When Jnana Jyothi Amma went to visit a relative at the General Hospital, to her surprise she was called over to meet a Yogi, also admitted at the hospital. The Yogi blessed her, and spoke to his aid about Amma in Tamil. Only several years later did she come to know that the Yogi who called her over to his bedside and blessed her was Yogi Ramsuratkumar of Tiruvannamalai.
When I was with Supramania Swami on my second visit to India in 2005, I was blessed to witness a miracle in his (Swami’s) kudil. After all the formalities, later that night at 7.30pm, Swami led me on a prayer. His wife and son had gone out. He started chanting his guru, Yogi Ramsuratkumar’s name (Nama japam).
It went, "YOGI RAMSURATKUMARA, YOGI RAMSURATKUMARA, YOGI RAMSURATKUMARA JAYA GURURAAYA". As it was a simple mantra, I followed suite and chanted along.
After about a few minutes into the recitation I thought I heard a third voice - that of a male chanting together. I started to listen harder. In that quiet and silent moment, I could hear Swami’s voice. I could hear mine too. There was no one else in the kudil. Yet I could hear distinctly another voice. So who was this third person chanting with us?
I did not open my eyes. The mysterious voice continued chanting with us. Eventually after about twenty minutes, Swami ended the japam and the voice was not heard again. Imagine, I had wanted to ask him about this third voice throughout the japam, but completely 'forgot' about it as Swami made his way out of his altar room into the living room of his kudil.
Later upon returning to Tiruvanamalai after visiting Tavayogi Thangarasan Adigal at Kallar, Supramania Swami suddenly asked me, “Did you hear the voice?” triggering my memory back to the first day at his kudil.
I remembered that I had actually heard a third person sing along with Swami and me. I ask Swami who it was. He gave a loud laugh. He answered, “That was Visiri Matai” referring to his guru Visiri Swami (Yogi Ramsuratkumar).
Although Supramania Swami had five gurus - his own father Jayaram Pillai was his guru, Pundi Mahan or Aatru Swami, Kollimalai Swami, Sathananda Swami and the Yogi himself, Swami chooses to invoke the Yogi at prayer. Was it his wish that I should witness this miracle take place and should know the greatness of the Yogi?
Such was the extend of devotion towards his guru by Supramania Swami that he could call upon him (Yogi Ramsuratkumar who had gone into samadhi on 20 February 2001) to appear among us. And such was the grace of the Yogi that he chooses to appear before his disciple.
Swami tells me the Yogi had appeared one late night, after having attained samadhi, at Swami’s home in the village of Nachanananthal. The Yogi presented a painting of himself to Swami before disappearing.
Just before I returned to Malaysia, I accompanied Swami to the Yogi’s ashram on a Pradosham day. Swami sat in front of the Nandi and was absorbed in watching the abhisegam for a long time. His gaze was fixed on the inner sanctum throughout the Pooja. What was he watching?
Swami very much wanted to move from his village closer to the hill and Yogi’s Ashram. So we built a kudil which was walking distance to Yogi’s Ashram. From the kudil one had a beautiful view of the hill. Swami had a small window provided for that enabled him to see the hill while reclining on his bed. But I noticed that he had closed up the window with a gunny sack. When I questioned him, he told me he could not see the hill anymore. His answer, "It was fire". The Yogi too was of this opinion. He was always saying that the hill was fire. Supramania Swami also told me he was seeing Siddhas moving and roaming on the hill.
When the Yogi was nearing his samadhi, sadly Supramania Swami was not allowed near him, as many others too, by opportunists who took control of the ashram. Nevertheless, as Swami was waiting to see the Yogi among the rests of the devotees, the Yogi sent for Swami. Only then did the Yogi attain samadhi.
Eager to know more about the Yogi, I looked around for information on him. I came across some beautifully written books on the Yogi.
1. BIOGRAPHY OF YOGI RAMSURATKUMAR - THE GODCHILD OF TIRUVANNAMALAI (AMARAKAVIYAM), published by S.Parthasarathy - An elaborate account of Yogi’s life.
2. MEETINGS WITH YOGI RAMSURATKUMAR by Will Zulkowsky - The Yogi always preferred to be with Will.
3. YOGI RAMSURATKUMAR - THE MYSTERY OF BECOMING GOD by Olga Ammann, published by Yogi Ramsuratkumar Bhavan Mauritius, 2008 – A beautiful book that brought me to tears. A must read book for all those in search of a guru and also for those who already have a guru. This book teaches us to cherish our gurus.
4. YOGI RAMSURATKUMAR - THE GODCHILD OF TIRUVANNAMALAI by Truman Caylor Wadlington. The Yogi had personally asked Wadlington to write this book.
5. WAVES OF LOVE, published by Yogi Ramsuratkumar Bhavan Mauritius, 2009.
6. YOGI RAMSURATKUMAR - THE DIVINE BEGGAR by Ma Devaki, published by Yogi Ramsuratkumar Ashram, Tiruvannamalai July 2008.
7. GURU VAZHI in Tamil by Balakumaran, Visa Publications, Chennai, 2005.
So who was this Yogi?
S. Parthasarathy has given a very elaborate account of Yogi’s life in his book, BIOGRAPHY OF YOGI RAMSURATKUMAR - THE GODCHILD OF TIRUVANNAMALAI (AMARAKAVIYAM).
Parthasarathy writes,
‘Without adopting any rituals and not leaning on any traditional conditioned customs of the religion, Ram Surat Kunwar (the Yogi’s original name) braved his path with the pure faith upon his Guru and reached the other shore safely. Mysterious were the ways of the Masters who worked on him and brought him to Tiruvannamalai for the sake of his children who should also cross this mighty ocean of Samsara. Without preaching any conventional religious practices, Yogi asked the people to remember his own Name which would evolve them to the highest Spiritual State.’
Just going through some of Yogi’s statements from this book is sufficient to enable us to understand the Yogi. Even after several earlier visits to Swami Ramdas, Ramdas did not inspire the Yogi. The Yogi has this to say about his guru.
"Papa (Ramdas) did not allow this beggar to understand Him. The time was not ripe. This beggar had to wait till Papa Himself revealed His Divinity to this beggar, to make this beggar understand that Papa was his Father." – Yogi
Ironically when finally the Yogi accepted and surrendered to Ramdas, Ramdas did not receive him well.
‘Systematically Swami Ramdas and Mataji Krishnabai made Ram Surat Kunwar behave like a mad man and made the world believe that he had become mad. They drove him out of the ashram forcibly so that he would remember them constantly. They used harsh language whenever he was before them among the crowd of the devotees. By doing so Swami Ramdas and Mataji Krishnabai removed his ego totally. But it took a very long time. In the process, the pain, the sufferings he experienced were acute.’
‘Ram Surat Kunwar again asked Swami Ramdas to allow him and his family to live in the ashram. He said, “Papa, I have come here with the great faith that you would allow me with my family to live here. I am not able to work anywhere since the initiation. If you drive me away, where shall I go and how can I live?” Papa vehemently answered, “Go and beg. You cannot live in the ashram. There are enough people in the ashram to work. Remember, under a big tree, another big tree cannot grow. Only thorny bushes and grass alone will grow.” Ram Surat Kunwar shocked on listening to the words of his Master exclaimed, “Papa, should I beg for my food? Am I a beggar, Papa?” Papa, without answering, went inside. From that day Ram Surat Kunwar called himself a beggar. His Guru, His Master, His God asked him to beg and so he became a “beggar”.’
‘In later years Yogi Ramsuratkumar said “Nobody can love this beggar like my Father Swami Ramdas and nobody can torture this beggar like my Father Swami Ramdas. My Father killed this beggar because He loved this beggar. This beggar died at the holy lotus feet of my father Swami Ramdas in the year 1952. After that my Father alone exists and not this beggar. This name Yogi Ramsuratkumar is not this beggar’s name; it is the name of my Father. Father would always shower his grace on the people who remember this name.’
The Yogi has the following advice for other aspirants on this path,
“All your tapas and efforts would make you reach Guru’s Feet. Thereafter you need not bother about your spiritual growth. The Guru will take care of you. The Guru will see that you reach God. Even if you want to escape from the Guru, the Guru will not leave you. Like a frog in the mouth of a King Cobra, the disciple cannot escape from Guru. The only thing the disciple should do is remember the Guru and the Guru Mantra all the time. That is sufficient. Do not try to practice any method to reach God. Remember your Guru. That’s enough. Once you reach your Guru your sadhana efforts end here. Listen to your Guru and have faith in our Guru. Your Guru would take the responsibility of you and take you where you ought to reach. After reaching Guru’s feet, you need not worry about your spiritual growth. Just remember my Name. That is enough.” - Yogi
“The King Bee would bring any potential worm to its nest and would sting all the time till it becomes another King Bee. Likewise a Guru also works on his disciples till the disciples get the state of the Guru. The process is painful but there is no escape.” – Yogi
“You can salute and shower respect and reverence to all the saintly persons but you should have the trust and faith only in your Guru.” – Yogi
“Talking ill of the Acharyas, Sadhus and Sannyasis will prevent one from reaching Father. Father comes in all these forms. Criticizing the forms of Father is a serious mistake and this beggar does not like his friends to commit this mistake.” – Yogi
“The place where a Master dwells becomes an ashram but no ashram can produce a Master.” - Yogi
The Yogi talks about his teaching and himself,
“If this beggar walks, it’s a teaching, if he sits it’s a teaching, if he talks it’s a teaching, if he eats it’s a teaching, if he sleeps it’s a teaching. His whole frame is always blessing and teaching. People need not ask this beggar to bless them. This beggar is always doing that.” – Yogi
“Whenever my Father wants this beggar to talk, this beggar talks, whenever my Father wants this beggar to keep silence, this beggar keeps silence, whenever my Father wants this beggar to laugh, this beggar laughs, whenever my Father wants this beggar to weep, this beggar weeps. Wherever my Father keeps this beggar, whatever my Father does with this beggar, this beggar would just submit to his Father’s will. This beggar knows Father cannot commit any mistake. Whatever He does, He does for the good of the whole cosmos. So, nothing is wrong in this world, nothing is sin in this world. Every thing happens, happens by the will of my Father. So, nothing is wrong in this world. Everything is perfectly alright.” – Yogi
“Whatever happens happens by the will of my Father. So nothing is wrong. Every thing is perfectly all right. My Father cannot commit any mistake. So, nothing is wrong." - Yogi
He assures those who come to him with problems that all is fine and to accept it all,
“My Father wants you to go through this stage. It happens even in the lives of the saints. Do not bother. My Father is always with you. Whatever happens happens by the will of my Father. So nothing is wrong. Everything is perfectly alright. See God in everybody and in everything. My Father alone exists. You have not committed any mistake.” - Yogi
“Whatever happens happens by the will of my Father. So nothing is wrong in this world. Everything is perfectly all right. My Father alone is the doer and my Father cannot commit any mistake. So everything is perfectly all right. Whatever happened happened by the will of my Father. Whatever happens happens by the will of my Father. Whatever will happen, will happen by the will of my Father. Remember my Father. Everything will be alright. Remembering my Father is Life. Forgetting my Father is death.” - Yogi
“Everything happened, happened by the will of my Father. So, nothing is wrong in this world. Everything that happened is perfectly alright, because my Father cannot commit any mistake. Everything is my Father. My Father alone exists in everything and in everywhere. People who see my Father in all the things are always near and dear to my Father and you people are near and dear to my Father. Whatever happens happens by the will of my Father. So, nothing is wrong in this world. Everything is perfectly alright. My Father cannot commit any mistake. So, accept whatever comes as a blessing from my Father. You know what Kunti Devi demanded from Lord Krishna? “Krishna give me sufferings in all my births so that I could remember you all the time.” See, the sufferings are blessings, grace in disguise. So, accept whatever comes whether it’s joy or sufferings. It’s all from my Father. Remembering my Father alone matters, all other things are irrelevant.” – Yogi
The late C.Rajagopalachariar or popularly known as Rajaji had written a beautiful song, Kurai Ondrum Ellai Maraimurti Kanna, Kurai Ondrum Ellai Kanna, in Tamil. This song was popularize by Srimathi MS Subbulaksmi. This song exactly depicts Yogi’s advice. This happens to be the Yogi’s favorite song too.
The Yogi speaks on his mission,
“This beggar is not meant for the masses. Let the masses go to the other saints. This beggar is here to create a few individuals who can do My Father’s work.” - Yogi
“My Father has sent this beggar for a specific work. This beggar needs a few people to do his Father’s work. This beggar is doing that work. See the door. The door is always closed. This beggar would see only those people whom my Father sends. This beggar is not meant for the masses. Let the people go to others. This beggar does not need a crowd. This beggar needs only a few people who can do my Father’s work. All other saints have done great works but this beggar did not do anything. Some saints built temples and ashrams, some others did great works and gave philosophies, some others preached the way to Father and the way of life, but this beggar leaves behind him only his Name. Yes My Father will ever be with you. Remember my Father by chanting His Name and He will look after you.” - Yogi
“The Masters have their own way of doing the Father’s work. The real work is, uniting, merging the chosen beings with my Father. That’s all. We were together, we are together and we will be together. We cannot exist without each other. When Lord Siva comes, He comes along with His Ganas. When a Guru comes, he comes along with his dearest disciples. When the Guru departs, the disciples also would go after finishing my Father’s work. We are all together eternally.” – Yogi
“I can only say that, whatever exists is one life. Unity: nothing is separate, nothing is isolated. This beggar is related to the Sun, to the Moon, to the Infinite Cosmos. This beggar is not limited to this body. All of those who are present here are not separated or isolated. They are part of me. You see this Champak Tree, you see this Amla Tree, and they are all part of my Life. They are not separate. They are not isolated. I am in all these parts with all these leaves. I am the Total. I am the Whole, Absolute, Indivisible, Eternal, Limitless Life, Infinite Life. We are all one together, united, perfect unity in Father. That’s all. That’s all I can say.” – Yogi
“The Atma is always pure and holy. None can corrupt it. None can dirty it. None can hurt it or harm it. Atma is always Pure. We are that Atma. We all are that Atma. You are that pure Atma. You cannot be ruined. My Father says you are eternally holy and pure. You are always under the protection of my Father. You need not worry about the past. You are always pure and holy.” – Yogi
On the need of a separate meditation hall,
“The people who enter into the ashram will be in meditation and so there is no need for a separate meditation hall in the ashram complex.” - Yogi
The Yogi frequented J.Krishnamurti’s lectures,
“J. Krishnamurti came directly to this beggar and patted him on his back and this beggar slept”, repeated the Yogi several times and made one understand that after the touch of J. Krishnamurti, he was able to be in the deep samadhi state.
The Yogi always reminded others around him of the significance of his Name. He repeatedly says,
"This name Yogi Ramsuratkumar is not this beggar’s name. It is my Father’s Name. My Father has invested in this Name. Whoever remembers this name my Father will come to their rescue. Catch hold of the Divine Name and go on doing your work in the world. That’s enough. Remember this beggar’s Name, Yogi Ramsuratkumar. You need not do any other rituals other than chanting the Name Yogi Ramsuratkumar. The Name Yogi Ramsuratkumar is not this beggar’s Name; it is my Father’s Name. For this beggar’s friends, this Name Yogi Ramsuratkumar is enough. If you remember this Name, you need not worry about your spiritual growth. My Father will take care of you. My Father will see that you will reach my Father safely. For all other people, let them remember any other God’s Name which they like. My Father alone exists. Nobody else. Nothing else. In the past, in the present and in the future, My Father alone exists.” – Yogi
"Have faith in my Father. Have faith in my Father’s Name. This name Yogi Ramsuratkumar is not this dirty beggar’s name. This is my Father’s Name. Remember this Name that is enough. This beggar is enough for you people. There is no need for you people to go anywhere in search of my Father. And my Father will take care of us. We need not bother about our spiritual growth.” - Yogi
The Yogi speaks on rituals,
“This beggar has no knowledge of the religious rituals. All the rituals and religious practices prescribed in the Vedas should make one reach the feet of the Guru, if these rituals and religious practices are done with all sincerity. Once you attain the feet of the Guru, then you need not worry about your spiritual growth. You need not do any rituals also. It is enough to listen your Guru and remember your Guru. Your Guru will take care of you and he will take you to the destination. Where there is love, bakthi, there need not be rituals. All the other mantras and the rituals are for the other casual people but for the friends of this beggar, this name Yogi Ramsuratkumar alone is enough and this name would take them to the Holy Lotus Feet of my Supreme Father." - Yogi
On Pranayama,
“The people should do the Pranayama under the guidance of the Guru, at the proper place. Otherwise it will not give you the required result. It will produce a negative result which will cause a severe set back in one’s system.” - Yogi
“The good people are always spiritual people. This beggar is here to create good characters among the people. These people need not be religious; they should be good, honest. That’s enough. My Father will always be with them. Ramayana helps people to become good, shedding off their bad way of life. So, become good first. My Father will come to you. Go through Ramayana and Bhagavad Gita. Your life gets the transformation. You will understand the grace of my Father. The great sages and saints helped humanity to evolve towards my Father by protecting and giving great Rama’s and Krishna’s Stories.” - Yogi
On other subjects,
"Kaliyuga has gone. Now it is God Yuga. This beggar is able to see God everywhere and not Kali anywhere.” - Yogi
“We are here to do Father’s work. To do my Father’s work we should retain a little ego.” – Yogi
One last word from the Yogi,
“Love all, hate none, serve all and take lot of Nellikkai. Remember this beggar’s Name Yogi Ramsuratkumar all the time.” – Yogi
We get to know further about the Yogi from the book, MEETINGS WITH YOGI RAMSURATKUMAR by Will Zulkowsky.
Swami was a very complicated being says Will,
‘You are not dealing with a simple thing, you're dealing with somebody who is highly, highly complex and light years out, and we can't even fathom it so. There's just, like, endless ramifications about; every time you cross a line, you knew you crossed a line [laughs]. He lets you know very quickly that you crossed the line, and boom, that was it. And once you got the correction, you made the adjustment. But, that was his rules.’
‘If you asked him anything like, “What is kundalini?” he would just say, “Ah, what does this filthy beggar know about kundalini? That's for scholars and that's for real yogis. …”
On other gurus,
‘And Swami himself told me - each of these teachers comes for a certain group - he thought that J.Krishnamurti would more appeal to people who are more in the mind state rather than in the devotional state. The mind people, who have to explain everything.’
On chanting the name,
‘The name was big thing. Supposedly your name has like a vibration in the universal who you are. It has a vibration … with your soul that's taken that vibration.’
‘And that's what he did … Because he was working with these elemental forces and blessing that place (his ashram) with such a power, absolutely astounding. And all you have to do is walk into it and stay there for a while and be open, and something will happen to you. But to me that's the great miracle, not pulling something out of a hat or materializing something, This is the smartest man I have ever, the most aware man I have ever talked to in my whole life.’
‘He always just said he thought the name of Ram was enough. That's all you had to do. And he would say, if anybody chants the name of Ram, that's enough. And he didn't put down anything, but he just said that chanting Ram nam was all that somebody could do. And then he told me about etheric markers; he said that, like that name of Ram has been repeated so many times, it's like, in the air. He said he said, his work is in the air. He has been the vehicle of transformation, and he always said that if people would chant “Yogi Ramsuratkumar”, then they could tune in to who he was on some level, and that would be transformational – a vibrational transmission. He was very adamant that the name Ram is all you need, but he wasn’t pushing anything down anybody’s throat. He always said he tried to go to the path of whoever came to him. If they wanted to come and talk about Marx, he talked about Marx. He didn’t divert their path; he only tried to go with what they were interested in. He was very flexible that way.’
‘He said that in the old days the scriptures were in the air and all you had to do was be silent and you could tune in to the scriptures and hear them. He could feel it, he could live it. But now there is electromagnetic interference from the TVs, from the radios, from the short waves, the cell phones, from all the static we’re putting in the air electronically, and it’s interfering with the scriptures – it’s a big impediment. He says that’s why the dharma is falling, because people can no longer hear the scriptures when they are quiet. “Your satellites are interfering with this beggar’s work.” He was so sensitive that he could feel what the influence of the satellites was and what they were up to.’
To a question,
‘Why are saints incarnated in India, particularly? - Well, he said, in this Yuga India has always been the playground of the saints because where else in the world, even though you’re a nobody, with nothing, will they give you food and shelter and honor you and revere you? There’s no other country in the world.” He said that’s why the saints always incarnate, take birth in India. In other countries they would be locked up in some mental institution – treated like freaks. He also said that there was a lot of persecution of the saints, especially in the middle Ages in Europe. He said that’s why the saints love to come to India and keep incarnating there over and over and over again, because that reverence is always there for them.’
‘Swami had one love. It was lemons. He loved lemons. We call them limes. So whenever I went to the bazaar to get (something for him), it wouldn't be flowers, it would be lemons, because every time anybody came, he always gave them a lemon.’
‘After these experiences I realized that all change only comes from Grace and that our individual efforts on the spiritual path do not really count for too much.’
We go through a must read book for all those in search of a guru and also for those who already have a guru. This book, YOGI RAMSURATKUMAR - THE MYSTERY OF BECOMING GOD by Olga Ammann, published by Yogi Ramsuratkumar Bhavan Mauritius, 2008 teaches us to cherish our gurus. Olga too was instructed to write about the Yogi.
‘In those days and nights, our Yogi, like anyone who walks along the path towards Realization, must have had a number of experiences that are unimaginable for us. These experiences, as he himself affirmed, canceled his identity to the last crumb. They left him totally empty. That is to say, before meeting God, it is necessary that man be shaken by something like a cataclysm, he must be crushed.’
‘Yogi Ramsuratkumar could see Reality, that is to say the noumenon, what is hidden beyond appearance (phenomenon), beyond sensible experience. On the contrary, what our eyes see is only maya (appearance, illusion), lila (cosmic play). All Yogis’ devotees will recall Bhagavan sitting with us or walking among us, and all of a sudden looking up, and after a few seconds bursting into laughter. He laughed heartily. We had the feeling that he saw something none of the devotees was able to perceive.’
‘Therefore, at a higher level – the one of Yogi Ramsuratkumar – what is generally called evil, violence, abuse, has its cosmic function. So, even what in human eye appears as the most tragic evil, ultimately is nothing but good: it is God’s grace.’
‘Bhagavan gives whatever is required when we require it. The Guru does nothing for himself, everything is for us. The desperation we experience, the resentment we feel towards him, and the estrangement we ourselves bring about, all these emotions are natural and necessary stages in the progression towards faith, and are guided by his concern for our growth.’
Yogi once asked a devotee: “Don’t you have a Guru in Calcutta?” “Yes, I have”, the man answered, and told his Guru’s name. “Then, why don’t you follow him? Why do you need to visit this beggar?”
“This beggar has not built an ashram or temple. This beggar has not written any books either. There’s nothing about this beggar’s life that’s inspiring. But he has left a Name for mankind. Out of his love, Father has given a Name – the Name Yogi Ramsuratkumar – to humanity, for its benefit. This beggar’s Name is in the sky. This beggar’s Name can be heard in the sky.” - Yogi
“This beggar has no mind. So, this beggar has no plans. This beggar cannot even pray. Every thought, every word, every gesture of this beggar is controlled by Father who runs the whole cosmos” - Yogi
“This beggar doesn’t ask Father why. This beggar simply obeys. Father knows. He runs the whole universe” – Yogi
Now let us look at another book on the Yogi - YOGI RAMSURATKUMAR - THE GODCHILD OF TIRUVANNAMALAI by Truman Caylor Wadlington. The Yogi had personally asked Wadlington to write this book.
‘Ramsuratkumar was walking in the radiance of his soul and its pure energy was entering into him. But as he learned the joy of spiritual life, so too, he learned equally as well the distress of mankind. His eyes were wide open to the tumult, the blindness, and the suffering around him. He laughed with men and he cried with men, for his heart knew the spirit of life’s love and the anguish of man’s bitter toil.’
‘He saw that his greatest potential as a beneficent force in nature lay not in divorcing himself from the world he sought to aid, but in integrating himself with it. And he knew that it was for him to walk amidst the people and secretly to unveil their souls and unlock their hearts and free them from the prison house of matter.’
‘In this supreme mood of vision, his heart went out to the world. he understood fully his life and mission, and he gave himself over to that work which was not his alone, but which was the mutual endeavor of all those who are the custodians of the plan, work which is beautiful in design and in conformity with the creative purpose of the divine.’
‘He became the joy of participation in the divine plan, the joy of helping to solace a needy world, of bringing light to darkened souls, and in healing to some measure the opened sore of the world’s distress. From that moment onwards Ramsuratkumar’s life was consecrated to the service of the world.’
We refer to the book, WAVES OF LOVE, published by Yogi Ramsuratkumar Bhavan Mauritius, 2009 for some more revelations about the Yogi.
“It was the third chance to visit Ramdas. The two great Masters (Bhagavan Raman Maharishi and Sri Aurobindo) had passed away. This beggar thought to himself, “'Let me try again to visit Ramdas, for he is recognized as a great sage. So in 1952 this beggar did not go to Tiruvannamalai, nor did he go to Pondicherry, for the Masters were not there. But this time Swami Ramdas turned out to be an extremely different person. At the very first sight, Ramdas could tell a number of intimate things about the life and mission of this beggar which nobody but this beggar knew. It was then that this beggar first understood that the great master Ramdas was this beggar's Father. Swami has killed this beggar, but life has come. Millions and millions of salutations at the lotus feet of my Master, Swami Ramdas! He has initiated this beggar in Ram nam and has asked to chant it all the twenty four hours. This beggar began to do it and in the space of a week, this beggar has got this madness. The same madness still continues.” – Yogi
‘In the course of the wandering, his inner voice, the voice of the Father would direct him to a particular temple; but after he arrived there, the voice would direct him to stay by the side of the temple and not enter it. Similarly he would be directed to talk to a person or bow to a person and he had no choice except to obey. The Infinite was accomplishing His purpose through the actions, speech and gestures of the Yogi, whose surrender was so complete that there was no independent thought or action other than that which was prompted by God.’
‘Thus he was teaching us by example more than lectures, how to evolve into cultured human beings.’
‘His constant advice was to remain satisfied with whatever situation one found oneself in, realizing that it was part of the Divine will. “In truth,” he used to say, “there is only one will at work and that is Father’s will. It is therefore perfect, good for the individual, humanity and the cosmos.” – Yogi
We end this pilgrimage with yet some portions from Ma Devaki’s YOGI RAMSURATKUMAR - THE DIVINE BEGGAR, published by Yogi Ramsuratkumar Ashram, Tiruvannamalai July 2008.
‘According to Sri Yogiji, the four years of tutelage under Sri Aurobindo and Maharishi Ramana were a period of ceaseless transformation of the human into the divine - a period of construction of all that was conducive, destruction of all that was dross and sublimation of all into greater and greater awakening. His days see-sawed between heights of ecstasy and depths of gloom.’
When finally the Yogi came to Ramdas,
‘He was already a ripe fruit needing but a gentle tap from the sage of Kerala for final consummation with God. Now a divine madness, bordering sometimes on the vestiges of insanity, gripped him uncontrollably. Yogi Ramsuratkumar laughed and wept, sang and danced and yet other times sat still as a stone or rolled on the ground, ecstatically overwhelmed by beatific surges of divine consciousness.’
“This beggar doesn't know why he would do a certain thing and not the other. You see, it's all madness. Whatever Father wants this beggar to do, that this beggar does, no matter what. Father's work is done. That's all.” – Yogi
“This beggar has been assigned a great mission. And this beggar does his work in every step he walks. Seeing people and blessing them is only a small fraction of my Father's work. Most of this beggar's work is hidden.” – Yogi
“This beggar has no material to give you. For messages, you must go to people like Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, Ramana Maharishi, my Master Swami Ramdas, Ram Thirth etc. Enough has been said already. This beggar has no new message to give you. But Father has given a name to the world that can liberate people the name Yogi Ramsuratkumar! That's all!” - Yogi
The Yogi when about to leave this mortal body explains graciously,
‘“Father makes this beggar suffer for some cosmic balance.” But he added, “This beggar can do much better work without this body”, allaying fears of the devotees.’
‘Well, such was his surrender to his Father's seemingly unsympathetic will that he would only say, “All Fathers blessings. Father knows what to do, when and how. This beggar cannot question Father like you people do!”
When a question was posed to him whether he had seen god? the Yogi replied, “Is there anything else to see?"
I wish to thank the following authors and publishers for the material used here.
1. BIOGRAPHY OF YOGI RAMSURATKUMAR - THE GODCHILD OF TIRUVANNAMALAI (AMARAKAVIYAM), published by S. Parthasarathy.
2. MEETINGS WITH YOGI RAMSURATKUMAR by Will Zulkowsky.
3. YOGI RAMSURATKUMAR - THE MYSTERY OF BECOMING GOD by Olga Ammann, published by Yogi Ramsuratkumar Bhavan Mauritius, 2008.
4. YOGI RAMSURATKUMAR - THE GODCHILD OF TIRUVANNAMALAI by Truman Caylor Wadlington.
5. WAVES OF LOVE, published by Yogi Ramsuratkumar Bhavan Mauritius, 2009.
6. YOGI RAMSURATKUMAR - THE DIVINE BEGGAR by Ma Devaki, published by Yogi Ramsuratkumar Ashram, Tiruvannamalai July 2008.