, but his death is lived lucidly, fully conscious, as a transition into another plane of higher, divine consciousness. All great yogis and fully spiritually liberated human beings leave the physical plane only when they consider it oprtun and only with the full end of their spiritual, divine mission.

The ashram of Ganeshpur-the place sanctified by its presence

After a long time of pilgrimage throughout India he remained to live in Ganeshpi to fulfill his divine mission.

“It is necessary for man to seek the shortest way and the quickest means to return ‘home’ – to turn the spark into a flame, to merge with it, and to identify himself with the great fire that ignited the spark.”

The ashram in which he lived is a beautiful, quiet and serene place. As soon as you step into the temple you feel a state of calm and serenity descending upon you. The blessed peace of silence is tangible here. People speak in whispers only when necessary so as not to disturb at all the peace and quiet that reign here.

At the gate of the ashram the devotions stood for hours in line regardless of the weather to come to have his blessing. The devotion, love and adoration that reigned in this place made Ganeshpur a place where heaven joined the earth, the divine with the profane.

One of his disciples said:

“From the moment Nityananda poured out her grace on us, we no longer felt limited by time. Indeed, its spiritual force helps us transcend time. We live a continuous ecstatic present. It transforms us from ignorant to enlightened.”

With knowledge of Hindi, English, Tamil, Telugu, Malaja, Kannada and Marate, he guided the searchers in different ways according to their ability.

There’s no writing left of him. Moreover, he did not consider himself to be a master or belonging to a spiritual path. Nor did he pursue to have disciples or to heal people. However, he was highly sought after and adored by people who were either seeking healing or seeking spiritual liberation.

Being permanently in the state of divine bliss, he influenced those around him simply by his presence. People were cured of various diseases with his grace. All the devotions who arrived in his presence found peace and had a complete sense of fulfillment.

Grace emanated from his being and offered people suffering comfort, even to those who were blind or with various disabilities. Through his divine presence, warm gaze and gentle smile he could remove the selfish nature of men and direct them to the divine.

All who came enjoyed the ocean of love and peace that came from his being.

The ashram was visited not only by adults, but also by many children. Bhagwan loved children very much and offered a free meal daily for over a thousand children in nearby villages. He himself played with them and offered them sweets, toys and clothes.

To leave the physical plane by entering Mahasamadhi

Bhagwan led an extremely simple life with an assiduous spiritual practice.

Towards the end of his life he devoted more and more time to spiritual practice and held a lot of black fasting, so that he had become very weak.

He announced two weeks before it was time to leave the physical plan. He remained in a state of calm, brilliance and serenity until the end.

On August 8, 1961, he entered Mahasamadhi.