Connecting with the Voice
August 2007
By Ralph Singh
This is the story of a quest that spanned from New York to Amritsar. ralph singh gives a first-hand account of his encounter with divinity
As children, I’m convinced that each of us hears a Voice that guides us throughout our life. Call it our conscience, call it the Voice of the Universe, call it what you wish, but early in my life it was so clear that it was my constant companion. But somewhere between Bar Mitzvah and Boy Scouts, when values are no longer in fashion, the Voice left me. I, like many American youth, felt the material world, with all its temptations, close in and I got buried. As I approached college, the need to find my purpose again summoned forth my longing to reconnect to the Voice.
My studies had taught me that indeed there was One Truth in all traditions. But where was God, the authority for Truth? Like many quests, mine started with a vision. But this Vision became real.
It was August 1970, and I had just finished college pondering how we could ever change the destructive course of civilisation. I was sitting with a friend over a cup of tea in our New York City apartment, when suddenly in the course of the conversation, I blinked and in that split-second, a great spiritual being was standing before me. A diamond-like light radiated from his head, and his eyes literally held the universe. He held up his hand and said, “Don’t be afraid.” He made me feel that he possessed all the knowledge I could ever attain, and as a role model, was everything I could ever aspire to be. He drew me out through His eyes, toured me around the universe, brought me back, showed me something similar to an atom, said, “Meditate on this,” and then was gone.
Shortly thereafter, I distributed my worldly possessions to friends, left my comfortable life, and followed that Vision to India. The closer I got, the stronger the pull became. The Voice was literally calling me home. And the path home led to Amritsar.
I had never seen a Sikh in my life, nor even knew such a religion existed, so for my spiritual journey to stop at the Golden Temple was amazing. But for all the peace that surrounds that holy place, something was missing. There was no one to guide me and I knew that the Voice that had surely called me must reveal itself. So I left Amritsar somewhat bewildered.
Finally in February 1971, after travelling for over two months, in a small village on the outskirts of Delhi, I was brought face to face with the One who had appeared to me in New York. His name is Baba Virsa Singh, and his spiritual power is literally of Biblical proportion. I immediately recognised that it was He who had been speaking to me all my life. There, in his spiritual community, Gobind Sadan (God’s House without Walls), my real education in the course of life began.
The first “lesson” Babaji blessed me with was Nam (God’s Holy Name) – Ek Onkar Satnam Siri Wahe Guru (There is One God whose name is Truth – Praise the Ever Greater, ever more wondrous God). Smiling with the radiance of the sun, he told me that the next day God would come to give me my exam and since I was so far behind in my studies, I should recite Nam like I was cramming for my finals. As I did my “homework”, the sound of those Holy words began to echo unceasingly within my mind. There could no longer be any doubt of God’s presence. Babaji’s greatest gift is turning on that switch within us and connecting us directly to God.
To expand my consciousness, with a simple tap on the head, Babaji led me on a guided tour of the cosmos and literally took me to planets with human life clearly more advanced in every way.
But finding God at age 22 wasn’t enough. Babaji demanded that I learn that work is more important than the visions He has shown me. He taught me how to always be responsible and never think of any job as too hard or too tiring. He would say, “After all, God works 24 hours a day,” and those who love God must work much harder than others.
Virsa Singh doesn’t read or write in any language, yet he is the most eloquent teacher I have ever had. He quotes freely from all scriptures and answers questions on any subject in the cosmos.
I remember translating for an American journalist who started his article, “Peace is as elusive as the unicorn, but today I came face to face with peace. His name is Baba Virsa Singh.”
Contact:Ralph@gobindsadan.org
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