'Now we know you are an excellent cook'
I first met Guru in the Indian Consulate in 1964 soon after Guru joined the Consulate; however I left the Consulate about 4 months after that but I kept in touch with Guru by phone and whenever I visited New York from Toronto.
I had some interest in cooking but I rarely cooked when I lived with my parents. After I left home at age 19 in search of a job, it became an issue. For most Indians used to their particular home style food, it takes a while to adopt a new cuisine into their daily food regimen. Even after nearly 60 years when I go back to India they serve the same delicious items, although they now accept food from other parts of India also. I had a keen sense of the right taste for the dishes I am familiar with.
In 1972 when some of us went to New York, Guru asked me to cook for the disciples. The estimated number was 55 or so. I had cooked at most for 7 or 8 in our family - never anymore. I had no idea of the quantities needed. With the help two other Toronto disciples we cooked rice, Sambhar and dal Vada. Guru was pleased, although at that time not many disciples knew much about Indian food. Then Guru said: "now we know that you are an excellent cook, you have to start a restaurant".
I very sincerely resisted to take any responsibility to start one. But the other Toronto disciples were a lot more enthusiastic and urged me with their sincere promise of support. I had no confidence in running a business with hired employees.
Even after I found a place, where the landlord allowed me to keep some equipment, it took several months to start the restaurant. When Guru visited Toronto he was accommodated in that building. I showed him the equipment stored in the basement where the restaurant was to open - He gave a special blessing and said you will start this in 3 months. (When I first opened the store it was close to 4 months.)
Two months after I opened, Guru came to Toronto and inaugurated the restaurant on Nov. 22 1974. This was only 3 days after he had started his Jharna Kala painting in Ottawa.
'I will bring you 1000 customers'
Around 2014, a Chinese lady came to eat at our restaurant, the Oneness-Fountain-Heart. Our restaurant was located quite close to Flushing, which has a large Chinese population, but until that time we had not had that many Chinese customers. She came a second and third time and then she said to me: “I like your restaurant, I like your food, I will bring you 1000 customers!” I smiled and thanked her and thought, well let us see how much of this will materialize…
It happened that this lady was part of a Buddhist group in Flushing. She started to bring their friends who were all vegetarians, and then their friends started to bring their friends and so on… The percentage of Chinese customers steadily increased in our restaurant and they were all very friendly and spiritual people. Sometimes I joked with her when she came and said: “Ok, now we are at 365, or yes, we are getting close to 500. I am sure that in the end she brought these 1000 customers and it was simply an amazing experience.
Five or six times we had large parties with them of up to 35 or 40 people. All Chinese Buddhists, sometimes they also brought some monks in their dark red robes. I asked already at the first party if we should sing some of the songs that Sri Chinmoy composed in honour of the Lord Buddha and they enthusiastically agreed. So we brought some extra singers (one time even Paree’s group came) and each time we sang 4-5 Buddha songs and it was a real experience! They were filming, some crying, many with folded hands and for us it was always a very uplifting occasion.
PS. They were also very good eaters (including the monks) and always ordered a lot. Then they shared all the dishes among themselves.
Celebrating Sri Chinmoy's 90th birth anniversary
Sri Chinmoy would have been 90 years old on 27 August this year. When he was with us, he would often use occasions like these as a launching point for inspiring and joyful projects for himself and his students. (To give one example: he played on 74 pianos in one sitting to celebrate his 74th birthday.)
Similarly his students around the world are using the occasion to come up with inspiring ideas both for their own personal spiritual practise, and for the world.
Enthusiasm-Awakeners
In 1999, Sri Chinmoy formed the Enthusiasm-Awakeners singing group with Parvati from New York as its leader. The group mainly sings Sri Chinmoy's cheerful, dynamic English songs. In total, the group learned and performed 1529 English songs for Sri Chinmoy in his lifetime, including many songs that Sri Chinmoy specifically wrote for the group.
At the end of May of this year, Parvati had the idea to sing and average of 17 songs per day for 90 days beginning on 30 May, so all the songs could be completed on 27 August. As well as the original members of the group, Parvati then felt the inspiration to invite others who had over the years expressed their love of these songs, and she selflessly made all the necessary resources available on her website devotionsongs.com:
View the 90 songs project on devotionsongs.com
(The Enthusiasm-Awakeners group actually performed a similar project for Sri Chinmoy's 75th birthday in 2006 - you can read that story on her website)
Inspiring displays
Many of our worldwide Centres were also inspired by the occasion to let the public know!
Collecting precious memories with our Guru
One silver lining of these strange times is that many of us have had time to finally gather together all of our spiritual stories, from our time with Sri Chinmoy. We have been holding regular video and audio calls, which has given many of us the change to recollect and share precious memories of our spiritual Master. It is a very valuable storehouse of stories that will benefit seekers for generations to come.
We are starting to publish some of these stories as part of our Story-Gems project.
Books
This year, some of Sri Chinmoy's students also released books about their lives.
Projjwal and Aruna Pohland
Projjwal became a student of Sri Chinmoy in 1976 along with his daughter Aruna, who was then three months old. Projjwal was also an avid photographer and took many wonderful photos that bring the stories to life.
Nirmala and Kedar Misani
Nirmala from the Zurich Centre passed away in December last year; in tribute, her husband Kedar has published two books about her, one containing life-stories and one containing her artistic sketches, before then proceeding to write another book about his own stories with Sri Chinmoy.
Jvalita Sharipova
Jvalita is from Ufa, in the Russian republic of Bashkortostan. An artist, she has been organising exhibitions of Sri Chinmoy's mystical Jharna Kala art for 15 years.
Now she has completed her first book My Love - Jharna-Kala (in Russian), where she describes what Sri Chinmoy's paintings mean to her: "Jharna-Kala is a huge world of paintings, presented to the Earth by Sri Chinmoy ...This world contains not only the beauty of the works, but also the sea of Light, Delight, Peace, a call to the Perfection."
I am your highest consciousness
This is one of the stories in our Story-Gems project, a collection of our experiences with our Guru, Sri Chinmoy. Project homepage »
The second time, the second day I met Guru, Guru was talking about drugs and the importance of taking a shower and being clean.
About drugs, he said something that to me was not only significant but epic. The words that he said stay etched inside me, scripted forever inside me: “The reason why you are taking drugs is because you are looking for an experience outside of yourself and higher than yourself.”
Now comes the epic part, the Mahabarata part of Guru’s words: “The high that you are looking for is me. I am your highest consciousness.” When I heard those words coming out of Guru’s mouth, I knew exactly what he was saying. I knew what he meant. The goal that I want to achieve, the God that I want to realise and become is my Guru himself. There is no difference between Guru and me except that Guru is fully awakened and I am sleeping. When I wake up I will wake up into him.
That is true for each and every disciple. So we are very lucky. The highest has claimed us as its very own.
Guru always said our path is the path of the Supreme. So see how lucky we are? We have been chosen and selected to walk along the path of the Supreme. Each and every one of us has started already to awaken and discover our highest consciousness, our Guru.
The Question of Questions
My morning awareness
Asks the question of questions:
Who is God?
My evening awareness
Asks the question of questions:
Who is not God?Sri Chinmoy 1
- 1. Ten Thousand Flower-Flames, part 99, #9836, Agni Press, 1983
I see infinitely more than I say
This is one of the stories in our Story-Gems project, a collection of our experiences with our Guru, Sri Chinmoy. Project homepage »
One time Guru said to me, “I see infinitely more than I say, and I say infinitely less than I see.”
As an example of that, one time in South Africa and another time in Venezuela, the disciples were playing soccer with the local boys. Guru was there for about 20 minutes at the end of the game. He seemed very informal and casual. After the game, the local boys went away and just the disciples came around Guru. I also came close because I was there.
I was astounded because Guru proceeded to talk for about 15 or 20 minutes about how the disciples should play. He spoke about every single boy on the team. To one boy he said, “You need to go more quickly. Don’t hesitate!”
In great detail, Guru was describing what had happened in the game. To each disciple on the team, he gave specific advice on how they could improve. In general, he said that we need to play from our hearts, dynamically, but not aggressively. At the end I was so amazed because he seemed so casual as if he wasn’t watching so carefully, but he had seen every single move. He was so conscious of everything. It was a beautiful thing to watch.
Yesterday
I prayerfully thanked God
For allowing me to watch
His Cosmic Game.
Today
I am tearfully, gratefully
And self-givingly thanking God
For allowing me to participate
In His Cosmic Game.Sri Chinmoy 1
- 1. Command from God the Justice, Whisper from God the Compassion, #19, Agni Press, 1994
Guru's first meeting with Mother Teresa
This is one of the stories in our Story-Gems project, a collection of our experiences with our Guru, Sri Chinmoy. Project homepage »
We were told Mother Teresa was staying at a church in Rome, very close to the Coliseum. It was near a church but it was a convent. It was so simple. There was no running water or heat, and the nuns lived with such simplicity. Guru was so excited and so delighted.
When Guru got there, Kailash was driving, and I got to be in the car with Guru. There were about 50 disciples who were already there waiting. They wanted us all to gather at the back entrance of the convent. It was quite beautiful. There were beautiful trees and a view of Rome.
The nuns said Mother would be coming very soon to see Guru and that she was so excited to meet Guru. I walked around to the front to see how everything was going. There was a Cardinal with a huge black Cadillac. The Cardinal was very upset and was walking back and forth by his Cadillac very impatiently. Probably he had been waiting for quite a while. Mother had just come back to the convent a little bit before we arrived from the airport. I am sure he was thinking he would see her right away.
What happened was that Mother Teresa did not go to the front to greet him. Instead of seeing the Cardinal who had been waiting for a really long time, she went to the back to greet Guru and all of us. Everyone was very happy.
I will always remember that when she saw Guru, she took Guru’s hand and started massaging Guru’s hand and fingers. She was so affectionate and loving to Guru. She had a private meeting with Guru first, and then a public meeting with all of us.
She went with Guru into her small private meeting room first. She spoke very intimately and sweetly with Guru. Guru said, “At one moment she was my mother of compassion and the next she was my sister of affection.”
She would massage Guru’s hand and would put her hand on Guru’s knee where he had terrible pain. She intuitively felt where Guru had pain and she started massaging his knee. She was telling Guru many stories that are very sacred and also some very secret stories.
Then she came out to be with all of us. She was so happy. She spent about an hour with Guru. It was overwhelming and very sweet.
Later Guru said, “Nobody has understood me like this. Of the most famous people, Mother Teresa has understood my philosophy and my spirituality more than any.”
The moment I come
And stand in Mother Teresa's blessingful presence,
I see nothing but waves of smiles
Flowing from her compassion-flooded eyes.Sri Chinmoy 1
- 1. Mother Teresa: Humanity’s Flower-Heart, Divinity’s Fragrance-Soul, part 1, Agni Press, 1997
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