Ajja as I remember him

When I was a boy of eight, I was sitting by my father who was reading the news
paper. He suddenly exclaimed “Ramana Maharishi left the body”. When I asked him who
Raman Maharishi was, he told me briefly about the sage and his greatness, thus triggering
my interest in the sage’s life.

It was my fond desire to be with a Jeevan Mukta(one who is liberated while alive)who
is a simple villager with no scholarly attributes. My friend Yadunath told me about one
such person called Ajja.

After a few months, I was to have the good fortune of Ajja himself visiting my place.
He was brought by Mr. Ananda Rao of Mysore. I received him and offered him a chair. I
was told that Ajja was just discharged from a hospital and he looked weak. He sat quietly
for about 45 minutes and went away. Alas, I was not impressed by him. After a lapse of
about 6 months, Ajja again visited. This time it was in Mr. Chandrashekhar’s house in
Bangalore. This time Ajja talked at length on spiritual matters of my interest and I was
attracted to him.

Very soon my friend Yadunath offered to take to to Ajja’s Ashram for Gurupoornima.
It was on 16 July 2000 that I was waiting with bated breath for the Master’s Darshan in
the meditation hall of his Ashram at Puttur. After a while Ajja walked in and sat leaning
against the wall, steadfastly refusing to take a chair specially placed for him. Well, here I
was finally with the sage I so much wanted to be with.

In the evening, we went to see him in his room. Yadunath got up on Ajja’s cot and
started pressing his legs. A question arose in my mind as to how the sage was allowing
people to touch his body, as I know some of them did not like to be touched due to the
body’s sensitivity, but I did not speak out. Ajja who was lying all the while, sat up,
looked me in the eye and told me “for several years whenever any person came near this
body, that person’s mental an physical pains were transferred to this body. But for some
reason it is not happening now a days”. I was at once startled at the way he could read my
thoughts and cared to answer an unspoken question. I was hooked by his simplicity and
the captivating charm he exuded.

In my next visit Ajja told me I was with him in his previous birth, thus confirming the
importance of the Guru-disciple relationship which transcends death. Then I knew that he
came looking for me and got me. I knew how fortunate I was to be near such a person,
and I visited him every month for nearly seven years.
Some worldly problems were troubling me for many years, defying any solution. Soon
after I met Ajja, I found easy solutions for them as if Ajja just waved them out of my
way.

I fully believed in the scriptural statement that the very presence of a sage is cleansing.
The sage by his selfless living sets a live everyday example as to how to live beautifully
without fear, desire and worldly attachments. Whereas most of us are beset with fear of
disease, I found Ajja taking on other’s diseases out of compassion, in spite of his
advanced age. I found his non attachment complete and he never identified himself with
the body.

Ajja very kindly permitted me to sit in his presence. I knew how menacingly powerful
my inner enemies were namely Anger, lust, greed, arrogance, temptation and jealousy.
Apart from these, my senses were hankering for enjoyments and I badly needed the
Master’s help to subdue them. Our tradition says that the Sadhana will fructify fast in the
presence of a sage. I was determined to make the best use of the sage’s presence and my
sadhana was focused on Mano Nigraha (restraint of mind) and Indriya Nigraha (restraint
of the senses).As the senses and the six inner enemies work through the mind, mental
tranquility is essential. So I used to sit with him quietly. If any visitor asked for a system
of sadhana, Ajja would suggest Summane Iru (just be) and Saranagati (surrender) as
sadhana. Since all action emanates from the mind, this system is aimed at destroying the
mind which is the source of all human problems.

Ajja used to exhort us constantly to go inward to find our real nature. He used to say
that this would not cost even a paise as we were already equipped with all the necessary
apparatus. As a preliminary step he used to emphasise the importance of laying a strong
and unshakable ethical foundation. Some people who were hoping that he will offer them
Moksha on a platter, used to tell him that without his grace, they cannot do anything. Ajja
would then say that there are many celestial beings who are constantly searching for a
person with a strong spiritual foundation so that they can bestow their grace, and without
a proper foundation, none can help.

Ajja being a Gyani was not at all in favour of visiting temples, doing Pujas and other
Karma Kanda to propitiate the Gods. According to him, such acts will hinder the
sadhaka’s capacity to discover the divine within himself.
One day an young sadhaka who came to visit, asked Ajja “How will I know that I
have attained Jeevan Mukti, if it happens, will someone be needed to tell me? I thought
that the questioner was very naïve and Ajja replied him thus in a beautiful way. “When
you wake up after a night’s sleep in the morning, is somebody needed to tell you that you
woke up?”
On another occasion a visitor complained of some sickness and Ajja said to him “Thee
is a much more serious sickness due to which you are identifying yourself with the body.
First find a cure for that. Then all sickness and misery will end”.
Looking back at my association with the sage, I feel that it was my great good fortune
to have been with him, as the spiritual benefits I gained are beyond quantification.

Major S. Dakshinamurti (Retd)