In the early years of Ananda Village, Kirtani was part of the team of devotees who helped to establish the organic vegetable gardens there. Now a nayaswami and director of the Ananda Community near Assisi, Italy, Kirtani shared a beautiful story with us recently during our visit there.
Nayaswami Kirtani, 1976
One of the tasks for all the gardeners in those early days was to build huge compost piles to improve our infertile soil. These piles were assembled like giant cakes, by putting down consecutive layers of grass cut from the fields, organic kitchen waste, and a special mixture of bacteria that helped to break down the material into nutrient-rich compost.
One fall morning, it was Kirtani’s task to “turn” the pile. This meant that she had to use a pitchfork to mix the upper layers with the lower ones, and the innermost parts of the pile with the outer ones. Mind you, these piles were about fifteen feet high, with a base of five by ten feet, so this was no easy job.
As she got to the inner part of the pile, where there was very little air circulation, she reached a layer of reeking kitchen waste. But worse than the odor, flies had laid their eggs inside the compost pile, and thousands of white maggots had hatched and lay squirming there. Repulsed by the sight and smell, Kirtani thought, “How can they stand to live in such a place?”
When the job was finally finished, Kirtani was glad to clean up, walk home for lunch, and forget the compost pile. It was a perfect fall day with a brilliant blue sky, luminous white clouds, and trees that seemed to be dancing in the sunlight. Rejoicing in the glorious sights around her, she thought, “How beautiful this all is!”
Suddenly Kirtani heard a voice within her say, “How can you stand to live in such a place?” Startled, she asked, “What do you mean? It’s so beautiful!”
The divine voice responded, “If you only knew what awaits you.”
Kirtani realized that from Divine Mother’s perspective, this world was just as distasteful as the world of the maggots had seemed to her. She understood from the inner voice that a world of unimaginable beauty awaits us in God.
Paramhansa Yogananda gave poetic expression to that very thought:
Goodbye, blue house of heaven. Farewell, stars and celestial celebrities and your dramas on the screen of space. Goodbye, flowers with your traps of beauty and fragrance. You can hold me no longer. I am flying home.
The beauties of this world are but faint reflections of the true beauty that awaits us in our divine home, and all the sooner if we have the wisdom to seek it within now.
With joy and love,
Nayaswami Devi
23 Comments
Beautiful!!
Pranam Ji
Wonderful , very subjective and Profound Inspiration to Reach the Final Destination.
With Gratitude
R Sundararajan
I liked it, when I look behind in my life at those 58 years, I see of those plenty traps ; It was really waste of precious time.
The joyful story of the Nayaswami Kirtini is a perfact example of Self – Confidence Determination Hard Work Clear Vision Sincerity
Dedication and Devotion toward Ananda Village which a Inspiration to me.
I Strongly feel that friends of Ananda are well talented but the question is that how they meet and share their Creative Ideas and Innovative Skills and Resources together to facitilate the Ananda Centers in India ? ?
Let find out possibilities to cross fingers together to activate THE ANANDA….
Dear Nayaswami Devi Ji,
Thank you for the blog :)
How joy it is to read Master’s line “You can hold me no longer. I am flying home.”.
Thank you for sharing the experience that Kirtani Ji had. Such a profound message, said simpler
Aum
Prem
Home is where beauty is. Our real home us within ourselves, where God resides. Seek beauty at our core and realise God.
Thank you Naeanswami Devi for sharing J Kirtani’s experience of realisation with us.
What a lovely story. Thank you for sharing, Devi. I hope all is well in Bella Italia – or Bella India (!) if you’re there already =)
In divine friendship,
sambhava
Thank you for this beautiful blog post, Devi. I’m grateful beyond measure for the wisdom and inspiration you (and other great souls such as Kirtani) share with us all.
Lovely to read first thing over morning smoothie. When I was a runner, I would often drive to San Francisco on a Saturday to run across the Golden Gate Bridge and into the Marin Headlands. It was a nice break from sitting at the computer all day – with the broad views over the Bay, and the highly diverse crowds on the bridge from many countries. Occasionally I would see monks and nuns walking on the bridge, and it was my habit to bow to them mentally, in gratitude that they were reminding us that this world is only a pale reflection of the real world within – the world that Paramhansa Yogananda describes in his beautiful chant, “where no clouds come, and golden dreams dwell, in the land beyond my dreams.” Thank you for this, Devi-ji.
Truth so beautifully written and shared …as always.
What a great gift and joy to be in touch this way.
As Master says, ” … in the land beyond my dreams”.
To both of you … in Master’s love, Shanti
Wow. What a great story and revelation. Thank you, as always, for the reminder “I’m not in THERE!” In Divine Friendship, steve and julie. Have fun, stay safe. Joy to you.
Maybe to save for a someday obit: May we acknowledge that the “special mixture of bacteria” was one from the divine inspiration of Haanel Cassidy’s gardening teacher Ehrenfried Pfeiffer of Biodynamic fame? Pfeiffer was a disciple of Rudolph Steiner.
Through some mistake in the development of that particular compost pile, it had a sick core, similar to that of a neglected soul.
Those who worked on properly built and cared for compost piles at Ananda were usually surprised by the fresh sweet tobacco and hay like smell.
May we also acknowledge that through our dear sister Kirtani’s undaunted effort that day, the compost was surely resurrected. Kirtani’s joy filled and tireless gardening in the beginning years of the Ananda, are seen now in her tireless gardening for souls. We now find joy in the light of the divine in Kirtani. She has become an example for all of us of how to find God.
Thank you for adding to the story about the care of the core. When i sa the photo of this joyful young woman I thought: “ahh another bright young face at Ananda! She fits right in, she radiates what the “Elders” (of Ananda must have looked like, when they first arrived…” I did not I was looking at Kirtani’s picture! I still say: It is possible that today’s radiant young devotees, will age like their teachers do. They will have white hair, too, and radiate God’s grace foreword.
A beautiful story and a great reminder of what’s to come in God!
Thank you for sharing.
Blessings
So beautiful. Profound inspiration and gentle reminder. It had always been such Joy to hear and talk to Kirtani ji,, thank you for this wonderful blog.
Joy
ilango
Thank you! I enjoy your thoughts and emails out in the White Mtns of Arizona!
So beautiful….
I know!
What a great reminder of how essential Kriya Yoga is!
Simply beautiful experience shared . Reminds of the myths that we live with and the utter uselessness of it.
So, truly an ashram is like a huge compost file, the devoties white maggots which meditate a lot to become colorful spiritual butterflies fertilizing the infertile planet.
Kirtani was definitely an avatar for the maggots ;-))
Alexander^^
This was so inspiring and fulfilling Deviji. It reminds me of Swamijis last mail to us expressing how much he felt the need to take us Home with Him. Having seen through the squalour and lustreless world that enamoured Him no more, the urgency for us to wake up and see our real Home was as if His last wish. Neti, Neti, not here, not here.
Thank you for this wonderful share.
WOW!
Very powerful!
Very Inspiring!
Thank you for sharing this!