Ramana	Sunyata	Papaji	Bharadwaj	Faqir Baba	Manav Dayal
Nirmala Pandit	Pandit Dayal	Bassi Gulam	Stationmaster	Bhargat Singh	Lakbir Singh
Sita	Shabdanand	Lal Chand	Lahori Pandiji	Ramesh Giri	Asha Thakur

Lahori Pandit Ji - The wrestler  Saint
 

Meditation can be taught from body to body without interference from the thinking mind. When I lived in Manavta Mandir in 1995, I was treated with intimate love by most of Faqir Baba’s old devotees. There was a vibrant 'hug culture' long before it became popular in the West, where everyone embraced each other, thus acknowledging and fanning the divine spark in fellow beings. This hug-culture was complemented by a massage culture, where everyone was massaging everyone else all the time. However, this atmosphere of personal yet impersonal love seemed to cool off when I came within range of old Lahori Pandit Ji. From his body language, I could discern that he somehow did not approve of this superficial Western seeker. One morning, I watched Lahori Pandit Ji struggle to hang his white scarf, which he typically wore around his head, on a washing line. Despite several attempts, he couldn’t manage it because he isn't very tall. I went over to assist him and took the wet scarf from his hands.

Just before placing it on the line, I noticed a strong smell of cat urine—the scarf was wet because a cat had urinated on it during the night. I tried to communicate this to Pandit Ji, who could not understand a word of English. He looked at me with a displeased expression, as if to say, 'Why is this foolish Westerner not hanging my scarf on the washing line?' Then, I brought the scarf close to his nose and exclaimed, 'Cat! Cat!' However, due to his old age, he couldn't smell anything. I then started mimicking a cat, saying 'Meow! Meow!' while making a displeased face and gesturing towards the scarf. Finally, something clicked! He looked at me much like the expression you see in these photos and then gave me one of the best hugs I have ever received. (I feel obliged to pass this hug on...) He was a famous wrestler in his younger days, and his hug was definitely still a wrestler's declaration of love! This old man was still as strong as a bull, despite having just reached the age of 100!
 
From that day onwards, there was no problem with Lahori Pandit. He even started giving me full-body Ayurvedic massages in the morning. Lahori Panditji was Faqir Baba’s personal masseur. It was a great honor.

One serene night, while staying at Manavta Mandir, sleep eluded me. Around 2 AM, I ventured out for a quiet stroll in the ashram courtyard. I noticed a faint light emanating from the central satsang hall. Curious, I entered and was greeted by an unforgettable sight: Lahori Pandiji, tears streaming down his face, stood before a large painting of Faqir Baba, hands folded in deep reverence, completely lost in divine rapture. It was unclear how long he had been in that position. As silently as I had come, I exited the hall, now with tears also welling in my own eyes.