How I came to Ramana Maharshi

I first traveled to India in January 2001, to be part of the one of the greatest spiritual gathering, the Maha Kumba Mela. I had the greatest urge to be there, to become one with the 70 million hindus and non hindus who had chosen to be at Allahabad, for the sangam (merging) of the three holy rivers of Ganges. Thousands of monks, sadhus, and swamis traveled days to be at this event, and to share their wisdom, to sit in meditative silence, and to show their powers and austerities.

Thousands of little tents were set up beside the banks of Ganges. The sun was at its height. I was looking for Babaji, the great great grand guru of Parmahansa Yogananda, a swami who left India for America because of the message he had received from this ancient Himalayan master. Paramahansa Yogananda has a large following in America, and the Self Realization Fellowship at Los Angeles California continues to spread his Kriya Yoga technique.

I read in several books, and specially in the famous Autobiography of a Yogi, that this immortal master shows up at each Kumba Mela, sometimes in a body of a boy of 16 surrounded by his disciples. I was looking for the impossible, to meet him or to hear about him.

I met many masters, ascetics, and visited many camps including the Parmahansa Yogananda , Shirdi Sai Baba, the Babaji.net camp, and so on. I even stayed at Pilot Baba�s camp, a self-made swami who was an expilot in the Indian Army. My group recommended this camp to me, and I had no choice but to stay there. I learned much later that there was a lot of controversy regarding Pilot Baba and many other gurus in Kumba Mela.

By then I had stayed near the Ganges river for about a month and still found no one to my satisfaction. However towards my stay, one of the members at Pilot Baba�s camp, told me to visit Shibendhu Lahiri, the great grandson of Parmahansa Yogananda�s great guru in Benares (Varanasi.)

Many little incidences occurred in the meantime, each surprising. India is a strange land. It is truly magical in nature. Shibendhu Lahiri, with a thundering voice, during one of his evening satsangs told me to follow the Silent Sage of India, who once resided at Tiruvannamalai in South India. Even Parmahansa Yogananda paid a visit to him when he was in the body. The names Ramana Maharshi and Tiruvannamalai were magnets that directed my search for Bhagavan.

Ramana Maharshi says that it is the guru that finds the devotee, that it is the guru�s grace that is bestowed on the disciple and as a result of this grace the devotee finally gains liberation.

I finally visited Ramana Maharshi�s ashram in south India in July 2003. Although Ramana Maharshi had no guru of his own, the holy mountain of Arunachala, the most prominent structure in the town of Tiruvannamalai was his guru. The ashram and the holy hill have a strange peace, a brilliance of their own. Ramana Maharshi was instantaneously realized at the age of 16 upon having a great 'death experience.'

The thought of leaving my life here in the west never has left me. Like many foreign devotees, I wanted to live near the shrine of Ramana Maharshi, to absorb this strange peace, and to gain freedom by being near Arunachala.

Yet, after much pondering and futile attempts, I realized that when I am ready the path will open. When we are all ready, we will find our own path, our spiritual teacher, our master who can help us gain liberation.

Ramana Maharshi, taught the technique of Self Inquiry. By asking 'Who Am I?' and by digging deeply into the source of 'I', one will gain realization. However, only ripe souls can practice such inquiry to perfection. Ramana Maharshi has mentioned that a true Jnani is a true Bhakti. That path of devotion leads us to the goal equally the same as the path of wisdom.

One evening on the 125 Jayanthi/Birthday celebration of Ramana Maharshi, on December 28th, 2004, I deeply longed to be closer to Ramana Maharshi. That same night, I had the strangest dream. I dreamt that I was preparing sweets and rice for the devotees who were at my apartment for the Ramana Maharshi Satsang. The dream was very strange because it felt very real.

I contacted the other devotees that I know and also reside close by and invited them to join our first satsang on the New year's Day, Saturday January 1st, 2005.

Ever since then, I have been hosting Ramana Maharshi Satsangs at our place every other Saturday/Sunday of the month. We learn from each other, talk about the spiritual events in our life, and most importantly talk about Ramana Maharshi and his teachings. The number of people in the satsang group varies, from none to few devotees depending on their availability. Also visiting devotees are welcome to drop in to sit down and think of Ramana and meditate.

Zoya Malek has a B.Sc. in Kinesiology and currently lives and works in the North Vancouver, Canada as a legal assistant. You can reach her at 604 921 - 9692 or email at Zoya's email if you are visiting Vancouver, B.C. Canada for the next available satsang.
For more information, please visit Zoya's site.