Dear Editor,

IT was a pleasant surprise to get a notification on Friday evening that Sadhguru has graced the soil of my homeland Guyana and that he will make a public appearance. His presence is a blessing to the nation. He comments on varied issues using a spiritual explanation or relevance. He is perhaps the greatest philosopher or thinker out of India this century. He is a phenomenon. Guyanese in the diaspora, people everywhere, treasure his teachings and explanations of events. People of all faiths and nationalities speak well of him and look forward for his commentaries on happenings.

It was only recently that that I started listening to the philosophical enunciations and thoughts of Sadhguru on various aspects of life and of past and contemporary events. His views and explanations of events are phenomenal and unique. He is an intellectual par excellence. He is a man of immense spiritual knowledge. And clearly, he has read a lot and seems to have mastered almost every subject or topic one can think of. Sadhguru is erudite and learned. He is very devotional and is seen as being very blessed and among the most sacred; yet he is very earthly and engaging. If someone has not heard him before, I urge you to listen to or view his podcasts.

As websites have pointed out, “Sadhguru,” is a title given to his real name Jagdish Vasudev. He is well known around the world as Sadhguru.

The title ‘Sadhguru’ is a position to a person who is mystical about nature and who is well versed in the Vedas, Upanishads, and other scriptures. He, himself, is described as an Indian Yogi, author, spiritual master, environmentalist and philanthropist. A website says he has been teaching yoga in India since 1982. He founded the Isha Foundation in India in 1992.

He is revered by religious figures, celebrities, politicians, academics and others. Actors and actresses in Hollywood and Bollywood seek him out for advice. Machel Montano of Trinidad recently travelled all the way to India to perform at a spiritual concert he hosted.

A website notes, “He has been valued by the western governments and NGOs. He has addressed the British Parliament, House of Lords, United Nation’s Millennium World Peace Summit, World Economic Forum, and many more.”

For his work, he was honoured by the Indian Government with the Padma Vibhusan, India’s second-highest civilian award.

A website says that his fundamental vision of life is “to offer the science of inner well-being to every human being – a science that helps a person realise the ultimate potential within. From this vision stems a multitude of projects, programmes, and methods, all towards the same aim: to raise every human being to the peak of their potential, so that they are exuberant, all-inclusive, and in harmony within themselves and the world.”

Sadhguru addresses issues from a practical point of view with a spiritual intonation, and he does so as a pragmatist, a realist. One can relate to him. And he is also a great, effective communicator — speaks with clarity and perfect English without any ‘strange’ accent or pronunciation of words. (He is multi-lingual).
He discusses issues ranging from aspects of everyday living such as eating and sleeping and even what the colour of clothing people should wear at particular settings, to addressing global issues such as poverty and climate change. Most remarkable about him is his cool and calm disposition at all times despite efforts of provocation by a few. As Trinidadian author, Hanoman Doolorchand describes him, “he is the embodiment of the rishi of yore, not hidden away in some cave or ashram, but engaged in the thick of human activities.”

Yours truly,
Vishnu Bisram