Bhakti Files #1 Singing from the heart
‘When I met my guru, Neem Karoli Baba, in 1971, my life was turned inside out. I was like an asteroid hurtling through space, suddenly pulled back into orbit by the gravitational force of the sun…’
Bhakti Files #2 Spiritual longing
‘My guru, Neem Karoli Baba, would frequently send his devotees away, often with the simple word “jao”, or “go”, sometimes giving some direction or suggestion, but more often than not just telling us to leave…’
Bhakti Files #3 Cookies and Tea - A slight shift in perception
‘Bhakti Yoga brings us into the world of mystery, a realm where the dissecting, discerning qualities of the intellect are powerless next to the vast ocean of feelings…’
Bhakti files #10 Who is leading who?
‘The vibration of selflessness and surrender was truly breathtaking, and I realized the presumption of my belief that I was a kirtan “leader”. Who was really leading whom? What actually was my role? I saw that I was merely filling a function, being a focus for an hour of melody….One hour in an endless river of prayer, of tears, of longing, streaming from antiquity…’
Bhakti Files #9 The Jimi Hendrix Experience
‘I saw rainbows coming from his guitar, Demi-Gods, heavenly apsaras; I saw destruction and regeneration. Death and rebirth. And I saw all musical laws broken like twigs and scattered to the wind.... And I saw a musician/magician in complete control of his art, flying through the outer dimensions with total abandon... ‘
Bhakti Files # 8 A new bottom line
‘So finally I said “Ma, so often I’m singing and I don’t feel any love or devotion. It just feels like hard work. What’s wrong with me?” She smiled her cute, mysterious ‘Goddess’ smile and said: “Jai Gopal. it doesn’t matter at all what you feel! This is your service to Maharajji! ‘
Bhakti Files #7 The Baba in the stilt house
‘Ah, India… The land of dreams, exaggerations, unbelievable stories and mythological figures; where the line between the ‘spirit’ world and the ‘real’ world is very thin, indeed; where monkeys and elephants are Gods, and cows are the Great Mother; where the lilting song of a bamboo flute is the signal for a dip into divine ecstasy; where Lord Hanuman himself sneaks into your room and steals your fruit …’
Bhakti Files # 6 Noodles and Strudels.
‘What does this mean? I don’t really know, except maybe love is way bigger and stronger and longer lasting than the damage done by ignorance and fear. Maharaj-ji said “The only thing that’s important is how much you love God!”. And when asked “What is the best form to worship God?”, He answered simply: “Every form”…’
Bhakti Files #5 Message from Rama to Sita
“The reality about the cord of love that binds you and me, dear, is that my soul ever abides within you. Know this to be the essence of my love …..”
Bhakti Files #4 Chai with Papa
‘Sitting next to me was my chai partner, a very old and perpetually smiling devotee known simply as ‘Papa,’ a man who had been with Maharajji since the 1940’s. Papa’s leathery, toothless face always seemed to shine, even with his declining health, and his eyes held the gleam of one fixed on the divine, one who frequently received visions and visitations from his long deceased guru…’