Oh Calcutta VI - The Guru Speaks!

Guru Anandamurti

Pratik

This is it! Personal contact with my guru.
I awake early and bathe in a basin of water, but take no food.
Fasting keeps the mind sharp. I repeat my mantra over and over- I am ready.

About 3 PM, I am led to a small, quiet room. It is cool (relatively speaking), dim, and smells of sandalwood incense. In a few minutes an orange-robed sanyasin (monk) conducts me from the antechamber into the inner sanctum. I nervously rub my ‘pratik’ for good luck. The pratik is a brass disk engraved with the Star of David. Inside the star is a rising sun and inside that is a swastika. I wear it around my neck.

The ‘pratik’ works on many levels. Combining three powerful religious symbols sops up tons of bad karma. Rubbing it calms my chakras. Wearing it protects against the stink-eye. Other lesser effects of pratik-wearing are: 1.) the brass turns my chest green and 2.) the swastika drives my Jewish mother-in-law crazy.

The Guru is in! Shri Shri Anandamurti, all in white, sits cross-legged on an orange cushion. He is garlanded with matching orange marigolds. Incense burns in a rough clay bowl and Baba’s thick eyeglasses rimmed in heavy black plastic reflect the light of candles. For a moment, I flash on superman’s alter ego- Clark Kent. Different clothes – same glasses. I wonder, “Are the glasses for my protection more than for the guru’s vision?”

“Namascar,” I bring my hands together in prayer and touch the thumbs to my forehead.
Then I kneel and bow my head to the floor with hands outstretched toward the master in the asana called “The Child’s Pose”. I actually feel like a child.

“Arise, boy.” The Guru has a very mild voice and speaks perfect unaccented English.
We gaze into each other’s eyes. I am grinning like a monkey. I feel very young and foolish.

“I’m glad to see you,” says Baba.
The feeling is mutual. We do the eye thing some more.
“Do you know who King Raghu was?” he asks.
I feel tempted to mention Carmine, the Big Ragu, on 'Laverne and Shirley' but I’m not quite that foolish (yet).
“No Baba, I don’t.”

“You should know more because henceforth you will carry his name,” says Anandamurtiji.
“From now on your Sanskrit name will be Raghuviira which means follower of Raghu. Raghu was the King of all India and he had to prevail as a warrior against many enemies. He was also the great-grandfather of Rama.”

I feel my chest swell! I now have my Sanskrit name.

“Raghuviira is a very powerful name for a small boy, don’t you think?” asks the Guru.

“Yes, Baba,” I say.
I am pretty tongue-tied by this point and regressing rapidly. I have to curb a tendency to switch to baby-talk.

“Well it is a powerful name,” he pauses and his eyes close and then slowly open again. “Like Raghu you will struggle against many enemies but each time you will prevail, even to that point where you will achieve spiritual victory.”

“The word Raghu is made up of ‘Ra’ or light plus ‘ghu’ or moving,” he continues. ”So you are ‘moving light’ or ‘light moving’. They say King Raghu was a very fast chariot driver.” Baba eyes me again. “ Maybe you are a very quick student.”

“I try,” I say.

“Well, when you try you must promise me one thing,” Baba demands.
“What is that babaji,” I ask.
“You will remember what I say now, eh boy?” he queries from behind his thick, thick spectacles.
“Oh, yes Baba.”

“OK remember this,” Baba pauses and leans forward. “When you try, you must always try as yourself – and you must not try to imitate any others.” He leans back again.
“Do you understand,” he looks at me and smiles.

“Yes, Baba,” I respond. “ I will only try as myself and not anyone else.”

With that I bow and touch the feet of the Master. He gives me Namaste – and nods to me. “Go now, Rhaghuviira, but remember – try only to be yourself, no one else.”
Still facing the Guru, I back out of the room.

Personal contact is ended. I now bear the name of the great King Raghu, but on the mundane level I still must try to be myself. This is going to take some thought!