By Anandswarupdas Swami
BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha
Vibhuti Darshan is a revelation of Bhagwan Swaminarayan’s divine personality – His virtues.
The reality of great people is not limited to their outer personality. Their inner virtues and wealth is their true identity, their true personality. In that lies their real revelation. To behold this revelation, man’s intellectual eyes have always fallen short. So, to understand them, their own help is inevitable. Their words about themselves alone reveal their Divinity. Just as Bhagwan Rama reveals Himself in the Ramayan and Bhagwan Krishna in the Geeta, Bhagwan Swaminarayan reveals His divine attributes in the Vachanamrut.
Bhagwan Swaminarayan remained on this earth for 49 years (1781-1830 AD) carving a deep impression upon the minds of millions. Let us behold His Personality through His own words. What was the state of His mind? His vision of Atman? His concept of Paramatman? And how He still remains ever-present on earth, long after He passed away in 1830 AD?
State of Mind
The mind is the mirror of man’s personality. He who has mastered his mind has attained great heights. Bhagwan Swaminarayan mentions, ‘The mind is as restless as the tail of a flag. It is very difficult to control’, but he goes on to say: ‘Like a lion seizes a goat, I seize the mind; while others cannot even see the mind.’ His control over the mind was not fractional, but lifelong and eternal. Not acquired or attained, but always there. He reveals: ‘From the day of my birth to this day, never has an evil thought of wealth or woman ever crossed my mind, neither in my dream nor waking state.’
Revealing the equanimity of His mind, He says: ‘To me, the higher and lower pleasures of the world are one and equal; a king and a beggar are equal; ruling over the throne of the three worlds and begging with a bowl are equal; being worshipped with flowers and insulted with dirt are equal. Both honor and dishonor are equal to me.’ Why was He forever equipoised? Because His mind was always steady in His Atman.
He reveals: ‘Even if externally, I may have been involved in innumerable activities, internally, when I introspect and look within at my Atman, all my energies are withdrawn into my Atman like the limbs of a tortoise. And there I experience the ultimate Bliss.’ The mind of Bhagwan Swaminarayan was totally detached from the desires of the world and truly transcended love and hatred, joy and sorrow, and other dualities of life. And was forever steady in His Atman.
From His own words, we come to know how Bhagwan Swaminarayan mastered complete control over his mind, maintaining eternal equanimity and detachment from worldly desires.
