Radhasoami
| Formation | 1861 |
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Main organ
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Radhasoami Satsang |
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Volunteers
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See sewa or seva |
Radhasoami. The Radhasoami mat or faith derives its name from its original Founder, the Supreme Being, Radhasoami who appeared in this world in human form and designated Himself Sant Sat Guru or perfect Saint or true Guide and Preceptor, and preached holy doctrines to sincere enquirer of Truth for the deliverance of their spirit from the bondage of body and its surroundings, as well as from the pains and pleasures of this world, and for the ultimate admission (of their spirit) into the Holy Presence of the Supreme Being after traversing and breaking through the trammels and impediments in the material spheres.
There are many phases of development on the spiritual path, the most important being love, manifest in devotion, discipline and obedience to Guru guru bhakti. With the Grace and Protection of the Guru, the disciple moves from outer methods of devotion, prayer and ritual, to the inner spiritual practice - meditation. The meditation practice is called Surat Shabd Yoga, the Yoga of the Sound Current, which emphasizes collecting the scattered attention at the Eye Center third eye, by means of repetition (mantra/simran), and listening bhajan to the Inner Celestial Sound, Nam or Inner Word, the Real Form of both Master and Disciple. In practice, Guru bhakti leads to Nam bhakti.
"The socio-religious revolution or renaissance which took place in India in the nineteenth century is generally known for its three facets: the change in Indian thought current under the hypnotic impact of the West; a positive leaning towards puritanic revivalism as a reaction to the influx of western ideas; and a deliberate attempt at synthesis of the Oriental and the Occidental. But besides these currents, there was one more - a spontaneous outburst of an inner urge of the Spirit, which was far away from any external influence whatsoever. The father of this spiritual renaissance was Soamiji Maharaj, the founder of the Radhasoami Faith, who started his teachings as early as the twenties of the nineteenth century. Whatever he said or wrote was the outcome of his intuitive realization and mystic revelations. Under this spiritual impulse he could draw a super-sensitive and English educated disciple like Hazur Maharaj towards him. The devotion of the disciple for the Master was matchless in form and precedence. And it was on his repeated requests that Soamiji Maharaj founded this esoteric faith in 1861. The chief characteristics of this faith are love and devotion. It revitalized the medieval Bhakti trends and revived the ancient Guru traditions. The faith presents a new concept of the Supreme Being, a novel revelation of the name "Radhasoami" and introduces a well-defined and developed method of internal practice -- surat-shabd-yoga—to the seekers after Truth. Not only an ascetic but also a man living in family can practise this Yoga. The faith has many other spiritual observances and a well spelled code of moral conduct to be followed by devotees. The faith owes its systematization to the second guru, Rai Saligram Bahadur (Hazur Maharaj), who was its real architect. The Radhasoami Faith has made a remarkable contribution in the socio-religion field as well. The founder gurus of the faith made direct hit upon the prevalent malpractices and anomalies in the indigenous socio-religious beliefs. They advocated for steady and gradual reforms in Indian society and simplified religion so as to make it accessible to all who desire salvation from worldly bondage, without any distinction of caste, colour and nationality."
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