Sadhu Ma (Jenny Faucher) describes how she came to Maharajji. This is the first of three short digital video movies of Sadhu Ma speaking about Sri Neem Karoli Baba Maharajji. These movies were made at the time of Guru Purnima 2001 in a house beside Neem Karoli Baba Ashram and Hanuman Temple in Taos, New Mexico. Over a period of several days, many devotees of Maharajji gathered to speak in front of video cameras, about their experiences with Maharajji. This is the first to be released, per Sadhu Ma's wishes.
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Sita: Ram Ram Jai SitaRam. Sadhu Ma, how..., when you first met Maharajji what were the circumstances that brought you to Maharajji and what was that time like?
Sadhu Ma: I met Maharajji through Hilda Charlton who pulled a picture of Him out of a box where he had a very long pencil mustache that went down to here. And I'd never seen anybody quite look like that. It reminded me of this pizza man on seventy-ninth street, second avenue, and ah, that's where I first saw His photo, and heard of Him. She had me go through all these pictures and pick out the ones I felt closest to. And as it turned out I picked out Maharajji and I picked out a picture of Yogananda as a young boy.
And I said, "I want to see Him." And she said I could go to India and go to Nanital and ask at the Evelyn Hotel, and to go. But I had no money. But somebody gave me a one way ticket to London. And then somebody gave me $300. And I took Laker Air over and I left London. I went to Paris. Then I caught the Oriental Express. Got hepititus and landed in - after an incredible journey - to Evelyn Hotel.
I walked into the little kitchen there and Ram Dass was there with Krishna Das and Raghu and a lot of other people. Yeah, I weighed about 90 pounds I guess. And the next day they took me over to Kainchi in a car to visit with Maharajji. And I wasn't dressed properly. And in New Delhi there was a man there selling salwar kameze..., but really it was men's pajamas. And I didn't know that. So, I bought these yellow, bright yellow, men's pajamas. And I went to have my darshan with Maharajji.
And He called me in the room. And um He sat down and started talking for a few minutes to I believe Ram Dass was in the room and like that. He started saying this, "Siddhi Ma, Siddhi Ma, Siddhi Ma." And ah a few minutes later this very incredible looking woman with a white sari walked in. She sat down, pranamed and He made me move and sit by her and ah began telling her things about me.
At that time I didn't know what He was saying because what did I know (/). I was just a hippy on the road, you know? Since that time I've been told what the conversation went like the first time I met Maharajji. He told her, Look Ma, look how much she loves me because she came all this way to see me. It's very difficult to talk. And I did love Him. See if I can get it together here. Um, that what I said I would do I would do. What I said I would do I would do, He told her. And that like sugar to a saint's heart, or some other incredible thing, that I still don't believe He said, to this day.
And so, I went to hide because I heard that Maharajji had these women that He locked up in back of His ashram. And I was a hippy and I didn't want to be locked up in back of the ashram with some old ladies. Si I went after..., I got out of the room as fast as I could. After..., He continued for a while - the darshan. And I went a hid so nobody could find me because now I knew He wanted me to stay. And..., you know. So they found me..., and they were trying to find me to give me prasad. You know? And of course I didn't even know what prasad was. I didn't even know I was supposed to pranam. Or the gracious act of touching His foot. You know? But uh..., that was the first time I met Him.
Note About Sadhu Ma:
Sadhu Ma was very instrumental in the creation of neemkarolibaba.com. She was a very dear friend and we were in India together in 1996 and 1998. During the last years of her life she was almost totally fixated on Maharajji, and particularly Sri Siddhi Ma whom she visited in India during here many trips back and forth. She helped communicate with Mataji many times in the past when information and approval were wanted for some aspect of neemkarolibaba.com. She brought pages of the orginal geocities site to Ma and brought back Ma's reply. In India we just studied so very much with her. Arati practice, stories of Maharajji, and traveling to Maharajji's ashrams. Sadhu was a much more amazing person in India than she appeared in America. Her connections were very deep. Sadhu Ma was a rather wild (as in "untamed") person, but she was known by many with deep love and she had a strength and courage in her service to Babaji that was admirable.
