Jaggi Vasudev

There are gurus and gurus. Some are born, some made, and some have gurudom thrust on them by their followers. I have enjoyed reading some books of Jaggi's. Also saw him on the Madras Gymkhana Golf Club a few years ago. I think he has something to tell us that may be useful. Of course, there could be flaws too, up to us to figure out. Anyway, we went to the Velliangiri hills and took a look at the majestic Adi Yogi statue that has come up there, close to his Isha Yoga centre. Some glimpses-

Jaggi Vasudev and Shivaratri

Watched an interesting TV program- or a part of it- conducted at Coimbatore by Jaggi Vasudev, a new age guru who usually speaks in English- and very well, too. I once saw him on a Golf course in Chennai. He organises a night-out of song, dance, music (with some big names participating) and discourse on every Shivaratri. He also runs a program called Inner Engineering at various places including the hills near Coimbatore where they have some sort of a dome called Dhyanalingam. I had once visited this when on a trip to a Coimbatore college.

After Osho, I find in him a very down to earth, pragmatic person who happens to be a guru. His logic is easy to follow, but whether to believe is a matter of choice. Another of the spiritual gurus I have been hearing off and on from (on TV) is Shivani, a 'sister' of the Bramha Kumaris group. She is cool, and takes on any difficult question from her interviewer, and answers succintly, without exasperation and with a smile. If nothing else, these two should be observed for their mastery over language and skill in communicating their thoughts.

Many of the others that appear on Aastha channel appear to me to be either ignorant, or fake in some way. That is entirely a personal opinion, and some may find them useful, or stimulating. Incidentally, spiritual fundas were India's USP for a long, long time, and it seems there is a large following for the gurus of recent times. They come in all sizes, shapes, and maybe unique to India, also in both genders.

Mystic Midnights

Rather, Midnights with the Mystic. That is the title of a book written by a fan of one of the new gurus of the current age who is a rage- his name is Jaggi Vasudev. Even if you don't like gurus, this guy is worth listening to. He speaks well, and is intelligible to people like us. Don't know if he cuts any ice with the masses.

A fan of his from Atlanta had a series of conversations with him when he visited her house. The gist of these conversations is what the book is about. I have heard him speak on TV, and seen him playing golf at Chennai (he was with a group ahead of us). I think he is a cool guy. His explanations of many things in life make a lot of sense (to me), as in there are no gaping holes in the logic, or let me say, mostly believable stuff about yourself, the higher self that remains unrealized mostly, and how to get there from here.

This fan is a white woman based in Atlanta. I think she is a real estate person with a long list of diseases or disorders that she had before she met Jaggi Vasudev, and which she doesn't have now. The Isha Yoga program of the guru is credited with making the difference.

The book is nicely written (the usual questions are answered succintly), and worth a read. Even a visit to the Dhyana Lingam (I happened to visit when I went to Coimbatore a few years ago for a lecture), a dome at the foothills of some mountains in the Nilagiris is soothing.