Book Review: Living with the Himalayan Masters by Swami Rama

 'Experience' is God:

Corona is God. Ask me why? Not even Religions and Masters could make us self-aware suddenly as we are today. If remaining conscious ever is the ultimate panacea for humanity’s ills, this little virus has given it to us on a platter.

Whether cloistered or quarantined, if you want a visual tour of the mighty Himalayas, here’s a book by Swami Rama, “Living with the Himalayan Masters”, packed with wisdom, adventure and experiential learning encounters.

In these times of travail, a dose of Indian Spirituality is apt. Take a dip in to the ice waters of the Ganges. A short review of the ‘autobiography of the yogi’ is attached for your week-end sojourn with Swami.

-J Jeyes

www.jeyes.in

The Corona God has made us cavemen. After over one lakh years. Like the monkeys which dreaded jumping from their safe trees into the Savanna risking lives, we now look left and right to ensure that the time is right to venture out of our homes. Driving the entire humanity into our decorated caves, the little virus also has achieved in one stroke what Religions, Sages, Masters or Scripts could not do.

Within a year of its arrival, we the 7.5 billion people on Earth have become ‘conscious’ of ourselves, our bodies (Yoga), highly aware of self (Meditation) vis-à-vis other beings present around and also quite often watch our breathing (Pranayama) to check the working of our lung apparatus. Reminding also of the ‘permanent temporariness’ of our lives by showcasing death in millions of near, dear and unknown ones, the Corona no doubt suddenly has raised our consciousness to the next level. May be is it time due for a whole software/hardware upgrade for humanity? Just the way it happened to apes when we were blessed with self-awareness and a neocortex/pre-frontal cortex between our ears.

Talking of caves and cavemen, how are the yogis achieving the state of equilibrium (samadhi) at 10000 to 16000 feet Himalayan mountains, at minus degrees, in scanty clothes (or even none in some cases)? When I noted the book, “Living with the Himalayan Masters” three decades back on the Spirituality shelves of our Head Office Library, I was 26. Not ‘ready’ to read it. Now that I am nearing 62 and visiting Himalayas is out of question, it was time to take a guided tour of the territory with help of the friendly author, Swami Rama.

At the outset, a solace for the mobile-wielding ‘modern’ generation reading this. The book is not high mumbo-jumbo of Indian Spirituality. It’s a readable and entertaining travelogue-cum-auto-biography around the various snow-top-hills of north India, particularly in Himachal, Kashmir, Punjab, Nepal, Ladakh and others. It’s in fact an amusing reading of the young Swami’s adventures, mischiefs, disbeliefs and eventually attaining maturity with the guidance of a variety of nameless sages.

If you want a list of the author’s rendezvous with famous ones, it goes like this: Mahatma Gandhi, Rabindranath Tagore, Aurobindo and a host of not so known Babas viz., Gudari Baba, Uria Baba, Mataji, etc. In fact, every chapter is an experiential learning episode of the young Rama meeting one and chronicling his acquired wisdom.

Some of his lonely escapades are even more interesting and insightful. For instance, hear him say this: “Not having human company or communication brought me great peace and serenity. I realized that nature is very peaceful. She disturbs only those who disturb themselves, but she teaches wisdom to those who admire and appreciate her beauty. This is especially true in the Himalayas…. Many varieties of flowers are found in abundance in these mountains. I would sit next to these natural flower beds and gaze into the sky, searching for their Gardener.”

Like the current-day Ramdev Baba, the young Swami Rama also escapes being arrested for his misdemeanor. Set in the pre- and post-Independence era of India, the author also cuts across religious lines and relates reverentially to Christian saints and Buddhist monks he spent time with. And as is to be expected, confirms the ultimate truth that ‘ALL roads lead to the ONE!’. 

Pleasure is not only from the big print and easy-to-read chapters, but the book also packs a great visual relief in terms of a not-to-scale North India Map, a variety of photographs of Swami Rama (more selfies!) and other significant persons besides magnificent mountain peaks and valleys. A 4D virtual tour indeed.

This is also not a self-boasting story of the author. In fact, many times, he is confessional and candid in revealing his stupidities, even as he is admonished and brought to track by his beloved Bengali Guru, whose identity is not revealed throughout the book.

A lot of unbelievable but true feats of sages witnessed by the author is recorded. For instance, voluntary abandoning of life, levitation, entering the body of the dead to continue life, etc. are described in a pleasant manner and not in a nail-biting or bone-chilling style. But the Swami never labours to convince you the reader of these miracles but confirms these possibilities codified in Indian Mysticism.

Take it or leave it. Even if you have a scientific bent of mind, the only choice in these times of crises, is between God, Godmen and God-damn men!