Practically every summer Devraha Baba, who lives in East Uttar Pradesh, comes to a shrine in the Himalayan mountains fora few months.
He is said to be quite aged. I do not know this directly, but I have heard Dr. Rajendra Prasad, the first president of India, say that from his own experience he can attest to the fact that Devraha Baba is more than 150 years of age.
He is said that in his childhood his father took him to this baba, who was then a very old man. At the time he gave the statement, Dr. Prasad was more than seventy years of age. This statement aroused my curiosity, and I made it a point to meet this baba when he stopped in Rishikesh on his way to the mountain shrine.
We conversed often there. He was living in a temporary pine wood hut which was constructed for him wherever he went. Sometimes he also lived in tree houses. He looked quite healthy and appeared to be in his seventies. Athough he is very austere and gentle and doesn't allow any student to touch him, he sometimes gives discourses on divine love.
He is very famous in North India. Huge crowds assemble to have his darshan [glace]. He has a large following, and the police and other government officers often visit him with the desire to be blessed. Several of my American students visited him during Kumbha Mela [a great fair which is held every twelve years in India] at Hardiwar in 1974.
I tried to find out the secret of how he lived to be so aged. I discovered that he practices certain aspects of yoga regularly, and that he eats only fruits and vegetables. There are many specific practices in yoga; individual aspirants choose those which suit them.
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| Maha Samadhi |
During my conversation with Baba he said, "Happiness is the greatest wealth of all. Punctuality is essential. Practising advanced methods of breathing is equally important. The technique of agelessness is a technique of pranayama." Tis Devraha Baba is a symbol of love.
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Source: Excerpts from the book on "Living with the Himalayan Masters" by Swami Rama
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