Hawaii

Honolulu

We reached Honolulu where we were received at the airport by Mrs. Emma A. Lindsay and Mr. Floyd Nowell. When Emma Lindsay saw us coming towards the airport from the plane she was excited with joy, and over the railing shook Ramdas’ hands. We went inside and were received by Sri J. Watumull, a longstanding businessman in Honolulu, with his American wife. Soon we reached the Hotel where arrangements had been made for our stay by Emma Lindsay.

Honolulu is a beautiful place. It forms part of the Hawaii Islands, almost in the middle of the Pacific ocean, with the vast expanse of blue sea all round, lending it a peculiar charm. The place has developed into a replica of a flourishing American city. It has all the conveniences, comforts and luxuries which are the gifts of western civilization. After over two months’ tour in Europe and America, we could witness here scenes similar to those in the East. The tall coconut trees, some standing erect and others leaning in different directions, their heads nodding in the strong breeze blowing from the sea, reminded us of the west coast of India. The place was fertile. It had high chains of hills covered with thick growth of shrubs and trees. These presented cooling and fascinating scenes to our eyes which were tired of looking at crowded cities with all their tall drab dismal buildings, artificial appliances, machinery and other equipments made for obtaining the maximum comfort without regard for beauty.

Joel Goldsmith

Emma Lindsay one day invited us for lunch at her small wooden house, situated about ten miles from the hotel in which we lived. She was all love and kindness. She is the secretary of Mr. Joel Goldsmith, a personality of outstanding spiritual eminence, who is giving valuable lessons to the aspirants who seek aid from him. Emma Lindsay is a great admirer and devotee of Joel Goldsmith, for she is also a highly evolved soul who has devoted her life to the contemplation of God. She is helping him among other ways in recording his speeches and after duplication sending them to various centres in America and Europe where his adherents live. These records are played back by them on their machines which indeed make them feel that they are listening to the spiritual advice from Joel Goldsmith directly. Voice reproduction marks a great advance in science. This invention has been utilized for carrying the messages of spiritual masters to their disciples in far off places not only in their words, but also in their own voice.

Mr. Floyd Nowell was one of the party at the lunch at Emma Lindsay’s. He is a genuine spiritual seeker and has greatly advanced on the path. His face is bright and serene showing that his mind is successfully attuning itself with the inner Divine during his spiritual practices. He was a constant visitor to the hotel and ardently listened to Ramdas’ talks on spiritual topics.

Another evening we were invited by Watumull to his brother’s house where we had our meal. Ramdas was asked to speak something here about the real aim of life. All the members of Watumull family were present. Ramdas spoke about the futility of depending upon the things of the world for one’s happiness. Dependence upon persons and things for relief and security is also a gross mistake. There is only one prop, one refuge, one support for all beings, and that is God. Those who take shelter in Him can have no fear, sorrow and bondage. Life will then be filled with true happiness and peace. This was the gist of what Ramdas talked. The wife of Watumull’s nephew, who had recently lost her husband and was in sore distress, was one of the eager listeners in the group.

God is our Mainstay

Here Ramdas met a wandering Gujerati friend who had been touring from one country to another without the requisite kit or money. We had occasion to meet this friend before somewhere in Bombay or Gujerat. He was a tall man with a beard, who possessed a staunch faith in God. When he was asked by Watumull’s brother how he managed to travel without money or clothes, and also without the knowledge of any European languages—for this friend could not speak even English—he replied that God was his guide and that he depended upon Him entirely and He looked after him, providing him with all things. This simple trust in God was his mainstay. Although people who heard him wondered how such a thing could be possible, Ramdas for one was not in the least surprised because, in his personal experience all through his life, from the day God accepted him as His own, this fact has been fully verified. Truly, those who surrender themselves to God are taken care of by Him with all tenderness. That is indeed Ramdas’ unflinching faith from which comes fearlessness, peace, assurance and security. Our world tour is also an instance of how God protected us all in every way through the strenuous times we had to face.

A Beauty Spot

When we were in Honolulu we paid a visit, on invitation, to the house of Mr. J. V. Masson, an American friend, whom we newly contacted. This house was situated on the very brink of the sea, commanding a beautiful ocean view. We went there in an evening and had our milk and bread with him. Masson, his wife and children were very devout by nature. They liked our company immensely. They took us another day on an excursion for sight-seeing. There were various beauty spots in Honolulu and the friend selected one of the best of them and when we were there we were charmed with the surroundings. The deep blue sea before us was extremely delightful to the sight. The waves dashing on the coral reefs, the spray caused by their rising to great heights, the calm and serene atmosphere, the distant, green landscapes—all contributed to make the place look like a paradise. One thing noteworthy here is that when the spray goes high and the sun’s rays are reflected in it, we see a bewitching rainbow produced in the spray. The scenes are still fresh in Ramdas’ mind and they come vividly before him when he recollects them. God has revealed His beauty everywhere in thousand and one ways.

In Honolulu there was no public function. Emma Lindsay, Floyd Nowell and another lady had silent meditation in Ramdas’ company in the hotel room for a few minutes. A lady reporter who came to interview Ramdas took down some notes about his life and mission, which appeared as an article in a Honolulu newspaper. The last evening meal provided by Masson was taken by all of us together, at the hotel, where Emma Lindsay and Nowell also joined us.

It was by an evening plane that we left for Japan. Our Honolulu friends came to see us off at the airport. The parting was of course, as usual, a hard wrench. The friends were visibly moved when we walked up to the aeroplane, and at the last moment, when we were just passing the gate, Watumull also came hurrying to bid farewell.

Time is an Illusion

We travelled to Japan by the Japanese Airlines. The journey from Honolulu to Tokyo was a long one. We had a halt for about an hour at Wake Islands. In the course of this flight we lost a day! We started on a Wednesday and reached Tokyo the next day, but we found it was Friday. We never saw Thursday! This again proves how illusory time is and how it is purely a product of man’s imagination. There is only eternity. This is the truth. The inconstancy, or the ever-changing nature of time, is a sure indication of its unreality or non-existence. It is the moving mind that makes us see movement everywhere, putting us under the illusion that movement alone is real. But when the mind attains a state of perfect stillness, free from all restlessness, we immediately experience the changeless or immutable Reality in which change and movement seem to be merely like waves on the ocean.