The ‘Biography of Sant Das Ji’ was written and published by his sons in 1987,

and is a loving tribute to the greatest historian and most prolific author of the

Radhasoami Faith. In its most controversial chapters, the book also docu-

ments the secret history of Soami Bagh and the infighting that had existed

there during the time of Sant Das Ji and Babuji Maharaj. For those who may

not be aware, Soami Bagh has been in a state of “Interregnum” (the period

when the living Sat Guru is not manifest) since the departure of Babuji

Maharaj, who left His mortal coil in 1949 and was the last officially

recognized Sat Guru of the Agra lineage. But is this the whole story? Or did

Babuji appoint a spiritual successor? And if so, is there an authentic Sant Sat

Guru lineage that exists today which has been hidden from the public?

It was Soami Ji Maharaj, Himself, who had declared that the Sat Guru is

always here on earth, either in the manifest or hidden form. The Sants have

also clearly said, it is only this individual who has the divine connection to the

higher spiritual regions that is “kinetic” in the world and can ultimately affect

our salvation. In the Radhasoami Faith, the “Gurumukh” is the chief disciple

and successor of the Sat Guru of the time. Before the latter departs, it is the

Gurumukh alone who is raised to the same spiritual level as Himself, and

from that point on there is no difference between the two.

Soami Ji Maharaj (‘Sar Bachan Prose’, Bachan 250):

“When the Sat Guru of the time departs, He appoints someone

as His successor in whom He re-incarnates and thus continues the

work of regeneration of Jivas as before. When, however, such is

not the Mauj (divine will), He returns to His Original Abode.”

Maharaj Saheb (letter written after Huzur Maharaj’s departure):

“It is not necessary that the Sant Sat Guru should re-incarnate

Himself immediately on the departure from this world. It all depends

on the Mauj of Sant Sat Guru, whether even after reincarnation He

immediately manifests Himself or not.”

Babuji Maharaj (on the Sat Guru of the RS Faith, ‘Discourses’, 1919):

“It is not possible that there should be no one in the Radhasoami

Faith to sustain it and keep it going… So long as the time is not ripe

for functioning openly, He (the Sat Guru of the time) will certainly

remain unmanifest, but will accord help and support incognito. He

will continue to function through someone. At no time shall the

Radhasoami Faith be without an Adept. It can never go on along

the lines of other faiths and religions in which traditional sermons

and discourses are given by someone acting as a priest.”

Sant Das Ji (R.S. letter ‘Correspondences’):

“Every Sant Sat Guru has His Gurumukh who succeeds the former

at His departure… When such a re-incarnation takes place, it

cannot be known to anybody except the would be Sant Sat Guru.”

“It is not right to say that the Merciful Lord has left this world

without a Sant Sat Guru for the past 31 years. The Sant Sat

Guru has always been and is very much there all this time, though

He has not yet chosen to manifest Himself and function openly…

the work of redemption will continue through an uninterrupted

succession of Sant Sat Gurus.”

It has been over 65 years since Soami Bagh in Agra, India, has had a public

Sant Sat Guru and there have been some who question whether such a “Nij

Ansh” (God incarnate soul) will ever grace us again. For this reason, many

spiritually inclined people who believe they are following the path of Sant Mat

(“Religion of the Saints”) have gone elsewhere to find the Sat Guru of the

time. Unfortunately, most if not all of these paths are false, as well as the

gurus behind them. It was St. Kabir who had taught that there is only one

authentic Sat Guru for every thousand or more who are followed, while it is

the latter who are most often agents of Kal. Perhaps, the key to unlocking

the mystery as to what happened to the Sant Sat Guru spiritual current (“Nij

Dhar”), originally brought down to the world by Soami Ji Maharaj, lies in the

often overlooked and enigmatic figure of Sant Das Ji Maheshwari. For it was

he, as his Biography maintains, who was the one true candidate fitting all the

qualifications inherent in the Gurumukh (perfect disciple and successor), and

indeed it was he who had the closest relationship to Babuji Maharaj.

Unknown to many, Sant Das Ji had

functioned for many years incognito as

Sat Guru to a select group of Satsangis

following the departure of Babuji

Maharaj. There is no doubt that he was a

remarkable and pivotal figure in the

history of the Radhasoami Faith, whe-

ther universally acknowledged as its

most proficient author and historian, or

as Babuji’s hidden Gurumukh who chose

to never fully reveal His true spiritual

status. He almost singlehandedly opened the West to the sacred scriptures of

the RS Faith with his definitive English translations of such classics as ‘Sar

Bachan Poetry’ & ‘Sar Bachan Prose’, authored by the founder Soami Ji

Maharaj (1818-1878), to publishing the discourses of the last officially

sanctioned Sat Guru, Babuji Maharaj (1861-1949). Sant Das was relentless in

these publications, often working 15-16 hours a day. In the end, he authored

some 101 books. He had also provided his own commentaries, elucidations

and reply letters to Satsangis around the world for many years at Soami Bagh.

Sant Das was born on July 1st in 1910. His father received his first initiation

during the tenure of the 2nd Sat Guru, Huzur Maharaj (1829-1898). Sant Das

was thus born into the RS Faith, and was schooled in Jain and Christian

institutions. He was formally initiated at the age of 12 by Babuji Maharaj.

In 1937, when Babuji shifted His Satsang and residence from Allahabad to

Soami Bagh, Sant Das’ family followed Him there. From this point on, Sant

Das served his Sat Guru in body and soul, which perhaps has only been

eclipsed by Huzur Maharaj’s legendary devotion to Soami Ji Maharaj.

(Biography): “He (Sant Das) confined himself to Babuji Maharaj’s Kothi or to

his own house. Not for one day, or two days, but for a continuous period of

twelve years from 1937 to 1949, i.e., between the age of 27 to 39 years

while in the full bloom of his youth, he never stepped out of Soami Bagh,

except for work connected with Satsang.”

Below is the historic photo of Sant Das with Babuji Maharaj in 1935. Here we

see the uncanny resemblance to the “Gurumukh pictures” taken of the other

Sant Sat Gurus, who were often photographed standing above and behind the

Sat Guru of the time.

Sant Das Ji & Babuji Maharaj

Babuji Maharaj had referred to Sant Das as His "Personal Assistant" and

had said, "I employ him as a whip," primarily to keep other Satsangis in

line. It was in this capacity, and at times pointing out the shortcomings of

others on Babuji's behalf, that Sant Das encountered hostility within Soami

Bagh. This internal conflict was for the most part with senior Satsangis and

members of the Administrative Council, which ultimately culminated in the

slander and jealousy of this most unassuming and humble servant of

Radhasoami Dayal. In Sant Das Ji’s Biography, we read: "The opposition

faced by Sant Das Ji was unprecedented… it was an opposition not so much

from worldly people as by his own men, by the Satsangis themselves, by his

kith and kin, by the members of the holy families, by the Council which he

himself eulogized so much in his books and brought into prominence.”

There was an occasion when a Satsangi had uttered

such abusive words against Sant Das in the presence of

Babuji Maharaj that the Sat Guru promptly defended

him saying, "Why do you use such foul language? He

(Sant Das) is a noble soul." In truth, Babuji came to rely

upon Sant Das in most everything He did during His

tenure as Sat Guru, just as all Sat Gurus typically rely

upon the service and achievements of Their Gurumukh,

who They employ to carry out Their wishes. After April

1st 1943, when Babuji was confined to His bed, He dele-

gated virtually all His personal work to Sant Das. When

it was later suggested to Babuji that Sant Das be added

to the names of the Central Administrative Council by a devoted Satsangi, He

had replied, "I do not want Sant Das to be involved and entangled in quarrels

and wranglings of administration and management. I want to keep him aloof

from all these things. Some other work is to be taken from him." One can

easily imagine what this "other work" was, as Sant Das had published his first

nine books during the lifetime of Babuji Maharaj. In point of fact, Babuji had

not only given him His clear permission to do this sacred work, but had actu-

ally ordered Sant Das to print them.

When Sant Das began the publishing of Babuji Maharaj’s own discourses,

there were some at Soami Bagh who questioned their authenticity. One

possible reason may have been because Sant Das had possessed a very

unique talent since childhood, and that was having a photographic memory. It

has been well documented that he could hear Babuji’s discourses one time

and would later be able to re-produce them in their entirety. This was indeed a

gift that few people have ever possessed and some apparently questioned.

Yet, again, Babuji Maharaj came to Sant Das’ defense stating unequivocally,

“There are no mistakes in them (His discourses). Sant Das has written them

with great care. He has reproduced them quite correctly. He has consulted

Me and I have got them written by him.”

For many years, Satsangis had speculated who Babuji Maharaj’s successor

would be, but when pressed on this issue Babuji had replied, “If the name of

the Gurumukh be revealed, people would not leave Him alive.” What could

this possibly mean? Was His Gurumukh’s life truly in danger? To understand

the underlying motivation of this holy utterance we must again turn to Sant

Das, as violence had not only been threatened against him on more than one

occasion, but had actually been perpetrated by a Satsangi gang in the very

presence of Babuji. Fortunately, Sant Das had not sustained any injury and

was left virtually unscathed. This event only proved what Soami Ji Maharaj

had once declared, and that is, no one can harm a hair on the head of those

who are favored by the Sat Guru, even if the entire world is against them.

After Babuji Maharaj left His mortal coil in 1949, the

opposition against Sant Das became even more inten-

sified. For many years, he suffered every indignity and

humiliation at the hands of petty and jealous people at

Soami Bagh. In 1969, the Central Administrative Council

had passed a resolution condemning Sant Das’ Hindi

book, “Ateet Ki Smritiyan”. Why? Their contention was

that there were falsehoods presented in it, although, they

were never able to clarify or even enumerate these

offenses. Copies of this resolution, however, condemning

Sat Das’ books were sent to Satsangis. One of Babuji’s

senior disciples, Dr. Maharaj Saran Kapoor, revealed the true reason for the

circular: “Sant Das Ji is a man of noble personality. In my opinion there is no

mistake in the books. People are only jealous. They unnecessarily create

trouble, being swayed by rancour and jealousy. It is a matter of regret that

our own men of Soami Bagh should indulge in such provocative acts.” In the

end, Sant Das took the high road and would not defend himself or retaliate

against the members of the Council. His only response was a reply letter to a

Satsangi, when he stated that all he had written was true. Also, the greater

the opposition against Sant Das, the faster he would publish his books.

Babuji had once referred to the humiliating treatment endured by Sants of the

past: “It is a hallmark of devotees and their devotion that, without any

cause, there is heart-burning amongst worldly people against them.

Devotees have suffered great humiliation. There are no humiliations and

troubles, meted out by the worldly people, which Soami Ji Maharaj, Huzur

Maharaj and Maharaj Saheb did not have to put up with in Their times.”

Incredible as it may seem, Soami Ji Maharaj actually had stones thrown at

Him in Panni Gali and Tulsi Saheb was once the recipient of bricks. In truth,

the Sant Sat Gurus have long been opposed by violent, worldly and unscrup-

ulous people. Huzur Maharaj thus writes in Radhasoami Mat Prakash the

following “Distinguishing Features of Sant Sat Guru or True Guide”:

“That as envy and jealousy on the part of interested religious

parties will try to slander His (the Sat Guru’s) character and

otherwise shower taunts and sneers on Him and His limited

congregation. He won’t feel ashamed or discouraged by such

acts of the ignorant, jealous and worldly people, but go on with

His sacred work steadily and determinately with full trust in

the Grace and Mercy of His Beloved Father, the True Supreme

Being who invariably extends His protection to the sincere

lovers of Truth.”

Does this account bear any resemblance to Sant Das’ life at Soami Bagh?

What is certain is that after all the “slander” and “taunts and sneers” he

endured by “jealous and worldly people”, Sant Das always found solace in his

“sacred work”, while publishing his many books as Sewa to humanity. He had

also invited the very man who assaulted him to his own daughter’s wedding.

In every respect he exemplified the highest spiritual, altruistic and ethical

principals in life, and rose above the sea of worldly people who were

relentlessly used as pawns of Kal against him. None of this mattered,

however, because clearly Sant Das was more loved by Babuji Maharaj than

any other, and he passed every test put forth by his Sat Guru.

During the wedding ceremony of Sant Das’

eldest daughter, not once but three times

Babuji Maharaj sent for him, and three times

Sant Das left his daughter’s wedding actually

in progress to rush to his Sat Guru’s aid and

never looked back. I ask the reader, who else

but Babuji’s Gurumukh would be tested under such circumstances? There are

many such instances of his uncommon loyalty, and vice versa. When a person

once protested to Babuji Maharaj, “Please turn Sant Das out or I will turn into

a corpse.” Babuji replied, “If Sant Das is gone, I will be gone too.”

Let the reader consider the following remarks made

by Babuji Maharaj about Sant Das Ji. Was

He merely referencing an aide? Or were these Sant

Sat Guru indications of His true Gurumukh?

“Sant Das is my Personal Assistant. His

function is to report omissions and commissions of

anybody and everybody to me.”

“Except Sant Das who else is here with me?”

“In most of the matters, he (Sant Das) represents me.”

“He is a saint, a cook, a Bhisti (one who sprinkles water on dusty

roads) and a mule for carrying loads.”

“He is a noble soul, why do you utter such words against him?”

“When you have already included Sant Das’ name in the list of the

invitees, whom else shall I invite?”

In Babuji Maharaj’s will, He mentions Sant Das as “being engaged in

My special work.”

Babuji had affectionately referred to His own discourses that were

printed as the “Discourses of Sant Das.”

On one occasion Babuji Maharaj did not accept Bhet (presents) from

anybody, but to each Satsangi who had gone to Him had said, “Give it

to Sant Das.”

Babuji had also stated that “the nomination of a Sant Sat Guru’s successor is

never announced by a flourish of trumpets. It generally consists of more or

less distinct indications as to who the successor would be, and spiritually

minded people can easily follow those indications.” If so, then the above

utterances may very well represent many such clear indications.

SANT DAS JI’S DEPARTURE

When Sant Sat Gurus leave their material bodies, They

often do so swiftly and peacefully. This is primarily because

Their spiritual essence is located no lower than the third Til,

and it’s somewhat easy for Them to vacate the physical

frame. Soami Ji Maharaj, for instance, was taken into the

room where He was born and had meditated all His life,

when moments later He left His mortal coil. Similarly,

Huzur Maharaj laid down on His bed and asked for a few

pillows, when only a few minutes later He departed. Sant

Das Ji had left his material body serenely on April 24th, 1983 at his home in

Soami Bagh. The attendant physician had just taken his pulse and blood

pressure when Sant Das Ji reclined, straightened himself, opened his eyes

wide for a moment and withdrew his spirit. The doctor later stated, “Never

before in my life have I seen any case as this in which the subject passed

away in a flash while the volume of his pulse remained perfectly normal.”

The inevitable question arises: if Sant Das Ji was the Gurumukh and Sat Guru

successor of Babuji Maharaj, as I and others believe, then why did he choose

to remain hidden to the public and not reveal His true identity? Why did he

allow interregnum to continue as long as it has? There are many possible

motivations to consider, and yet to find the primary reason we must refer to

the words of Sant Das Ji, himself. The following are extracts from reply letters

he had written to American Satsangis relating to this very subject:

“In my view the object behind the interregnum was that all the

Radhasoami literature is translated into English.”

“The interregnum has of course been very long, and for Satsangis, quite

painful. But as I wrote to you before, this has happened by Mauj (divine will).

There was a deep purpose behind it, and this was to have all the literature

on the Radhasoami Faith translated into English knowing foreigners who

are bound to join the Faith in large number in the future, may readily have

access to the principles and tenets of the Faith which is so essential for

their spiritual progress.”

From these statements it’s evident that Sant Das Ji had prioritized the English

translations and publishing of the sacred texts, knowing that in the future

there would be many converts to the Faith from the West. He probably

believed that if he had fulfilled the multiple responsibilities of Sant Sat Guru

to the public he would not have been able to complete this work. For this

sacrifice, we of the English speaking countries will be forever indebted.

Although, there is another, and perhaps even more apparent reason why he

didn’t manifest himself and it continues to the present day. He would never

have been accepted as Babuji’s successor by the Central Administrative

Council or by most Satsangis. This is confirmed by what happened to Bibban

Bibi (a senior female Satsangi) at Soami Bagh when she attempted to openly

proclaim Sant Das Ji the Sat Guru of the time. Her plight may also shed some

light as to why interregnum became necessary.

In 1955, Bibban Bibi had experienced an inner-

vision (“Darshan”) of Sant Das Ji during her medita-

tion, at which time she learned of His true spiritual

status as Sat Guru. The following account is in her

own words: “One night Sant Das Ji appeared

before me in Dhyan and said that no one else has

the courage to announce Me as Sant Sat Guru.

You declare this in Satsang the next morning.”

When she proceeded to do just that, and also on

one other occasion, she was abruptly removed

from the congregation and declared “mad”. In the

end, Bibban Bibi would not return to Satsang for

another 27 years, nor venture out of her home which lay behind the Samadh

of Soami Ji Maharaj. It wouldn’t be until the marriage of her grandson

Paritosh (popularly known as “Peter”) with Sant Das Ji’s granddaughter

“Surat”, that she would be lured out again, and only after Sant Das Ji himself

had asked her to do so. What we learn from her two attempts to openly

announce him as the living Sat Guru, however, should more than answer the

question as to why Sant Das Ji could not publicly manifest himself. Had he

done so, it most certainly would have resulted in a split with the Council at

Soami Bagh. And as many of us know, the latter has never been prepared to

accept anybody as Sat Guru after the departure of Babuji Maharaj, nor have

they sought a true replacement.

SATSANGI LETTERS

For several years following the departure of

Babuji Maharaj, Sant Das Ji answered every

letter that was written to Soami Bagh from

America. The American devotees in turn came to

love him as an authoritative figure on the Radha-

soami Faith. These were later published as “Cor-

respondences with Certain Americans”. To those

who have read the reply letters of Sant Das Ji are

aware, he could often explain complex spiritual

tenets with the insight of a Sant Sat Guru and was masterful in every subject

he addressed. For this reason, some had suspected he may have secretly

been Sat Guru, which he would invariably deny as all Sants customarily do.

Consider the following letter written by an American Satsangi in 1969:

“About a month ago I had a marvellous revelation during my practice.

I was thinking of the marvellous eyes of the Sant Sat Guru Babuji

Maharaj… and Babuji Maharaj’s beautiful eyes, shining with light

towards me. And an internal voice, full of sweetness, said, ‘Babuji

Maharaj and Sant Das are the same!’ And then He smiled.”

Many years earlier, a similar revelation had been experienced by an Indian

Satsangi after he and his mother had attended the cremation of Babuji

Maharaj at Soami Bagh in Agra:

“In the late hours, I saw a dream that I was sitting with my mother

and Babuji Maharaj was seated on a chair and Sant Das Ji was

standing near Him. I submitted to Babuji Maharaj, ‘Now that you

have repaired to your Original Abode, what will be the future and

who will take Your place?’ Babuji Maharaj, pointing towards Sant

Das Ji, said, ‘Here He is, don’t you recognize Him?’ From that very

moment we started revering Sant Das Ji as our Guru.”

SUMMARY

Since 1949, the Central Administrative Council at Soami Bagh has refused to

acknowledge Sant Das Ji as the sole disciple of Babuji Maharaj who perfectly

fit the criteria of His Gurumukh and Sant Sat Guru successor. We have seen

the evidence of Babuji referring to His own discourses as “the discourses of

Sant Das”. Could anything be made plainer that Sant Das Ji was the divine

continuation of Himself? Furthermore, we ask - who else but a Nij Ansh could

have been entrusted to translate the holiest discourses and sacred writings of

the Sant Sat Gurus that have ever been given to mankind? The answer is -

only someone who would know every subtlety of the Sants holy utterances

and could accurately translate them from Hindi into English. This was a

monumental task assigned by Babuji Maharaj to His most gifted and beloved

disciple, and it stands as one of Sant Das Ji’s greatest achievements.

When Babuji Maharaj was confined to His bed during His last years, He often

asked Sant Das Ji to read to Him. A few weeks before His departure, the two

held long private meetings with each other when everyone was asked to leave

the room and it was locked from inside. Could this have been when Babuji

“reincarnated” His Shabd Rup (Sat Guru essence) in His Gurumukh? No one

knows for sure, although what is indisputable is that Sant Das Ji served Babuji

Maharaj for 12 years at Soami Bagh, and no one had a closer relationship to

the Sant Sat Guru. He virtually immersed himself in Babuji in mind and spirit.

During His last interview, Babuji Maharaj had de-

clared, "Interregnum there will be, but the Current

(Nij Dhar) will not recede. Sants will come again.”

In His omniscient wisdom, what He most certainly

would have known was that interregnum was un-

avoidable and the Mauj of Radhasoami Dayal, but only for a period of time.

He may have also given us clues as to why His successor would not be a

public Sat Guru when He stated, “If the name of the Gurumukh (perfect

disciple and successor) be revealed, people would not leave Him alive.” This

is perhaps the most revealing of all Babuji’s statements identifying His spirit-

ual successor, and there is simply no one else He could have been referring to

other than Sant Das Ji. Babuji Maharaj had proclaimed that the Radhasoami

Faith would never be without a Sat Guru or it would be “a dead religion”, and

that an unbroken chain of “Gurumukh-Sants will continue to come one after

another.” We believe this promise has not gone unfulfilled.

The Nij Dhar has continued from Sant Das Ji to Nirmal

Das Ji (1931-1997), and to the present Sat Guru of the

time. When Sant Das Ji was asked when the next Sant

Sat Guru would manifest Himself, he would answer,

“When it is the Mauj of Buaji Saheba” In prophetic

verse, he had also announced that the “2nd chapter” of

the incarnation of the Sants had already begun:

“When Soami Ji Maharaj made His advent here He

brought five Surats with Him – Radhaji Maharaj,

Huzur Maharaj, Maharaj Saheb, Buaji Saheba and

Babuji Maharaj. All of them were born in the same century. After Their

departure, the group of those five Surats which had accompanied Soami Ji

Maharaj came to an end. Now the 2nd chapter of the advent of Sant Surats

will commence with the next Sant Sat Guru. They all are born or will be born

in this very century (20th century). They will be quite different in external

appearance from the past Sant Sat Gurus, though internally the same

current is present. They will not wear beards... They will be well versed in the

Western culture and English language. They will undertake foreign tours. The

way and manner of Their manifestation will also be different.”

IN CONCLUSION

The Radhasoami Faith at Soami Bagh

cannot be without a public Sant Sat Guru

indefinitely. Otherwise, we will continue to

be a ship without its captain, or even a sky

without its sun. The “Sat Guru of the time” is

most certainly here among us in the flesh,

and there are some who are fortunate

enough to know Him. There is also a growing

awareness as to His identity. He is carrying

the same Divine Shabd that was originally

brought down to the world by Soami Ji

Maharaj. Although, it’s clear that there can

be no public manifestation until such time

as the Council re-considers Sant Das Ji as the rightful Sat Guru successor of

Babuji Maharaj. Unless this spiritual lineage is acknowledged, the Radha-

soami Faith at Agra will continue to be without its spiritual leader.

Sant Das Ji writes:

“Babuji did have a Gurumukh, but He did not give it out publicly. Even

if He is known to some, their tongue is tied… the moment His identity

is known interregnum will be over”

“It is just possible that at the proper time, something may happen

like a miracle and you may find the Sant Sat Guru in manifest form.

It is only a question of time.”

To those who are seeking the living Sat Guru of the

present era, Sant Das Ji’s Biography might be a

good place to start. For only upon perusing, will the

reader perhaps discover the true and hidden Sant Sat

Guru lineage that has never left Soami Bagh, and

indeed still whispers to the faithful.