I prostrated myself at his feet with joyful relief.
“Sir, you are a master; your word of her recovery
is enough But if you insist I shall immediately get
her a pearl.”
My guru nodded. “Yes, do that.”
He went on to correctly describe the physical and
mental characteristics of Nalini, whom he had never
seen.
“Sir,” I inquired, “is this an astrological
analysis? You do not know her birth day or hour.”
Sri Yukteswar smiled. “There is a deeper
astrology, not dependent on the testimony of calendars
and clocks. Each man is a part of the Creator,
or Cosmic Man; he has a heavenly body as well as one
of earth. The human eye sees the physical form,
but the inward eye penetrates more profoundly, even
to the universal pattern of which each man is an integral
and individual part.”
I returned to Calcutta and purchased a pearl for Nalini.
A month later, her paralyzed legs were completely
healed.
Sister asked me to convey her heartfelt gratitude
to my guru. He listened to her message in silence.
But as I was taking my leave, he made a pregnant comment.
“Your sister has been told by many doctors that
she can never bear children. Assure her that
in a few years she will give birth to two daughters.”
Some years later, to Nalini’s joy, she bore
a girl, followed in a few years by another daughter.
“Your master has blessed our home, our entire
family,” my sister said. “The presence
of such a man is a sanctification on the whole of
India. Dear brother, please tell Sri Yukteswarji
that, through you, I humbly count myself as one of
his Kriya yoga disciples.”
{FN25-1} The gracefully draped dress of Indian women.
{FN25-2} Because most persons in India are thin, reasonable
plumpness is considered very desirable.
{FN25-3} The Hindu scriptures declare that those who
habitually speak the truth will develop the power
of materializing their words. What commands they
utter from the heart will come true in life.
THE SCIENCE OF KRIYA YOGA
The science of Kriya yoga, mentioned so
often in these pages, became widely known in modern
India through the instrumentality of Lahiri Mahasaya,
my guru’s guru. The Sanskrit root of Kriya
is KRI, to do, to act and react; the same root is
found in the word karma, the natural principle
of cause and effect. Kriya yoga is thus
“union (yoga) with the Infinite through a certain
action or rite.” A yogi who faithfully
follows its technique is gradually freed from karma
or the universal chain of causation.
Because of certain ancient yogic injunctions, I cannot
give a full explanation of Kriya yoga in
the pages of a book intended for the general public.
The actual technique must be learned from a KRIYABAN
or Kriya yogi; here a broad reference must
suffice.
