Run and become, become and run, part 17

You are running too slowly!¹

I asked, “Why?”

He said, “Because you are running too slowly!

I said to him, “All right. I will not come this way tomorrow. Tomorrow I will go to some other place.”

Then he said, “No, come here! No matter how slowly you run, come here. I like you.”

All this was in Tamil.

Looking for Auroville²

They had told me that Auroville is about six miles from the Ashram. So I set my timer-beeper at ten minutes. After it rang six times I thought that I should definitely have reached Auroville. From the light in the sky I saw that an hour had gone by, so I knew for certain that I had heard the beeper six times.

Then I started asking people driving bullock carts where Auroville was.

One person said, “Oh, you have already passed it!”

I asked myself, “How can it be? Did I run so fast?”

Another person said, “It is one mile ahead.” So I kept running until I reached it.

When I was coming back, three or four dogs attacked me at the same time — out of the blue. I stood there and shouted at them. While I was shouting, the owners of the dogs also started shouting. Then they started laughing at me, and I started shouting at them in Tamil.

The devotee³

I couldn’t understand why he would show such devotion to a stranger, since he was a European. Then he started running again.

The following day I was walking in the Ashram taking pictures when I saw this same young man running along the other side of the street. As soon as he saw me, he stood still and folded his hands. Then he came and stood in front of me with folded hands. He said, “I was your disciple once upon a time.”

I said, “You were my disciple?”

He said, “I come from Heidelberg. I was your disciple. I even came to New York once to see you.”

I said to myself, “O God, he came to New York and still I can’t recognise him!”

He told me his name. I asked, “What do you do?”

He said, “I am a taxi driver. Now I have become Sri Aurobindo’s disciple. But please tell me what I should do about my spiritual life.”

I said, “If you are Sri Aurobindo’s disciple, I am not the right person to tell you what to do.”

He kept asking me, so finally I said, “Now that you are inspired by the Ashram, you can go back to Heidelberg and do something for the Ashram there.”

He said, “But I don’t know any seekers there.”

I said, “Just try. From one it becomes many.” Then I asked, “Do you know Renate?”

He said, “Yes, I know her. She has gotten her Indian name, Minati.” I didn’t think he would know her Indian name, but somehow he knew it.

Then he said, “I am very grateful to you because I got the inspiration to run from you. You encouraged me to run. In New York I started running.”

Lost in London⁴

After running about three and a half miles, I turned around to go back. But I had forgotten two of the landmarks. I had no idea where I was, and I didn’t have any money with me. Anyway, where could I get a taxi at that hour? If I could have found a taxi, I could have gone back to the hotel and gotten some money from there. Then I got angry with myself. Why did I have to meditate while running instead of paying more attention to the landmarks?

At that very moment, when I was totally annoyed, one of my inner beings started making fun of me because I thought I was lost. Usually they are terribly afraid of cutting jokes with me. But this inner being said, “Although you have made a mistake, you are off by only half a block.”

I believed my inner being. I went just half a block in the direction it showed me, and I saw “Aladdin’s Lamp.” Then I had only two more landmarks to find. I had been out only an hour or so, but one of the landmarks had disappeared. Perhaps it had blown away; it was such a silly landmark! My inner being told me, “Definitely that is the place. Make a left turn there.” Again I believed my inner being, and soon I came to the last landmark, which was a mailbox.

If I could have gone into the park, there would have been no problem. I would have remembered the big building — Kensington Palace. But the park didn’t open until 5:30 or 6:00, and the streets were not at all familiar to me. As I passed a bicycle shop, the burglar alarm was ringing and ringing. Even after I had gone at least two blocks more, I was hearing the alarm so loudly! It was about 4:30, and at that hour there were absolutely no policemen out — not even one! Whom to tell? I didn’t see any person and perhaps only one car.

The San Juan Marathon⁵

Because of the heat, many people suffered after completing the race. For many it was a very painful experience.

The man who won had a time of around 2:30, and his wife stood first among the women. So husband and wife stood first together, with one hour difference.

The former champion finished in 2:51. I had a long talk with him, and many pictures were taken. He said this was his worst time in ten years. He blamed the heat. Also, the day before he had eaten Kentucky Fried Chicken, and he said that ruined everything. So remember, don’t eat chicken before a marathon!

The kiss⁶

The Puerto Rican Indian⁷

Every day I got such tremendous joy and inspiration from the Masters Games. I enjoyed them like anything! They really created a Kingdom of Heaven on earth. The inspiration from the Games will last for some time. Now I want to break my own records. My goal is transcendence.

An unfair race⁸

The brave hurdler⁹

One of the hurdlers was really brave. From the very first hurdle he was last. When I did hurdles in India I used to think my stride was horrible, but his was definitely worse. Dhananjaya took a very nice picture of him after the third hurdle.

At the fourth hurdle, he fell down and rolled three times. Then he got up and again started running! I could not believe it. He was so brave! I thought he would remain on the ground and they would bring a stretcher.

Autograph hunters¹⁰

Then two people came who lived near Cologne. They also took my autograph. I told them I was going to Cologne next March to give a concert. Where is Cologne and where is Puerto Rico?

Begging for a photograph¹¹

Coming in last¹²

Still, I am quite happy. The prayers of the San Francisco disciples worked: I have broken my 100, 200 and 400-metre records. Of course, these are my best times since I came to the West — not my Indian records!

Young but useless¹³

Sometimes it is better to watch¹⁴

Strong bodies and strong minds¹⁵

For 75 and 80-year-olds to do the pole vault, hurdles and hammer throw is really something! They were not carried away by the weight of the hammer. They were strong, strong people, with strong bodies and strong minds. Everything about them was strong!

Saying nice things¹⁶

One former Olympic hurdler from California said nice things to me at least seven or eight times. He is a poet and he told me that he had read some of my poetry books. Sometimes he would see me three times in the interval of four hours, and each time he would stop and say something nice and smile. What nice people!

Strong ankles¹⁷

Cycling with bullet speed¹⁸

Smart horses¹⁹

Shame!²⁰

The lady said to me, “Hi! Good evening.”

I said, “Good evening.”

She said, “Do you recognise me?”

I couldn’t recognise her.

Then she said, “You can’t recognise me? I know your name — Sri Chinmoy.” She said my name correctly.

I smiled at her and said, “Now tell me what your name is.”

She said, “Shame!”

What was I going to tell her? She knew my name, but I didn’t know her name. I have never seen her, but she knew me.

Good morning, Sri Chinmoy²¹

I was looking at him and he was looking at me. Then he said, “Good morning, Sri Chinmoy. It is so nice to see you again.”

God knows when I had seen him before!

Ruining somebody's joy²²

But that was not enough adventure for one morning. Before I reached two miles, a Puerto Rican man in a car stopped and said, “Hi! How can I get to the Triboro.”

I smiled and said, “I don’t know how to get there.”

He said, “The hell with you!” and drove away very fast.

Just a mile before that, somebody saw me and was so happy! His morning started with such joy because he saw me. Then a mile later I ruined somebody else’s joy.

The first and last time²³

Then, for the first and last time, I walked along Queens Boulevard into Manhattan to the U.N. It is very bad to walk that way into Manhattan. There were so many undivine things, but the noise of the cars was the worst. It killed me. Why did I have to listen to so much noise? I took an oath that it would be the last time.

A wrong turn²⁴

Chetana told me I had to cross the 59th Street Bridge and then turn right. But on Queens Boulevard there is a small bridge before the 59th Street Bridge. So after I crossed this bridge I thought I had crossed the 59th Street Bridge. I didn’t see any of the three cars following me, so instead of continuing straight, I turned right. Nobody saw that I was going the wrong way. Because of that wrong turn, I started going back towards Jackson Heights. I was totally lost, and there was nobody to give me directions.

Only fools run²⁵

Then he became very undivine and started criticising everything. He felt the world was very bad, everything was very bad. He was not interested in anything. He was very happy to see that I was walking, because he hated running.

The man said to me, “Only insane people walk in the street. Always walk inside the park where there are very few people.”

At one point he said to me, “Are you injured?”

I said, “Yes.”

He asked, “How?”

I said, “From running.”

He said, “So now you are wise. You are walking.”

He did not want me to run anymore. He said, “Only fools run. You and I are wise.”

I smiled at him, and just then we saw a young man with a headband, running very fast. When he ran by me, he said, “Hi, Sri! You are here!”

The man said to me, “Your name is Sri?”

I said, “Yes, my name is Sri.”

He said, “Who is he?”

I said, “I don’t know.”

Look at this! Only a minute earlier, the old man had said that only fools run. Then a runner came to greet me.

Two greetings²⁶

Only two hours before that, in the Queens shopping mall, someone else had stood in front of me and folded his hands when I was there shopping.

How is your tennis going?²⁷

Then, two houses before Niriha’s house, a man called me by name and asked, “How is your tennis going?”

An inner story²⁸

But after a day or two he came out of his coma, and the first thing he did was to write down “Sri Chinmoy” and then “Love and Serve.”

His mother went to Love and Serve restaurant today and told the disciples how grateful she is to me. She felt that I had done something for her son inwardly. Her son had been to Love and Serve a few times, but he had never seen me.

Interview in an intersection²⁹

Master and disciple were in the middle of a big intersection — with cars this side and that side.

I asked, “What is your name?”

He said, “Michael. I am in the Blue Centre.” He was so happy to see me; he was jumping with joy.

He said, “Yesterday I was at the tennis court.”

The night before, new disciples had been invited to the tennis court.

Unknown disciples³⁰

Then the whole family came out. It was Kaivalya, Bhavani and their two boys. I did not recognise them, even though they had already come to New York. Now I know the family so well.

Morning walk³¹

I said to him, “How is it that you are walking slower than I am?”

Then he patted me on the shoulder. He looked as if he were taking a morning walk.

The racewalk³²

Our people were singing songs very loudly right in front of the counters. Five or six girls were singing Aspiration-Sky and other songs to inspire the walkers. I thought they would be scolded by the organisers, but nobody said anything.

Don't bother him!³³

The big shot said, “Don’t bother him!” He knew I was last. If you are last, why do you have to get a warning?

Later, the judge introduced himself to me. His name was Howard Jacobson. He was the one who organised the race.

Warnings³⁴

Howard would show the walkers a particular card when they were not walking properly. If he showed them a card with a “V” on it, it meant they were out of the race.

Poor Subarata got one or two warnings. She was ahead of me, but she was nowhere near the other walkers. They were up to eight miles and perhaps she was struggling at one or two miles. Still, she got a warning. Then her husband also got a warning.

Soft legs³⁵

What he meant was that they were not racewalking properly. They were not straightening their legs.

He said you have to strike always with the heel first. Our people were touching with the toes or the middle of the foot.

Advice from the racewalking expert³⁶

I said, “Still I will try to walk a little.”

After I walked two and a half miles, he came up to me again and grabbed me in a very kind, affectionate way. He said, “Can you do me a big favour? I want to speak to you.”

Then he took me off of the course and told me, “When you are in pain, never walk. It is hurting me to watch you.”

I said, “I was in pain. That’s why I gave up running.”

He said, “Now you should give up walking.”

I said, “I have read your book. I have learned so much from it.”

He said, “Thank you. Do you have a chiropractor?”

I answered, “I have four or five, but they cannot cure me.”

“I had the same experience,” he said. “But at last I went to a chiropractor who is so good that she cured me. If you go to her, she will cure you. Where is your pain?”

I explained where my pain was and he said, “I had exactly the same thing. Do you know the source? This doctor found the source: right under the shoulder, near the right side of the spine.”

Then he sat on the ground and straightened my leg, and then pulled it. I was in such pain! He said, “I had the same pain. You should go to my chiropractor.”

After that he said, “I won’t allow you to walk anymore. First you have to be cured.”

I asked him about breathing. In his book he had mentioned inhaling for two counts and exhaling for two counts. He demonstrated this, going two or three metres from this side to that side. He was breathing in and out: “Hoo! Hoo!”

He asked me, “Can you hear me?”

Then he ran away to give advice to some of the other walkers.

Later I sent Bipin to talk to him and get his chiropractor’s name. Her name is Dr. Kirk. I have asked Laurajean to learn from her, and then teach her husband, Avery. Then Avery will treat me.

Starting at the back³⁷

Then, one by one, I started passing people. My first victim was Mitali. Mitali is a rogue! As soon as she saw me passing, she stopped and started tying her shoelaces.

After one mile and 400 metres I saw a man with an artificial leg ahead of me. Can you imagine! What was I doing so far back?

Then I saw that Varayuvati and Prasannata were ahead of me. I felt that they were going so slowly, but I was going even slower! Eventually I passed them. I also passed quite a few others.

Stuck behind two ladies³⁸

Finally the old lady gave me a smile and fell back. Near the end I looked behind to see where she was, but I couldn’t see her at all.

Go ahead of him!³⁹

After we finished she asked me what our timing was. But how could I tell her her timing when I was ahead of her? I heard 31:07 for myself, but she was 10 or 15 metres behind me.

My secret promise revealed⁴⁰

I said, “I am getting better.”

Then he said, “I understand that by your birthday you want to complete a thousand miles. How many miles have you completed?”

I said, “Not even 600.”

He said, “You must finish it before your birthday!”

He was not a disciple, but he knew all about my secret promise!

Good ones and bad ones⁴¹

Six or seven boys were behind me. Some were mocking me, and some were showing respect and were happy to see me. Four or five followed me right up to Niriha’s house, calling me “Shry.” Then children from another block also started shouting “Shry!” They didn’t even see me, but when they heard the others call “Shry,” they also started saying “Shry! Shry!” It was like one jackal barking and all the other jackals starting to bark in response.

Then, when I came near Niriha’s house, three little boys on bicycles rode by. One came up and smiled at me and then went away. He was nice. Another came up to me, laughing and coughing, and then went away. This one was very bad. The third boy followed me right up to my 100-metre mark on 150th Street, near Ranjana’s old apartment. He was a young boy, 10 or 12 years old. He came up to me and said, “Shry, Shry, I have a question. Will you please answer it?”

He looked like a nice boy, so I said, “What is your question?”

He said, “Is it really true that you saw God at the age of 12?”

I said, “Yes.” Then I asked him, “How old are you?” But he didn’t hear my question.

He said, “I am going to tell my friends that you have spoken to me.” He was so happy that I had spoken to him. Then he rode away hurriedly. So he was among the good ones.

When I go out alone, all kinds of incidents take place. But when my disciples follow me in a car, people usually do not come near me.

A promise to Radha⁴²

I said, “Tomorrow I will give it to you.”

She said, “What time tomorrow?”

I said, “Tomorrow, anytime.”

She said, “No, please give me a time.”

Then I said, “Then come tomorrow at four o’clock.”

I totally forgot that tomorrow we will be having our own annual Masters Games, and I will be away all day.

Seeing "Shry"⁴³

A very cute smile⁴⁴

Where is Roslyn Park? I smiled at him and said, “I do not know.”

He said, “You have a very cute smile.”

So he forgave me. Sometimes when you can’t give people directions, their mantra is, “Go to hell!”

About three weeks ago I was near Flushing Meadow Park. Always I have problems there. A Puerto Rican man asked me how to get to the Triboro Bridge. When I told him I did not know, he said, “Go to hell!” He also got my smile, but he didn’t appreciate it.

Powerful laughter⁴⁵

You look so smart!⁴⁶

I do not know who he was. I couldn’t see his face.