Why can't I have my long hair and beard?
This is one of the stories in our Story-Gems project, a collection of our experiences with our Guru, Sri Chinmoy. Project homepage »
On the 2nd day of the first time I saw Guru, Guru was talking to us about the importance of being clean and taking a proper shower, for the girls to have long hair and the boys to have short hair and shaved faces. He explained to us that the importance of having the clean-shaven face is that it’s easier to see the light of the soul being expressed through our face. When the soul is bringing its light into us, it is through the face and through our eyes that it shines most.
I wasn’t totally convinced with what Guru had said and I wanted to show him how spiritual I was. I raised my hand to ask him a question and he called on me immediately. Before I opened my mouth, I noticed that Guru was looking at me in a peculiar way. His eyes shifted to the side and there was a smile on his face.
I asked him, “If Christ had long hair and a beard, why can’t I have my long hair and beard?”
Guru remained quiet for a few moments, again with his eyes shifting to the side. The expression on his face was not something I had seen previously. It was totally new to me. His reply was, “If Christ the Saviour comes to me with his long hair and beard, I run to him and kiss the dust of his feet. But when I see you coming with your long hair and beard, I run as far away from you as I can.”
These moments created the base or foundation of my relationship with Guru. As he was making this joke and making fun of me, there was a different element in the love he was giving me. This was the love of a friend—that he could joke and say anything he wanted to say to me. I loved it. I felt so privileged. For the rest of my life, that is exactly what Guru did to me. He made fun of me at every opportunity. It was so wonderful. It was so beautiful!
God tells me
That my sense of humour
Helps Him immensely.Sri Chinmoy 1
- 1. Seventy-Seven Thousand Service-Trees, part 32, #31470, Agni Press, 2003
I could sing and dance for pure joy
This is one of the stories in our Story-Gems project, a collection of our experiences with our Guru, Sri Chinmoy. Project homepage »
I can tell you the outer circumstances about how I came to the path. At the time, I was studying music, studying grand piano. I just got the feeling that I should learn to meditate because that would help me with my piano performance. This was in 1982. It was my final year of music study. I got the feeling that I should find somewhere to learn to meditate, I should look in the newspaper and that there would be an advertisement for meditation classes.
So, I looked in the paper and there were two advertisements for meditation groups. One of the groups was much closer to my house and it was called the Sri Chinmoy Centre, which I had never heard of. But because it was close to me, that's the one I went to. The disciples later told me that they only ever placed one advertisement in the newspaper. That was the only time they ever put an advertisement in the newspaper. That was the day I got the idea that I must look in the newspaper to find an advertisement.
So, I was coming to meditation classes for nearly six months. I was not looking for a Guru or a spiritual master or a spiritual path. It never occurred to me that these things were important. But I was enjoying coming to the Centre and I was enjoying reading Guru's writings and listening to Guru’s music. More and more, this was becoming a very important part of my life.
The disciples even said to me, “Oh, you should send your photograph to Guru and apply to become a disciple.” But I said, “No, I don't need that. That's not important.” That just shows you how stupid and how ignorant I actually was!
One day, Guru was going to phone the Centre. All the disciples from around Australia came to Canberra for this phone call, which was only for disciples. But the Centre leader at that time got inspired to invite me to come to the telephone call. He asked, “Would you like to come and hear Sri Chinmoy speak on the phone?” I said, “Yes, of course.”
When Guru phoned, he spoke to every disciple individually. And to each disciple, he gave a special message and his blessings. Everything was on the loudspeaker telephone so you could hear everything Guru was saying to each person.
When Guru had spoken to every disciple, then Guru said, “Is anybody else there?” There should not have been anyone else there because it should only have been disciples. So, I came to the phone and introduced myself. I said my name and that I had been coming to meditation classes. Then I waited for Guru to say something, because for every disciple, Guru gave a message, he spoke something personal. But in my case, absolute silence. Guru did not say a word.
There was this long silence, and I became a little uncomfortable. I did not know what I was supposed to do. I felt I had to break this silence. I had to say something. But what do you say to a spiritual master? So, I said the only thing that came into my head. I said to Guru, “I want to become your disciple,” because that was the only thing that I thought you should say to a spiritual master. Then Guru ended his silence. He chanted a very long “Aum” and said, “I accept you as a true disciple of mine.”
My mind was immediately confused. I said, “Where on earth did that question come from? I never, never wanted this. I've been tricked!” But at the same time, I was extremely happy, more that I had ever felt in my life. It was as though the weight of my whole life was taken from my shoulders and I felt like I could sing and dance for pure joy.
O Yogi of the highest magnitude, initiate me.
Today offer me Your initiation.
Today I shall learn the immortal message of transformation from You.
I shall not wander any more in the farthest corners of the world.
I shall only dance in the city of the heart.
Inside the city of my heart
I shall sing songs of Love Divine
And I shall see myself in the mirror of my sanctified heart.
Today I beg of You to offer me only one thing: silence, silence.
O Yogi of the highest magnitude, initiate me today.
(Translation of song “He Jogiraj dikkha amai”)Sri Chinmoy 1
- 1. Garden of love-light, part 2, Aum Press, Puerto Rico, 1975
Guru gives me my spiritual name
This is one of the stories in our Story-Gems project, a collection of our experiences with our Guru, Sri Chinmoy. Project homepage »
“Agraha means eagerness, divine eagerness, supreme eagerness, eagerness to be a most devoted seeker and to serve the Supreme in Guru.”
How I got my name was an amazing story for me. I was very eager to get it.
It was early morning and I woke up from a dream. In the dream Guru is telling me that very soon he would give me my name. I was so happy and thrilled.
Then I had another dream where I see the calendar and Guru is showing me what day He will give me my name. Guru is telling me in the dream not only the date that I would receive my name but also what my name was. When I woke up, I was so thrilled! I remembered the date but for the name I only remember that there were a lot of A’s in it.
When that day came I was in New York and it was April. Guru was leaving the meeting place and he came right up to me and said, “I will give you your name very soon—in August.” The day he told me this was the day I saw in the dream. He said, “Good boy, I am very pleased with you and I will give you your name in August.”
There were three of us who got our names. At that time, Guru would give a name by putting his hands on your head and blessing you very powerfully at his house. It was overwhelming.
Eagerness I had to see the Face of God.
Eagerness I have to feel the Heart of God.
Eagerness I shall have to be the Dream-Reality of God.Sri Chinmoy 1
- 1. Light-Delight-Journeys, Bhakti Press, Ottawa, Canada, 1974
An act of kindness from Mr. Charity
This is one of the stories in our Story-Gems project, a collection of our experiences with our Guru, Sri Chinmoy. Project homepage »
Like many other disciples, I used to spend a lot of money travelling twice a year or sometimes more to New York for our international gatherings. I always tried to get cheap flights. One year, I booked a non-direct flight stopping over in Montreal, Canada, and continuing on to New York with another airline. It was a big mistake and I would never do it again.
When the time came to go back to France, a big storm was raging in the New York area. When I arrived at the airport, I was shocked to learn that all the flights were cancelled. There was a big confusion at the airport and thousands of people were waiting desperately, sitting everywhere, even on the floor, for lack of seats. Endless queues extended from the information desks.
I could hardly make my way through the crowd, and overhead speakers repeatedly delivered messages about the weather conditions that were preventing all departures. I finally got to the desk of my airline flying to Montreal just to get the same report: ‘’No flights. Better to come back tomorrow. We will book another flight for you if the weather allows.… ‘’
In any case I would miss my connecting flight from Montreal to Paris on the same afternoon and would have to book and pay for another one, even though the date was quite uncertain. There was no hope of being reimbursed, for it was operated by a different airline flying from a different country!
But something told me inwardly not to give up hope, so I stayed standing silently at the desk, praying inwardly to the Supreme for His help. I did not dare to ask the attendant anything more, because he was overwhelmed by the crowd’s continuous flood of questions and demands, and he looked exhausted.
After more than an hour, I was still waiting quietly. Perhaps because of my attitude, which contrasted so much with the panic around him, he suddenly called me up out of the blue and without any explanation handed me a free ticket for a direct flight to Paris the next morning!
I was so stunned that I could not find enough words to thank him, as he was already busy with some other clients’ requests. But just before I left, as light as air, with an immense feeling of release, joy and gratitude, I looked at his name tag to at least remember his name. Surely I would, for his name was Mr. Charity!
May my morning begin
With the breath of kindness
And sweetness.Sri Chinmoy 1
- 1. Seventy-Seven Thousand Service-Trees, part 15, #14704, Agni Press, 1999
Guru's occult power saves my life
This is one of the stories in our Story-Gems project, a collection of our experiences with our Guru, Sri Chinmoy. Project homepage »
One year, I got very sick during the New York City Marathon. I took some aspirin along the way, thinking that it would help my sore muscles, but it actually caused a real problem in my stomach. It unfortunately started a chain reaction that started to break down my intestines.
When I ran through Central Park, I saw a disciple-friend of mine who is my coach. He was very frightened when he saw me; I had no colour in my face. And then someone I knew from the United Nations saw me just before the finish line and they had the same reaction.
When I crossed the finish line, immediately two people came up to me and said, “Are you okay? Why don't you come with us?” They took me to an emergency tent and gave me something to drink, and I got a hot chocolate. My stomach started to knot up very painfully. This was happening every five to eight minutes in a very intense way. I went to the bathroom, and it was blood. So, they immediately put me in an ambulance to take me to the hospital. By the time I got to the hospital, I was in extreme pain. I couldn't drink anything because that made it worse.
The nurse came up to try to give me an IV. They couldn't find the vein because I was so dehydrated. I was on the hospital bed in absolute pain, but they really didn't know what to do with me, so they just kind of left me there. At one point, a nurse asked me, is there someone in your family we could call? So, I gave them the number of my friend Kirit and said, “Please call him.” Kirit ran faster than me, so I knew he would be home by then.
Kirit immediately went to Guru's house and told Guru what was happening to me. Kirit later told me that Guru leaned against the counter of the kitchen and said, “I am putting a strong force on him right now.” At that very same time in the hospital, my body - out of nowhere - went straight, and I immediately started chanting spontaneously “Supreme, Supreme, Supreme!” and I felt a wave of energy going through my whole body. It lasted maybe 10 seconds, which was the same time, Kirit later told me, that Guru leaned against the counter.
After that, I felt much better. When the nurse came in again, she immediately was able to get the IV in my arm. So finally, I was doing better, and some disciples came to take me home.
They took me home and put me in bed, but it was starting to hurt again, and it was getting very bad. Guru called my room, and one of the boys picked up and told Guru that I was in pain again. Guru told them to take me to Long Island Hospital. This time, he had two boys in the Centre who were doctors come and stay with me. They finally got the IV in my arm. It took four liters to get me rehydrated. I spent the night in the hospital. In the morning, I finally stabilized, and I was able to go home.
So later in the morning or afternoon, I managed to go to Aspiration-Ground and Guru meditated on me. Then the next day, at PS 86, Guru asked how I was feeling. Guru said, “I put another strong force on you this morning. Did you feel it?” Maybe I didn't quite understand the question, but I said, “No” and Guru started laughing.
I feel very grateful and also I feel a responsibility to share with people a direct experience of Guru's very spiritual occult power. It was so powerful, I'll never, ever forget it.
There is not a single day
When spiritual Masters
Do not use occult power
In the inner world
For the betterment and enlightenment
Of mankind.Sri Chinmoy 1
- 1. Seventy-Seven Thousand Service-Trees, part 5, Agni Press, 1998
'When I play with you, I feel I am never nervous.'
This is one of the stories in our Story-Gems project, a collection of our experiences with our Guru, Sri Chinmoy. Project homepage »
One sweet story is that I used to play tennis with Guru, just Guru and me over at Jamaica High School. I was a good tennis player when I was younger, but playing with Guru by myself, I was very nervous. I cannot tell you how nervous I was playing.
One day when I was playing with Guru, Guru all of a sudden said, “Casey, when I play with you, I feel I am never nervous.” When Guru said that, I laughed because I knew how nervous I was. And I wasn’t nervous anymore.
God’s Tennis Court
Is meant only for those
Who like to play all the time
Surrender-game.Sri Chinmoy 1
- 1. Twenty-Seven Thousand Aspiration-Plants, part 36, #3514, Agni Press, 1984
The boy in school who was "the same" as me
This is one of the stories in our Story-Gems project, a collection of our experiences with our Guru, Sri Chinmoy. Project homepage »
In the school where I was, there was one seeker who meditated on Guru’s Transcendental photograph. He was not yet a disciple, but a seeker. He was in another class, but I went with the girls from his class on vacation – not vacation, but more like a school where you learned how to cook, how to do the things that girls did, such as sewing. They saw me, and they said, oh, we have one boy in our class and he is exactly like you, you have to meet him. They told him the same thing, but he was a seeker and he was not interested in getting to know a girl.
But then, a few weeks later, I was in the same room as he was. Somehow Guru managed it so that everybody else was out of the room except the two of us. We realised that we must be the ones who were exactly "the same", even though we had absolutely nothing in common. We were actually very different, but the other schoolgirls felt something was the same inside us.
I don't know why, but he told me all about meditation and Guru. It was all so fascinating for me that from that day on I stopped eating meat. I was so happy! When I went home I was kind of jumping and dancing around like a little child. My mother said, “What happened to you? Are you in love?” I said, “No!” I didn’t like that boy at all, but I was so happy, and I didn't know why. Later I knew why.
He invited me to go to a lecture, not a lecture but a kind of concert. There I saw Kailash. He was playing harmonium. I asked him about everything. And then I told him, “I want to be like you. I want to be a disciple.”
Then he said, “Oh, well, you first have to take a meditation class. It's not something you do so quickly just for fun. It's something you do for your life." I said, “I am a hundred percent sure.”
They were going to New York the next day, so I said, “Please, please, ask Sri Chinmoy. Take my photo and ask if I can be his disciple!”
Luckily, Guru accepted me. I wouldn't have known what to do in my life without Guru.
A true disciple
Has only one choice:
His Master’s voice.Sri Chinmoy 1
- 1. Seventy-Seven Thousand Service-Trees, part 7, #6672, Agni Press, 1998
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