“Guru-charanon mein Charo Dham”

In Yuvaspeak this time, we bring you the engaging account of enthusiastic Yuva Omkar Yederi who tries to offer seva in many ways and truly believes    (June 2022)

While growing up - from waking up to “Guru Charanana Mana Laga” and other bhajan-s to Deepanamaskar in the evening, although we were physically in our cities, I can honestly say, mentally, during prayer-time, we were always taking tours of our Maths. I still remember, I used to be very excited about wearing a dhoti, angavastra and applying bhasma during Swamiji’s camps, or during our visits to the Maths. The perks for this were - I either got a chance to blow the conch, or to assist Bhatmaams  during the Paduka- pujan , both of which I immensely enjoyed doing. 

During H.H.Swamiji’s visit to Vamanashram, Borivali- Swamiji kept His Hand over my head while walking toward the hall. I can never forget that. One of my fondest memories is receiving chocolate after our drama performances during Swamiji’s visits to our Sabha in early 2000 and 2015. I still remember the sunny afternoon in 2004 during the month of April -May after my munji.  I was excited about seeking Blessings from Swamiji and was overjoyed to receive a shawl, a Sandhyavandan cassette and a book which I used to listen to regularly for quite some time, until I got it by heart. Singing bhajan-s, ashtak, blowing the conch was wonderful, but over and above all of this, getting a chance to hold the  danda-chamar during H.H. Swamiji’s camp or in the Math premises fills me with sheer bliss! I will be forever grateful to the tech- team of our Math as this technology has enabled us to get Darshan of H.H. Swamiji virtually via live streaming from every corner of the nation. Watching and listening to Pujya Swamiji on the screen in our own home gives us the feeling of being there at that moment and that is so joyful.

During my participation in the  Karaseva Shivir for the second time in 2014, I got my mantra-diksha. After that, there was no looking back. Over time, mantra-japa has helped me become more calm, stronger and mentally focused. Professionally, it has helped me to evolve into a better person, decision-maker and gifted me the confidence to take that leap of faith, now and again.. 

I believe I was at the right time at the right place when I joined Yuvadhara, for it has played a vital role in my personal growth. I joined Yuvadhara  around 2011 and the bond with the Math, H.H Swamiji automatically became stronger. Right from participating in Yuvadhara fun activities organized by the Sabha, volunteering at H.H. Swamiji’s camps at different Sabha-s, to Karaseva Shivir-s, treks and annual activities each and everything has added so much quality, value to my life.. I was lucky enough to lead the Borivali Yuvadhara for a couple of years before I moved to Pune for further education. It also gave me a platform to boost my different gifts, to experiment with a lot of new things and this has helped me shape my potential and interest in areas like acting, writing, singing, camera-handling and more. Karaseva Shivir-s top my list of favourites because they help me to connect with yuva-s from different walks of life and the learning one picks up through the various sessions, morning adventures at Kembre and other activities help greatly in the long run. I wait eagerly for sessions with H.H. Swamiji, especially the ones held at Panchavati, or on one of the beaches where all I want is to just capture the moment where Nature is at Her best and H.H. Swamiji is taking time out to talk to us. Participating in Yuvadhara activities and Karaseva has groomed me personally and professionally, helped me build leadership qualities, crack tasks, handle group activities and so much more.
Kick-starting the year with annual Math celebrations at Karla with Gramabhojan on 1st March is what I look forward to every year. After offering my seva, I wait for the golden moment when our Sadguru Himself gives us  jalebi-s making them so much more delicious, for both tongue and spirit. 

Although 2021 was a challenging year, I had no clue it could be so positively life-changing for me! I got a chance to offer seva during Gokulashtami under the Local to Global project. It was an incredible experience to livestream the “Kallo” celebration of the Santacruz Sabha, whereby I got in touch with the core team of Sayujyam. After that I got this super- opportunity to be part of the core team of Indradhanush, wherein we envisioned offering a ‘magnum opus’ never attempted before- an amalgamation of all art forms in motion graphics. The graph went from being a little to very nervous, but with loads of enthusiasm, overcoming challenges midway resulted in a masterpiece that Swamiji loved. Upon hearing that the feedback from H.H. Swamiji about our offering was, that this was the “ beshtest gift! “, our happiness knew no bounds. Midway during the Indradhanush project, there had been a point when I saw only dead-ends and at one point I was almost clueless and  demotivated as we were unable to overcome some hurdles. At that juncture I remembered  that we have to just do our best and  leave the rest to the Gurushakti. Overnight,  things fell into place miraculously and we were able to achieve the impossible. Now, when I look back, it all feels so magical. After this there came a thought- why don’t I create a network of Amchis who are good with camera skills, video editing, graphic designers, VFX and animation experts so that down the lane we have a trusted talent-bank which can volunteer instantly to help our Math with upcoming events and celebrations with full zeal. I am working on this...

I grew up listening to Amma saying “Devacheri sonnu di, toh palavnu ghettalo!” Whenever I am in a spot- clueless or helpless, I just do my bit and recall these words and pray. There upon, the magical force of Gurushakti showers Blessings and never disappoints…

There is so much to learn from H.H. Swamiji. Under His flawless Guidance, the scale of all projects, innovations, new initiatives and above looking after and monitoring the samaj’s  spiritual improvement is just incredible. I feel so blessed and lucky to have been born as a Chitrapur Saraswat, to have a such an enlightened Guruparampara and a Sadguru who is so caring, with an incredible Vision, who walked all the way from Karla to Shirali with the paduka-s of His  Gurumauli, who sits for hours giving us tirtha, takes out time from his hectic schedule for youngsters and is the true Guiding Force for all us. 

I always pray to Lord Bhavanishankar, that I should keep getting many opportunities for seva and remain in the chhatra-chaya of our dear Lord and beloved Guru  and Guruparampara. I truly believe that it is okay if one cannot do tirthayatra-s, for am convinced that the phal-prapti is equivalent to offering seva at the Lotus Feet of H.H. Swamiji with bhakti. Yes, for me, it is “Guru- charanon main, Charo Dham”.

 

Immortal Moments