Senior Art of Living Teacher Rajshree Patel said, "Gurudev Sri Sri is so clear in his mind. He is like a mirror. He reflects our true nature. I haven't found anybody with whom I can work with such ease and comfort. At the same time, I cannot cope up with his energy. He can go on working for hours without getting tired and his intentions are very powerful.
Simultaneously, he is so childlike. While flying from Bombay to Bangalore with him for the first time, he would say to me " You will love Bangalore, it is the garden city, and our ashram is so green". I am unable to recall what I was expecting, but the city of gardens had a lot more cement, than trees or flowers. The ashram, well, it was barren, dry, hilly, rocky, and infested with snakes. There were three small buildings and huts, which Sri Sri called "temporary housing". Apparently, there had been an International Conference in 1988 with about 60-80 people. Some of the students at the time were housed there and others were in a nearby facility. The buildings were initially erected for the Vedic Pandit boys. Narayana Kutir was a leaky hut with a small room for meditation and an adjoining even smaller bedroom for Sri Sri. Shakti Kutir, his current cottage, was just being completed: a small round building with only one room that had a tiny mattress on the floor on one side and a low-sitting wooden chair on the other.
Until 1994, the cottage was just this, small and simple. Later, two other rooms were added. Regardless of the growth of the foundation, Gurudev Sri Sri and his lifestyle have always remained simple and humble. As the organization grew, more and more people wanted to serve and offer donations.
I remember when, on a number of different occasions, a very wealthy family or an individual, would offer to build the entire ashram with all the modern facilities and luxury, I, who had come from the West, jumped at the idea: no more electricity cuts, no more water shortage, possibilities of having water heaters, air conditioners, etc. but Gurudev Sri Sri would refuse. I could not understand why he was refusing such a generous offer. However, one day, he explained to me the idea of Guru Dakshina. (the skillful way of giving): " This ashram will bring peace to all those who come here. It is a blessing and a gift to be able to give comfort and peace in life. One can give money, and one can give food, but to give peace of mind is the highest gift of all and everyone should partake in that offering. It is as a family
that we will build this home".
Many a time when we all walked around the ashram, he would describe the
location of different buildings: "There will be a coliseum, on top of the hill, the kitchen here, and the meditation hall there". He described the land and the location of structures with such details that I assumed there was a concrete plan laid out on paper. The plan was laid out; only it was not on paper. In answer to my question about blueprints he always smiled and stated, "In the big blue sky the prints are fixed," The buildings were constructed, as the need
arose.
When the meditation hall was being constructed at every pillar, within
a distance of about eight feet different soil and minerals were being dug up.
Geologically this was unexplainable. Gurudev Sri Sri said, the ancient Rishis used the land for Yagyas and it was the reason for the variation of soil and mineral within such a short span of space.
So many times in the 1980s as we approached the land, from the car he would say, "Isn't our ashram so beautiful, so green"? The only thing green I saw, were a few papaya trees. I thought either something is wrong with him or me. All I noticed were brown rocks and dirt. Today, it is like the Garden of Eden. Our stroll always ended at the top of the hill, where the coliseum (Sumeru) stands today.
He would look out into space and then down the hill, and tell us: "One day this
whole hill will be
covered with thousands of people, there will be an amphitheater for sitting arrangements, I will not even be able to walk and there will be a screen where they will have to project everything." On one level, I knew all that he was saying would be so in the future. On another level, I
thought how is that possible? There were barely eight to ten people coming to Satsang at the time, the idea of thousands seemed incomprehensible. Unknown to all of us, the platform was being laid for the phenomenal growth of The Art of Living in India. Today, what flashes mostly through my mind, is the ashram strolls with Gurudev Sri Sri and his statement "Everything is set".
Note : Everyone should must read the Book "The Guru of Joy: Sri Sri Ravi Shankar and The Art of Living" written by a French Journalist Francois Gautier - It got some very early years stories of Gurudev & Art of Living
Link to the Book
