Barefoot Beginnings: A Tale of Innocence, Curiosity, and Spiritual Awakening
As a 5 years old child, I had this habit of walking bare feet – much to the irritation of my mother and I often got scolded for it. One day she was asking me why I was not wearing my slippers and why was I bare feet – so in my defence I saw Swami Vivekananda’s picture (which was hanging by the wall and I used to sleep beneath the picture in fact) – that he is also standing bare feet – so why can’t I?
My mother then enlightened me about Swami Vivekananda’s extraordinary spiritual experiences, explaining that he roamed the entire country barefoot and was not someone to be casually compared to.
Anyways days passed and it was summers and during the afternoon our veranda got full sunlight so of course the floor used to get very hot. Often I used to go bare feet in the veranda and then ran back speedily inside as my feet burnt due to the heated floor ! Then I used to look at Swami JI’s picture and wondered how did he roam about bare feet …did the hot sun not burn his feet?
After that whenever my mother was making some cold drinks for us like Jaljeera (my very favorite) Rasna etc. and she had the ice outside, I used to take one ice, rub it in my hands, made my hands ice cold then ran towards my bed, got up and pressed my cold hands against Swami Ji’s feet – asking him if he was feeling a bit comfortable or not!
Little did I know that this seemingly trivial act of offering him ice-cold relief would weave into the tapestry of my life’s journey. Fast forward 16 years to when I was 21, fresh out of college, and stationed in Ambala Cantt. It was there, in the Kharga Library, that I stumbled upon a transformative book – The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda. This literary encounter introduced me to the concepts of Kundalini Shakti, its awakening, the importance of a True Spiritual Master (SadhGuru), and the potential for divine manifestation in this very life.
Driven by newfound knowledge, I embarked on a quest for books on Kundalini Shakti, despite the limitations of the pre-internet era in 1992. Even my attempts to inquire at a local yoga center about Kundalini Yoga were met with perplexed frowns. Yet, life’s timeline propelled me forward to 2002, where I discovered Sahaja Yoga – a path that encompasses Kundalini awakening and a connection with the supreme divine power.
Reflecting on this journey, I realized the profound truth – every small act of kindness, even a childhood attempt to comfort a saint’s image with ice-cold fingers, can unfold unexpected rewards and lead to significant transformations.