Today is the 73^rd Birth anniversary of Shri. Raviiji.

He was born on 21^st October 1951, in Thanjavur, in a humble and religious family.  He studied till graduation in Madurai and subsequently joined a Bank and rose to the level of heading a big branch. Due to family constraints, he resigned the job.

During this period, he had the opportunity to meet his Guru, Sri. Desikachariar, which brought a miraculous change in his life.  He visited his Guru every evening and spent 3 to 4 hours every day and learnt the nuances of spirituality.  He was initiated into Śakti worship by his Guru in the year 2003. He had completed several thousand recitations of Mahā Ṣoḍaśī mantra and completed the prescribed puraścaraṇa. It was his Guru, who made him to pursue the ritualistic path and later made him to follow the path of Self-realization. He had the wonderful opportunity to learn the intricacies of Upanishads and other spiritual teachings from his Guru, for an extensive period of six months. His Guruji always held him very close to his heart.  Raviji was extremely blessed in having a Guru of his stature. Guruji transferred Sakti Pat to Raviji and in a few days after that, his Guruji left his mortal remains on 11^th April 2007.  On 10^th April, he called Raviji at around 11pm and sent his entire family out of his room, and hugged Raviji and blessed him (the first and the last hug).

The pulsating spiritual urge, made Raviji, to think of other ways to use the acquired knowledge, for the benefit of spiritual aspirants, who had an urge for spiritual upliftment and did not have a chance to have a Guru.  Life was not a bed of roses for him. There were financial constraints and other family commitments and so many struggles and challenges.  With great difficulty he purchased books and started reading voraciously. Those were the days when there were no online books.

In the year 2008, he started this site and named it as MANBLUNDER (a name suggested by his brother). He was not a tech savvy man and there was no google help then. He toiled for hours every day and built the site.

He started writing from 2009 and was on the job till 2018.  During his initial days, he used to work for almost 20 hours a day and had started writing on Lalita Sahasranama, Kundalini meditation and other topics.

He started initiating spiritual aspirants into mantras. Most of them were outside India, and he had to work in sync with their time and would be on skype calls till 2 in the night, and then he would wind up for the day. During daytime he used to concentrate on his writing.  He believed that when he initiates a person, he should follow up with them and take them in the right path.  He would constantly check their progress and maintained a diary of all whom he initiated, with details of the bija mantra and the mantra.

He started consolidating his writings and in November 2010, he published Lalita Sahasranama in book form.  He used to say, that he never wrote the book but Sakti herself wrote it. He was very happy with the outcome.

The following namas in Lalita Sahasranama, were so dear to him, which would make him emotional, when he explains them to people who conversed with him.

Śrī Mātā श्री माता (1)

Śiva-jñāna-pradāyinī शिव-ज्ञान-प्रदायिनी (727)

Śiva-śakty-aikya-rūpiṇī शिव-शक्त्यैक्य-रूपिणी (999)

He published around 18 books, including Sri Chakra Navavarna, Essence of Bhagavad Gita, Vishnu Sahasranama, Soundarya Lahari and others.

He was not conversant with Sanskrit, but how he could write so many books and articles and about mantras, is a great puzzle. Probably, Sri Mata herself had written, using him as a tool.

He was a strict disciplinarian and perfectionist. He had an unwavering integrity and commitment to excellence.

He was very industrious, and his perseverance was highly commendable. He will not allow any stone unturned when he wanted to learn a subject. He mastered astrology, reiki, gemmology, palmistry, vastu etc.

From 2019, he started to love solitude. A calm and composed person, he lived a life of fullness with full contentment. Post covid, visitors were also curtailed, and he had more time for perpetual meditation.

He was very humble and would never lose his cool at any circumstance. He did not practice spirituality for commercial purpose.  He never expected anything material but always wanted his people to advance spiritually.  There were occasions, when he was approached by certain ashrams and organisations, asking him to write for them or come and take over the ashram and that he would be monetarily compensated. He declined those offers, informing them that he was not interested in material gains and wanted to lie low.

He loved his family equally and was always a source of inspiration and guidance. He was a very humorous man and make everyone happy.

He raised a select few of his disciples to the level of a Guru by making them initiate mantras to others. Very few will have this generosity to raise their disciples to their own level.

A few of his thoughts:

Quote:

If one regards Guru as a body, he will get entrapped in Maya, like any other worldly person. “I am the Self. You are also the Self. Be perpetually established in the Supreme Consciousness”.

The one who is established in Jnana, has no obligation to perform routine practices.  Self-abidance alone is his karmas. A disciple who has obtained the great treasure of knowledge from the Guru must not waver, even a bit, from the Truth, due to inattentiveness. He must meditate on the Self and remain established therein.  Happiness, beauty, peace and security exist in the Self alone. Everything else is only a reflection.

Remain with the firm conviction that ‘I am Brahman’, even when tossed by the destiny of the body, mind and the senses. Uninterruptedly meditate on the effulgent Self, shining within the heart cave.

Let us day by day strive to live in constant and sincere contemplation of the one infinite Self, which is everywhere, expressed as the life, that is throbbing in every living organism.

Actionless is the very nature of the Self. Sorrows are no more; all actions have ended, and peace alone remains in its fullness.

In solitude let us live joyously by quietening our mind in the Supreme Lord.

Unquote:

Thanking Shri. Raviji,for all he has done in the world of spirituality. He had been a solace for innumerable souls who had come to him with their problems, and he would listen to them patiently and it was his practice, to reply  to their queries immediately.

We remember Shri. Raviji, on this memorable day, who lived each day to the fullest. He knew how to enjoy life and fill everyone with happiness. His energy was infectious, and he lived a glorious life of devotion, and his life was a testament to his strength, resilience and love.