During his travels, Radhanath Swami visited the ashram of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, the developer of the Transcendental Meditation technique and the leader and guru of Transcendental Meditation movement. Although the Maharishi was abroad while he was there, under the Maharishi’s inspiration in the sanctuary of his ashram, Radhanath Swami read his books, The Science of Being and Art of Living, and six chapters of the Bhagavad Gita.

Every evening at Sankaracarya Nagar, Radhanath Swami spent time with an Australian sadhu named Bevin, a leader of the ashram and one of Maharishi’s closest disciples. Together the two met in Maharishi’s hut where they listened to reel-to-reel tapes of the Maharishi and discussed his teachings.The Maharishi would say in his high pitched and often giggling voice, “Here we make no empty promise of Heaven after death but the positive experience of ‘Heavenly Bliss’ during lifetime. Come, whoever desires it.” His technique was simple—only fifteen to twenty minutes of “effortless” meditation in the morning and evening, and no need for lifestyle changes or religious and philosophical adjustments. He taught that life is essentially bliss, that all beings are essentially beings of bliss, and that TM can bring everyone into contact with this blissful state of being by gently directing the mind’s natural tendency to seek after happiness toward the inherent happiness of the inner being. He would sometimes refer to this as “watering the root and enjoying the fruit.”

It was winter, and quiet. Hardly another foreigner besides Bevin and Radhanath Swami turned up at the ashram. Only a couple of years earlier, the Beatles, Donovan, and Mia Farrow and her sister Prudence had visited and stayed with Maharishi. Since that time, the influence of yoga and meditation was spreading throughout the world.

Radhanath Swami recounts in his memoir The Journey Home, “Meditating in that sanctified forest and sleeping on that mountaintop were priceless gifts. On three occasions, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi appeared in my dreams. He sat cross-legged, holding a flower, his long graying hair and beard merging with his flowing white robes. Soft light emitted from his rounded face. Although a physically small man, his presence was immense. His soft but penetrating gaze seemed to be calling me into a realm of timeless peace. He did not speak, but simply smiled upon me, closed his eyes, then disappeared.

In time I returned to the solitude of my forest cave, where I asked myself why I left the Maharishi’s ashram. After all, I had only enlightening experiences there. Obviously, the Maharishi was a powerful, loving force  and everybody had been so kind. Why did I move about like this? Again and again in the months to come, I would ask myself this question and each

time I would conclude that I wished to learn from many paths and teachers before I committed myself to one. Until I gain the faith to dedicate my life to a path and a master, I reflected, I will remain a wandering pilgrim.”

While travelling across India, Radhanath Swami came to Patna, a bustling city of huge granaries, colleges, and political buildings in the state of Bihar.

There he met a man who appeared to be in his mid-eighties. He greeted Radhanath Swami in fluent English. “My name is Narayan Prasad, I hail from Patna.” He began to tell his story. “Now that my children are grown, I am retired from government service and come here each day to serve my guru.” Taking Radhanath Swami by the hand, he led him to a marvellous looking man with long white hair and beard. “This is my guru, Rama Sevaka Swami, he is a great bhakti yogi.”

The Swami invited Radhanath Swami to remain at his temple as long as he wished. Ram Sevak Swami was to be the first sadhu who followed the path of bhakti yoga Radhanath Swami would stay with. Like a loving father, Ram Sevak Swami carefully considered Radhanath Swami’s welfare. A gentle smile beamed from his aged face every time he looked at Radhanath Swami. Although four times Radhanath Swami’s age, Ram Sevak Swami fed him with his own hands. Later, when Radhanath Swami was ill, Ram Sevak Swami prepared herbal medicines for him.

Radhanath Swami recounts in his memoir The Journey Home,

“He was a revered Swami and I a lost little soul, a Western kid struggling to find my way. My heart was moved seeing the devotion of Rama Sevaka Swami. It was from him that I learned much about the behavior of an honest and genuine holy man. Simplicity and devotion poured from his heart in whatever he did. Each morning, he spent several hours alone chanting the names of Lord Rama on his

wooden beads and performed his daily worship on the altar with great feeling. One day he explained tome the meaning of his name. “Rama Sevaka means ‘one who serves Lord Rama’ and the greatest service to Rama is to help others to know Him and love Him.” He stroked his flowing white beard and became emotional. “I am indebted to you for allowing me to help you.” Hearing this, even Narayan Prasad was overcome with emotion and had to struggle to speak the translation. As for me, I was only beginning to grasp the meaning of true devotion.”

Sitting on the sandy bank of the Ganges, Radhanath Swami gazed into the cloudless blue sky. There, a hawk, wings extended, soared the airways. His reddish-brown feathers shone in the sun as he hovered lower and lower, till he was just a few yards above Radhanath’s head, his glistening yellow eyes intently scanning the river. Suddenly the hawk plunged headlong into the Ganges. There, a frantic underwater skirmish ensued until the hawk emerged with a flapping  fish, about a foot long, pierced in the grip of his talons. Squirming desperately, the fish was carried overhead and into a nearby forest.

Radhanath Swami recounts in his memoir The Journey Home:

Looking on I reflected, “The unsuspecting fish, who knew nothing but a life in the river, went about its routine like any other day, but in an instant was ripped out of its reality to meet with death. Like that fish, we routinely live our lives hardly aware that, at the least expected moment, the yellow-eyed hawk of fate in the form of crises, tragedy, or even death, may wrench us out of our comfortable environment. We regularly hear of it in the news or see it around us but rarely take seriously that it could happen to us. Perhaps the lesson here is to guard against complacency and give higher priority to our spiritual needs. If the fish swam deeper, the hawk would not be able reach it. Similarly, if we go deeper into our connection to God, we will find an inner reality so deep and so satisfying that it lifts the consciousness to a place where we could deal with the effects of unforeseeable fate with a stable, detached mind.”