Spirituality: Sahaj Marg Review

Introduction to Sahaj Marg:

Sahaj Marg is a system which offers an easy and natural path for the accomplishment of God realization/Self-realization. This system is established by Shri Ram Chandra Mission (SRCM) at Shahjahanpur, Uttar Pradesh, India on 31st March, 1945. The mission is founded by Shri Babuji also called as Shri Ram Chandra and is named after his master who’s also coincidentally named as Shri Ram Chandra. After the demise of Shri Babuji, the system is divided into many groups and the prominent among them are C. Rajagopalachari’s group, Babuji’s family line of succession group known as SRCM – Shahjahanpur, Sister Kasturi’s group, K.C. Narayana’s group and many others. I am the follower of SRCM-Shahjahanpur group which we consider as the main group. This mission is currently headed by Shri Babuji’s Grandson – Navneet Kumar Saxena.

Joining in Sahaj Marg:  Anyone who is interested in joining Sahaj Marg needs to undergo an initiation from a Sahaj Marg master also called as ‘Preceptor’. This initiation is nothing but a sort of meditation wherein the Preceptor introduces a yogic (spiritual) transmission in the new joiner’s heart. The new joiner can feel some sort of sensation in his/her heart. This initiation is done three times and there after the new joiner can become the disciple of Sahaj Marg and can perform his /her daily practices of the system.

Practice in Sahaj Marg:  A Sahaj Marg disciple has to perform the following activities –

·         1 hour morning meditation preferably at the dawn time.

·         30 minutes cleaning process preferably at 6.00 P.M.

·         15 minutes Universal Love meditation at 9.00 P.M

In addition to the above, the disciple has to attend the following –

·         Weekly group meditation

·         Monthly/Bi-monthly individual sitting with a Preceptor.

·         3 Annual functions gathering [Optional].

Note: The details of how to meditate and cleaning will be told to the disciple at the time of initiation.

Why Sahaj Marg: OK now the question arises why one should join Sahaj Marg when there are many other systems available. Before joining Sahaj Marg I tried couple of systems – I practiced Simplified Kundalini Yoga (SKY) for 6 years but my experience revealed that there’s not much progress happening in my meditational journey. However the positive points of the SKY system is that there's no commercialization involved and the asanas (physical exercises) taught are good in maintaining the health. Since meditation is my high priority I have no other option but to quit.

Next I tried with Sidha Samadhi Yoga (SSY). This system heavily depends on pranayama (a sort of breathing exercises) and little bit of emphasis on meditation. Bit of commercialization like collecting fees for attending courses is involved in this system. Here too, I haven’t seen much progress with my meditation and therefore I quit this system.

My quest for realization continued and I was searching for alternative system which assures my spiritual progress. I have read lot of literature of other systems like Isha Yoga, Art of life, Osho and many more. But none of these articles convince me on the concept of God Realization and ‘how’ to achieve them. Most of them are confined to the trilogy of Hindu gods – Siva, Vishnu, Brahma and other common topics like moksha, karma and etc. During the course I happened to read the literature of Sahaj Marg written by Shri Babuji. I have read the books – ‘Reality at Dawn’, ‘Efficacy of Raja Yoga’, ‘Ten commandments of Sahaj Marg’, ‘Philosophy of Sahaj marg’ and others. WoW! What a fantastic explanation on spirituality.  I found the literature really useful which explained the practical version of the God realization and how to achieve it.

Now I am convinced with the teachings of Sahaj Marg, but this not enough to quench my thirst. I need to experience the benefits of Sahaj Marg. So one fine day I decided to join in the system and took the first initiation. After taking first sitting of initiation I sat for morning meditation and WOW! What a fantastic and memorable experience I encountered. I experienced a state where I am completely in sleep but I am still fully awake which I never experienced previously. The previous meditation journey which was going on snail’s pace now suddenly entered the fast track formula one race. I‘ve got my answer now – yes this is the system I am looking, which can take me to reach my goal of God realization.

The other positive aspect is that there’s no commercialization is involved in this system. I also observed that some people who have joined this system are practicing for more than 40 years. This indicates the faith and satisfaction in the system, less attrition rate unlike other systems.

What’s not well in Sahaj Marg: It will be a biased article from my side if I haven’t provide the information on the negative points of the system. Like any other organization, I observed that Sahaj Marg too suffers from little bit of politics and groupism. Also the selection of preceptor (masters) requires some influence or recommendation but not on the merit of the disciple. 

Whom it suits: I believe this system is suitable to them who’s seriously in search of God realization or liberation aspects. It also suits to the person who is looking for stress relieving, peace of mind, work-life balance. There are also some hidden medicinal benefits and can cure certain diseases but this must not be the sole aim for joining this system.

Folks who are looking for weight loss, asanas (physical exercises), kundalini powers and other similar motives can safely avoid this system.

Disclaimer: All views expressed are based on my personal experiences and doesn’t intent to damage or endorse any system.