It is also so precise and concise, one cannot write about it continuously in a journal month on month. I knew I disappointed many devotees, but I stood firm. Now, Bhagavan has commanded me to spread his teaching of atma vichara through this magazine. So Ganesan, we are going to start it.” I was thrilled by his enthusiasm. Osborne himself decided the name of the journal: The Mountain Path. ‘The Mountain! he said represented Arunachala and the ‘Path represented Bhagavan’s direct path of Self Enquiry. Then came the task of fixing the subscription fee - we were completely at sea about it. Incredibly, the next day we received a money order of five rupees from a stranger, H. R. Chadda of Calcutta. There it was written, “The annual subscription for the ashram journal. More details follow in my letter.” Yes, Bhagavan had decided what the annual subscription should be and we were happy that though the format of the magazine had not been yet decided, the subscription had already been fixed! A few days later, Chadda’s letter arrived: “I had lost touch with the ashram. Bhagavan, whom I met in the late thirties, is my guru and he still is my all. The other day he appeared to me in a dream and showed me a journal and I saw very clearly ‘Rs.5’ written on the cover. I take it that there is an ashram journal. Please enroll me as a subscriber.” Next, another devotee, T. N. Krishnaswami, handed over a cheque for one hundred rupees for the first life subscription. This is how The Mountain Path started. Osborne and I became very close while collaborating on it. He worked very hard to collect articles and he himself wrote many of them. And my efforts to raise funds for the ashram, by collecting advertisements, were crowned with success.
The satsang I had with Arthur Osborne is filled with fond memories. He guided me more through his silent presence than through words. One day, I went to him with a personal problem. I was harassed by a dream in which a black apparition descended and sat on my chest and throttled my throat. I was alone, I could not breathe and I did not know what to do. I was neither afraid nor curious to know what it was. Its strangulating grip was tightening, tightening. I felt I could not breathe and that I was going to die when suddenly, the mantra ‘Om Namo Bhagavate Sri Ramanaya’ started sounding repeatedly by itself from within my Heart. To be honest, I never believed in japa or mantras in those days. This came of its own accord, ‘Om Namo Bhagavate Sri Ramanaya’ - obeisance to Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi. The black apparition disappeared and I woke up. I could not make out whether it was a dream, my imagination or reality. I ran to Osborne and described the whole experience to him with the minutest detail. After listening carefully, he patted me on my back with a smile and said, “Ganesan, this is a genuine spiritual experience. You are fortunate. You have been given the mantra, ‘Om Namo Bhagavate Sri Ramanaya’. This is what they call ajapa Japa. I shall tell you about my own experience.”
“When Bhagavan was in the body, we who belonged to the circle of Rene Guenon were drawn to Sri Bhagavan like iron filings to a strong magnet. From among this group, David Mclver was fortunate to stay with Bhagavan under his guidance and translate into English the works of Sri Bhagavan and also works like Tripura Rahasya, Advaita Bodha Deepika and other books recommended by Sri Bhagavan. Then, attracted by a yogi in Kerala, he took him as a guru and settled down there. David, who was very fond of me and my wife, felt very strongly that we should also become disciples of his guru. His contention was that for spiritual fulfillment a spiritual guru was absolutely essential. Since Bhagavan never claimed himself to be a guru, we should leave him and accept a guru who was prepared to accept us as disciples. There was a spate of correspondence between us in this regard and all these letters from and to David were shown to Bhagavan without fail. My replies claiming Bhagavan as my only guru, and that if Bhagavan is not a guru then the term guru has no meaning at all, were all approved by Bhagavan with a nod of his head.”
“One day, I received a nasty letter warning me of dire consequences if I did not immediately leave Ramana and go over to his guru. I did not show this letter to Bhagavan, but I was terribly upset over it. I thought I might show it to him that evening. That afternoon, I was doing some weeding work in my garden when I suddenly heard a thudding sound behind me. Some animal like presence jumped down from a tree and approached me from behind. In no time, it got on my back and sat down. It felt like a bear as it had a lot of hair. It was holding onto me with its hind legs and gripping me around my chest with its hands from behind. For me then Ganesan, there was neither any curiosity to know what it was, nor any fear. There was just a calm detachment. Undisturbed, I continued with the weeding. Noticing my indifference, the animal started increasing its size and weight. Soon, I had to bend forward owing to the burden on my back. The weight became unbearable. Still I was undisturbed and felt no fear. Suddenly, it gripped my throat with its hairy hands and started throttling me. | was becoming breathless as its grip tightened more and more. Even this did not produce in me a tinge of fear. I remained fully alert and undisturbed. I felt I could breathe no more,
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