"Tributes to and Remembrances of Gurudev R. D. Ranade, The Saint of Nimbal", by Rajendra Chauan and Deepak V. Apte. A spiritual review.

To approach higher beings, spiritual ones, who have done all their lives according to higher levels of intelectuality, ethics, sadhana and seva is always difficult, as they can be seen from so many angles that we must really work hard to find the most appropriate teachings they have given or left written. And for that purpose, theirs books are indeed the main and best source.

                                                            Photo of Sanjeev Sirnoorkar...
Still very helpful are the biographies written on them, or by them, where the living experiences of their beings, believes, knowdlege and graces are taken down by some faithful custodians of that sometimes so fragile and volatile memory of lives. What qualities they developed more, and how did they react to the circunstances and challenges, what examples are there, such are some questions that can be enlightening...
Another source that can inspire us in our life and sadhana are the testimonies given by others beings, in whatever kind of work they become valuable or known, as from what they felt by personal contact of a master, or just by reading the books, and from their appreciations and commentaries we can take indeed good information and impulses in our path to God...

It is  the case of the very recent book Tributes to and Remembrances of Gurudev R. D. Ranade, The Saint of Nimbal, published by Rajendra Chauhan and Deepak V. Apte in June 2020, where, with so much patience, so many important persons are introduced to our days and lifes, describing their impressions or judgements on Gurudev Ranade and his life and work. In the first part A, are included the Tributes and Remembrances of 100 persons, with their images or photos; then there is  second part B - Blurbs and comments on R. D. Ranade’s writings, and in a third part C an Appendix with interesting notes and articles is given, in a total of 180 pages.
As a foreigner, even if with some special connections to India, and as a sadhak, I will apreciate more some testimonies by the spirituality or impressivity they carry with them, other persons would choose different ones and so after reading the first 50 (but not the ones in marathi) I am going to share what is still vibrating on the top of my soul, or may be more near my heart, and indeed the love of his mother to him, a child, when her guru Swami Mahalingayya, to whom Ranade was presented, says to her on that occasion that the baby was a very spiritual person, where the Divinity was already so present and strongly than in him, that caused the astonished mother, after returning home, to offer a puja on Ranade and his connection to God.
It is interesting that Swami Mahalingayya didn't said: - oh, he was in a former life someone special but just pointed to the present reality of a being already with such a shining spirit.

Second impression retained more alive is the testimonie of Shri Narsappa Shapeti,  "an ardent disciple of Shri Nimbargi Maharaj" saying about Nimbal when seeing it by the first time:  - oh Ramraya, what a beautiful work you have done, because we can hear in all rooms, everyhere, the uncaused sound, the Divine sound and Name vibrating.

 It is a good teaching given by this yogi and devotee, 80 years ago, as this kind of deep spiritual sound awareness is rare, and when he says that the divine sound is heard everywhere, may be he is urging us for a deeper awareness of the harmony of our places, houses and rooms, or may be how the ishtadevata nama, the invocation of our form of the Divine Being, has to be done with much love and perseverance until the space becomes filled of the divine energies and we enter in deep and sensitive silence.
 We could find others ways to explain  this beautiful saying of  Shri Narsappa Shapeti:  «How wonderful is this house which you have built here, in any part of it is heard the unstruck sound  of the name of God»), with more than 80 years and still now ressounding, vibrating and becoming alive in us, as for example, the need of a peaceful mind and with inner awareness to achieve that, and so we can appreciate well the power to awaken more us of this so excelent recollection done  by Rajendra Chauhan and Deepak V. Apte
Another important is the testimonie from her daughter, Smt. Vijaya V. Apte (Shakuntala R. Ranade), as she was so much near to him, and we should reflect on her description of him, in order to correct our ego and nurture well our path and qualities: «Simplicity was a significant trait of his personality. He has an abounding love for all who came in contact with him whosoever he maybe, a prince or a man on the street. He had a special affection for the students who stayed with him. His love for his disciples is also well known. His serene smile and sanctifying presence, spread peace, love and good-will everywhere. He appreciated only the virtues in others without noticing their drawbacks.»

In April 1925 the  holy ashes of Shri Bhausaheb Maharaj, the guru of prof. Ranade,  were taken to Nimbal, just recently built and in the inauguration realized by prof. Ranade for his friends and devotees, one of them,  Smt. Shivalingavvakka, dedicated to Nimbal some spiritual and shining verses: 

«In this abode of the Saint, 

There is the vision of Saints and Sages, 

And the splendour of experience, 

And the fragrance of Jasmine, 

And the shower of blissfulness».

                                  

In a certain way Smt. Shivalingavvakka (in the photo), a great bakta, is saying to us: - When you come to Nimbal, be harmonized, have aspiration, have prema, be aware and meditate in order that your spiritual organs will give you the signs of the communion with so spiritual presences and blessings from the masters and the Divine Being.

 Also much valuable is the testimonie of  Shri Gangadharrao Deshpande, "the Lion of Karnataka, Freedom Fighter and one of the trusted Lieutenants of Gandhiji", as some important teaching of a satsang of Gurudev Ranade is shared to us: «Really God-realisation does not depend merely upon prolonged Sadhana. We cannot be sure of having the vision of God after performing Nama-japa of 25 crores of times. God-realisation requires a tenderness of heart and an intense hunger for it. When these are present, God is near. At this advanced stage, the tenderness and yearning of Gangadharrao, is really remarkable, unique. Such a softness is rarely to be found in old age. Where this exists, God is not far away».
Just two words and qualities, but so much is within them for the sadhakas and devotees: tenderness of heart and yearning or intense hunger (probably the sanskrit mumuksha was used) for God realization.

From the so complete contribution  of Padma Vibhushan Dr. Madhav Shrihari Aney, " Governor of Bihar, an ardent Educationist, Freedom Fighter and Scholar of Sanskrit", we can keep a condensated syntesis about Ranade, "whose motto is first action and then preaching and who is a torchbearer of noble thoughts." May our thoughts be really of ligh and love and then acted well.

 Dr. S. Radhakrishnan, 2º President of India and philosopher has given also a good testimonie, from which we select, as it is so challenging to us: «Philosophy for him, was not a profession but a consuming passion. He thought, not merely with his intellect but with his whole life»,  indeed a call to us to be sincerely wholly in all what we do. And «he expressed his deepest convictions in words and ways intelligible to the ordinary man. The God realised souls form a blessed community 'Anubhava mantapa' working with love for afflicted mankind. History is the progressive embodiment of the vision of human brotherhood, culminating in a society of free spirits a body of men, dedicated to seeking truth. Ranade spent his life in the pursuit, of this ideal. He reminds us of the verse in Sankarachary's Moha Mudgara».

The book has indeed many so valuable testimonies, some from very famous people like Tillak, Sri Aurobindo, Rudolf Otto, Annie Besant, but let us listen now to Shri B. N. Datar, professor and Minister of State in the Home Ministry, who has  enjoyed a friendship of more than forty years and ressurrects for us the spirit of the places animated by Gurudev Ranade, so well described some lines above alreay, in Nimbal and in a subtle level, by Shri Narsappa Shapeti: «His house at Allahabad was a constant place of pilgrimage for high and low and I found scholars, High Court Judges and the elite of the Allahabad city visiting him with humility and reverence and obtaining guidance on many matters, secular and spiritual. Prof. Ranade combined in himself the best of the philosophies of the East as also of the West. Prof. Ranade was a dynamic soul. It would always live in and work, wherever it is for the promotion of peace, as also for the spiritual welfare of mankind, as a whole. It will always guide earnest and even erring souls."

To finish this selection from the first 50 testimonies, from Shri Ranganath Ramachandra Diwakar, that has given a very detailled and valuable description of his long relationship with profssor Ranade, highlighting his original methods of teaching, we can highlight the conclusion, with its fine afirmations and wishes:

"Seventy years of his life have been expended in an unbroken search for Truth and its authoritative exposition in his impressive writings. Dr. Ranade would not be satisfied with individual salvation only but would endeavour for social and collective salvation.

May Gurudev Prof. Ranade live long to propagate, among generations to come, the rich fruits of his intellectual and spiritual endeavour, continued with tireless zeal during all these years».

 

Fulfilling their aspirations and wishes is this excellent book Tributes to and Remembrances of Gurudev R. D. Ranade, The Saint of Nimbal, and also our selves if reading it, enliving it, communing with so many great souls, and specially with Gurudev Ranade... 
Aum Jaya Aum...