A Sermon on a New Year.

The One who is eternally ancient, yet ever new—may that One, on this auspicious New Year, bring you new awakening and new joy. May that One dwell within you in an ever-new form.

That which is fragmentary* clings to the old; it fears that if it lets go, everything will come to an end.
But the One who is eternal, who is infinite—whenever that One engages in play, everything becomes new.

We do not perceive this ever-new Goddess; therefore, we try to hold on to the old.
But once this Goddess of ever-newness appears in our vision, there is no need to cling to the old anymore.

The eternal One, in whom all is ever new—whatever play the One chooses to enact, in that, the One appears anew.

May the One make this New Year meaningful for you. I bless you—may you attain a life of ever-newness.

[Publisher's note: *We are fragments of the Universal Consciousness, and in our current state, we cannot identify ourselves with the Universal Consciousness.]

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A brief note by the publisher.

The above sermon is a piece of sacred speech delivered by the seer Shri. BijoyKrishna Chattopadhyay, also known as Howrah's Thakur (the God of Howrah); Howrah is a city near Kolkata in West Bengal, India. 

This sermon was delivered on a New Year's Day of the Bengali Calendar. 

This sermon is one among many delivered by the great seer Bijoy Krishna Chattopadhyay (1875–1945). Most of his speeches were delivered orally and later recorded by his disciples. A significant number of these were documented by the Indian reformer and freedom fighter Sarala Devi Chaudhurani, a niece of Rabindranath Tagore.

This is a translated version of the original sermon, which was delivered in the Bengali (Bangla) language.

Portions of his sacred teachings on Universal Consciousness and the universe manifest within Consciousness are preserved across several volumes of a work titled 'veda-vaaNii' (“The Voice of the Vedas”). The first volume is available here: https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.456960.

He also authored a number of books on Consciousness and Its governing principles, describing the universe as realized within Consciousness, and relating his own spiritual realizations to the sacred texts of the Vedas, Upanishads, Tantras, Brahma-Sutra, Chandii, and other related traditions.

Two of his well-known works are Ritambhara and Geetaar Yaugik Vyaakhyaa (The Yogic Explanation of the Gita).

His sermons teach how to live daily life in awareness of the omniscient, eternal Consciousness—from which everything is created, of which everything is composed, and by which every being is governed. They illustrate how divinity and mortality are seamlessly intertwined. He taught that “words” are the defined forms of Consciousness, and that everything is a manifestation of Consciousness as words.

Listening to such Conscious words is called 'shruti.' The term shruti means “that which is heard,” and is also another name for the Vedas. The word 'veda' itself means “knowledge” or “to know.” Thus, while addressing his disciples, he would often say: “You do not need to perform anything; just listen to my words.” This reflects his teaching that the words of an Enlightened Being can themselves act upon the listener.

He chose to remain away from crowds and public recognition, though many well-known spiritual figures sought his guidance. The sage Omkaranath Thakur is said to have approached him for spiritual assistance, as mentioned in the biography of the sage. Anandamayi Ma also visited him, among others.

During the annual worship of Goddess Durga and Vishva-Mata (the Universal Mother) conducted by him, many spiritually advanced practitioners—including Tantrics from the Kamakhya Temple—would attend the observances.

I will try to translate and publish some of His sermons recorded in the 'veda-vaaNii', and elsewhere.

(debkumar.lahiri@gmail.com)