On a Thursday before the month of Ashwin Navratra in the year 2011, Bapu declared that he was going to begin his penance for a period of six months. He also declared the reason for his penance. One tends to take efforts to do things that usually bring happiness in one’s life. In spite of those efforts, somewhere they fall short leading to experiencing sorrow. Bapu was going to follow a penance to give a sense of completion to Shraddhavans’ efforts and to bring happiness in the lives of Shraddhavans.
On Sunday prior to the start of Bapu’s penance, 25th September 2011, we had a meeting at CEOs’ office. While the meeting was in progress, Bapu arrived. He looked at all of us and asked,” What is going on?” We are conducting a meeting said the CEO. While the CEO was speaking, Bapu looked at everyone. On looking at me, he said,”I want to talk to you. Do you have some time for me?” I answered affirmatively. On that he said,”Alright. Let us chat after some time.” He then went into his room. The meeting began once again. I was not able to concentrate during the rest of the meeting. My mind was stormed with thoughts of the topic Bapu wanted to talk about. After sometime, Bapu came out and said,”Let’s go.” While telling me about it, he addressed everyone and said,”Since we are transparent about everything, for your information sake, let me share this with you. One of the aspects of Penance is to study something. You are expected to learn one art form. One can choose to learn anything such as Tabla, Sarangi, Guitar, etc. I then thought for a while and decided to learn Homeopathy and he will teach me Homeopathy.” Then he looked at me and asked,”Will you teach me?”
I thought for a nanosecond and decided to grab the opportunity. Needless to say, I answered in affirmation. On saying that Bapu and I went into his room. He asked me to be seated and then began to talk to me. “Look my son, in today’s day and age, a person says something and behaves the other way. Obviously, it is difficult to judge a person. Many good people get trapped into this. A human being treads the same wrong path over and over again despite repeated attempts. Even if he walks on the path of spirituality. He keeps failing over and over again. That is when he needs the help of Homeopathy in order to be on the righteous path. They need it to be happy in their lives (on consuming Homeopathy medicines, they begin to gain Harmony. What is Harmony? Bapu in one of his discourses, based on the thoughts from Shri Saisatcharitra described Harmony as an attitude of Happiness.) I then said to him,”I do not have the level of intelligence to teach you homeopathy.” On hearing that Bapu told me something very interesting. Bapu said,”you teach me assuming that I am dumber than you.” One has to learn from Bapu ways in which one can boost someone’s confidence. He said,” I read your articles on Homeopathy. I realize that you are a thinking person. Therefore, I have the confidence that you can teach me. (In my mind, I said,”Sriram.”) We will begin our studies from this Thursday. It was the day after the start of Ashwin Navratra. I nodded in affirmation. I began to think. Teaching Bapu meant I had to prepare very well. I envisaged her giving me a month to prepare. However he almost bombed me by giving me only three days. I could not have said a “No” to him.
The next day I went to the book shop. I bought a book titled “Organon of Medicine.” I was going to open these text books for the first time after my graduation. However, in order to study Homeopathy and to understand Homeopathy one needs this book “Organon of Medicine.” Homeopathy doctors call this book a bible of Homeopathy. I began reading this book right from its first page. Then I realized that if I read all of it, it would be a time consuming activity. Therefore, I read whatever I needed to explain and began my preparation. I did not know the duration of the class. I did not know the number of topics I needed to teach. I then decided to do whatever I could do to the best of my abilities and leave the other part to God.
Finally that Thursday came. An evening time of 6 was already decided. I reached his office few minutes before the scheduled time. Bapu came back to his room on the second floor soon after attending upasana. He then called me in his office. It was my first day. Therefore, I had only one word on my mind. It was my first day. I chanted Dhyanmantra in my mind and began. I first told him about Homeopathy. There are four subjects which are of primary importance in Homeopathy.
- “Organon of Medicine” which has all the information about Homeopathy.
- “Homeopathic Materia Medica” which has Homeopathy medicines listed alphabetically. The symptoms for giving these medicines are listed in there as well.
- “Homeopathic Pharmacy” has information about medicines and their formulations.
- “Homeopathic Repertoire” which has indication of a disease. Each symptom or indication has a list of medicines listed alongside.
In this way, we began studying Organon of Medicine.
We first looked at how Homeopathy began as a branch of medicine. While going over all of that, I was constantly anxious thinking if I would be able to answer a question if Bapu were to pose it for me. However, he never asked me anything and the time passed by quickly. He was listening to everything quietly. Then I wondered if I was saying something so terribly wrong that it was hard for Bapu to understand it. While listening to my speech, once in a while, he would shut his eyes and continue to listen to me. Then I would feel as if Bapu was bored of my speech and thus, he had shut his eyes and was probably not listening. On top of all that I am not used to asking anyone if one has understood my rendition. Then Bapu himself told me that when he shuts his eyes, one must understand that he is listening to it with great concentration. He then narrated an incident to me,” I was once listening to my teacher with my eyes shut.Teacher saw me and asked if I was dozing off. I told her that I was listening to her attentively. She then asked me to repeat whatever she had just taught. I then told her everything. This is how people feel on several occasions. My teacher used to feel the same way but soon she also began to understand that it was my style of listening attentively.”
While listening to my lecture, at times, Bapu would take down notes as well. He would write down the details of a topic if he found a certain topic very interesting. Just so that I do not get bored, he would start a topic and then keep talking to me about it. Once I would feel refreshed, we would begin our study. The funny part was that while chatting with me, on realizing that much time had passed by, he would say,”Let us pause here. I am crazy, I can just go on and on. Let us do our work. In fact, it would be a span of time he would allow me to get refreshed. However, he would take that in his stride.
Few days passed by in learning Organon of Medicine. I was enjoying this experience immensely. Bapu then would ask me about a particular disease and also about different types of personalities. It was his blessing that I would know answers to all his questions (In fact a real Sadguru knows all that his disciple knows well and then he asks the same set of questions to his disciple not only to boost his confidence but also to make him feel free. This is the way a Sadguru helps a person grow.)
While speaking to him, we would continue to study Organon and the questions would be related to Materia Medica. Therefore, I would tell him in between that when we would start studying Materia Medica, we would enjoy that phase. And one day, while talking about a person, the topic of Belladonna Remedy came up in our discussion. I then began to tell Bapu all that I knew about that topic. Bapu’s curiosity about the topic kept rising. He kept asking me questions over questions. He then became intensely interested in Materia Medica. This is how we started our journey to study Materia Medica. Most important aspect was that I would not know which remedy we would be working on a particular day. However, it would happen in such a fashion that Bapu would bring up a topic of politics, or a topic related to society and based on that he would ask me remedies for different types of personalities related to these domains. Then I would tell him about a remedy and then we would work on that remedy in the subsequent class meeting. It would be an exciting time to work on a remedy because remedy is decided based on the symptoms. Symptoms mean Rubrics. Well, a rubric may have related to its remedy many meanings and connotations. While studying those meanings, Bapu would tell me stories of some of his friends. Bapu has a large stock of real stories. He would tell me about some of his friends. For example “Rubric Fair-dark, of” meant someone who is afraid of darkness. The other Rubric connected to this one was “Light-desire, for” meant someone who needs light.
He then told me a story of a friend who would never stay in a dark place. He would always need light. Once, while in school, they all had gone on a picnic. One had to go in the open to answer nature’s call. It was dark and this friend had to go out to excrete. It was imperative for him to go so he requested Bapu to go along with a torch light. Bapu asked him to go by himself. He told Bapu that he was afraid of darkness. Therefore, Bapu went with him. Otherwise he would be all outspoken person but in the night, he would be a lame duck. Based on this incident we studied Stramonium Remedy. He then narrated a story of another friend who always feared staying alone. He would be happy even if a little toddler gave him company. This was a story of a friend from Nair hospital. He had a night duty that day and he had no one as company. He then had called Bapu. Another friend was fearful in a similar fashion. Once a friend had dropped by his home. There was no one at home. There was no one at Happy Home. He was terribly scared. Bapu told him that regardless he was going to be there. He felt slightly better on the second floor. Through such topics and chats we continued our journey of studying about a new remedy.
To be frank, just the way a joke based on an incident appeals more than a joke that is fabricated, learning about a remedy by describing a personality through a story etched on my mind all the learning. There was no scope for forgetting that learning. I got this inspiration from Bapu. We could study some remedies such as Arsenic album, Nux Vomica, Ignatia, Natrum Mur, Hepar Sulph quite thoroughly. Bapu indirectly through an example taught me ways in which one can study tactfully, remember the remedies and taught me ways to study different remedies.
We were talking about Rubric. While working on the remedy, the reference of Rubric would come. Initially Bapu would ask me the meaning of Rubric. It was his blessings that I could answer his questions. Soon Bapu got the hang of the idea of Rubric. Later Bapu began to beautifully explain the meaning of a Rubric in much minute detail. He would tell me ways in which a Rubric can be used. He would say that some Rubric must be repeated which indeed is the truth. He explained to me the reasons for learning homeopathy. Since I knew his intent behind this, we would discuss each Rubric accordingly. The only thing that Bapu had in his mind was related to ways in which he could help all those people who were good. He indicated that Good people tend to worry about obstacles more than others. He said that they always blame themselves for their bad actions for the rest of their lives. He said that I keep telling these good people that if you realize your mistake, please do stand in front of God and accept that mistake and continue your journey forward. For example, Rubric Aversion-husband. to-
I earlier said that we discuss and debate about Homeopathy with a certain intent. We then study each Rubric accordingly. For example, Fair-Self-Control, of Losing. A simple, straightforward meaning of this is that one tends to feel that one is losing one’s balance. Broadly, it means that one is fearful of walking because one is afraid that one might lose his balance and fall down causing a fracture. In reality, one anyway has wobbly legs. However, at a spiritual level, for a virtuous human being, it would mean that in spite of walking on the path of devotion, I am not able to get rid of the sinful activities. Therefore I am more prone to committing sin or wrong actions. He is fearful of such actions anyway. We would then think and discuss ways in which one can be brought back on the path of virtuous living.
Few days passed by. Bapu then asked me a place where he could find Homeopathy books. I then told him that they were available at Roy and Company. We then decided a time and date to go there. I said to Bapu that my clinic was right on the way to Roy and Company. I asked him if he would oblige by paying a visit to my clinic. Bapu immediately said he would. I was thrilled. Bapu likes Batatavada and Peeyush from Ladu Samrat. I told him that when he visits the clinic, we could order it from there. He liked that idea immensely. The day to visit Roy and company was decided upon. I along with my wife, Ujjawalaveera were in full preparation to receive Bapu at our place. We were waiting for him and then in the nick of time, we got a phone call that due to some work, Bapu was not able to come that day. We were dejected but knew that he probably had something important and that was the reason for his visit cancellation. After all, it was his decision. The same evening, Bapu called me and asked me if I could go to Happy Home and how soon would I be able to reach there. He urged me to reach as fast as possible. I also managed all my chores and rushed to Happy Home. Bapu was waiting on me. On reaching there, he narrated one case to me. The whole family was staring in the face of an impending devastation. It was an emergency and therefore, it was imperative to give that person some medication. I choked looking at Bapu’s eagerness to help that family. He could not come to my place because he could not bear the pain and tears of that person. He was busy trying to solve their problem. Then both of us studied her personality and then prescribed a medication for her. They could feel some difference. Later Bapu thought about it a little more and suggested a remedy to her which made a world of difference to her health. Her entire family could not contain their joy looking at her progress. Bapu was also very happy with the outcome.
Well, after few days, a date and time was decided to visit the book store to buy those books. On February 15, 2012, Aai and Dada had just started for Kolhapur Medical Camp. Bapu bid them bye for their journey and then came to my clinic. Bapu looked around and then sat down. I was showing him some of my real old books. Bapu was looking at them with much enthusiasm and interest. Those books had some books on veterinary science as well. Bapu said that we ought to buy these as well. He then murmured “my cows-my cows.” His intent was to cure his cows with the help of Homeopathy.
Dr. Aniruddha Joshi at the Homeopathy Books Library.
We then reached Roy and Company on Princess Street. They welcomed Bapu. We then began surfing books. We selected few books and kept them aside. Bapu could read one book in a few seconds. He could get an idea about the book in no time. We looked up and surfed books for close to three hours and then bought few of them. We had 2-3 bags full of books. Then they showed their pharmacy. Bapu looked at all of that with great interest. Soon after, we left from there. The most important point is that by visiting my clinic he ensured that my desire was fulfilled. He was not only eager to look at the clinic of a Homeopathy doctor but also wanted to see the Homeopathy pharmacy. It meant that for a person who was keen on learning about Homeopathy had to look at the integral aspects of being a homeopathic doctor. The days were passing by very fast. Our Homeopathy day would begin at six in the evening and would go on till about 12.30, 1.30 and on one occasion till 2.45 as well. It was because of this, my stamina to stay up late in the night to study increased many folds. I want to share an important thing with you at this stage. When one has Bapu in front of one, there is nothing called boredom. In fact, one tends to feel very energetic. He passes that energy on and therefore, one loses a sense of time. I learnt to study like a voracious reader. When one enters Bapu’s room, one’s brain gets the much needed stimulus. It is because of this, one is able to express one’s thoughts succinctly. As a result, our discussions used to go on with much intensity. They continue to be full of enthusiasm and will continue that way in future as well.
Then one day, I had a thought of buying Homeopathy software. We then installed that software. Bapu would sit and study day and night with the help of that software. He would ask me if he faced any difficulty. I continue to say, out of greed; that Bapu should face some difficulty in his study of homeopathy and then he should call me. One cannot describe the experience of chatting with Bapu. While talking to him, one tends to clarify a few things oneself. Ultimately, Bapu always says that when one begins to teach others, one learns more in the process. We used to chat a lot in our class sessions. We chose Dr. Sehgal’s approach of Mind System for guiding us through this. We also looked at and studied other approaches. However, we studied and practiced Dr. M. L. Sehgal’s approach. It was because Bapu was also of the opinion that each and every disease is a manifestation of how one feels in one’s mind. It is the mind which causes diseases. A mind is responsible for a Pradnyaparadh. Shadripus are not physical in nature. They can be attributed to the state of one’s mind. Bapu had once clarified in his discourse that an accident also takes place because of an accident in one’s mind. Therefore, each ailment is dependent on the psyche of a person. For example, if one were to slap another, a person might keep quiet. A second person could experience fury and the third could slap back as a reaction to the slap he had just received. A disease is dependent on one’s action, resistance, and on one’s reflection. It also depends on how one does it as well. Therefore, one’s remedy is also dependent on the same thing.
When one’s energy is less active because of one’s pradnyaparadh; that is when one acquires diseases. Homeopathy helps in clearing the blocked passages in a human body. Then, the flow of energy is intense. That is when a person experiences harmony. I used to observe in my patients that the person did not just recuperate from the ailment but he had a renewed energy in him and made overall progress. For example – if a person came to me with the complaint of Acidity and if he did not have a job. On giving him medication, he not only felt relief but also landed a good job. If one was not able to find a life partner, he would and then get married. If one were not to have a child, he would. If someone experienced discord in the family, he would find peace. If one were not getting promoted, he would actually be promoted. That meant whatever was apt for that person, he would get it. I used to wonder in amazement about that. It was almost like a miracle for me. Then one day, I asked Bapu about this phenomenon. He then told me that due to the medication, one’s block in life gets cleared which otherwise obstructs one’s growth. That block is opened due to Homeopathy. He further added that it takes place only when one has God’s blessings in one’s life. On that day, I considered myself fortunate because that was the day, Bapu truly made me a Homeopathy doctor. I felt as if I was contributing to Human race in order to facilitate the flow of God’s energy to a human being by clearing his blocked passages. Bapu is a voracious reader. Even today, if you went into his room, you would find several Homeopathy books there. Whenever we put a pile of books there, Bapu would read them voraciously. Bapu has the capability to read a page in simply one glance. Generally, Bapu reads a book three times. First he reads it to get acclimatized with it. The second time he tries to understand it and definitely understands it. The third time he reads it to take down notes of the content that he has understood. Similarly, he does the same thing for studies, taking down notes as he sits in front of a computer. He takes down notes as he discusses topics. If he liked anything that I said, he would immediately write that in his notebook. He would write K S on the top of that note. Now, obviously, K S meant Kamlesh Suryavanshi. Bapu addresses me as K S Sir with much love and adulation. He keeps telling me that the notes he took down from me were of importance to him.
During his Penance, our class would go on for approximately 6-7 hours. Then he would read those notes regularly every day for about 6 hours. Even today, Bapu studies Homeopathy for almost 3 hours every day. His three hours of study would be equivalent to several hours of our study. I’d rather not think about it.
Dr. Aniruddha Bapu at the Homeopathy Books Library
Bapu knew about Homeopathy for a long time. He knew about it from the great Dr. Karkhanis Sir. Dr. Karkhanis used to practice Homeopathy in Parel village. Bapu knew quite a lot about Homeopathy and the doses of medication by taking a look at the patients in his clinic on a regular basis.
The other doctor was Dr. Mazumdar. Once Bapu was unwell. He was then taken to Dr. Mazumdar. After looking at Bapu, he told his parents that going forward in future he would become a holy man. Later on, it turned out to be a reality as well. Well, Bapu would tell me the approach of these two doctors. Bapu knew from Dr. Karkhaniskaka (Bapu used to call him Karkhanis Kaka) about ways in which Homeopathy worked on Mind system.
Days were passing by very fast. We were studying one remedy after another as we continued our journey. We continue to do that even now and will always do it that way in future. Bapu would study a remedy in depth once we began studying it. Very few people think like that. For example – if one needed Stramonium Remedy. On proctoring that remedy, the person was cured. He would then think about what made him a Stramonium personality. Bapu would think about it spiritually as well. He felt that one’s food intake, thoughts, exploration and behavior decided one’s personality. Bapu would pay attention to the type of food one ate. Tomatoes have a high percentage of Stramonium. It is found in some other food substances as well. But if it flowed, if it was supplied to the body in more quantity than required, then there was a possibility of a person turning into a Stramonium personality. Some people find it hard to handle hard water. They either have some other ailment or definitely would have constipation. Where does one get hard water? Obviously in villages! There is a large percentage of Sulphur in it. Therefore, such people could find relief if treated with Sulphur remedy. He would give many such examples through his study. One of the principles or theories is that anything if consumed in the right quantity would act as a medicine. If it is taken in disproportionate quantity, it would obviously act as a poison. While he discovered all of these things, he prepared a chart for himself. If one combined two particular remedies, what could be resultant third remedy? Moreover, if a person is of a particular personality, what type of incident would shake this person? It could be a positive thing or a negative thing. What kind of personality this person would turn into after this incident? What kind of remedy would work on this person? He studied all of this and continues to study it.
Each remedy has a root cause. One can address it as a seed as well. In homeopathy language Rubrics are the kin pins. It is through this Kind Pin that the remedy spreads. Therefore any rubric must fit well into this king pin rubric. Once a person gets the hang of this King Pin Rubric, one tends to understand the whole remedy quite easily. One would understand the reasoning behind a person’s behavior and once a person zeros down on that one; that is the destination as in that is the King Pin Rubric. Well, Bapu feels that this King Pin Rubric must be this person’s delusion. It must also be in only one remedy. In homeopathy, it is called single remedy rubric. Bapu taught me how to read Rubric. Just now, during 12-14 October, a homeopathy seminar was held. Bapu was present in that seminar. In fact, he was invited from HHF, an institute from Thane. Bapu said that he would be present for all three days of the seminar, albeit as a student. All those who knew Bapu felt quite amazed by this fact. But for those who did not know about Bapu, it was a rare opportunity. The seminar was to start at 10.30 am. Bapu told me that we ought to leave by 830 am so that we would reach there by 10 am. The seminar was at Hotel Residency at Pawai. We could have got caught in the morning traffic. I reached Happy Home early in the morning. I was wearing a neck tie. I feel like sharing something about a neck tie here. Bapu had asked me about my attire in the previous seminar. He also asked me all that I did there. I had not worn my neck tie. No one else had as well. He told me that we ought to bring this neck tie (formal) culture. Bapu insisted that a doctor ought to wear a tie while practicing in his clinic. I had decided to correct my mistake in the subsequent seminar. Therefore, I had worn a neck tie for that day. I had indicted the same thing to our HHF members as well. All those people had worn a neck tie as per Bapu’s recommendation.
Dr. Aniruddha Joshi at the Homeopathy Seminar organised at Powai
As we reached the seminar hall, we knew that very few people knew who Bapu was. Approximately 10% people knew. However, everyone realized that he was someone special when he was asked to garland, Dr. Samuel Hahnemann’s (The father of Homeopathy) photograph. In no time, the news about Bapu spread like wild fire. During lunch time, everyone seemed eager to meet Bapu. Bapu was talking freely with everyone. People were taking pictures with him. If some doctors telephoned their relatives and asked Bapu to say something, he obliged. Then, since Bapu spoke to a person on the phone, the person at the other end felt ecstatic. Some of them called their family members to take a picture with Bapu. Most importantly, for the first time, the organizers of this seminar had to turn people down by saying that they had no seats available for the seminar. People were deeply touched by Bapu’s humility. Bapu was speaking with everyone for an extended period of time. Bapu stood in a queue to help himself for lunch. People wondered about his down-to-earth nature despite being such a renowned personality. I told Bapu that people were impressed and also deeply touched by his down-to-earth nature. Bapu said, “We ae down-to-earth. There is no need to show it off.”
A very famous doctor from Nasik by the name, Dr. Yogesh Honrao was to deliver a lecture the next day at 10.45 am. He asked me if I knew the time of Bapu’s arrival. I said he would definitely come but I was afraid, I could not tell him an exact time. He was quite restless since he wanted to narrate a case to Bapu because the remedy was related to spirituality. I told him not to worry because Bapu would definitely come at the opportune time. Just when he was to begin his lecture, Bapu entered the hall. Doctor could not contain his joy. Bapu immensely enjoyed listening to his remedy. Bapu praised the doctor whole heartedly immediately after his lecture was over.
That evening Bapu participated in an open discussion. That evening, Dr. Joel Soloman requested Bapu if he could attend his lecture the next day at 9 am. Bapu did not sleep the whole night and yet, he was there for Dr. Soloman’s lecture the next day on time. Doctor exhibited a very interesting case and asked us to guess the remedy. It was difficult to recognize the remedy. Then Bapu stepped out for a while and came back in. On informing Bapu about the remedy doctor recommended, he said that he had suspected it to be the same. Bapu slept only for six hours during three days of this seminar. Bapu read the entire “Organon of Medicine” book all through the previous night of the seminar. Bapu also inaugurated a book titled “Applied Mind.” He read 45 pages of that book the same night. He also congratulated the author, Dr. Krishna Kumar Dinde. One can easily decipher his level of interest in learning something from some of these examples. One can also learn that if one appreciates and applauds good work done by someone else, it simply boosts that person’s morale and confidence.
Bapu always says that lack of confidence gates the progress of an individual. Therefore Bapu feels very strongly about the Rubric, “Confidence-Want of Self-Confidence”. Bapu has on several occasions and many times as well, discussed this Rubric with me. Our HHF’s Sir Dr. Milind Rao is a very straightforward and simple personality. In order for this person to make further progress, Bapu recommended things that he needed to do for the sake of Homeopathy. Not just that, one day Bapu attended our Homeopathy session at Thane. He then proceeded to Dr. Milind Rao’s clinic. He cared deeply for the progress of Homeopathy and also for Dr. Rao.
Friends, as I conclude, let me share something with you. In today’s times, each one of us has some or the other sorrow. However, since we are Shraddhavans, we are on the path of devotion. In spite of that, knowingly and at times, unknowingly, we commit several mistakes. We also commit Pradnyaparadh and that in itself is the beginning of all sorrows, diseases and difficulties. All of Bapu’s efforts are towards finding out ways and means to help each of us avoid these difficulties. He is keen to find out a solution (PSM) to help us stay away from these things. He works on it tirelessly, day in and day out. I can share this with you with utmost confidence because I am a witness to his unflinching efforts.
||Hari Om|| ||Shri Ram|| ||Ambadnya||
Source -
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