I was fortunate to have managed to take an early morning dip at the Kumbh the last time it took place in Haridwar. A group of Italian journalists had come to cover the event and were staying at my hotel. They were excited to meet people who had achieved or were on the path of salvation.
When the group returned to the hotel in the evening, I noticed that some of them had bandages on their heads, one had a swollen eye, another a plastered arm. I knew what had happened, but out of politeness, I asked them. One of them said, “A sadhu hit me. Why would he do that?” I inquired if he had met a specific kind of man and was told not to click his picture, but he still did. His reply was a yes.
I explained to him that real sadhus do not meet or talk about their experiences to people, least of all to journalists. It is only wannabes (people like me, at that time) who want to show off their half-baked knowledge or the ones who have no idea about yog but want to sell their distorted notions for monetary gain, name and fame (which is a route into maya, not out of it), who talk to the media. A rare third variety is the people who have a message to give (not sell). They were lucky to have found a real sadhu.
Their next question was, “How will a dip in the river wash off all my sins?” I told them that I am yet to find out for myself, and would let them know once I did.
Today, when my students ask me for permission to go for a dip, I only smile, for I know that the only exit route from the maya of this world is to improve your karmas and, through service and charity, undo the bad things you have done.
The route to moksha, however, is your desire. Before treading the path for moksha, one must ask oneself whether they want to leave their money, business, family, friends, even one’s body behind...Once the desire has set in, the journey begins.
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