Sri Swami Vishnudevananda

Swami Venkatesananda is one of the few fortunate souls who have earned Gurudev's fullest blessings and Grace. Really, he is the pet child of Gurudev. His main Sadhana is perceiving the greatness in others. He sees the greatness not only in all human beings, but also in animals and birds. It will be a scene for us to see and enjoy when he plays with a monkey, dog, cat or a cow. He moves closely with big officers and immediately plays with a Tonga-driver or a scavenger. He is very friendly with sick persons and mad people. He makes friendship with everybody at the first sight. Two of the great qualities of Gurudev-humility and seeing only good in others are inborn in him. Gurudev prostrates himself first to each and everybody including his disciples, servants and children, before they prostrate themselves before Gurudev. But Swami Venkatesananda completely surrenders himself to all those who meet him, by catching hold of their feet and feeling the Lord in those visible forms. He is really practising the Gita Sloka: 'Yo mam pasyati sarvatra sarvam cha mayi pasyati' to the very letter.

During his childhood, many astounding things happened. One day his mother narrated to me an incident which happened when he was about four years old. He is the only child in the family and one day his mother and grandmother prayed for getting a female child for them. The moment they prayed like this, the boy who was playing outside suddenly started weeping and vomiting foams as if the body had an attack of a fit. They were perplexed and ran with the child to a Fakir immediately. The Fakir repeated certain Mantras with sounds ending like 'Fhu', looking at the child. The boy started laughing at the Fakir who repeated 'Fhu'. The Fakir noticed nothing wrong with the child and thought that the lady brought the child to test his spiritual powers and sent them away without any further treatment. From that day, they never prayed for another child, for the fear of a relapse of the fit. When they returned home, the mother gently asked the child why he so suddenly laughed at the Fakir. The boy said laughingly that it was funny to see the old man making the sound 'Fhu' while looking at him. His mother felt that he was not an ordinary child.

Swami Venkatesananda was responsible for the biography of Gurudev and of many other disciples, and for the voluminous edition 'Sivananda's Lectures'. The entire manuscripts of this volume were typed in the running train while Gurudev had a tour in India and Ceylon in 1950. He has so carefully noted thousands of highly inspiring events of Gurudev's life, his activities, conversations with students and with visitors, that the book when published will be a real boon to the whole world.

Swami Venkatesananda is an expert in Yogic exercises also. His Asans were filmed for exhibition by the Calcutta Tamil Sangham. Once he won a prize from Gurudev for standing on Sirshasan and Sarvangasan for half an hour at a stretch. He became a votary of the Homeopathic system. Swami Achintyananda, an expert Doctor-Mahatma, once treated Swami Venkatesananda for a chronic trouble and he found the efficacy of the system. Now he has undergone a training from the Mahatma. He has successfully treated many serious cases. It will be funny to see that he has experimented with many Homeo medicines, making his body the laboratory. He administers medicines to the patients with a smile, joke and Name of God, to make the patients feel better in the very first dose itself. He has an enchanting voice to sing his favourite Ramayana. He can nicely imitate the songs and Bhajans of experts in the music world. His very presence is a glory to his Guru Maharaj the Divine Life Society and the world at large. A few seconds in his company will convince you of the truth of my statement. May he live long to inspire the world.