Sri Nannagaru and Devotees

So, tomorrow morning, Thursday, 26th June, Sri Nannagaru leaves Arunachala after a 10 day visit. As is usual, many of his devotees from Andhra Pradesh travelled with him. While here, Swami gave daily spiritual discourses in Telegu (his native language) to his devotees and visitors. It is expected that Sri Nannagaru will return to Arunachala this upcoming August for a short stay.

"I first came across Sri Nannagaru in Ramanashramam at Tiruvannamalai, in the last days of 1993. A friend had told me that a guru was giving darshan near the library that evening. Arunachala and Sri Ramana's cave were sufficient for me, I thought; I felt no particular attraction for the darshan of yet another guru. It happened that the library was next to my room, however, and as I returned from the cave that evening I saw a crowd of westerners outside sitting in silence before a man who was sitting in a chair. At his feet were a bevy of well-dressed Indian women. They were all gazing at the man intently. The man's eyes were drifting slowly from one person to another. I couldn't help feeling that he looked like the cornershop grocer. Every now and then he let out a prolonged belch, and rubbed his stomach.

I sat down, intending to stay until the first mosquito arrived. In moments I was aware of the depth of the silence in the group around me. Sri Nannagaru kept gazing at one individual after another, sometimes resting his eyes on a person for minutes on end. At the same time he would raise his right hand in an open palm blessing. My body became as still as stone. All thought of going anywhere vanished. All thoughts of any kind vanished. His look was one of the most tender commpasion, of a lover to his beloved; yet there was not sense of anybody doing anything wanting anything, trying to creat some effect; just the innocent and empty gaze of love, available to all, and yet intensely personal, it seemed, with each individual. His body seemed to carry no tension at all: his whole being flowed unobstructed out of his eyes. After half an hour or so, he silently bowed, and got up to go to his room. Nobody moved, and the silence continued for several more minutes."

[From Travels through Sacred India

By Roger Housden]