Laxminath Gosain (Babajee)

Paramhans Lakshminath Gosain (1787-1872) was an Indian yogi and poet from the Mithila region. He is worshipped in Parsarma, a village in the north Indian state of Bihar in a temple dedicated to him, as he was believed to possess divine qualities.

Life

Early life

Babajee was born as Lakshminath Jha in the nearby Parsarma village in 1787. His father's name was Shri Bachha Jha. He was born into a Maithil Brahmin family in a ''Kujilwar digaun mool'' and his ''gotra'' was Katyayan. ''Mool'' and ''Gotra'' are used to identify the roots of a family.

He learnt yoga and the Vedanta philosophy as a child. After early education in astrology under the tutelage of Shri Ratte Jha, Babajee returned to his native village where his family disapproved of his observed "aloofness" and pushed him to get married; he obeyed in order to do his ''dharma''.

Training

After his marriage, he left for the forest to seek a guru. He travelled to a number of religious shrines in India and Nepal, eventually becoming a disciple of Guru Lambanathaswami of the Terai region, who was the disciple of Guru Gorakhnath. Under Guru Lambnath's tutelage, Babajee had the opportunity to meet Gorakhnath, who had become very old by that time.

Entry into Bangaon

After all the training of ''yoga'' and ''tantra,'' Babajee returned initially to Darbhanga. During one of his trips, nine years after he began his training, he happened to come to Bangaon where he was warmly welcomed by the villagers both for being a yogi and his reputation as an able wrestler. In those days, wrestling used to be a sport of immense interest to the villagers. Given to the warm hospitality and goodness of the people, Babajee decided to stay in the village. Villagers made a ''kutiya'' (grass hut) for him. A villager named Kari Jha donated him a cow. He is said to have done many acts of goodwill to the people of the village.

Christian John

A British man named Christian John ("John Sahib"), who had been living in a nearby village called Bariyahi, which was controlled by the East India Company, came in contact with Babajee. Both of them shared common interest in religion. Christian John was influenced by Babajee's thinking and would come to emulate his writing style. John would later publish

Written Works

He composed several poems in Maithili and Hindi, devoted to the life of Radha, Krishna and Shiva. Christian John published his composed hymns.

Babjee wrote a huge collection of Bhajans which were published as a collection named ''Bhajnawali''. Bhajnawali was kept in its original form by Late Mahavir Jha. It was later organised by Pandit Chhedi Jha Dwijwar. Bhajnawali has Bhajans that cover a wide range of topics describing the childhood of the gods Rama and Krishna as well as philosophical ones.

His only other published work is Vivek Ratnawali.

Some of his famous bhajans included the following.

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Ambe aab uchit nahi deri

(Mother Goddess! Its already too late)

अम्बे आब उचित नहीं देरी
मित्र बंधू सब टक-टक ताकय, नहीं सहाय अहि बेरी
योग यज्ञ जप कय नहीं सकलों, परलहूं कालक फेरी
केवल द्वन्द फंद मै फैस कय, पाप बटोरल ढेरी
नाम उचारब दुस्तर भय गेल, कंठ लेल कफ घेरी
एक उपाय सुझे ऐछ अम्बे, आहाँ नयन भैर हेरी
शुध्ह भजन तुए हे जगदम्बे, देब बजाबथि भेड़ी
‘लक्ष्मीपति ‘ करुणामयी अम्बे, बिसरहूँ चूक घनेरी.{{col-end

Babaji Samaroh

Babaji Samaroh is held every year on 5 December, Babaji's birthday, on the premises of Babaji Temple. It was started in 1972 by Bhavesh Mishra. The function continued to be organised by Bhavesh Mishra, a popular journalist and lawyer of the district, until his sudden demise in 1991. His family members, with the help of fellow villagers, have been organising this function since then.

Apart from the special worship, there are many other cultural programmes held during the Samaroh.

The function usually starts with the inauguration by a top official (DM/SP) or some political leader of the district. This is followed by lectures by some respected villagers, as well as musical programs and ''Haasya Kavi Sammelans''. For a long time, locally renowned poet Amiya Halaahal, singers Hemkant Jha, Mahendra and the singer-lyricist duo Nand-Naval used to be top attractions of the function.

In popular culture

A commemorative audio cassette of Babajee's Bhajans was released by Bhavesh Mishra in the 1980s.

References

{{Reflist

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gosain, Laxminath
Indian Hindu yogis
People from Bihar
1787 births
1872 deaths
19th-century Hindu religious leaders