Interview with Dr Chinmaya Pandya, AWGP Youth Head
By Radhika Nagrath
In 1926, in a small hut of Anwalkheda village in the Agra district of Uttar Pradesh, Pt Ram Sharma Acharya manifested the eternal lamp of spiritual renaissance. He performed the 24 great purifications of Gayatri, with the sole objective of awakening divinity in humanity, and this laid the foundation of the Gayatri Pariwar and Shanti Kunj. Now this All World Gayatri Pariwar has become a global community with over 150 million adherents worldwide. Garhwal Post engages with present AWGP Youth Head Dr Chinmaya Pandya, MD, MRCP London, to know its relevance in building India and emotionally strong individuals today.
Why was Shantikuj formed and what is the main objective?
The sole objective of the foundation is that humanity should recognise its own inherent divinity that God resides within our inner consciousness. Just as the gems are in the mines, but they are found only after digging; grain is in the earth, but it can satiate our hunger only after ploughing the field, similarly, God is within humans, but He is found only after awakening. Kabir Das Ji’s famous saying goes, “Just as oil is in the sesame seed, and fire is in the flint, your Lord is within you; awaken if you can.” Pujya Gurudev Pt Ram Sharma Acharya undertook this work of awakening.
How is society benefited by this organisation?
There were two reasons behind its establishment. From a spiritual perspective, the objective is the same as what all spiritual systems teach; the establishment of the divine Self present within our inner consciousness. This is the objective of Yoga, “Tada Drashtu Swaroope Avasthanam”, the attainment of one’s true self. Vedanta also says the same thing, “Pragyanoaham, Vigyanoaham, Aham Brahmasmi”, so you can call it the exploration of that element within oneself, the opening of one’s inner world. At the social level, the foundation that Gurudev laid was the emotional reconstruction of humanity. We have diminished the individual from an emotional perspective. The individual, today, only desires one thing that desires be fulfilled, now, at this very moment, this self-centeredness needs to be changed.
What is emotional reconstruction?
The major challenge which humanity confronts today is emotional reconstruction. From today’s perspective, the problem in simple terms is that the means of happiness have increased, but individuals, character, personality, mutual love, affection, and trust have become narrower. Relationships are also breaking down frequently. Broken down, the individual was already detached from purpose; from the perspective of families, the sense of family continued to shrink. First, it was that the whole village was our family, then it became that only my house in the village was my family, then it became that even within the house, only my immediate family was my family. It became increasingly narrow, and the root cause behind this is that we have instilled in the heart of the individual the idea that my self-interest is paramount above all other purposes in the world. I want what I want now, at this very moment, at any cost, even if it means strangling someone else. So, the purpose Gurudev gave was this: the external world is like a mobile phone, but it is switched off. It needs to be switched on. When the individual’s emotions change, even a misguided person becomes divine.
How to awaken that understanding within the individual?
Gurudev made Shanti Kunj the centre for that purpose, laying three foundations: Upasana (worship), Sadhana (spiritual practice), and Aradhana (devotion). Upasana doesn’t merely mean calling out to God, but rather embodying the qualities of God. Gurudev used to give the example that if you go near a transformer, perform a puja, and return home, you won’t get electricity. You have to lay the wires. Similarly, if we go to God and only perform worship and rituals, the divine qualities will not be incorporated within us. Their establishment in the heart is essential. Nowadays, religion has been limited to this: just performing rituals, going to the temple, going to a pilgrimage site, and coming back. But by coming to Shanti Kunj Gayatri Tirtha, a complete transformation takes place here. Spirituality is refinement which comes with regular practice.
What is the spiritual practice one observes?
So, as I said, Upasana (worship), Sadhana (spiritual practice), and Aradhana (devotion) are the three methodologies adopted. The purpose of Upasana is to imbibe divine qualities. Sadhana means refining one’s life, just as a horse is trained and becomes disciplined. Similarly, life itself needs to be refined. This is also Arjuna’s question that the mind is restless, O Krishna, how to refine it. Gurudev established two foundations: self-control and discipline. For the improvement of society, discipline and moral conduct are two inseparable requirements. When your moral conduct remains intact, and your discipline is maintained, then your life automatically improves. Shanti Kunj is preparing such sadhaks who are completely self-disciplined and then useful to society.
Shantikunj’s role in India becoming a Vishwaguru…
When that one family improves, the society improves and India as a nation will automatically become a Vishwaguru. Shanti Kunj’s objective is to showcase the profound knowledge and science of India. There is no field of study where we can go and not find India’s contribution; the highest level of thought originated in India. The first treatise on mathematics came from India, the first treatise on physics was written by Bhaskaracharya, and we are students of medicine, and the first surgical procedure, rhinoplasty, was performed by Sushruta. So I would say that, if India is to regain its true form, every Indian should study their knowledge in depth and not just rely on the floating messages on social media.
