A Tribute from the Hearts to Dr. Maheshbhai Mehta Viswanath and Mona Khaitan, Wellesley, MA

An appropriate question to ask is what set Maheshbhai apart from other men[1] of intellect and vision? Practically, all people have some vision of what they would like to see accomplished in their lifetime. So why does a simple unassuming son of Bharat succeed while other viewpoints evaporate at some point. With few economic resources, how does a man build a big organization like Vishwa Hindu Parishad of America of national and international impact? How does he manage to rally so many people to this cause? How does he convince the Hindu diaspora of intellectual giants who find it even difficult to agree on anything trivial like the color of a wall? Did he use force and a stick to find common ground? How come young people flocked to him instead of running for the normal entertainment giving up their precious weekends? And the most important question is why were people willing to do what he asked without the slightest hesitation?

So, this enigma was Maheshbhai. With God’s blessing, with Ragibahen at his side, he accomplished what seems larger than life. When he spoke whether personally or in groups, he had an impact. His voice was soft but had the ability to convince. There was an invisible force that rallied people around his ideas. It was difficult to ruffle him. On one occasion, I had invited him to speak to what was expected to be a large group on the topic of Dharma. Unfortunately, the turnout was very low with only five people in attendance including me. That had not the slightest impact on Maheshbhai. He proceeded to carry on the full presentation as if the venue was full. In contrast, a so-called Mahatma we had invited refused to give a presentation at an early morning 7 o’clock convention gathering in Detroit because of thin attendance.

Our scriptures provide the answer of where the power of speech comes from. Of the four vanis (sound), para vani is Unmanifest sound, pashyanti is where the sound becomes manifest with name and form combined, madhyama vani is where name and form have become separated in the form of thoughts, unspoken, and confined to the realms of the mind, and of course vaikhari vani is the everyday spoken language where names and forms are fully separated. The normal population mainly resides and uses the vaikhari and madhyama vani. It is the siddhas that have gone beyond everyday sound that operate from the pashyanti vani. Here whatever is said has the power to manifest in the relative world, hence the powerful blessings and curses of the Rishis and Munis. One who operates in pashyanti vani sees visions materialize. Maheshbhai spoke from the source of pashyanti and this was the secret of his success in his undertakings. Unknown to us, we had a siddha working amongst us which we now realize has left for the next abode.

Reference:

1. Men refers to both men and women of all ages without regard to race, color, or other manifestations.

Dr. Mona and Vishwanath Khaitan are long time supporters of VHPA. Mona Ji’s maternal grandparent’s house in Prayagraj was donated to VHP. Her parents were family friends of Sw. Ashok Singhal Ji and Sw. Rajju Bhaiya (former Sarsanghchalak.) She is the president of Merrimack Valley, NH chapter of VHPA.