Neem Karoli Baba was born as Laxman Das Sharma in a wealthy Hindu-Brahmin landlord family of North India. He was a highly revered saint who lived from 1903 – 1973. His devotees are spread all around the world and includes Apple Co-founder Steve Jobs, Facebook Co-founder Mark Zuckerberg, Hollywood actress Julia Roberts and renowned cricketer Virat Kohli. All of the mentioned celebrities have visited his beautiful Ashram and Hanuman Temple, where he spent a lot of time in the ’60s, located in the foothill of Himalayas in a small village called Kainchi in Nainital District in Uttarakhand, India.
Fondly called Maharaj-ji (“Great King”) by his devotees, he was a worshipper of Hindu Deity, Hanuman. He had performed strict spiritual penance in his youth in various places in North India and believed to have possessed great spiritual and mystical powers. His devotees consider him as an avatar of Hanuman and attribute many miracles of biblical proportions to him during his lifetime: such as healing the sick, being in two places at the same time, alleviating poverty, producing food and various things out of nowhere, and bringing the dead back to life.
From Richard Alpert to Ram Dass
Dr Richard Alpert was a professor of psychology at Harvard University. While he was in India, he came to have darshan of Neem Karoli Baba at his Ashram and Hanuman Temple in Kainchi with his friend on his insistence. When he and his friend got in front of Maharaj-ji, his friend prostrated in front of Maharaj-ji and touched his feet. Richard Alpert didn’t like the sight of an educated westerner touching the feet of a half-naked Indian Sadhu just wearing only a blanket on the upper-half for covering. He thought to himself that he is not going to touch Maharaj-ji’s feet. Maharaj-ji sent them both to take meals and have some rest.
Later on, when they were both again in front of Maharaj-ji, Maharaj-ji asked Richard to come a little closer and sit. So Richard sat in front of Maharaj-ji facing him. Maharaj-ji asked him what was he doing last night? Before Richard could answer, Maharaj-ji told Richard that he was out under the stars last night thinking about his mother. Richard was astonished at this as he hadn’t told anyone about it. Maharaj-ji continued, “She died last year”. Richard nodded. Maharaj-ji said, “She got very big in the stomach before she died”. “Spleen, she died of spleen”. Tears started coming down Richard’s eyes and he started crying. Later on, Richard Alpert – The skeptical Harvard professor, became Ram Dass (a name Maharaj-ji gave him) and a spiritual preceptor in the west, talking about spirituality and his experiences with Maharaj-ji.
Taking currency notes out of fire
In the cold month of October, a Sadhu visited Maharaj-ji’s ashram. Although he was pleased with the picturesque location of the temple and the ashram, yet the prosperity of the place made him question Maharaj-ji as he believed a baba should live simply with no possessions. He reprovingly asked Maharaj-ji, “Baba and this wealth”. Maharaj-ji remained calm and asked the sadhu to come a little closer. He took some crumpled and dirty notes from Sadhu’s waistband and threw them in the fire. The Sadhu became angry and muttered to himself.
Baba laughed and said, “You are going to Badrinath. Ask it from fire there. It will return your money.” This further enraged the sadhu. Maharaj-ji took a pair of tongs, took new notes out of the fire in Sadhu’s presence and gave all his money back to him. Baba then sent him for food, gave him a blanket and bid him farewell. Sadhu felt ashamed, he apologised to Baba and left,
A blessing to become the Prime Minister of India
Maharaj-ji wanted to build a Hanuman Temple and ashram in kainchi. The forest officials raised objections to that as this was government land. Maharaj-ji then requested the forest minister of the state of Uttar Pradesh – Chaudhary Charan Singh – to give the land on lease for ashram and temple. Chaudhary Charan Singh gave the land at Maharaj-ji’s request. Maharaj-ji blessed him that one day he would become the Prime Minister of India.
Chaudhary Charan Singh was just forest minister of an Indian state and the political environment at that time was such that it was impossible for him to become the prime minister of India. As a result, he didn’t think too much of Maharaj-ji’s blessings. But after some time the political environment changed and Chaudhary Charan Singh became the prime minister of India.
Change of heart
Maharaj-ji never made a show of his powers. He used them in less apparent but no less miraculous ways. A simple look, word, or touch from Maharaj-ji often changed people’s hearts leading them to the path of right action. The real miracle of Maharaj-ji was to erase innate tendencies of people and bring about a change in their character. in this context Maharaj-ji said, “I possess key to all”.
A devotee of Maharaj-ji had a bad habit of worrying too much and he would get anxious over little things. Maharaj-ji told him that he worries a lot and shouldn’t worry so much. From then on the man got rid of his anxiety and stopped worrying over little things. Another devotee of Maharaj-ji, who was a very simple person, was always used to be afraid. Maharaj-ji told him that he is afraid because he was a very simple person and afraid that others might cheat him taking advantage of his simplicity. Maharaj-ji told him to be courageous and not to be afraid of anyone. That brought about a change in the man and from that day he stopped being afraid of anyone .
Colonel Mckenna was a British colonel in Indian Army during the British rule in India. He hated Indian sadhus and saints and even forbade his Indian soldiers to go near any sadhu. Maharaj-ji often used to visit the army barracks where colonel Mckenna was stationed and one day went to his quarters and lied down on his bed. Seeing a half naked Sadhu on his bed, the colonel became angry and ordered him to get up. But Maharaj-ji stayed there smiling at the colonel. At this, colonel Mckenna got further enraged and took out his lashes and start beating Maharaj-ji. Maharaj-ji just stayed there smiling and just looked at colonel Mckenna with love. This brought such a change in colonel Mckenna’s heart that he apologized to Maharaj-ji, gave him fruit and milk and eventually became his devotee. He was the first foreigner devotee of Maharaj-ji.
Turning Water into Milk
Neem Karoli Baba was at the bank of Ganges at Prayagraj with Dada Mukherjee and a four or five other devotees. They were all sitting on a boat and Maharaj-ji told them that the water of Ganges is just not water but it is nectar and it is milk. He asked others whether they don’t believe him to which Dada replied if Maharaj-ji says so then it is milk. Maharaj-ji then asked one of his devotees to fetch some Ganges’ water into a lota. Maharaj-ji then covered the lota with his hands and after some time when he uncovered the lota, the water into the lota had turned into milk. He gave every devotee present there to drink the milk from lota.
Conclusion
Maharaj-ji never demonstrated his powers and always used them in a subtle and hidden manner. He also forbade his devotees to talk about his powers during his lifetime and whenever any devotee tried to document them during his lifetime he simply asked them to destroy it. It was only after his lifetime that his devotees got together and document his miracle stories. The real purpose of his miracles was so we would heed his teachings to “Love all, Serve all, Remember God and Tell the Truth”, and follow the path of right action.
