Italy

Rome—The Holy City

THE night passed. In the morning we landed in Cairo. The place round about where we landed was a vast desert. The heat was great. We took some rest in the airport and then again emplaned and flew to Rome, the Holy City. We landed there and, as we came out of the airport, met Mrs. Jean Herbert, a slim, fair, young lady, her eyes filled with the light of devotion, waiting with humility to receive us. We got into the bus that was to take us to the city. On the way Ramdas asked Mrs. Herbert, “Your husband must be waiting for us in Geneva anxiously. Isn’t it so?”

Mrs. Herbert: He is terribly so.

Ramdas: Perhaps you were more eager. That is why he has sent you here in advance. He has seen us before, but you haven’t.

Mrs. Herbert: You are right. I was very very anxious to see you. Further my husband thought I might be of use to you here.

“Your Name shall be Prasanna”

We reached the city and lodged in a hotel. When we had fairly settled down, Mrs. Herbert came to our room and sitting by the side of Ramdas, asked him, “Papa, will you initiate me?”

Ramdas: Yes, take this Mantra—“Om Sri Ram Jai Ram Jai Jai Ram.”

Ramdas made her repeat the Mantra three times.

Mrs. Herbert: I am filled with peace and joy.

Then she talked about various things and expressed her concern to see that Ramdas’ stay was made most comfortable in her house at Geneva. After making herself acquainted with all the arrangements that she had to make at her home, she said, “Papa, you must feel quite at home in our place and ask for anything that you might need.”

Ramdas: Ramdas already feels in his imagination quite at home there. Ramdas wants you to give him some time, apart from all other programmes, so that he might crack jokes with you all.

Mrs. Herbert: Oh, that’s fine! You must never stop cracking jokes.

Ramdas: Sure, you’ll start liking Ramdas.

Mrs. Herbert: How do you know I have not already done that?

Ramdas: You will like him more.

Mrs. Herbert: That, of course, is right. I want you to give me a name.

Ramdas: Your name shall be ‘Prasanna’.

Transitoriness of Earthly Power

in the evening we went round the city studded with ruins and monuments symbolising the glory and power of ancient Rome. Rome was a city ruled by great emperors like Julius Caesar and Marcus Aurelius. Ruins of the old imperial structures like the stadium, museums, arches, columns, prisons and palaces revealed the ancient history of this world-renowned place. The vast Roman Empire, as it is said, had risen to the height of a great civilization. But as everything of earthly pomp and circumstance is laid to the dust by time or fate, so this great empire too had fallen leaving behind as landmarks a few monuments that speak to the instability and transitory nature of all mundane achievements.

St. Peter’s Church

Next morning we went out with the object of paying a visit to St. Peter’s Church and the Vatican if possible. The sight of St. Peter’s Church produced a wonderful effect on us. The inside of the church has its own spiritual atmosphere and whoever enters it feels elevated and inspired. As we stepped into the church we beheld radiant figures, in white marble, of Lord Jesus and Virgin Mary, and a painting of St. Peter holding in his hands the keys of heaven. There were also on the walls huge statues of departed Popes, who held spiritual sway for long years over the Roman Catholic world, and of noted Christian saints, besides many artistic signs and emblems. The architecture of the entire edifice was simply marvellous. All these inspiring sights lent sanctity to the place, leaving on the visitor an impression that cannot be easily effaced. Every nook and corner of this great church is permeated with divine light and peace. Verily, you feel Christ’s presence in this holy place of worship in which the followers of Christ meet. Ramdas, for one, was enraptured with all that he saw and felt there. It was not the external beauty and excellence that so much attracted Ramdas and kept him under their spell as the holy figures that seemed to be alive, as if about to descend from their pedestals, surrounded by a spiritual aura that worked like magic on him. He walked and walked along the winding aisles and under the arches gradually traversing the vast interior of the church and gazing at the wonders before his eyes until he returned to the main doorway again.

Ramdas saw here the much venerated statue of St. Peter in black marble. The followers of this saint are used to lay their heads at the feet of this statue and touch them with their hands. By such constant rubbing, the feet got worn out in course of time, and have had to be replaced by newly made ones many times during the last 400 years. He saw also many chapels where mass was held by the presiding priests, and devoted Christians on bended knees bowed and prayed before the shrine of Christ. Such scenes show how the human heart everywhere longs for the solace of communion with God; how the agitated and distressed soul finds peace when in all humility it offers itself at the altar of the Divine Maker. Altogether, the hour spent inside this church, built in the name of Jesus Christ’s foremost disciple St. Peter, will ever remain fresh in Ramdas’ memory.

In the evening we wandered over many places in Rome and came upon two significant sights. One was the statue of Marcus Aurelius on horseback and the other the prison in which St. John was incarcerated.

Marcus Aurelius

Marcus Aurelius was the great philosopher-king of Rome. His life may be compared to that of King Janaka who reigned in Mithila—an ancient kingdom in India. His book of meditations shows to what sublime heights of spirituality he had reached. Ramdas had the joy of reading this inspiring book several years ago, from which he gives here an apt quotation as evidence of the Emperor’s spiritual eminence:

All parts of the universe are interwoven and tied together with a sacred bond. And no one thing is foreign or unrelated to another. This general connection gives unity and ornament to the world. For, the world, take it altogether, is but one. There is but one sort of matter to make it of; one God that pervades it; and one law to guide it; the common reason of all rational beings; and one truth; if, indeed, beings of the same kind, and endued with the same reason, have one and the same perfection.

Why Saints Suffer

At the barred gate of a huge building, which was a prison, we were told by our guide, Prasanna, how St. John was pursued from place to place, subjected to the most cruel atrocities, and at last captured in Rome and put into this prison, inside which also he had to undergo horrible tortures. Martyrs are those who have suffered torments for the sake of Truth or God. Strange are the ways of the Divine! His most beloved devotees, to whom He reveals Himself in all His glory in their hearts, are made to pass through great tribulations and ordeals both before and after they are accepted by Him. Before they realize Him these sufferings are for their self-purification, and after their realization the supreme sacrifice and sufferings they undergo are for the uplift and redemption of mankind.

Letter to the Pope

Ramdas wanted, even before he landed in Rome, to avail himself of the opportunity to pay his respects to His Holiness the Pope. On reaching Rome we came to know that he was too ill to afford us an audience. So the idea was dropped. However, before leaving Rome, Ramdas wrote a letter to the Pope praying for his blessings for the success of our mission. Here is the letter:.

Rome, 19th August, 1954.

Your Holiness,

We—Mother Krishnabai, Ramdas, Swami Satchidananda, Rani Lalita Devi and Sagarlal Gupta—have come here from India and we so much wished to have an audience with you during our stay here. Our stay being brief—we are leaving for Geneva by tomorrow’s plane—we regret very much we will not be able to see and pay our respects to you as we hear you are not keeping good health.

Our humble mission during our world tour—we have planned to visit many countries in Europe, America and the Far East—is to carry to the hearts of all people the message of the Spirit, to talk to them about the glory of God. We earnestly pray that you may shower on us your blessings for the success of our mission.

We greet you with all our heart in the name of Lord Jesus and the Holy Mother Virgin Mary.

We pray God that you may soon be restored to sound health.

A copy of our itinerary is enclosed herewith so that you may follow us with your prayerful thoughts.

Ever your Self, Ramdas

To His Holiness The Pope Pius XII

Difficulty of Language

During our stay in Rome we had to face the difficulty of language. None of our party knew the Italian language. Mrs. Herbert was extremely helpful as she played very well the part of an interpreter for us. On one occasion, when she was not with us, we rang for the hotel attendant as we wanted some milk. When the attendant came, our friend Sagarlal tried to make him understand our need. But the language in which Sagarlal spoke could not help. He made signs, but signs also failed to convey to the attendant what we wanted. Sagarlal was undaunted, and being resourceful and witty, he raised both his hands half way and, closing his fists, moved them up and down alternatively to show to the attendant that he wanted milk which is got by milking the cow in the manner he gestured. Even this most suggestive attempt failed. The attendant was, with eager and wide open eyes, witnessing the graphic performance of Sagarlal. Unable to comprehend what this acting really signified, he bent down slightly and with his upraised hands made signs by moving them outwards in three repeated gestures to make us know that he did not at all grasp what Sagarlal was striving to tell him, and disappeared. The picture of the face, the bent figure, the action of the hands and the sudden vanishing trick of the attendant set us roaring with laughter.

When we were walking on the footpaths witnessing the sights of Rome, we noticed groups of Italians standing on the opposite side of the road and curiously gazing at us. Our complexion and dress were evidently the cause of the attraction. Mother and Rani Lalita Devi wore Indian sarees, Ramdas was dressed in a long coat reaching up to the ankles, Satchidananda in an orange coloured dhoti, shirt and upper cloth, and Sagarlal in his usual European dress, none of us having any headwear. The party should have looked strange to the Western eyes.