Roj Ardibehesht Mah Ardibehesht, 1379 Yz.
The education of Behramshah continued at an intensive level, given his short stay. The following description may seem a little complicated some of my readers but I am going into some deep details to give you an idea about the depth of knowledge which was imparted to Ustad Saheb.
According to the Zarathushtrian mystic revelation, the all-encompassing knowledge or Ilm, can be grouped under four main categories:
- Ilm-e-Simia
- Ilm-e-Kimia
- Ilm-e-Rimia and
- Ilm-e-Limia
All knowledge, whether discovered in this current Zravane Daregho Khadata or not, falls under any one of these four categories. A brief description of each of these four categories is given below.
We shall start with the second category, Ilm-e-Kimia, which encompasses all branches of Chemistry and Pharmacy. The various streams of medical science are included in this category. In short, we may say that any knowledge which aims to make the physical life of man better, without causing harm to some other creation is encompassed in Ilm-e-Kimia.
Ilm-e-Limia is the third category and encompasses all knowledge relating to engineering. This relates not only to human engineering knowledge, but also the divine engineering we see all around, which lets birds construct complicated nests, animals construct their dwellings, the marvel of engineering which is the human body – the precise structure of the skeletal system, the wonder of the spine protecting the ultra delicate nervous system running through it, the cranial arrangement protecting the brain and many more which still fascinate modern man. The difference between human and divine engineering is that one creates waste and inefficiency in the environment, whereas the other makes optimal use of resources without degrading any other creation.
The fourth category, known as Ilm-e-Rimia, includes all knowledge which allows one to make copies of original creations. For example, the science of synthesising natural perfumes such as rose or musk from a combination of chemical compounds, or duplicating the properties of a natural growing substance in a laboratory, creating pharmaceutical drugs which mimic the effect of natural herbs or even making synthetic diamonds and pearls. Thus the knowledge of going down to the level of the basic elements of any matter and then reorganising the same for a purpose would constitute this category.
Finally, Ilm-e-Simia is that category of knowledge which is not in public domain. It is erroneously believed that the scriptures of all major religions contain merely moralistic teachings. However, the concept of morality is ingrained within the human consciousness and is the major differentiator between man and animals. Religious scriptures contain that wisdom and knowledge which causes the morality ingrained with the human consciousness to sprout forth in full splendour. There exist vast treasures in the outer world, which man can righteously use for the benefit of the entire society. The knowledge of how to use these resources in an ‘environmentally friendly’ manner, with each person getting only what he deserves, without any selfish motive or profit making feeling is contained within Ilm-e-Simia.
Thus the prosperity giving Manthras of the Zarathushtrian faith, known as ‘Manthra Spenta’, the various Tarikats or spiritual disciplines enabling us to use these Manthras all fall under this category. Moreover, all philosophies, commentaries, Nikeez, Tavil, occult sciences and other exegetical discourses which enable man to find the right path fall in this category. Even the knowledge of Khshnoom, revealed by our Master is part of this Ilm. In short, this category contains the extra-ordinary knowledge, which can be used only by extra-ordinary individuals, in extra-ordinary times.
It is important to distinguish Ilm-e-Simia from the three others. The scope and extent of Ilm-e-Simia is immense since its includes all the divine sciences. The other three categories put together would still constitute not even 12% of Ilm-e-Simia. It was our Master’s great destiny to learn, in the short span of three and a half years a great deal of these sciences, particularly many branches of Ilm-e-Simia. The brilliance he displayed in his public life was a result of this intensive training. Even before his public appearance, Behramshah became well known in Surat for his knowledge of astrology (Ilm-e-Najum), which was a unique amalgam of western (Sayana) system as well the Indian system (Nirayana). He was a master at unravelling any horoscope and an expert in using both the western Ephemeris as well as traditional Indian charts. A particular case has been noted by Jehangir Chiniwalla in his history of Khshnoom series in the Parsi Avaz, which was recounted to him by his mother. The husband of a very close friend of Jehangirji’s mother fell seriously ill with the doctors giving him a few hours to live. They immediately took the horoscope of the sick man to show the Master. Behramshah reassured them that the person had many more years to live. Indeed, the person recovered and lived for several more years. After his death, the horoscope was again shown to the Master. After glancing at it, Behramshah disclosed that this person is already dead and passed away on such and such date and time!
The Master was given the knowledge of constructing very detailed and intricate calculations of the phases of planets governing his life. He maintained these charts with utmost care and took great pains to avoid stepping out of his house on certain days or meeting with people on other days. Yet, as was forecast to him by the Abed Sahebs, he lost these invaluable calculations due to the reckless behaviour of a relative, and had to put up with much trouble and hardship in his later years because of this absence.
In addition to this, Behramshah was a master of the very esoteric discipline called Ilm-e-Rammal – or divination using dice of a particular type and then interpreting the numbers ‘thrown’ by the dice. Perhaps the Master’s most useful tool in his public life was the knowledge of Ilm-e-Kyafa, or face reading. By merely glancing at a person’s face and observing his ears, ears, mouth, neck, nose and other facial characteristics, the Master could immediately glean the most intimate details of the person’s character, learning, faith, his ability to imbibe spiritual knowledge and bent of mind. On several occasions, the Master would tell his closes disciples that having this knowledge was also a burden, since he could immediately make out a person’s character, but for several past obligations, he would have to bear the burden of the person’s foolishness with a smiling face.
There is a specific purpose behind writing the above. The master’s public behaviour was more mysterious than all the knowledge he disclosed. Many times, he would simply refuse to talk at all or answer any queries put forth by several ‘learned’ scholars or even priests. At other times he would give vague or purposely wrong answers to put off some persons. Many times he would behave in a totally childish manner or give such outrageous answers that even his closest disciples would not understand why he was not taking the questions of some person who had come from far in a more serious fashion. When his senior disciples would question his behaviour, the Master would reply that he would give the Ilm only to those who he deemed were fit to receive and understand it. For some, he used to say, I will even spend my own money, go to their house and teach them, but others I will simply ignore.
But perhaps the greatest science Behramshah learnt from the Abeds was Ilm-e-Staota Yasna and the Ilm-e-Zafar. Staota Yasna is that science on which the entire 21 Nasks of the Zarathushtrian faith were written. The particular composition of the Manthras, the science behind repeating certain prayers 2, 3, 5, 7, 9, 12, 21, 101 or 200 times, the deep knowledge of applying certain parts of the Avesta to cure specific illnesses or removing the malefic influence of certain planets in a person’s horoscope was known to the Master and he used it to treat a great number of people. He had a deep grasp of the application of Avesta Manthras and rituals in everyday life. In addition, he possessed the knowledge of Ilm-e-Sezda, using which he could go into a trance like state and communicate with the Abed Saheb of Demavand after his return to India. The Master also used the ancient system of ABJD, whereby weights are ascribed to particular characters of the (Persian) alphabet and words or phrases used to arrive at a particular number which would be beneficial to the user. Using this system, he could reveal the hidden code behind many mystic writings in Persian, Pahlavi as well as Avesta.
Engrossed in his studies, protected in the pristine environment of Firdaus, enveloped in the affection of its 2000 residents and bestowed with the most potent divine blessings, tender love and feelings of his Master the Sraoshavarez Marzban Saheb, Behramshah spent three and a half years in that Valley of Paradise. In this time he evolved from a barely educated, stammering boy of 18 to a mature, wise and immensely talented Master and the most spiritually advanced soul to be present in the outside world. Behramshah had now become Ustad Saheb Behramshah.
Yet all this training, all the incredible spiritual progress, all the love and affection and the blessings of his great Masters – all of these could not prepare him enough to face one of the saddest days of his life, which was just around the corner.
Ervad Marzban J. Hathiram
SEP
