The heretofore presented article Awakens the Child of Theosophists accredited to C.R. Rajamani first appeared some twelve years ago in the official newsletter of the Arunachala Ashrama. It was published under the title "The Grace That Brooks No Barriers" in the May/June 1998 (Vol 8 - No. 3) issue of The Maharshi following the Saturday, April 25, 1998, "Sri Ramana Maharshi's 48th Mahanirvana Observance" at the New York Arunachala Ashrama, Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi Center.
It showed up again some ten years ago rather nondiscriptly June 7, 2000 titled "The Boy and the Sage" in the Yahoo Group called NondualitySalon - Nonduality: The Varieties of Expression. Found in Message #34951, it was presented basically for NondualitySalon group members only rather than for general consumption and posted by one Harsha, AKA Harsh K. Luthar, PhD, stating the author of the article so presented was one Sri C. R. Rajamani. Sometime shortly thereafter the contents therein were brought to my attention having been forwarded to me by a reader of the message familar with some aspects of my early background.[1]
HARSH K. LUTHAR, PHD
"Harsha," as mentioned above, is the screen-name, handle, or nom de plume of Harsh K. Luthar, PhD, a very well-liked, well respected, and brilliant member of the spiritual community. Among other things he is most known as the editor of Harsha Satsangh. Dr Luthar apparently became privy to Rajamani's article through the newsletter. In the opening paragraph of both the newsletter and Luthar's version the following is found:
The author of this article, Sri C. R. Rajamani, presented the following talk at the April 25, 1998 Aradhana program at Arunachala Ashrama in New York City. He and his wife were visiting their son, Dr. C. R. Ramakrishnan, of Stony Brook, NY.
The first published source, The Maharshi newsletter, is edited by Dennis Hartel and Dr. Anil K. Sharma. What seems to be what happened is that one, the other or both, that is Hartel and Sharma --- or possibly even Dr Luthar --- personally attended the April 25, 1998 talk and heard what Rajamani presented, and/or had close alliances in some fashion with those in attendence, that then allowed the information to flow to Hartel or Sharma first hand. From there Rajamani's verbal presentation before the Aradhana group was transcribed and edited into the written word, without further credit, to appear, as stated above, in the group's official organ THE MAHARSHI: May/June 1998 (Vol 8 - No. 3).
In addition to the appearance of the article that linked you through to this page, the article has also appeared at two other official sources associated with NonDuality sites besides the Yahoo Group: NonDuality Salon Highlights #371 and Nondual Daily Nugget, Archive 8, both repeats of the original and both attributed to Harsha and thus then through him to Rajamani. The article can be found under the title "I Will Always Be With You" at Arunachala-Ramana and shows up again in Ramana Maharshi – Stories and Teachings, Collection 3 with no source cited, albeit with Rajamani listed as the author --- only now appearing under the title "Awakens the Child of Theosophists" --- the same title I used for my page.
Well known, well respected, and typically well researched chronicler of things Ramana, David Godman, in his blog Arunachala and Sri Ramana Maharshi, dated Thursday, July 3, 2008, uses the Stories of Ramana Maharshi, Collection 3 version of the article somewhat verbatim, for reasons presented in paragraphs below. In any of the versions above, and especially so in the so recent presentation by Godman on his blog, there is no mention of WHO the young boy as mentioned by Rajamani IS (i.e., as presented in the Last American Darshan). There is, however, one important change.
In his blog Godman mentions that the well received book compiled and edited by the most respected Professor Laxmi Narain entitled "Face to Face with Sri Ramana Maharshi, Enchanting and Uplifting Reminiscences of 160 persons" (Sri Ramana Kendram, 2005) is currently in the process of being revised with forty never before included face-to-face meetings with Ramana being added.[2]
So said, Narain forwarded the forty additional reminiscences he is including in the forthcoming edition of the book to Godman. Godman then, in his blog, includes, among others, the section by Rajamani that Narain is publishing in the revised edition. Although Rajamani is cited as the author, no mention of the original title or the original source is brought forth. So too, and most importantly, it should be pointed out that the main point I cite and reference in my works as being inaccurate in Rajamani's reminiscences, the boy's nationality, has been removed from the text. It remains to be seen if that change remains in the final version of the book.
C. R. Rajamani himself has remained somewhat elusive. It is known he and his wife returned to India following his presentation. It has been rumored that Sri Rajamani passed away shortly after his return to India.
To see the web page of Rajamani's son, Dr. C. R. Ramakrishnan, of Stony Brook, NY, cited in the quote above, click HERE.
FOOTNOTE [1]
In the above I write:
"Sometime shortly thereafter the contents therein were brought to my attention having been forwarded to me by a reader of the message familar with some aspects of my early background."
In the Last American Darshan, refering to the contents of the three letters sent to my father from India regarding me being in India and written by the couple so designated in Rajamani's article Awakens the Child of Theosophists, cited above, I write:
"All were written (the three letters) with an apparent preordained assumption of understanding by my father, but seemed highly cryptic to me because at the time of my reading of the letters I had very little to no real background knowledge relating to any of the circumstances contained therein."
My uncle, unbeknownst to me until after his death, had possession of the letters a good part of his adult life. He died in 1989. Sometime after his death I became privy to the letters and their content. However, as I mention in the quote above, the letters, all written by hand and done so apparently by the woman member of the couple, were highly cryptic. At the time I read them I had little or no REAL background knowledge of the circumstances. Is was NOT until Rajamani's article was brought to my attention as printed in the Yahoo group dated June 7, 2000 under the title "Boy and the Sage" was I fully able to make any sense of the letters, their content, and how they applied to me.
FOOTNOTE [2]
THE MEETING: An Untold Story of Sri Ramana is not only not included among the forty new additions, to my knowledge, to this point in time, it was never even considered for inclusion. Worthy? You be the judge.
