Pilgrimage Part 3 and end

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My Pilgrimage to Sri Ramanasramam

 

Part 3

 

By Eleanor Pauline Noye

 

 

 

Leaving the Ashram

 

I had been planning to leave the Ashram for five months, but each time I thought I was going, something unforeseen presented itself. It was not his will that I should go. Bhagavan says, “Your plans are of no avail.” I did not want to go but felt I should. My twin sister wrote several times and said there were matters which needed my attention; and she was very ill, although I did not know it at the time, somehow I sensed it. That was probably the reason why I felt I should leave.

 

As the time to leave drew near I was very sad; I knew this time I would really go. It had been eight months since I returned to the Ashram for the second time! Those last days I spent with the Master were blissful. He was so kind and tender, and when he smiled at me, tears would fill my eyes. I wondered how I could ever leave the place. When the day of parting came, I could not stop crying. In the morning, I walked on the Hill with Bhagavan and some other devotees; then again in the afternoon, when we had our pictures taken with him. As I walked down the Hill with him for the last time he alone knew what was in my heart.

 

The little monkeys were all lined up on either side of the hill-path. Bhagavan told them to come and say goodbye to me. He knew I loved them also. When we reached the hall, Bhagavan read a few comforting passages from Psalms, Chapter 139, verses 7, 8, 9, and 10.

He invited me to have supper with him, as ladies are not allowed in the dining hall at night. It was blessed joy to have that last meal with the Master. I shall never forget it.

Just before I left I went to him for his blessing and wept at his feet, as my heart overflowed with adoration and love. He is dearer to me than life itself. May I consecrate my life to him! Then I said good-bye to the devotees in the Ashram, who were invariably kind to me.

 

I have tried in my humble way to tell about the wonderful experience I had when I was at Sri Ramanasramam with the Enlightened One, but mere words can never express the peace and joy one feels in his Presence; it must be experienced. There, one truly has a glimpse of the Eternal.

 

As I am writing this article in 1946 (six years after I left the Ashram), I would like to say that I have felt the Master’s Presence more and more with the passage of time, just as he said I would. My devotion and faith have grown through the years and will never be shaken under any circumstances.

I am very happy to say that I shall be returning soon to my Beloved Master. I hear his call!

 

Needless to say this was the most blessed experience of my life, my stay at the feet of Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi, the Lord of Love and Compassion. May I be worthy of the many blessings and the great Love he has so graciously bestowed upon me!

 

 

 

TO BELOVED BHAGAVAN

THE LORD OF LOVE

 

 

Oh Lord of Love, Who dwells within my heart!

May I sing Thy Praise through all Eternity,

Thou, the Adorable One, the All compassionate,

Whose Loving smile illumines all the world,

Who art tender as a mother and strong as a father,

Thou, whose sublime life is an inspiring sermon,

Fill me with Thy Presence, Beloved Master, with

the Nectar of Thy Grace;

May Thy great Love and Light fill my heart to the full.

 

 

Resting secure in Thy Presence

And knowing whence cometh Peace,

Guidance and Strength,

May I always listen; for, in the Silence

 

 

I hear Thy Voice,

The Voice of God.

 

 

 

 

 

Eleanor Pauline Noye, California

 

 

 

 

THE MAHARSHI

 

SEP/OCT 2005 VOL. 15 NO.5