My first permanent teaching position was in a small country town. Sahaja Yoga techniques had always helped me to deal with challenging children, not just by reducing my stress level, but also by providing tools to gently change even the most difficult pupil. So effective were these tools that I quickly earned the respect of the parents of these challenging children.

One such mother was Kate, a single parent to one of the most challenging children that I had ever met. His name was Timothy and I taught him in kindergarten. Kate and I met on a daily basis as we worked together to try to help poor Timothy adapt to school life. Kate and I became close over the seven years I worked there. She knew about Sahaja Yoga and was open to it. She even offered to mind my baby, Jamahla, for free when I returned to work. In return, I continued to help out with Timothy.

Timothy was a beautiful boy but he had been teased since kindergarten and found learning boring compared with playing boy games outside. As a result, he had learning problems and a fiery temper if rubbed up the wrong way. He was quick to recognize hypocrisy or any kind of trickery. This made his observations on a trip home from Tamworth even more incredible.

Some Sahaja Yogis from Sydney were conducting a tour similar to the Realise Australia tour held this year. They were coming to our hometown and Tamworth, the next major town a couple of hours north. I told Kate about it and that I would be going to Tamworth to put up posters advertising the tour. Kate could immediately see the difficulties involved in doing this with Jamahla, so she offered to come and help me. She had a brother in Tamworth that she rarely saw; so, we agreed to call in and see his family on our return. Timothy adored Jamahla and he was more than happy to help out with postering before seeing his uncle.

While we were in Tamworth there was a severe rain storm. On our way home, we talked about Sahaja Yoga, the coming tour, rain and other things. As we reached the mountains our conversation stopped. We simply enjoyed the drive until Timothy interrupted the silence, “Look! There’s an angel in the sky and it’s looking at us!”

Instead of running off the road I just went silent and cautiously looked up as I waited for Kate to scream or say Timothy was mad. Neither happened. Instead, I saw an angel formed from the clouds. It was huge and we could see every detail of its face. It was a classic cherub with curly hair. It appeared to be lying on its stomach with its head resting on its hands, as it looked down at us. Its beautiful, feathery white wings were there behind its head. The three of us just stared. I don’t remember what, if anything, was said, until Jacob once again interrupted the silence, “Look! It’s flying away.” As it flew away we saw its wings and the back of its head. Even the tips of its toes were visible.

I have no photographic proof of what we saw. It wasn’t safe to stop on that winding road and, to be honest, I was so thoughtless that I didn’t even think of stopping. The proof of its reality is the fact that Timothy saw it first. As I said before, he can see straight through any trickery.

LB

(The names of some people in this story have been changed. Ed.)

A beautiful daughter, beachside home, family and friends close by, a well-paid, part-time job within walking distance of home and a great social life that came with free babysitters – that was my life before I came to Sahaja Yoga. Compared with our previous home, a small cramped house in inner Sydney, I felt as though I was on a permanent holiday. However, I kept yearning for something else. I described it once as wanting to find my spirit’s home.

When I told a friend about this yearning she brought me the local paper to show me an advertisement about a Sahaja Yoga program, complete with Indian music, food and meditation. It was a four-week course at a library in a nearby suburb and it was free. It sounded great and I told my friend that I would go.

I was not a “new age” person and knew nothing about the Kundalini or self-realisation. I did, however, have dreams from time to time that were premonitions. These dreams always left me with a strong awareness of their message when I awoke.

I had a strict deadline at work and, as usual, was behind schedule. So, the day before the program I decided not to go. However, that night I had one of those dreams. I dreamed I was at the library walking around with a pile of books in my arms. I came to a doorway and looked in. There were two men standing in the room getting ready for the Sahaja Yoga program. I kept walking. When I passed the room a second time, the two men approached me and asked if I was going to the program. I said that I couldn’t because I was too busy. One of the men smiled at me and said, “What a shame! Because you think you are so busy, you will miss out, and this is just for you. It is what you are looking for.” When I awoke the next morning, I remembered the dream and knew that I had to go to the program.

As I got there, I was puffing away on the last of my daily packet of cigarettes.

When I walked in, I was dumbstruck. The room was exactly as it had appeared in my dream and, amazingly, two of the men present were the same ones who had approached me in my dream!

When the presenter was explaining the process of self-realisation, I found it very difficult to believe and decided to leave. However, as I was about to leave, a video began. It was Shri Mataji. I couldn’t take my eyes from Her, and Her opening words captured my attention. She asked us to keep an open mind like a scientist and to see for ourselves how it works. I decided to listen. Every word that Shri Mataji uttered, provided the missing pieces of the jigsaw that formed my life. I hung on Her every word.

Before I knew it, I was doing exactly as I was told to get my realization. When I held my palm over the top of my head, I felt the cool breeze that I had scoffed at in the beginning. It was there! I felt transformed, but I didn’t realise the magnitude of this transformation until later, when I realised I had forgotten to buy my essential packet of cigarettes.

I saw another friend on the way home who exclaimed, “Whatever you’ve had, I want a ton of it! Look at your eyes! You look amazing!”

Unused to such a greeting, I mumbled something about a wonderful meditation program and raced home to see for myself. When I looked in the mirror, I saw that I had a glow and my eyes were sparkling. My whole face looked softer. I had changed! My spirit had come home.

I continued to meditate and, before I knew it, nights on the town, alcohol and smoking were replaced with peace, joy and an amazing feeling of contentment. I am forever grateful to Shri Mataji for finding me.

LB