Great Masters of Himalayas

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GREAT MASTERS OF THE HIMALAYAST H E I R L I V E S

A N DTEMPLE T EACHING

VOLUME ONEThird Edition

BYRISHI SINGH GHERWAL

A U T HOB Orj Kundalini - Mother Of The UniverseI Yoga Vashisht or Heaven Found,I and others, Copyrighted and PublishedI By AuthorII 1927i FOR BOOKS OR CORRESPONDENCE COURSES

WRITE TOI Rishi Singh Gherwal or J. FalkensteinI P. 0. Box 533 Santa Barbara, Calif.u. a A.


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The d a r t on the ewernine triangles, two lot~seu,Bhonld be eight and six&petal6 and three circles.

GH AP TE R I-MY VISION. P a g e 9CH A PT ER 11-1 AGA IN M E E T TH E MAS-TER. Page 11CH AP TE R 111-HARD W AR . P a g e 14CHA PTER IV-IN THE JUNGL E W EMET MONKEYS; W ITNE SSE DTHEIR TRIAL. Pa ge 18CH AP TE R V-THE CAVE OF NASIK. P ag e 24CH APT ER VI-THE CAVE O F BAGH. P a g e 32CH APT ER VII-HASTINAPUR. P a g e 45CH AP TE R VIII-BADRINATH. P a g e 52CH APT ER IX-KANDARNATH. P a g e 56CH AP TE R X-MANSFLAWAR. LAKE. P ag e 64CH AP TE R XI-MUKTINATH. P a g e 80CH APT ER XII-LHATSE. P a g e 98CHA PTER XIII-THE TE MP LE PORA

TAT SANGA. Page 104


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P R E F A C EThe pages of this hook have been lived personally

by its author. It is absolute fact, even though theWestern world may think it incredible fact. The alertobserver of human life recognizes there exists morethan comes under his personal recognizance-morethan "Is dreamt of in thy philosophy, Horatio."

What to the uninformed Western mind, or shallwe say the unheeding Western mind seem miraculousunbelievable episodes, is to the philosophical mind ofthe Hindu the natural cl~lmination of developmentalong spiritual lines.r, The European and Western world looks expectant-

> ly and continually into the "outer" for knowledge-the East is introspective, knowing that the spirit ofman is not put on like a garment but is innate. Theflesh is the garment for the spirit.

The West has been dubbed material, the East spiri-tual, but it is not so in the truest sense. for "Man livesnot by bread alone" hut is sustained by the impelling,compelling spirit. Whether in the Himalayan snowsor the busy modern street the flesh is lit by the lampwithin-the West has burnished the vessel of thelamp, the East has fanned the flame.

The message of Yoga philosophy i s: "Go within tofind thy God. He waits for you in the temple of youro m oul. The reality is within, and Maya (illusion) iswitbout."


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Author's picture, taken just about the time he madethe trip to the Holy Places


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GR E A T MA ST E R S O F THE H I M A L A Y A S

CHAPTER IDuring the troublous years of 1922 and 1923 the

Beloved of the Indian peoples, Mahatma Gandhi wasimprisoned, but though prison walls separated himfrom his adoring friends, his doctrine the convictionfor which he suffered imprisonment,-the policy ofnon-resistance-was ardently essayed by his sup-porters. In particular, the Akalis consecrated them-selves by vows spoken at the Gurdwara (temple) toendure torture and death ra ther than r e tur~l iolelicefor violence, confident that right by virtue of thepower of truth would prevail without might.Sympathetic with the Akalis' principle of non-resistance, I could not look with equanimity upontheir torture. My friends urged nle to leave thecountry since my home was open for the politicalleaders, and I who had vowed my life to the pursuit ofphilosophic knowledge and peace was fast letting nlysympathies obtain the upper hand. Finally I yieldedto the earnest irkiportunities of' saner adv~ce han myown heart offered and went in search of the liecessarypermit to leave Il~dia or England.

The official in charge agreed to furnish a permitbut stated that the pernut could not irrlmed~atelybeobtained. I wandered out in the country while await-ing tlie issue of the permit. Coniilig upon a shady treeI lay beneath it and soon fell asleep.


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10 RISHI WNQH QHEEWALAs I slept a vision of myself at Brindavan unfolded.

Brindavan-where bhe greatest of mankind, Sri Krish-na spent his childhood. Turning over in my sleepwoke me and as I sat up, one whose aspect was thatof a Master addressed me. His kindly glance restedupon me and looking into his beautifuI eyes I lostmyself in them, to be recalled by his voice: "Son,what troubles you?"I could not answer.

"Would you like to go Brindavan?""Indeed, yes," I found my voice, "but tell me, wh?~

are you?""1 am thyself!"The realization then that he knew, mysteriously,

of mv vision astonished me."How did you know I wish to sep Brindavan?"He said with a smile, "I guessed so. I know you

will go to Rrindavan and there I will meet you." Ashe spoke he moved away from me.

Anxiety that I shoiild not see pain this man whosetender gaze awakened m y own divinity prompted meto beg him to sav when we should m ~ e tgain.

"Son," his voice reached me from dnwn the road,"at Rrindavan I will surely meet thee."

After his departure I sat and wondered anew atthis accurate reading of my thonghts.

When I returned home I told my mother and broth-er that within a week I was going to England, hut toa friend I confided rny heart was set upon going toTibet.


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GELEAT MASTERS O F T H E H I M A L A Y A S 11

CHAPTER I lI planned to leave home without any of my

family knowing I was bent upon going to Brindavanand not to England. My chief reason for secrecy wasthe concern that my younger brother would certainlySollow me if he knew my intention of journeying tothe Holy Place. To my mother I said, "I will go to-night. 1)o not tell our friends for I do not want acrowd to see me off." In spite of this the station thatnight was crowded with many young friends, andwith me I carried the felicitations of my comrades.Their wishes che~ered me even though they weremistaken in my destination.After an all night ride I reached Brindavan, theHoly Place, where gather every twelve years the greatand holy men of India-Sadhu*, Yogi and Swami.From every corner of India they come to pay respectat the birthplace of the Beloved Krishna.

Brindavan is about five miles west of the city ofMathura, situated upon a hill covered by woods, inwhich grow a great variety of trees and shrubs. Heresing the Kokilos (cencubus indicus) sweetest of allbird singers, the charm of whose song remains withthe listener as long as memory. Here, too, the ChakurBanbehiya trills, but to my mind, the Kokilos are the

*6adhu-an itinerant holy man who in his journeys is sheltered andBupvlied with food by the reeprctful vovulare. He has renounced the worldand its delights and comforts.


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l2 RISH I BINGH GHERW ALlove l ie s t s ingers in the wor ld . The b i rds have madeBr indavan a heaven . I t i s a na tu ra l beau ty spo t f ro mthe mo u th to the sou rce of t he J a m u na R iver .

I cou ld no t bu t r em em ber tha t i t w as on ly f i tt i ngthe swee tes t song -bi rd s shou ld h ave su ng the i r beau ti -fu l songs fo r t he g rea t e s t k in g of man k ind ( to the In -d i a n m i n d ) , S r i K r is h na . In t h is g a r d e n s po t K r i s h n aplayed RS a ch i ld , and he re , g rown to manhood , t heF lu te P laye r s a ng h is so ng o f t he d iv ine of wh ich th eBhagavad Gi ta is but a f rag m ent . Here l ived Himwhose teach ings gave food to the advanced th inkersof humani ty .

"Stand up , Pe r tpa l. " sa id K r i shna to A r jun a ," f igh t fo r yo ur nharm a ." 'S tan d ing upon th e beau t i fu l h il l ca l led G ovar-dhana and look ing upon the love ly J amuna R ive r , Ia lm os t fo rgo t fo r w h a t I had come to Br indavan Twi-l ig h t w a s s h ~ d o \ \ r v b ou t m e w h e n f ro m b e hin d m e avoice said, "HO\T' do you l ike B rin da va n? Is i t th esam c as you sa w it a week ago?""Yo11 are mis taken . I f ea r . I w a s n o t h e r e a w e e kago." and I tu rn ed to face thc ques t ioner ."T hink , son, did yon not see G ova rdha na Hill a

u ~ e e l i ince?""Ah, yes, I sa w i t in a v is ion a s I l ay unde r a t reeou tside t he C ity of 1,udhian a. an d n o w I wonder i fyou a ren ' t t he s ame man I s aw the re?"*Dhama-Right nnd D u t y .


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GREAT MASTERS O F T H E H IM A L A Y A S U

Smiling he answered me, "Yes. Let us go to theTemple, you are probably hungry."

At the Temple a servitor gave us a wholesomemeal which I enjoyed in the company of my newfriend. After eating I sought the Temple courtyard andthere I slept on the ground-sleeping very well.

The next morning the porter told me that theRishi left a message telling me to meet him in Hard-war.

"What is the name of the Rishi?" I asked."We call him the All-Knowing, other than that I

know not his name."Was this Rishi, perhaps, the Great Master of whomI had heard since childhood, whom I had desired t o

meet? I resolved in Hardwar to ask him frankly forhis name.


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14 R I S H I S IN G H G H E R W A L

HARDWAR

Just outside the city of Hardwar I noticed a mansitting beneath a tree, but I gave little heed to himand passed on. He overtook me, however, and askedme how I made it from Brindavan."On my two fleet. And how did you, Babaji?"

"Likewise, my son," he retorted.M y eagerness to learn his identlty forced me to askat once for his name.

"Let us first find a place to eat, son, and then wowill discuss that."So we walked on until under his direction we carno

to a well-known Muni-mandal, Vidayal. There wewere greeted by Saint Kishavanadji a great Sadhu ofthe Udasi of the Punjab. Saint Kishavanadji treatedus courteously and after we dined my Kishi drewapart and spoke with the Saint at such length that Ifell asleep.

When I awoke I was alone and again I searchedfor my erstwhile companion. About h ~ n l knew noth-ing and that didn't make the search any simpler.Hour after hour I sought him and finally I returnedto the Muni-mandal Vidayal. To Saint Kishavanadji Itold my loss and he soberly told me that I could noteasily find that great Babaji.


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GREAT hfA8TEBSOF THE HIMALAYA8 IS

"Can you tell me, oh Saint, who the Babaji is?""The greatest of all Rishis, my son. Some call himYogi, some Swami, and others Sanyasi. No one onearth has reached his exalted state."

"Is it he," I queried, "who lives on the highestpeaks of Mount Abu in Rajputana and is known as thegreatest Yogi-Bhagavan Puriji?"

"From whom have you heard these things? son?""My uncle, Sadhu Utama Singhji.""You are then a nephew of Utama Singhji; where

is he now, son?"i answered that he had gone to the other worldrome ten years before.For nearly a week I remained at the Muni-man-dal. While there I was surprised to learn that SaintKish~vanadjiwas ninety years old. Such was his ex-traordinary v@or that six men col~ldnot move himonce he had taken his stand. Talking later with themen 1 chided them on their inability to lift a lone

man, aged at that. They replied that when the Saintwas sixty years of age double their number could notbudge him an inch.

From Saint Kishavanadji I besought the informa-tion as to how I might reach the great Master Dhaga-van Puriji. After making certain that my desire toseek the Master was sincere he told me I must journeyto the Mount Abupeaks. "He is there now," he af-firmed.


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16 RISHI STNGHGELERWAL"But how can I go to the Mount through jungle-land where every kind of wild animal would preyupon me? The tigers of h j pu tan a , ferocious beasts,

would make a meal from my poor body."Smilingly the Saint retorted that I did not really

want to see the Master. "If you sincerely desired togo to the Master you would ignore your body. Whycare if your body be eaten by a tiger? You are a soulwithout birth or death. 'Jo hai jo hai'-what wlll bewill be."

Hereupon tlie Saint took the occasioll to lectureme. He was a learned man, well linown and respectedall over the Punjab. In Hardwar he made his head-quarters at the Muni-mandal Vidayal, scarcely a milefrom the railroad station.

"Ah, son, start thy journey to the Great One. Itis well worth the pains of dangeizous trhavel."

Promising me a map w t h full directions for thetr ip to Mount Abu should I decide to go, ht: lef t me andI wandered about for tliree days trylng lo nleke upmy mind.On the fourth day a man came to the Muni-mandal,a huge fellow six feet tall with the strength and ap-pearance of a butchel., ready, as I thought to kill anypoor goat who went near hiril. IIe announcetl his in-tention of making a journey to Mount 4bu, declaringthat it was not his first trip there.

Many misgivings assailed me at the thought of be-ing the companion of such a one, but there \vas no


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G R E A T M A S TE RS O F T H E H IM A LA Y AS 17

one else foolhardy enough to go and, despite thewar~ling f my spirit that the butcher-like man wasonly one degree better than the Rajputana tigers Iagreeld to accompany him.


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18 RISHI S INGH GHE R W A L

CHAPTER IVIN THE JUNGLE W E MET MONHEYS

WITNESSED THEIR TRIALTo gratify my absorbing desire to sit at the feet

of the Great Master Bhagavan Puriji meant riskingmy life in the jungle, but from childhood I had re-solved that I should learn from the Holy One whowas intimately known to Sadhus and Yogis.

"\\.ith my money w e need not walk. At least asfa r as the trains can take us on our way," I told myburly companion. To whlch he retorted that whetherI had money or not was indifferent to hiill. Ride wewould, but pay we would not. Tickets were for know- rnothings.We boarded the train and were not approachedfor a ticket. Nearing our destination whlle the trainwas bumping along at twenty miles an hour mycomrade suggested we get off-otherwise we mustwalk back this far from the station. The idea ofjumping from a train speeding along at twenty milesan haul. didn't appeal to me but my friend grasped myarm and together we leaped. Fortunately we landedin sand and except for sand in my eyes, nose andthroat, I was unhurt.

"That's not sugar," he protested, "so don't eat it."I had long since made up my mind to keep my

mouth shut, thinking that the best policy.


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GREAT MASTERS O F THE H I M A L A Y A S 19

He looked about until he found a trail and calledto me to "come on if I cared to".

I got to my feet still clutching my little hag ofpulse which was sufficient to provide me with foodfor thirty days. Following as a child does its mother Ikept tip with him easily as I am a good walker. Fiftymiles a day at the rate of for~r* iles and hour is with-in my ability.Ahout seven in the evening he stopped and Ithought we were to rest there for the night, but no,after twenty minutes he resumed the march and con-tinlieti until nine o'clock, Then we made camp for

the night. Not a sound broke the still air and abeautiful moon made day of the night and permittedme the consolation of reading my Rhagavad Gita.Early morning fonnd 11s again on the trail. So weplodded on for four days and on the fifth I noticedspoor of wild animals. To my companion I said noth-

ing. Hr treated me heartlessly. In the five days notfifteen words had passed between us.The evening of the sixth day he sat down near alittle s t r rn~n hat grishcrl from the mnuntnin-side. W esnt there for half an hour when 1 saw with consterna-tion twrnty h ~ ~ g eonkeys coming straight toward us."T,ool


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eo RISHI STNGH GHERWAL,rectly to us, but they seemed not to notice our prox-imity. As they drew nearer I saw they were hugeapes, walking upr ight like men. The chief wa s a ttheir head flanked on each side by four slightly small-er apes. Five followed behind and surrounded onewho walked along in their midst. They s trung behindin single file. Fr om this lone ape's face I imagined hehad committed some crime, for he hung his head ina shamed way. Thirty yards from us they stopped andlooked about, hunting beneath the bushes for poison-ous snakes o r a tiger lying in wait. Luckily they didn'tseen1 alvare of us. It seemed a farnil iar locale to themand the chief sat do\vn on a niourld about three fcetremoved from the rest. Before him the apes squatted.It was the scene of a cout-troo111-and ilow a n aperose and chattered eagerly, facing the chief some-times, who was the judge, and ~ o i l ~ c t i m e sacing theaudience. Near the monlccy, who \\--as evitlcntly theprisoner on trial, sat an ape who ofteri tried to riseand make himself heard, but the ape who had theflool.didn't give l~irri n opportnni ty to gait1 thc judge'shearing, or perhaps his objections were overruled!Ji'iilitlly thc attn1.11c~or. [he p~*osccutionc~ui~ltc.dndthe defense atlvocate arose and stated his case withvociferous chattering and horrible grimacing. Heatedwith his argument lie struck his head for emphasisant1 slapped liis thigh resounding wlracks. For. tcxnminutes hc argued but as he .at don-n the judge roseand with a few gutterals corltlen~nctl 111(1 ~ ) ~ ~ i - o n e r .The apes cuffcd the poor prisoner until he cried. Thet\vo attorneys took the f'lootn nl~d il)l)cr-cdwiltlly only


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GREAT MASTERS O F THE HIMAIAYA9 21

to be interrupted by the judge who stood and walkedfrom his mound followed by most of the assemblage.Two apes escorted the condemned one to the streamand urged him across. He objected and they carriedhim over, returning alone. Quiclily they rejoined theirbrethren who were almost out of sight.

My friend and I had not moved, scarcely breathedin fact, for fear of being discovered. I was eager to askhim the meaning of the strange meeting we had wit-nessed. I c l i d ask him only to bc told "couldn'tI use my own eyes?" I persisted in spite of his sar-casm aiicl 1)eggccl liiin to tell nle ivliy the l)oor pris-oner had been l)a~iisliecl.

"He deserved what he got. No doubt he violatedtheir social laws."

My own opiniori still differs. I 'm inclined to thinkfrom my own experience with trayel across inanyborders that this poor ape wandered into foreign coun-try without a passport, or perhaps hc liad the pass-port but did not see that it mas properly viseed, andworst contingency of all, perhaps he lacked the priceof the visP. J lar~y en dollars have left my purse for~~isks-Jal)a~l~owever reclisposes me to travel in herland, lor the visB is only t\\.o tlollars! Again the poorapc illiglil liavc 1)eeri a dcserteth \.ho ci~ossed nto 110s-tile frontiers. Ah, well, I have ol'lcn uondercd aboutthe ape who certainly had a poor laivyer.

The following morning I awoke to an unpleasantsurprise-my friend had left me alone in the jungle.I searched fruitlessly and despair8ingly for his foot-


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22 RISHI SINGH GHERWALm arks bu t found no th ing . I told myself I could b lam eno one bu t myse l f , my mis t rus t o f h im had s implybeen conf i rmed.

The m ap and d i rect ions the k ind S a in t had g ivenm e proved invaluable-I wa lked on w ard to m y goal ,some t imes runn ing in my anx ie ty to a t ta in my ob-jective. dA ha rd and wea r isome f igh t b rough t m e a t l a s t to

Moun t Ahu. an d the re , ne a r t h e mou th of a l i t t le cavesa t a man . M y f i rs t ques t ion was of the Master. Heansw ered he d id indeed know h im , bu t d id I ?"I cam e her e to ta lk w i th h im and to lea rn fu r th e rYoga from him."With a k ind ly smi le he in fo rmed me the Mas te rhad lef t the re tha t mo rn ing .I s ank to the g round wi th a deep sigh of disap-po in tment and fa t igue . Was I never to ca tch up wi thh i m ?"Are yon i l l . son: what i s th i s?""No, not i l l ," I wearily replied, "but I have comea long. arrii loils w av th ro ug h th e forcst to sep the d ea rM aster, onlv to find him gone," and I mlist have look-ed verv fo r lo rn ."Hc's pone. thr7t.s t r i i ~ . i l t not fa r - -on ly to theC are of Nnsik. Y ou can ~ a s i l ? each the re ," h e assuredm e."I don't know n71:crp the Cave is-it isn't m ar kedon m y map. .Just the old city of Nasik.""Tomorro\v I go to th e Cave-you rnay ac co m pa nyme if you wish."


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Q4 BIL3HIBINQH QHERWAL

CHAPTER VTHE CAVE OF NASIK

A t dawn my acquaintance of the evening befoae,who seemed full of energy and kindliness despite hisfifty yews, and myself trusting this comrade as muchas I had mistrusted his predecessor, took the trttil. I.asked his name but he answered that he was name-less."By what name do people call you," I persisted."Many names," was the answer."Then I shall call you 'Sir'," and he merely said,"As you like."Determined to learn something definite pertainingto him I inquired his age."I am ageless; neither birth nor death touch me."

"A tree is rooted, Sir, how old are your roots?""That is not to be known," he gently reprov-ed me."Tell me then, Sir, the secret of your youth.""Well, well," he exclaimed, interrupting me, "ifthere isn't my old friend."When I looked for his old friend my breath stop-ped and my teeth chattered. His friend was a hugetiger! To my eyes she looked as large as a horse. Not-ing my terror my kind friend assured me 1 was in nod k g e r . "Do you mean to tell me that fearsome beastis your friend?""Why not?" he questioned calmly."Who are you?"


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GREAT MASTER19O FTHE HIhULBYAB 95"Thyself !" His voice was gentleness itself.Hardly believing my eyes I saw him approach thetiger and fondly stroke its fur, murmuring greetingsof friendliness to which the big beast responded byevery show of returned affection. "Come, come-andmeet my good friend," he called and beckoned to me.Trembling, my throat choking me, 1 obeyed."See how sweet she is," he said, "such a goodmother. She has her baby and two of her sister's who

passed away. Show us the babies, will you?"Obediently the tiger stalked along before us andI silently followed my strange friend. Since mycourage had deserted me I couldn't question, butmy thoughts were many and busy. Half a mile wewere led by the tiger, to a wooded hill thickly over-grown with brush. There in a deep ditch frolickedthree tiger cubs, one about a month old and two olderones. The cubs were harmless enough and very lov-able in their rounded furriness and I asked permis-sion to play with them. The youngest was a bitfrightened but soon I caught all three and we had ahappy time together. A little later my comrade bademe come up out of the ditch and we resumed ourjourney to the Cave.

My tongue was loosed now and I poured out aflood of questions. "You are a Master," I asserted,"I'm sure of it.""Why?" was the non-committal reply."Because the tiger did not harm us.""That is nothing. They attack only those whodesire to kill them. If you have love in your heart forthem and,no fear they won't harm you. Love in yourheart for everyone brings a return of love.""Master, will you explain the secret of makinga tiger like you?"


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26 RI SHI S'INGH GHERWAL

"Do not ca l l me Master , " he admonished me. "Asfo r the secre t o f course I wil l exp la in . I f man wi l lrel inqu ish th e idea of ki l l ing, the love of ev erycreature wi l l be h is . ""How lo ng w i l l i t take to do th is? "He answ ered tha t if in twelve yea r s the hand , eye sor tongue have no t k i l l ed , the power wi l l be ga ined .F o r m a n y w h o d o n o t d e s t r o y w i t h t h e h a n d , do sow i th t he eyes o r t ongue . Ne i ther an ima l o r m ank indw il l a t tac k th is loving one, n o r will opposi t ion of anykind be presented ."Must one , M as te r, do an y th ing e lse excep t ab -s t a in f r om k i l l i ng any l i v ing c r ea tu r e?""Yes, m y son , he shou ld have love in h i s hea r t fo reveryone , bu t he sho u ld no t fix his af fect ion on anypa r t icula r on e, holding a l l in love. Nor shou ld he fe ard e a t h a n y w h e r e o r a t a n y t im e . H e i s ab ov e d e a t h ,r ea l iz ing he i s no t bound by the n ar ro w wal l s of f leshan d bone bu t i s soul or sp i r i t , of a l l and i n a l l. Hisp r aye r s hou ld be :

There i s no jea lousy, no fear ,I am the dea r e s t o f t he dea r ;No rival, no foe,No in jury , no woe,Om, Om, Om!Not l i ing can harm me,No th ing a l a r m me ,The sou l o f a l lT he nec t a r f a lls ,Om, Om, Om!T h e H e a v e n s a n d s t a r s ,W o r l d s n e a r a n d f a rA re h u n g a nd s t r u n gOn the songs I sung ,Om , Om, Om !"


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G R E AT M A S T E RS O F T H E H I M A L A Y A S 27

To my readers I wish to say that all fear of evilmust be banished-as the light succeeds darkness.

Wi th my honored friend I felt I walked in safety,and knew that wherever we might go danger couldnot touch us. W e passed niany ancient sites and to myquestions he always returned a kindly answer. Hedescribed to me in detail the old city of Nasik andother matters of historical interest. This book wouldbe thousands of pages long were I to set down allthat he said. Modern books must not be long, or theywouldn't be read !

W e are at the Cave of Nasik. The Cave is like alarge auditorium. I t is cron7dedIT ith statues, some ofkings, among them the statue of the King of Yodhas-tar-hero of the Mahahhartha-one of the fivebrothers who n70n undying fame in that legend. Iexplored the farthes t corners of the Cave and thenreturned to my waiting Master, who asked me if Ihad seen all I wished. "Yes, b11t what of the Cave'shistory?" I asked.

"As we walk on to Hagh, n-here I find the GrcatMaster of all has gone and where mrc n-ill see manyMasters, I will relate the historv of Nasik."

Then as we nlalked side by side he acquainted mewith much interesting data concerning the Cave ofNasik. " J i~s t fter tlie great war of Kairma and Pan-duma, 1600 I3 C.. thc ~scavatioriof thc Cave n-as he-gun. Man). great 111cn.nlany Icings and queens welbenuml)t~~.etl111olig t l i ~al)o~-c~r~i.rhl-ec ltu~idredyearspassed i l l this grcat work, all of n-hich was done byhand--han~l~ir r? nd chisclc, only welBeuserl."


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28 R I S H I S I N G H G H E R W A LI r e m a r k e d t h a t t h e r e m -ere m a n y s t a t u e s of t h e

Kin g of Yod has t a r ."Y es, f o r h e w a s a g r e a t k i n g w h o f a i t h f u l ly fo l-lowed h i s Dharma-h is pa th of r ig l it an d du ty . T h a tis w h y t h e r e a r e s o m a n y re pl ic as of h i m . H e w a s t h eo n l y k i n g w h o w e ll t to B r a hm a l i h ai ld ( H e a v e n ) i nthe body . ""Oh tel l n le of th a t , M as te r , p lease."

" K in g Y o d h a st a r w a s t h e r u l e r of P a n d u m a a n di n t h e M a h a b h a r t h a w a r h e f o u g h t a g a i n s t t h e K i n go f K a r m a , a t h ie f a n d g r e e d y f o r t h e s p o i l s of w a r .I t w a s r e a l l y a c o n fl ic t b e t w e e n g oo d a n d e v il , u - i t hK i n g Y o d h a s t a r d e f e n d i n g D h a r m a . H e t r ~ u m p h e do v e r e v i l ."Son le l ime a f t e r t he c lo se of t he \ \ a ] . S r i I ir i 5 lina ,*w h o w a s a c c i d e n ta l ly k il le d b y a h u n t e r , \v as a t t h a tt i m e 126 ye ar s o ld . I cing Yod l i a s ta r a n d his l o u r brcrt11-e r s lo ve d S r i K r i s h n a a b o v e e v e r y t h i n g a n d l if e w i t h -o u t h i m t h e y c o ul d n o t e n d u r e . T h e y lv is he d t o m e e th i m in B r a h ~ l ~ a l t h a n dH e a v e n ) a n d v o w e d t he y w o u l ds e e k liiin i n S w e r g o r I l e a \ e n . T h e y s o u g h t l li in , t h e r e -fo r e , l i i n g I7o dh as t a r , h i s clueen -the good D aru pa t i-a nd h i s f o u r b r o th e l 's . A s t h e y n e a r e d t h e p e a k ofI l i n ~n la y n l ie goo tl D aru pa t i , f a i r i t i np arltl ex ha us t ed ,c r i e d , 'O h m y d e a r L o i d , I c a n n o t w a ll < f u r t h e r . C o m ea n d h e l p m c f o r I a n1 r e a d y to f a l l. ' H e a n s w e r e d t h a tif sh e cbould s t ag ge r on a s f a r a s he s tood he wo u lda s s i s t h e r , h ilt h i s v o w d id n o t p e r m i t h llii t o t u r nback even one s t ep to a i t l he r . U t t e r ly s l r en t 1 )n rupa t ifell grasping to thtl grollntl .

*Kribuo-the F I i n d u C h r i s t


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GREAT MASTERS OF T H E H I M A LA Y A 8 &I"Soon the youngest brother of the King could not

force his feet further and .he, too, was left behind todie. . . , ..I . !

"One after the other the next two brothers wereconquered by the flesh and perished. Only Ki n g Yod-hastar and one brother continued the exhaustingclimb. 'Why, oh King and my brother, has the goodDarupati who loved us more th& she loved God beenallowed to fall?'

" 'For that reason,' curtly replied the King." 'But our brothers?'" 'Our youngest brother, Bhima, was young and

handsome and very proud. Therefore he fell. So like-wise did o u ~ rother \\-ho so greatly admire~d hisbeauty and proudly thought the world contained nohandsomer ruan than our brother.'

" 'And good Arujan \vho \\-as faithful to his Llhar-ma fell also, oh Iiing.'" 'Yes, Bhirna, but llc believed he was the greatestwarrior in the worltl,' sadly replied the king.

',At last Bhima perished like his brothers and t bKing alone was left to struggle on. Finally he gainedthe top-most peak of the Hinlalayas and there he wasmet by God (Truth).

" 'King, you have n.011 to Truth and as a rewardyou may enter Heaven as you are, in you r physi-cal body. Come \\-ith me-my car is here.'

"Beside liing Yodhastar crouched his dog, faithfulcornpallion of his terl~ible oul*ney. 'May I take mydog into Ileaven \\-ith me?' he asked Truth.


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30 RISHI BINGH BHERW AL" No! Your dog must live many lives on this earth.When he reaches your state he may enter Brahmali-hand, but not now.'"The King remonstrated that the dog followed himin his perilous search for Truth, had endured all thehardships and surely should be permitted to sharein the reward. 'My wife and brothers failed me butnot this dog,' he added." Let us go.' Gad spoke sternly."King Yodhastar pleaded to be allowed to take hisdog but Truth was obdurate. 'This is not just orright!' the King cried, 'I came hither for you, Truth,not for your Heaven and if I cannot take my poor dogwho shared the pain and should share the joy of re-ward with me I shall not enter your Heaven. Nor do

I think you just and merciful, you, the God of Loveand Justice ane doing the works of darkness. I shallremain with my poor dog,'-thus spoke the valiantking." Look, King, a t your dog', was the compassionateanswer. There was no do^ to be seen!" That, good King, was your last test. You have

triumphed over all. Now come with me.' "The Master concluded his story of King Yodhastarwith the assertion that because the King was receivedbodily into Heaven many statues df him had beenplaced in the Cave of Nasik.I called the Master's attention to the fact that Ihad seen a statue of Buddha in the Cave, and remark-

.ed Buddha's date was 500 B. C., and the Cave dated


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GREAT MASTERS O F T H E H I M A L A Y AS 31

back to 1600 B. C.The Master explained the statue of Buddha hadbeen placed in the Cave of Nasik by Gautama Bud-

dha's graudson, King Ashoka. This good king wasmightily beloved by the people of India whose in-terest he always served faithfully. King Ashokadesired his illustrious forbear should be honored andhave his rightful place among the other statues ofnotables in the Cave of Nasik.

In all caves and temples of India are found statuesof the Buddha, placed there by his disciples who stillfollow his teachings. Because of these statues of Gau-tama Buddha, Europeans conclude all caves were ex-cavated after the time of the great Buddha. This in nota fact however, the zeal of Buddha advocates is thereal explanation.

Below us lay a valley with a village nestled in it."We shall soon be there and rest for tonight," saidn ~ yompanion. Shortly after , we were in the villageand in the Temple we found shelter for the night.

Daybreak found us again afoot. For three days wetraveled steadily, spending the nights where night-fall overtook us. The end of the third day brought u sto the famous Cave of Bagh.


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CHAPTER VI 9

THE CAVE OF BAGHThe dimensions of the Cave of Bagh are 90 by 90feet ; its location about forty-five miles east of Man-dhu is easily accessible by train. Here two rivers

meet, both well-known to Hindus, the Vagruly andGirna. At first sight I looked in vain for the Cave;before me was a wooded hill. On questioning the Mas-ter he told me the mouth of the Cave was on top ofthe hill. The path leading to it was almost hidden inbrush I discovered. As I gazed at the hilltop and heardthe Master say, "There is the Cave af Bagh," myheart beat wildly with anticipation and, I confess, fear. *Not the fear inspired by the tigers, though Bagh isthe king of all the tigers, but the fear that is akinto sacred awe. My re ~ d e r s an imagine how I felt Pwhen the Master said, "Son, you have desired thegreatest Master of the Masters, Yogi Bhagavan Purij i-is it not so?"- "Yes," was my trembling answer, "that is mygreatest desire.""Then go into Bagh. son, and you will find him,. and with him many others."

Parting the bushes, fearful of tigers, yet oddly con-fident the Master would protect me from tigers, hu-man or animal, and excited a t the prospect before meI climbed up the steep hillside and there at the topwas the open mouth of the Cave, six or seven feet- across. The Cave below is dug from the rock. Goingin I discerned it was built in descending levels orstories. Traversing the first level I found an openingabout three feet in width; it was the entrance into the

f


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IGREAT MASTERS OF THE HIMALAYAS 33

second leve l. I c l im b e d d o w n b u t c o ul d n o t s e e i n t h em u r k y l ig h t w h i c h fi lt er e d i n f r o m t h e to p at t h em o u t h of t h e C a v e. T h i s li g h t w a s t h e o n l y i ll u m i n a -t io n w i t h i n . F e e l in g r i g h t a n d l e f t w i t h n l y h a n d s Im a d e m y w a y to tlie d o w n ~ v a r r l p e n i n g a n d p as se di n t o th e t h i r d s to r y . I n t h i s m a n n e r I r e a c h e d t h ef i f t h l eve l . I w a s b e c o m i n g v e r y d i z z y f r o m l a c k ofa i r a n d m y p r o g r e s s w a s slo nT .N e ar ly t w e n t y m i n u t e shad e l apsed s ince I en t e red t he Cave , 31s- l inil ,s couldh a r d l y s u p p o r t m e a n d t h e l i g h tn e s s of m y h e ad m a d em e r e e l a g a i n s t t h e w a l l s . I w a s c om p e lle d t o s e e ka i r . A s r a p i d l y a s p o ss ib le I m a d e m y w a y t o t hem o u th of tlie Cave . T he re I co l lapsed upon th o g r o u n d ,f e e l i n g a s t h o u g h I w a s g a s s e d . A g o o d r e s t r e v i v e dm e a n d w h e n I r e t u r n e d t o t h e M a s t e r h e a s k e d m eilf I had fo un d the ob jec t o f m y qu es t .I a n s w e r e d t h a t 1 h a d n o t , a n d b e s id e s Ih a d n e a r l y l o st m y n .a y i n t h e C a v e. " T h el i t t l c l igh t tha t seepe t1 in f rom the f i r s t l eve ld i d n ' t p e n e t r a t e d o w n t o t h e f i f t h l e v e l w h e r eI w a s f o rc e d to t u r n b a c k f o r a ir ," I dec l a red ,a n d t h e n w e n t o n to s a y I h a d o n l y b e e n a b l e to f e e lw a l l s a n d p e r h a p s s o m e s t a t u e s , a d d i n g I t l id ~ i ' t e eh o w a n y on e colild b e in th e C a ~ e n l e s s t h e y c o l ~ l dl iv e n . i t h o u t b r e a th i n g . T h e r e w a s n ' t a n y a i r tob r e a t h e ."Son , you have done n e ll. You have acco m pl i shedm o r e t h a n m a n y m e n.""EIow? E x p la in if yori will ." I \>.as c o m p le te lypuzzled."My son, I h a v e c om e to R a ph w i t h m a n y m e n a n dh a v e s e n t t h e m a s I s e n t y ou a l o n e to t h e m o u t h of


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&4 RISHI SINGH GHEBWAL

the Cave. Some went as far as the entrance and turnedback, some penetrated the first and some went downinto the third level but no one but yourself has had thecourage to seek the fifth story. Do you not agree youhave done well?""Perhaps so," I answered, "but it was with yourhelp I went as 'far a s I did. Always I felt your protec-

tion and I knew that no matter what I encountered youwould keep me from harm.""Well, but who am I to protect you?""You are a Master," I earnestly said, "and surelyyou will show me to the very depths of the Cave. Areyou not a Master?"He answered me by announcing he would furnish

me with a light if I would go alone into the Caw."No, no, I want you to go with me," I pleaded."Very well, we will go together. Now wash yourPace and hands and I will give you food."After washing myself I ran hack to him and heoffered me fruit and candy. Even today 1 cannot saywhere he obtained the fruit. It was delicious, of aflavor I had never before tasted."Whlerever did yo11 get this \vonderful fruit?" Iasked h im."Is it not good?" he countered."The very finest I have ever tasted.''"Then why bother your head where it came from?"was the amused remonstrance.About seven o'clock the following morning our ex-Floration of the Cave 1,egan-to me itwas the most rno-


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e GREAT MASTERS OF THE HIMALAYAS 35mentous occasion of my life, to the Master routine. Hewent ahead of me through the first story and downinto the third. There he caused the entire story tobe flooded with light and this he did each time weentered a deeper level. On the fifth he pointed outrooms, which had been chiseled from the rock, withdoors of stone. The sixth level seemed to be all cellswhich were little more than holes in the side walls.The Master handed me what appeared to be a stick ofwood, "When you need a light you will have it," hesaid. I looked about on the sixth and complained Ididn't see any Masters.

"Below us are many stories," he answered. "You, will see what you seek on the next level."Glancing about for the exit to the seventh I couldfind only a small aperture large enough to allow the. passage of a man's body. Light greeted me but as Idescended the light went out. It was inky dark and Icried out, "Master, Master, where is the light'!"

"Within you," I heard his voice say. "Light whatyou have in your hand."Suddenly the stick I held glowed with light but I

could see my Master nowhere. Walking about I enter-ed a little room and found a man sitting in Samadhi.'He opened his eyes and I gazed into their tenderdepths. They were the same beautiful eyes I had seenthree times before! The pleasure of seeing him againalmost overwhelmed me as well as the knowledge thatI was looking upon the greatest of all Yogis. I forgotthe kind Master who brought me to Bngh, and bowed-

8amadh1--super eonsrlousnw.


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W H I SINGHQHERWALmy head in reverence to the Great Yogi. "Sit down,"he kindly invited me. I sat a t his feet-my keenestdesire was fulfilled.As I sat light illumined the room; he took fromm y hand the little stick and tossed it a little way fromus. Resting in his peace'ful presence I forgot myself-forgot why I was there. His voice recalled me: "Doyou wish to penetrate further and see many otherYopia or do you wish to leave the Cave?"I should like to go farther down if you will ac-company me," I respectfully replied.He rose to his f ~ e tnd proce ~dedme into the nextlevel. I saw three or four rooms and in them menwerP sitting in Samadhi. Absolutely motionless they ,sat, not a muscle quivered. their lungs and heartswere still. Silence flowed about them like a soundlesssea and ralm and peace reigned. Never a ripple ontheir sea of silence to disturb their suspended spirit.They were part of e t ~ r n a l eace."Come, son, let us depart."

R v the time we were outside the Cave I remem-bered the Mastpr who had takrn su rh a kindly interestIn me and I asked Yopi Puriji i f he knew what hadbecome of him. I added that I lost him on the verylevel where I found the Great Master.!Master Piiriji commented casually that i t was re-grettable that I had lost my good friend.I t was twelve o'clock."Son." said the IIoly One , you n1.e anxious totalk, is it not so? Speak on.""no they ~beinainalways in this Cave or are l ! ~ ~ y


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GREAT MASTERS O F THE HIMALAYAS 37there for training? I explained that I was eager toknow who and what were the men in the Care."They are among the great, my son. They haveconquered the flesh and desire and are now mastersover nature. To the111 it is alike whether they live un-der water or in the Hiinalayan snows. They havelearned the great law of Nature which is Prana.'All things not under their control in this or anyworld they master by controlling Prana."Prana is everywhere-in the Sun, Moon, Starsand this Earth. It is the motive force, the life force orenergy. It causes the lungs to breathe. Man canexist without food, even for a short time withoutwater, but man cannot live without breathing air.""Is Prana, then, air?" I asked."No, certainly not. Prana is finer, more subtlethan air. Air is gross. You can see air butyou cannot see Prana. I t is true that through air wereach Prana and control i t . Masters of Prana can stopand star t the beating of their hearts a t will. Thereis no mystery about the control of Prana." He con-tinued, "It is a natural act of life. Pranayama is thekey to the mastery of Prana (life-force."

"May I a sk , Master Bhagavanji how long the mas-ters remain in Saniadhi, the state in which I sawthem in the Cave?""Some for months, some a yPar, others for p ~ a r s , "he answered."Do they remain always in this Cave or do they-Prana-Life force or life energy-otive power. Often rrondy Dram

Iated "breath."


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?

38 R I S H I S IN G H G H E R W A L

come outside?""Some remain in the Cave a month and then comeout, others six months or a year. Even for years theyremain in the depths of the Cave before returning tothe world for a period. You, son, have probably seenthem in the past traveling about the country. Youmay see them in the future.""Master," I entreated, "tell me your real name.""Son, I have no name.""But what did your mother call you, dear Master,when you were a child?""That was a long, long time ago. Many mothershave borne me and all have given me names. I do notremember them all.""Then your real name is not Yogi Bhagavan*Puriii**?".- u -"They gave me that name more than a hundredyears ago," was his answer."Master, it is true, is it not you're he whomSwami Dayanand saw on the heights of Abu?""Where did you hear that, son?""From many Sadhus, among them my Uncle Uta-ma Singhji, who once related the story of your life tome.""Well, yes, son, I have been {.he eacher of many,"was his modest rejoinder."May I ask your age, oh, Master Puriji?""Why should I be bothered with computing myage-I am ageless."

*Bha~aran--God.* *Puri-Heavenly.FOOTNOTE :The Chicago Daily Tribune, issue of April 4. 1997, taka that an Eng-lish scientist now reaiding in Paris ha6 perfected an antidots fo r deep.Sleep is not necessary, he declares, being the reault of accumulated toxin#in the body which narcotize.Proof ia extant in India that Masters have not slept for thirty y ~ m .Oontrol of deep has been practiced in India for thourandm of m n .


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GREAT MASTER8 OF THE HIMALAYAS 29"You are more than two hundrcd years old," 1

earnestly said."You can make me as old as you like, son," -the master was amused-hut don't try to keep inmind how old you are. Forget your age, always feelyoung and you can keep your present body that muchlonger. Don't say to yourself, I am fifty-one yearsold. Think youth and you will be young."

"How old is the Cave of Bagh?" I queried."It is said to be 159 B. C., but that is a mistake; i t

is much older. Just as people believe i t is only fivestories deep. You and I know better than that."

"Yes, for I went to the seventh level and I think, i t i s much deeper.""You are right. There are further levels," he said.

A little later my illustrious Master remarked he. had to go to Hardwar. "You too will go there, andI shall meet you a t the Muni-mandal. Do not say toanyone where you have been or what you have seen,nor who I am. Go now to the nearest city and thereBri Amohindo 's Ashram a t Pondicherry.*#An sesnttd port of the Yoga sadhana here is to mastofthe lower movements of human nature, as a preparation to trans-form them in to mmeth ing ve ry high a n d & d u e , thna all sorts of

renwal indulgence are absolutely forbidden here. The claims of theflesh nnd of the ordinary human nature a re den ied so fa r thatno t only such com paratively innocent h ab its a s amoking ia die-Conntenancsd h m , b u t the disciples have r tendency to d m &the i r foodi an d e ven sleep considerably less. m a Ded has a lreadyg lv en n p s leep f o r m r a l m onths, and both Sri Aurohindo andm a Devi par take of very l i t t le food, and even that they areddminbhhg twsdily." (From A. B. P a m a , M a y 12th 1927, b yP s m d r a n a t h S en Qupta).


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40 R I S H I S I S G H G H E R W A L

board a train for Hardwar, where I shall await you.""Cannot I go with you, Master?" I pleaded."No, my son," but he softened the refusal with

such a tender look of divine love I was heartened andconsoled for having to part with him. Then he gaveme his blessing.

My readers will be interested in a little historyof Hardn-ar, lil10~11 s the Great Holy Place. To it aredrawn annually more people than to any other shrine.Every twelve years the "Maha Kunlba mella" is held.It is a great pilgrimage to Hardwar, where a religiousfete takes place as the culmination of the pilgrimage.At Brindavan where Sri lirishna spent his childhood,the pilgrims assemble in the month of February. Bythe first of March they have reached Hardwar andthe end of April marks the cunclusion of the MahaKumbha mella. There is alsu an animal mella, fromApril first to the fifteenth. ISue to the diff'elbence inthe Ii~cliana i ~ dEnglish calendars the fete does notfell on exactly the sari~e ate.

The I'anranik legend relates the institution of theKumbha. In olden times \ v h e l ~ he IJevatos (gods) andthe Asura (demons were a t \ \ a l h they fought in thesea, raising such a turmoil anti churning of the waterthat a ku ml~ ha, jar of Amrit* nectar, was cast up bythe sea. An even fiercer battle ensued between theAsura and the 1Jevatos for the possession of the pre-


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cious jar of nectar. A god snatched the jar and flewwith it, pursued by demons, but such was the god'shaste he spilled drops of the precilous liquid f rom thejar. The localities receiving these priceless drops weremarked for celebration of the Kumbha Yoga or Kum-bha mella. These sites follow: Ujjain, Prayag, or Al-lahabad, Hardwar, Godavari, ancient city of India-Nasik; and Manas Saranar.

Hardwar is a healthy clty if a bit cold, since it iesituated at the foot of the Himalayas. Here one hasthe opportunity to see in the assembled multitude(during the Kumbha mella) great Yogi Masters, Sad-hus, Swamis and Sanyasi. It is a most beautiful andinspiring sight-this mella of holy men and devotees.One sees a well-dressed Sadhu in flowing robes pro-ceeding humbly on foot, and behind him mounted in ahowdah of gold atop a huge elephant rides a holyman from the Punjab. Here are representatives df theUdasi sect olf the Punjab belonging to the Bara (big)or Chota (small) Akhara w,ho have journeyed hun-dreds of miles oln elephants, camels, the finest horses,or on foot to this great religious mella. Here, also,arebands of p1ayer.s who re-enact scenes from the Ra-mayain and old Vedic legends, sacred to India.

One wonders where the half million people willfind food, for there are no regular cafes, only three orfour organized depots such as that of the Muni-man-dal. Here food is Pispensed free to all comers. Fromtwo to three hundped thousand persons are fed daily,-from where the supply of food comes remains a


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4a RISHI SINQHGHIERWALmystery.

One of the most picturesque sights in India occuron the banks of the Ganges River. In this river amillion people bathe. It is known as the "sacred"Ganges. Bathing in its waters is symbolic of spiritualpurification. Most remarkable is the lack of confusionand pushing usually attendant amorlg a mul ti tl~deofsuch gigantic proportions. One constantly hears thename of the Almighty spoken by reverent voices. Hereand there are gathered little groups of people listen-ing to a lecture by a Yogi, Swami, Sadhu or Sanyasi.

I missed the Kumbha in 1923, for during the firstpart of the year I was living the experiences in theHimalayas I am now recording.

* * * *

At Hardwar, to my delight, the Great Master waswaiting and I experienced the keenest joy in seeinghim on,ce mow. Near him Saint Kishavanadji sat andwith a little smile asked me if I had found my Masteron Mount Abu."Yes-and my Great Master sits beslde you a t thisvery moment."

Master Bhagavanji rebuked me gently. "Do notcall me so; I am just one like yourself."

"Well, beloved Master," I replied, "if you don'twish it I shall not call you the greatest, but you arenevertheless, the greatest of all living men. Talk to meand teach me your Yoga." He answered there was butlittle time for teaching-he must leave Hardwar onthe morrow.


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6

GREATMASTERS OF THE HIMAUPAS 43h "May I ask where you are going?" I humbly asked,feeling that I had only sips of the nectar of his g10-

rious presence."Son, I am going to Badrinath and Kandarnath,

from there into the higher Himalayas to Muktinath.""Of Badrinath and Kandarnath I have heard butwhere is Muktinath?""On the other side of the Himalayas, across the

snowy peaks. It is a long trip but if one can endurethe cold and high altitude there is a shorter rautethrough the Trans-Himalaya Pass. Few people dare

, , the Trans-Himalaya nor is it known to many for it isnot one of the eight main roads through the Himala-was."

c "Tell me, Master, would it be possible for me togo as far as Kandarnath?""Easily," he declared, "as you will find a sarah

(inn) every three or four miles along the way. Butyou will need very warm clothing, son, and if youlike I'll tell you where to procure it. Doubtless youwill meet Sadhus who are familiar with the roads toBadrinath and Kandarnath. They will be glad to helpyou. Along the n7ay you will have the pleasure ofseeing many temples. Badrinath, because it is in theHimalayas, is different than Rajputana, for travelin these mountains is different than on other moun-tains. In the Himalayas you will always receive vi-

C brations of calm, peace and joy. The HimalayanRange is king over all the mountains of the world.


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Among its heights have lived and are still living mostof India's holy men. You will find it well worth whileif you desire to go, but son, do not ask to accompanyme. I will, however, meet you there. Remain in Hard-war for a few days and perhaps you will encountersomeone who is going to Badrinath."

It was ten o'clock in the evening and we retiredfor the night. Next morning, to my unhappy surprise,the Great Yogi Puriji was found t o have left for Bad-rinath."It takes all kinds of people to make a world,"5s one of your proverbs. We all have our madnesses.One is madly in pusuit of gold, or women, or men,and still another mad in the thirst for knowledge-

me, I was mad with admiration for the Great Puriji.Life apart from him, now that I had tasted his mag-netic personality and felt the radiance of his great andholy soul, was dull and flavorless. To rejoin him oc-cupied my entire mind. That he was to be at Badrinathand Kandarnath, temples of perpetual snow whichall Hindus desire to see, increased the anticipation ofagain enjoying his companionship.


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46 R ISm SINGH GHERW,ALwhich I gratefully accepted. About my trip she seemedto know everything and she urged me, "Son, do notturn back at Kandarnath. If you do you will miss themost beautiful temples. Go on and on, be afraid ofnothing, for you are blessed in having a great pro-tector. You cannot realize how very fortunate youare. I made the trip myself ten years ago and youwho are young I know will come safely out of theHimalayas. I give you my blessing, son. Now go."

With her gracious blessing echoing in my ears Ileft her generous hospitality. before me rose the longchain of snow-capped peaks, a wonderland to modernsand ancients. No one would forego the opportunity ofgazing on the awful, sublime and solitary grandeur ofthese time-defying peaks. Relentiess time in its on-slaught has not been able to leave the faintest trace olpassing.

There were numberless caves ahead of me, (cavesabound, each with its special history) which shelter-ed Sadhus and Yogis, kept by Munis. In one I had thegood fortune to meet an elderly man. We journeyedalong together, he pointing out locales of interest.There, Sadliu Kinner sits on that great slab of stoneoverhanging a deep gorge and sweetly plays his flute;there, the Great Rishi Veyas used to spend his sum-mers writing the Mahabarala (he also divided iheVedas into four parts). There, Rishi Agastya has hishermitage in that lonely secluded spot, and all aboutus the air was harmonious with the poignantly sweetpiping of flutes.


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1

GREAT MASTERS OF THE HIMALAYAF 47Look, on yonder slope, ArJuna, the heroof the Mahabarata, fulfilled his penance for the

peerless weapon gondeva from the God Shiva-withi t he was victorious over great warriors-Bhisman,Karna and a host of others.From here one gazes upon the most beautiful peaks

of the Himalayas, more than seventy-five of whichare from 20,000 to 25,000 feet high. There the statelyNanda nevi (25,689) with her sister Kermet Devi(25,3751 proudly support their snowy mantles, theirheads gleaming with icy diamonds.

Hardwar at the foot of the Sewalike Range, marksthe spot where the Ganges River leaves the Hima-layas. It is the door as well to Badrinath and Kandar-nath.

Ahead one can see everlasting snow. A few hoursbrines one to Kanlrhal, the capital of Daksha. fatherof Sati, who was the embodiment of ch34titv andfidelity. She could not bear to hear the slightest as-nersion on the fair namP n f h ~ ru sh and Siva. Sh?~rp fprr ed eath and gave UD her bodv in the verypresence of her father, showing thp world the loval-tv and duty of a devoted wife. Siva came and tookthe half-burned body of his beloved wife on hidshonlf i~r nd then in terrible aneer caused a down-pour of rain which threatened the earth with destruc-tion. Th e God neva came to the rescue, ~roclaimingto the world that pure love is victorious over death.

A walk of a few hours brought us to a place Rishis


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RISHI SINGH GHEBWALfrequent, where they sit in concentration, focusingtheir minds, literally bringing their minds io onepoint. Many Rishis sat in Samadhi and no one couldfail to see aQd feel the utter calm and peace theyemanated. We did not linger here however, as ourdesire was to reach Lashimanjholla.

Here, Lashiman, the brother of Sri Rama spentsome time after he had won the war of Ramayainagainst the demon Raven. Lashiman loved his broth-er Sri Rama with more than a brotherly love, for he isknown as the great lover of Rama. Lashiman wasa perfect Master, one among thirteen great mastersof India who had themselves under absolute control.

We met Yogis, Swamis, a few Rishis, many Sad-hus and Sanyasi gathered here in the holy placefrom the four corners of India. I met a man whoknew me and my family. To my surprise he knewmy relatives better than I did. I tried to ascertainwho he was, but I could learn nothing about himand he did not enlighten me. We stopped at SwargeAshram.

Lashimanojholla is an ideal place for study. Itsnatural beauty is embellished by a great suspensionbridge, the gift of a wealthy man. Many times I heardthe story of Sadhu Baba Kabaliwala who built thesegreat dharma salas for those desiring to go on toBadrinath and Kandarnath. All necessities of foodand clothing were to be given these travelers, likemyself, every aid to render their journey as com-fortable as possible. This benevolent old Sadhu left


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this world at an advanced age.t My friends at Lashimanjholla urged me to remain

until I could find company to Badrinath, but I toldthem the Great Master Puriji had promised to meetme at Badrinath m d Ihought it well to push on atonce for I would have been grieved to keep himwaiting, besides I wanted to accompany him to Muk-tinath. It is very, very far to Muktinath they told me.If you take the safe road you will be compelled to gofar into the interior of Tibet and the journey willtake at least nine months. "But the Great Master isgoing with me through the Trans-Himalaya Pass," 1exclaimed.

IC "In that case," a friend spoke up, "you will not bemore than two and one-half months on the road."

Next morning I bade them farewell and guided byL the white peaks, which were scintillating in the sun,I journeyed on the road to Badrinath. The trail fol-lowed the valley of the Ganges, sometimes thousandsof feet above the river bed and again down besidethe coiirsing water. A welcome short cut over theshon ld~r f a hill was matched bv a long crawlingroundabout trail, Eut always the holy Ganges was in'view, furiously rushing along in a headlong effort toreach the plain. Here one enjoys a n excellent view ofthe beautiful Ganges Valley. The same up and downroute continues. I climbed one hour only to descendthe next, but always along the bed of the stream. Anarrow, very narrow path along the edge of a high

b precipice leld into Devaprayag.


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W RISHI SINGHQHERWAL

This is a fine little city on the slope of a hill atthe confluence of Alaknanda and the Bhagirathi.Bhagirathi rises near Gangatori and meets the Nak-nanda at Devaprayag. The grand sight of two moun-tain streams rushing to greet each other in the midstof high mountains is really beyond my power to des-cribe. The roar of the waters is terrific, more terrificthan I have heard elsewhere. I have seen NiagaraFalls but it is not comparable to the awe-inspiringview up the gorge where the two tumultous river8meet in a swirl of mad waters, rushing frenziedlyinto one another's embrace. The whirling sprayfrom the torrent covered me as I stood above theroaring wedding of the waters.

There seemed always a companion at hand whenI needed one and I met a stranger who was head-ing for Badrinath. Together we followed the roadbeside the river and came to Billiaw Kedra. anotherplace of penance for Sri Krishna's favorite, Arjuna.Here he petitioned the God Siva for weapons to fightthe holy war of right and duty. Holy vibrationspervade Billiaw Kedra and are easily discernible toone who is conscious of himself.From Billiaw Kedra wle went to Srinagar. This isnot the Srinagar of Kashmir, but Srinagar which isbuilt upon the site of the ancient capital of old Tehri,an independent kingdom swept away by a devastat-ing flood which carried everything in its path todeath.

Then we were on to Rudra where we planned to


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62 4RISHI SINGH GEkERWAL

CHAPTER VIIIBADRINATE

After resting overnight in Rudra we joyfullystarted on the Badrinath road. Anticipation lightenedour feet and hearts; soon we would see Badrinathwhere one feels every man his brother and akin toall mankind.

Our first stop was at Ukhimath, named for Usha ofAnnirudra; Usha who won fame in the Mahabaratawars. The city stands on the ruins of the ancientkingdom of the great King Ban.

Now we made our way through a deep forest untilwe reached the valley of Alaknanda. The river runs ameandering course, now over upland, then down in-to little gorges, and since the road hugs the river itmakes the route long but picturesque'. About middaywe reached Joshimath the seat of a monastery found-ed by Sankaracharya. Later in the day we paused atthe Great Hannuman Chatty. Hannuman of the Banerfamily, the first to cross from India to Ceylon by air,10,000 years ago. Hannuman was an ardent lover ofSri Rama. It is said that Hannuman was once askedthe date and he replied, "How should I know the date;I only know Rama. Wherever I look I see my Ramaand Rama is forever enshrined in my heart."

The Chatty of Hannuman was sanctified by aYajna*, held in times of yore. The ashes still remain


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GREAT MASTEBBOF THE HIMALAYAS 63

revealing what a huge holocaust it was after 10,000years have elapsed.

Badrinath at last1 Beautiful and holy Badrinath,whose beauty is not only of nature but of spirit. Heremen are truly brothers. Caste is laid aside and hereat the same refectory of Lashmi the four castes ofHindus eat together in amity and equality. It maybe difficult to realize just what this putting off ofcaste means to the Hindu. Hindus of high caste do noteat the food prepared by an inferior caste. Yet herein Badrinath the centuries old prejudices are laidaside and men meet on an equal footing-in brotherlylove. It is a triumph of the spirit.

Towering over Badrinath stands Naryan and Nara,two high peaks crowned in silvery snow. They arenamed in honor of two great Rishis who lived there.Many learned venerable men come to Badrinath forthe supreme renunciation. The Hindu religion teachesthat every person at the age of seventy-five shouldretire from household duties and meditate upon theBrahm* within. When divine realization comes tothem i t is their duty to impart their knowledge andhelp others to find the #divinitywithin. I had the plea-sure of meeting and conversing with many of theselearned men.

I was reunited with the Great Master Bhagavanjiat Badrinath. Inquiries among the other Yogis as tothe time of arrival of the Master Puriji elicited the in-


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formation that he arrived the morning following thenight I parted from him. T h e Yogis said theydidn't know by which road he came-simply that hewas sitting in the temple on that particular morning.A. journey whioh had taken me half a month hadtaken the Great One part of one night t

: aster Bhagavanji at the time of our reunion wasabout to deliver a lecture to those wtho had come up toBedrinath to renounce the world. He began by say-ing: c 1 4

"Oh my brothers, who are myself, I a m ndeed'gladlo see you desire to live the divine life. Enjoyment of911 material things is the object of world existence,but renunciation of all desires is the enjoyment of all.Renunciation is not only physical rejection or self-denial, but it is also a freeing of the spirit from thethings of the world; freedom from egoism, freedomfrom personal desire; practice these and you will nev-er need anything of the world. It is not necessary topossess nor to be possessed by any one or anything.Your heart must be free of the greedy !demands of thesenses.

"When you live the divine life you are like a lotusflower afloat upon water which touches you not. Youwill find your reflection in all, be possessed by all andpossess all in Brahm. Brahma inhabits each objectas if separately, yet all objects are in Brahma-notoutside it. Realize the m e self, et go the poor ego whohas kept you in darkness. It has made you believe you


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4GREAT MASTERSOFTHE HIMALAYAS 65

are separate when in reality you possess the wholer, world in the one cosmic consoiousnese. Since you pos-sess all, why crave for one thing?

"Realizing your oneness with Brahm you are freethe tranquility of your mind for do you not possess

I 'o delight in all things. Never a desire need disturbIall and share in the enjoyment of all? You delight in :

instead of puny individualself-expression. In all, you are all, and all is Brahm! ;You are purged of self and merged in the Great Self ofBrahma. Such a one is a free soul-jiwan mukti- 1 ,living in the universe in full activity yet above the \universe like Brahma himself.'''c In Badrinath I met many old men, old in years but

not in appearance. They were reticent about givingtheir ages and I could not guess accurately from their0 calm faces and upright stature. They knew how to

take superlative care of themselves and most of themwere not under the law of nature. They were devel-oped far beyond the necessity of submitting to Na-ture. In fact, they survived in a temperature of twen-ty degrees below zero, protected 'only by a loin cloth.Judging by appearance one might think this one orthat one was eighty years of age when in reality hewas more likely a hundred and sixty.

Master Bhagavanji was anxious for me to be onmy way to Mansrawar, promising to meet me there.-It is difficult to render in EngIiih, which is not my ~ t hon- thrvivid and lucid expression of the Oreat Muter . I can but point out thrL meaning of hie words without hia okqu011t eupl'emion.


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66 RISHI SINQHQHERWAL r),

dCHAPTER IX ,KANDARNATH

Badrinath and Kandarnath are but twelve milesapart but there isn't a direct route between these twotemples. To expedite my journey I returned to Rudrafrom Badrinath and followed the road besilde the Man-dakini River. Traveling along I came to a love-ly old temple - ri jugi narayan - uilt on thespot where Mahadeo and Parvati were joined in mar-riage satya juga (millions of years) ago. (Later in thisbook I shall explain the four yugas and state how .Imany hundreds of thousands of years comprise oneyuga, as well as the length of time which elapsedbefore this earth was fit for habitation.) This temple 4is unique in that the fire, kindled for the weddingceremony has remained alight ever since. To put alog of wood on the great fire is a n omen ,of goodfortune in the belief df all Hindus.A little farther on is another place-Gouri Kund*- a l s o miraculously endowed. The locality is extreme-ly cold and to ameliorate this frigid atmosphere thereare two tanks in the river containing water. The tem-perature of the water in one tank is 74" and of theotEer 124". I tested the temperature myself and canauthenticate it. These two tanks remain at thesedegrees of heat constantly. Mahadeo had them-Kund-Tank.


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GREAT MASTER8 O F THE HIMALAYAS 67

installed for his wife Parvati that she might batheand swim in comfort.

The ninth day of my journey was re wa~ded ythe sight of Kandarnath, the holy of holies to Hindus,the former abode of Siva (God). I t is situated at analtitude of 14,000 feet above sea level and is verybeautiful-even though it is very cold. Looking outto the summit of the Himalayas one can see the Man-dakini River like a glistening white snake wending itsway past Kandarnath. "Where does the river go?" Iinquired. "To Mahaprasthan," was the answer,"where gather highly developed souls."

Immediately I made an effort to locate MasterPuriji. "Is he here?" I asked the Yogis.

"Make yourself a t home," they answered me."Master Bhagavanji will be here at nine o'clock thisevening."

I thought I was keeping a very alert watch for theMaster but to my surprise I found him in the temple,apparently sitting in Samadhi. Soon all in the templebegan to chant: "Om tat sat Om." Within a few mo-ments I heard the Master's voice join in the chant-which continued until ten o'clock. Everyone then paidhis respects to the Master and retired. It is a rule inall temples the inmates shall retire by eleven o'clockand be up at four in the morning.

The Master did not speak privately to me thatnight, though I had my share of his welcome to thenewcomers whom he asked if they found it difficult toreach the holy temple. (Anyone with good health can


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make the trip to Badrinath aod Karidarnath becauseof the numerous sarahs or inns d ong the way, es-pecially for the convenience of travelers to the holytemples. During the summer months these houses aremaintained by men who have various articles for sale,but the shelter afforded and wood for a fire are d-ways free. Travel- to Badrinath and Kandarnath shouldbe undertaken from March to July. In August the rainbegins. Prior to March it is very cold, but still the tripcan be made if one has sufficiently warm clothing.There is 6evervanydanger if one be accompanisd bya Master, but all are not so fortunately blessed in hav-.ing such august company. Swamis or Sadhus, how-ever, make excellent comrades for they are accus-tomed to long hard climbs in mountainous country.)

I met Yogi Santokh Santi next morning but I don'tknow the name of him who presented me. "Santokh"means contentment and "Santi" peace-Yogi SantokhSanti was the embodiment of these virtues. Upon hiscalm face one read control of his enemieeanger,fear, lust, greed and envy. It was an edifying plea-sure to meet this Yogi and I was doubly pleased whenI learned from the Great Master that Yogi Santi wouldaocompany me on my trip higher up in the Himala-yas. But to my astonishment I noted the good Yogi hadbut one kabali*-it was hardly more then a thin blan-ket, and later I discovered it was all the clothing hedesired.-

C !*Kabali-Robe.


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R GREAT MASTERSOF TEE KIMALAYAS 59

From another Yogi I learned something of the lifeb of Santokh Santi. His real name was not known but

thirty years previous when the Yogis were going onfoot from one holy place to another they first heardof him in Flajputana. People told them a young manof twenty-'five years of age was sitting in a wooda hundred miles distant from any village. He hadneither clothing nor food and would not speak whenaddressed. Some of the villagers thought him dement-ed but others, the few who had seen him said he didnot have the expression of insanity. The Yogis, itseemed, did not visit the man at that time as they wereon their way to the Maha Kumbhe.

In the Punjab, which they visited on their wayback from the mella, a wealthy elderly woman seeingthey were a company of forty travelers, told them of

15 her missing son whose absence grieved her keenly be?ging them for news of him. The Yogis answered theyknew nothing of him. Upon which the poor, heart-broken mother collapsed. When she recovered some-what she acquainted them with all the details of herboy's {disappearance and the Yogis promised to be onthe look-out for him to send him directly home tohis mother. They bade her not to worry-"Jo hai johai"-what will be, will be1" I have much money,' she said, 'but only one son.He left home six months ago and I feel certain I shallagain see him, probably in the company of holy men,as from childhood he preferred the society of holy


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men-or else wished to be left alone.'"From one end of India to the other we traveled," tthe narrator continued, "but not a word did we hearof the son. Twelve years intervened and again wepassed through the Rajputana and again we heardthe story of the man in the wood. This time we senttwo Yogis to investigate the remarkable tale of thevillagers. We instructed our brothers to bring theman to Hardwar, to the Maha Kumbha."Eight days later the two Yogis rejoined us inHardwar. Yes, they had found the man, but he wasno ordinary man-he was a Yogi, victorious over Na-ture and himself, but since he would not reply to thequestions asked him they left him where he was. 4

"After the mella we all wished to see this man whosat for twelve years in an isolated forest without foodor clothing. There were more than forty in the party, -+even the Great Master was one of us. At the villagewhere news of this man was first given us we werejoined by fiifty villagers. We reached the wood, andthere before us sat the man, motionless, his eyes open.He gave no sign he saw or heard us-he was in Sa-madhi." Let us chant,' quietly spoke our Great Master."And so we did, for thirty minutes-then we ob-served his lips were moving in the familiar chant,though no sound issued from his lips." 'Perhaps his speech is lost,' Master Bhagavanji


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'P GREAT MASTERS OF THEHIMALAYA8 6Asaid, 'since he has not spoken for twelve years.'

F "Our beloved Master went forward and greeted.him, calling him 'Yogi Santokh Santi'. From that timewe have called him Santokh Santi. We remained in thewood a week, the Master holding long and earnestconverse with the new Yogi, but we did not know ofwhat they spoke. In the course of the week we dis-covered Santokh Santi was the son of the good womanin the Punjab and we endeavored to send him home toher, but he refused, saying, 'Why should I go back?I am free now.'

"He finally agreed to leave the wood and thereup-c on began a journey to all the holy temples of India."He has been over India and knows well the m o q -tians and caves. Witness of his extraordinary power ie+ the condition of his body, which remains just the sameas we saw him first so many years ago--a wonderfulachievement. If Yogi Santokh Santi goes with you,"he concluded, "you need not worry about the ex-igencies of travlel."

Master Bhagavanji gave a short lecture on unity,similarity, or oneness. He commenced by stating that.Om* is real, all else is unreal. Enlarging upon this.theme he compared reality and Maya (illusion).

"In sleep," said he, "one may dream he is fighting-or running, seemingly doing actual work. Awake he.-Om-Am-A sacred word signifying ''triniw," also the primary -&.. + the first vocal effort: a basic vibration of the ether. U6ed sxtsnaidy wa chant word by Hindu*.


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~ a , ISHI SINGHGHERWAL arealizes that in truth he was lying upon his bed-his

dream was illusion. +"Think of cold and heat-are they two? No, theya r e one. If we have not cold we know not heat. Ifyou take one away the other will lose its name.

"Knowledge and ignorance are one. If we have not-ignbrance what will force us to acquire knowledge?T h a t is why we say 'bless ignorance,' for by it we ac--quire knowledge. If we do not have ignorance neithersanwe have knowledge. They are one. Take one away%%eother also is lost. If you have not ignorance ycrumust call knowledge by another name. As though wehad but one color-we would never know othercolors. c =5--=-yfl Y

"Brahma or God is one-so spirit is one. Manypeople seek spirit in others but how can they see it ifnot first seeing it in themselves? Blessed are those .*who realize the unity, the oneness of all. They will betwioe blessed, if after seeing God in themselves, theyhelp others to find their 'divinity, their God within."

Som'etime later Master Puriji announced that threeof us desired to go to Muktinath and other holy tem-ples farther in the Himalayas. Master Bhagavanjigraciously promised to meet us many times at variousplaces. I -... ' 7

My companion of the past fifteen days addressedthe Master and asked him to explain how hereached Kandarnath in a few moments whenw e consumed nine days in travel. "What is the se-


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GREAT MASTEM OF THE HTMAT,AYAS U

cret?" he wanted to know.e "There is no secret," the Master answered. "Wedo not have secrets. We use the same force that hasbeen used in India for thousands of years. GuruGorkhnath used it, so also did Guru Nanik. Many fol-lowers of Buddha have made use of it, did you notknow?"The man also asked how a man could make hiebody lighter than air."By controlling the center of the heart-nervewhich has an affinity with air. If you wishto know more about it any Yogi bere will showyou the method," the Master finished.


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'a

BP RISHI SINGH GHERWAL 9

4CHAPTER X-. ."..MANSHAWAR LAHE

Next morning found us three on our way to thefamous Lake Mansrawar. On our departure the Yogisgave us their blessings and we all said, "Farewell untilwe meet again." About us stood the giant peaks, from22,000 to 29,000 feet high, their tops white with per-petual snow. No road was visible ahead of us but wefollowed thle River Mandakini. The day was beautiful,just a little cold wind from the west. One among us,Yogi Santokh Santi had been over the trail before, ebut two of us were new. Since Yogi Santi did notspeak unless spoken to-we asked him where we'dspend the night. C"Why worry now about the night, ten hours dis-tant?' was his reply. "When night comes I will thinkabout our resting place. Have you ever seen a dog orbird carry food while traveling? Take a lesson fromthem. Now (don't bother your heads about where we'llstop tonight, but spend your time gazing at the beautyof the majestic mountains and observe how this rivermadly rushes to meet the Ganges, there to lose nameand form. In turn the Ganges flows swiftly to thesea, there to lose her identity. Learn from these moun-tains anld rivers and realize the nothingness of worry.Be concerned with the present, the future will take.care of itself." 4


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GREATMASTEPS OF THE HIMALAYAS 86From then on we really enjoyed the scenery-the

ever changing perspectives of the noble mountains,themselves immutable. Such a sense of peace and calmpervaded us that I have never been happier or calmerthan when in the Himalayas. Wonderful vibrationspermeate the atmosphere, vibrations of vibrant lifeand joy as well as peace. It is not to be wondered a tfor everywhere some great Rishi has lived. Evenwhere we walked the marvelous Rishi Narain spenthis lifetime meditating along this same pathway, andthere had lived the Rishi Nara. Everywhere the vi-brations of great masters !

I asked Yogi Santi if he knew whether the fivebrothers had trod this path. "Not once, but inanytimes," he exclaimed. "Once alone, another time withtheir mother and again with the good Darupati, thepride of womankind."As we weee all full of joy we did not notice it wasfour o'clock. The sun was setting as it does very earlyin the mountains, the peaks obscuring the decliningsun. Yogi Santi said we would walk two hours moreand then rest for the night.In two hours we reached a little cave. If we hadbeen without Yogi Santi we would certainly neverhave seen it-its entrance just large enough for a manto crawl into.

Up at four the next morning, our , concentratignand meditatioh brought the time to 5:30 and again wewere on our way. When we saw a particularly lovelyview we sat down for a time and admired it before


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resuming our journey. hEarly in the afternoon Yogi Santokh called a halt~emarkingwe would stop there for the night as the

next cave was sixteen hours walk ahead. I undertookto climb a peak, but I didn't reach the top before sun-down and so returned to camp about seven in the.evening.

Some days we walked eight hours and others slx-Zeen. It all depended on the Yogi who knew the loca- ,tion of the caves exactly.At last we were a t Mahaprasthan, place of marvels.W e met a party of three men and two women. Theyall looked very old and seemed former friends ofYogi Santi. For a long time they talked together and 1then asked us to remain all the next day. For myself'I was willing to keep right on, thinking we shouldnot lose any time with five hundred miles ahead. t"Son," the gentle voice of one of the aged women'broke in on my reflections, "why worry aboutfive hundred miles?? Needless to say I was as-founded at her facile reading of my mind.

We remained the next day and I was glad I had notinsisted on leaving. They showed us many wonder-ful things, but also required me to promise I wouldnot reveal what I saw. For that reason I am con-strained to withhold what I should gladly give outto my readers. I am, however, in touch with thesepeople and with their consent, will in the future de-scribe in detail the marvels performed by their tran-scendent power. A


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GREATMASTERS OF THEHIMALBYAS 67

Just as I was about to retire for the night, w h w

Nearer and nearer came the reverberations. I wait-

/G hari." They practice penances, contentment, live onPrana (some on milk) but always keep their bodies

fit. The party had just come froin ifians~~awarake,

,and Muktinath, beginning their trip at Darjeeling.

We spent another day at Mahaprasthan to hearabout their journey. I spoke with many of them inthe course of the day and note,d a number were bare-footed and the majority wore only loin cloths yetthey gave no evidence of hardship. It was surelyworth while to sacrifi~ce he extra day antd listen to.the account of their experiences and advice to me."If you feel any different than usual when you reachthe high altitudes," they told me, "son, stop and restfor a day or so. Also you will find because you do

. . not ea.t meat you will endure and be able to climb-reater heights than a meat eater, for meat dis-


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turbs the thyroid gland. Milk and eggs are the prop- ce r diet for mountain-climbers."I haven't any proof but inference as to the truthof their statement, but I have noticed in ColoradoSprings many people complain of dizziness and diffi-culty in breathing when they ascend Pike's Peak,I which I walk up and experience no hardship at all, asit is a mere 13,300 feet high. True, too, they make theascent in motor cars and without effort of their own.

To my delighted surprise Master Bhagavanji ap-peared that evening right out of the air! It is a thrill- .ing sight, but I was the only one astonished; theathers knew him and his powers so well.

"Master, Master," I greeted him, "you are wonder-ful, a supreme Master!""Why, son?" he deprecated. +

"I have heard anld read of transporting the body'through air but I never before have seen a man per-form the miracle," I excitedly exclaimed."Pooh, miracle," he retorted, "it is nothing. Any..one can do it."

"How?" I cried."By practice," was the answer. "Even in twelve

years or sooner than that.""Tell me, Master, does any other man do as you?You are here now and in a few moments you are fivehundred or a thousand miles away."

"Son, that large company sitting about here knowhow to travel by air and have done so in coming here.Last night they came hundreds of miles. Knowing


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GREAT MASTER8 O F THE HIMALAYAS 69you were here as well as others to whom such sightsare strange and phenomenal, they came down somethree miles from Mahaprasthan and walked here,chanting. If you wish you may ask them if this isnot true."I did ask them and at first they were inclined togive me but little satisfaction, asking me if I thoughtthem birds-but when I told them the source of myknowledge they admitted the truth of the flight. Ris-ing they sought the Master for a lecture on tree andplant life. Master Puriji lectures:

"In all of our religious books we are told that lifeis one; the Upanishads Bave a most wonderful ex-planation of the unity, the unbroken continuity of thelife-principle-the oneness of life. The Sasters pro-claim plants breathe, eat, their hearts beat and theirsensitive nerves respond to conditions of cold, heatand moisture as do our own."The time approaches when it will be universallyconceded that everything has life*. Who believes thatman alone is susceptible to pain and pleasure? Thereare those who blindly think that even animals feel no

"The July 17th, 1927, issue of the Pmt-Intelligencer a t Seattle, Washing-ton, carries a double page article from Professor J. 0. Bose's new book-"Plant Autographs and Their Revelationsw-published by the YcYiIlanClampany of New Pork. Professor Boae is an Ind ian Elcientist whoae re.rearch in plant reactions is accepted as authentic by the scientific wortd.An excerpt from the article follows:"Plants have hearts that beat, nerves that feel pain, are deadened byaneathetics become intoxicated by alcohol, worn out by fatigue and bnafnbed o; killed by poison, like those of human beings.'hfost of the vegetable kingdom im hard of hearing but its sight in aomeh warn is better than ours, its sense of taste is eight times more acute, andit h.s all our senaes in greater or less degree. A pea being cooked for dinnergives off a volt of electri$ty in its death agony and the humble carrot bthe moat aendtive of all.t


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pain when kicked and abused. How untrue that is1Birds, animal's, fish, insects and plants are all capableof experiencing pain. Go to an animal with yourhands full of green grass and they will come forwardto meet you; but go to them with a club in your handand they will run to escape you. Is not that the truth?

"Trees have many of the sensations men feel-notonly pain but actual unoonsciousness results from toomuch pain as it does in man. To one who is sensi-tive to life the reooil of a tree when cut is plainly evi-dent.

"Plants h ~ v eungs, hearts and nervous systemsakin to our own. These facts can be demonstrated andwill in the near future be dem,onstratedby scientists tothe material world, with delicately balanced instru-ments which will record the

Great Masters of Himalayas

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