On June 10th, Sadguru Sivananda Murty dropped his body in India. If you have been reading this newsletter for the past several years, you will remember that I have written about him frequently, and told many stories about interesting encounters that I have had with him.  He was one of India's greatest contemporary teachers and was an authentic exponent of Vedic knowledge.  

I visited him in India in February, when he was nearing the end.  In spite of being in a very weak condition, he made time each day to see me for a few hours.  Even though his body was failing, his mind was bright and alert and he continued to laugh and joke.  He seemed indifferent to his discomfort, and totally unafraid of the failure of his body.   

Here is a short story  that I wrote about Sivananda Murty in my Book, Path of Light. 

I have always contended that the best form of astrology is that which is practiced by an enlightened astrologer, one for whom the subtle energy channels called nadis have opened.  For this kind of astrologer, the chart becomes unnecessary and astrology becomes an entirely internal matter.   My friend and spiritual teacher Swami Sivananda Murty is such an astrologer.  He studied astrology deeply in his teenage years and gained a reputation in his twenties and thirties as an outstanding astrologer.   He practiced astrology as a form of service, not as a profession. Somewhere in his forties, after many years of meditating six hours a day, he became self-realized.  After that, he gave up the practice of formal astrology.

Swamiji always enjoys talking about astrology, however, and when I visit his ashram, he usually turns the conversation towards astrological topics.  On one occasion, we were walking in the garden in front of his house.  He lives in a simple, but beautiful house, in a small fishing village on the east coast of India.  It was a warm, starry night and we had just come back from the evening meditation in the Ganesha Temple.  Swamiji looked up into the sky and said, "There is Jupiter in Revati. Look there. You will see the constellation of Purvabhadra.  Over here in the shape of a cart is Rohini."  He effortlessly navigated the constellations giving anecdotes and astrological commentary as he went, displaying an observational astronomical prowess that is possessed by very few astrologers. 

Swamiji has always encouraged me in my practice of astrology, saying that astrology is a form of sadhana.  "Astrology is better for the astrologer than it is for the client," he says frequently. After many years of practice, combined with regular meditation, the astrologer no longer needs the horoscope, due to an awakening of the internal astrological nadis. 

It is from this angle that I relate the following story told to me by a devotee of Swamiji.  I had been talking to Swamiji one afternoon in his home.  As usual, the discussion spanned a wide range of subjects.  At one point, Swamiji mentioned a trip that he had taken recently to Scotland and that he had many devotees in Scotland.  Immediately my curiosity was peaked.  "Scotland?" I thought.  "Why Scotland?"  I have nothing against Scotland, in fact I think it is a very attractive country, but I had never heard of any big proliferation of Vedic culture, yoga, meditation or even New Age spirituality there.  Maybe I am simply ignorant, but I simply was curious how an Indian spiritual teacher was well received in Scotland.

After the conversation was over, I cornered Swamiji's assistant and asked, "How is it that Swami Sivananda Murty has such a big following in Scotland?"  He told me that many years ago, Swamiji had a lady disciple here in India.  She once asked him if she would have any children and he predicted that in a certain month and year she would have a baby girl.  He told her that this girl would grow up to be healthy and happy and live a long productive life. 

A few years later, the lady and her husband moved to Scotland.   While they were there, the child was born exactly at the time predicted by Swamiji.   When the child was three years old, however, she suddenly became seriously ill.  The mother rushed her to the hospital, where she died on the emergency room table.  The mother was completely confused and upset and immediately got on the phone to India.  "Swamiji," she said, "my daughter has died on the emergency room table.  You told me that she would live a long, happy life. How can this be?"  In a gentle voice, Swamiji said, "The girl is not dead!"   "But Swamiji," the mother said, "she has just been pronounced dead by the attending doctor.  She is dead!"  Again in a calm voice Swami Sivananda Murty said, "Get a second opinion!" 

The mother was frantic.  Who could she ask?  It was the middle of the night and no other physicians were in sight.  She rushed down the hall of the hospital, going from room to room until she found a cardiologist.  She begged the doctor to look at her child and give a second opinion.  The cardiologist examined the child and told the mother that the girl was indeed dead.  She begged him to do something, anything to revive her daughter. At this point nearly twenty minutes had gone by.  Out of sympathy for the mother, the doctor agreed to open the chest of the girl and examine the heart.  He told her that this would not bring the girl back, but might at least provide some information about the condition of the heart.  The mother agreed and the doctor cut open the girl's chest, exposing the heart.  Immediately, the heart began to beat again.  The girl recovered fully, in spite of being clinically dead for twenty minutes. 

Since the writing of that article, I met that girl, during one of my visits to India. She was visiting Sivananda Murty at the same time that I was also there.  She confirmed for me that the story was correct.  She is now a practicing physician in Scotland.  

In any case, Sivananda Murty was a great light in the lives of many people.  He will be missed.