The Miracle

I first became aware of this call when I was walking along a suburban street in 1987. Lost in reverie – heaven knows about what, I remember glancing up at a wall and seeing a large poster. The split second I perceived the image it depicted, an Indian man playing the flute, a bolt of light seemed to shoot out of the poster into me. I still remember the impact of this light, which felt almost physical. The light seemed to carry with it the gentle encouragement that I should go to this concert. I still remember with awe how effectively this light eradicated all mental opposition.

I am still stunned that such a dramatic occurrence passed for normality on that day! I had been meditating for a year or so at the time, so I was used to experiencing light – but not shooting out of a photo with a message for me. In those days I questioned and analysed everything - but not this time! My mind was so effectively bypassed that I didn’t think it was at all unusual to receive a message from a poster to go to a concert.

I had a very powerful experience at this concert, particularly when Guru played the piano. What a thrill the power of Sri Chinmoy’s playing gave me! I had been feeling for a while that there was something missing in my meditation. I felt I had reached a plateau, and that there was a new level of experience beckoning me, if only I could find a way to connect with it. It occurred to me that perhaps I needed a Guru to progress further. Then over a period of 6 weeks, I was graced with experiences which showed me the direction in which I needed to go. These experiences always occurred when I was alone and washing the dishes! At first, strange as it seems to me now, I could make no sense of what was happening to me. I would be washing the dishes, and then would feel what I could only describe at the time as a “bursting” in the centre of my chest. I would feel and see a beam of light coming out of my chest, and with this would come the most powerful and overwhelming feeling of love I had ever experienced. I did not understand how this could be, because until this point in my life, I had only ever experienced love in relation to another person. But I was always alone when this happened and the love seemed to have no object.

I asked everybody I came across if they could make sense of my “burstings”, as I called them. Nobody seemed to have any idea. I remember one person saying that it sounded like I was experiencing happiness. How paltry and small this word seemed in relation to my experience! It took me 6 weeks to get the message! Then one day the penny dropped. I remember thinking “Hey! A bursting in the chest plus intense love – it’s my HEART!” At that moment, I realised I needed both a teacher and a path in which I could meditate in the heart. But where to find one? I decided my brother Antony might have a clue, because I had heard that he was meditating. I rang and explained to him what I needed and was surprised to hear that he not only had a Guru, but was on a path of the heart! That day I rang Kishore, leader of the Melbourne Centre, and asked to join!

My Guru finding me has been the most miraculous event of my life for which I will remain eternally grateful.