Personal Reflections On My Time With Rishi Nitya Pragya

Jul 24, 2010 by mywisdomclub - Sanjib

By Sanjib Mukherjee,

On the 27th March 2010, Rishiji Nitya Pragya had delivered a satsang in Central London to a capacity crowd of over 700 devotees and non-devotees alike. Though it seems an impossible task to try and capture so many heartfelt feelings and emotions in mere words alone, below is an attempt to share some personal thoughts about the special event.

The evening began with a simple guided meditation to quieten the collective consciousness….. In the heart of Europe’s busiest and most dynamic city, a powerful and intense silence had dawned, as the audience were eased into leaving their troubles behind and entering a relaxed state of bliss, peace and unshakable love. Upon opening their eyes, everybody was treated to seeing Rishiji sitting at the front of the stage in all his majestic splendour, in front of a glaring and ever present picture of our beloved Guruji. Before a single note had been sung, before a single word had been uttered, the entire hall was mesmerised with the vision and presence of such an amazing sight.

Starting with a brief introduction to himself, the Art of Living organisation and the phenomenon we have come to know as Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Rishiji proceeded to deliver the most profound knowledge in such a simple and coherent manner, where even the most lay of spiritual people were moved into absorbing these pearls of wisdom. In the space of speaking just a couple of sentences, everybody felt an instant connection to Rishiji, as he was now speaking to each and every one of them on an individual basis.

Rishiji then asked if the people sitting at the back of the packed room would like to come and sit on the floor at the front…..within a split second of making the announcement, the entire back half of the room had raced of their chairs to sit as closely as possible to this great presence. Rishiji continued to charm, delight and engage every single person in the room, with his usual mixture of laughter and wisdom. Even at this early stage, the satsang had become an intimate setting for audience and the star attraction, with everyone hanging on every word he spoke.

What astounded me the most was how quickly Rishiji could win over so many hearts in what is normally a very conservative and reserved London society….. Watching the whole spectacle unfold, I no longer viewed this as an Art Of Living event………..this was very much my own personal Rishiji mesmerising everybody in sight……I feel so proud and honoured to be able to call Rishiji my Guru, my Krishna, my friend, my greatest inspiration…….he is unlike anyone or anything I have ever come across in my life……….only a Guruji as great as ours could create such a wonderful and complete human being…….. and to have him performing in full splendour right on front of my very eyes, well I have no idea how to convey such feelings in this mail……….sometimes to speak with words alone, is not to speak at all………you’ve just got to experience a satsang with Rishiji to know what I am talking about….

Continuing to inspire minds with his thought provoking knowledge, Rishiji proceeded to ask permission from the room to sing his first song for the evening. Many of us would have heard Rishiji sing on his numerous CD’s and TV appearances, but seeing and hearing him live is a life changing experience in itself. A unique vocal combination of sweetness, power, panache and style, no one will ever be able to move your heart the same way Rishiji can. He sings from a space of pure bhakti, pure devotion to his Guruji. I would challenge even the most hard nosed of people not to become a Krishna Gopi for the evening…Rishiji will consume your heart with complete love…..you will become deliriously happy, and have absolutely no idea why!

Whilst singing it was not so much a case of Rishiji connecting to the divine, he actually became the divine. I couldn’t control the tears in my eyes whilst listening to such an amazing performance. The divinity within me, was listening to the divinity in front of me……..

Seeing Rishiji on stage, I felt the presence of Guruji emanating right through him. I felt Guruji in front, behind, to the sides, inside and outside of me. How Rishiji was able to allow such grace to flow through him and consume the room I will never know. Rishiji had not only become the divine flute for Krishna to sing his grace through, but indeed had become an entire orchestra…..allowing every facet of Guruji to come flooding through.

From this heightened state of intoxication, Rishiji continued to mix and match his music and wisdom for the entire evening. Songs ranging from heartfelt ballads to all out dance bhajans had everyone going crazy…. How one person can have so many talents and attributes is beyond comprehension….Coming towards the end of the satsang, Rishiji began to wind everything down, to ensure everyone was conscious enough to drive home safely…From beginning to end, Rishiji, handled the audience with such immense power, style and control.

As if all the wisdom, music, euphoria and masti wasn’t enough, we were all also privileged to witness Rishiji on behalf of the Art Of Living Foundation, accept a Guinness World Record certificate for an official AOL event in Pune on 12th Jan 2010, where inspired by H.H. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, the world’s largest sing-along was organised involving 2750 professional musicians and 104,637 participants singing “Vande Mataram”, India’s national song.

Coming along to a Rishiji satsang is such a beautiful and complete experience………by the end of the evening, myself and everybody in the room only had one thought running through our minds…when could Rishiji do this all over again!!!!!

Love and Blessings to you all,
Jai Guru Dev
Sanjib