From Babaji with love
September 2016
By Shivi Verma
Existential dance, Sujata Mehra, Publisher: Atma Ram and Sons, Hardbound, INR 495; 143 pages
Of all the relationships in the world if there is any which is the epitome of selfless giving, pure and unconditional love, and service without any expectation, then it is that between a guru and disciple.
Sujata Mehra’s book is essentially a dialogue between her and the spirit of her guru whom she lovingly calls Babaji. Babaji, a Naga sadhu by tradition, was 100 years old when he came into the author’s life, at a juncture when she was going through an existential angst.
A lawyer by profession, she was getting disillusioned and depressed by the pain and suffering of human life which she encountered on a daily basis. She took to learning Reiki, Vipassana, but actual help arrived when Babaji entered the picture in 2000. An endearing sadhu full of peculiarities, Sujata’s organised life was thrown out of gear by his erratic, and unscheduled ways.
He would often come to her house unannounced, and that too in the middle of the night. Clad in no more than a dhoti and carrying a jhola containing religious knicknacks, he would spend the night sitting in a chair in the living room. (He had taken a vow to never lie down). Though Babaji himself had very few demands, the challenge of coping with a stream of visitors that would follow in the wake of his arrival used to unnerve the author. His visits also caused strange events like the electricity pole outside her house getting blown up, the windscreen of her car getting smashed, but she and her family got used to these events.
And though she had begun to love him dearly for his wisdom and loving energy, the happy times ended in 2006 when Babaji was murdered near Garh Mukteshwar by the taxi driver whose taxi he had hired.
It took Sujata years to calm down enough to listen to his subtle guidance pouring into her thoughts, ears and heart. As she began applying the healing techniques she had learnt in healing and helping others, the inaudible guidance of her mentor became louder and clearer to her. She finally surrendered herself to him in 2014. She began to ask questions by writing them in a journal and waiting for her guru to reply; what followed was a series of profound guidance on the mundane as well as the divine.
This book is a compilation of those pearls of wisdom which can answer your deepest queries, wipe away your tears, and give much needed comfort and solace. A great read indeed.