Innocent, or 350 +

In the early hours of Thursday, July 5, 1968, known as Brahmamuhurta, at 4:25 AM, Kripa Ramji and Ramsakhi Devi were blessed with a son. According to Hindu festivals, this day was 'Bharani Navami'. Two days after this comes 'Hari-Shayan Ekadashi', which is considered the time when Lord Vishnu goes to sleep, and after this, any auspicious work like marriage etc., is said to be prohibited until 'Dev-Uthishth Ekadashi', which falls in the last week of October or the first week of November.

Overall, it was a painless delivery, and what was unusual was that at the time of birth, the baby's body was so clean, as if he had been bathed and sent. But this did not become a topic of discussion because when Ramsakhiji's mother told her husband that the baby did not have a single stain of blood etc., and was born completely clean, Kripa Ramji was also present there, but this feeling was taken as 'a grandmother's admiring sentiment', whereas within her, there was a feeling that this was 'pointing to an abnormality'.

A son was born in the house after many days, and Thakurdasji was extremely happy at the birth of his grandson. The news spread quickly in the village; women and mischievous boys acted as messengers without setting a price. And by ten o'clock in the morning, a flood of congratulations started arriving at Thakur Dasji's house. Thakur Mangal Singh of the village came and happily emptied about twenty-five cartridges from his gun in celebration. The grandfather was overjoyed, and the villagers who were aware of his sorrows were thanking God upon seeing his happiness. It is said that "a person for whose sorrows you have sympathy, you feel more joy seeing the end of their sorrows than if the same sorrow ended for you in the same way. That unseen power must also have felt remorse at being bound by the compulsions of its cycle of time after seeing the end of someone's long-standing sorrows and the intense flow of happiness, otherwise perhaps it would have bestowed this happiness earlier."

The time of birth was sent to Pandit Shri Balakdasji Tripathi of the village, and he also immediately prepared the horoscope and rushed to congratulate, but even before his arrival, the grandfather had announced the name of the child: "Ravi". Congratulations started pouring in for the father and grandfather from all relatives. It was the effect of the sympathy that people had for Thakurdasji that everyone wanted to congratulate him in this happiness. In the house where there was apprehension of darkness, God had sent a lamp.

"The name Ravi seemed short," Kripa Ramji says, "so I thought that Ravi Shankar would be a more appropriate name than just Ravi."

And on the fifth day after birth, the boy Ravi became Ravi Shankar. It was from this age of about five or six days that all those shocking and astonishing things began, upon which if people had seriously considered, they would have understood then and there that this was no ordinary child, whose mind was fully mature and who was definitely in complete senses.

For about fifteen days after a child's birth, they are not given the mother's milk, and as per custom, these days are passed by feeding them cow's or goat's milk with cotton swabs by various women.

For the initial 5-6 days, this task was done by the grandmother, Smt. Kesarbai. Then, when this task was given to other women, he would not even open his mouth, and if he was forcibly fed, he would vomit. This was immediately noticed, but since he readily drank milk from his grandmother's hand, this was dismissed by saying, 'The grandson has taken to his grandmother's touch.'

The second shocking thing that came to light about fifteen days after Ravishri's birth upon careful observation was that he did not soil his clothes while passing stool or urine. Mother Ramsakhi says that it was only after the initial fifteen-twenty days that this was noticed in him. As soon as it was time for him to pass stool or urine, he would start crying, and I would pick him up and take him outside into the courtyard. When I told him about this (pointing towards Ravishri's father, the mother says), he would say that you have gone mad in your love for your son, and I didn't even mention this to other women, thinking that everyone would say that 'a new baby has arrived, so she has become crazy.' Kripa Ramji says, "Baba Ji's mother definitely told me, but I didn't pay much attention, thinking, well, this is a good thing." A significant reason why these childhood things of Ravishri did not become a topic of discussion was 'his father Kripa Ramji's introverted nature and respect for elders.'

In villages and even in cities, in many places, out of respect for elders, called 'lihaz', a son does not take his child in his lap in front of his father, nor will he discuss him. If you are holding your son in your lap in front of your elders, it would be against the respect given to them. Now, whether this is right or wrong is a matter of perspective, but it is true that because of these things, even if Kripa Ramji came to know about something unusual from his wife, he would not consider it appropriate to even discuss it with anyone. Even if there was something astonishing, it would die down while circulating among the women.

As Ravishri completed six months of age, another surprising thing came to light. The mother noticed that if she tried to feed Ravishri water from an unwashed bowl or glass with a spoon, he would close his mouth. If he was forcibly fed, he would vomit. And at the same time when he was refusing to drink from an unwashed bowl or with an unwashed spoon, if milk or water was brought in another clean bowl, he would start looking at it intently. This was also mentioned to Kripa Ramji, but he dismissed it. However, when Thakur Dasji came to know about this, he even tested it, and when he saw that he indeed did not eat or drink anything from an unwashed utensil, he ended the matter by saying, 'He is a cultured child from a previous birth.'

Ravishri's maternal grandparents were very afraid that their grandson might catch someone's evil eye, after all, they had seen their entire family perish one by one. "We could only understand how much they had waited for a grandson after Baba Ji's birth," Kripa Ramji says, who now addresses Ravishri as Baba Ji. Not talking too much about their grandson, performing nazar utarna (warding off the evil eye) every evening, and clearly telling women not to praise him too much had all become part of the grandmother's nature.

A very good thing about Ravishri's nature was that he cried very little, and if he did cry, there would be a specific reason, such as 'hunger, thirst, or needing to go to the toilet.' Otherwise, he would lie quietly. The neighborhood women would say to Ramsakhiji that she was very comfortable, that her son was very quiet, and due to his habit of crying less, no woman hesitated to take him in her lap. And as soon as the grandmother found out, she would go and bring him back. As Ravishri's age was increasing, his childhood plays were also increasing. And due to these childhood plays, the grandparents' age seemed to have come to a standstill. The mother went to the temple every day, praying day and night for Ravishri's long life. The death of her siblings had made her realize the power of time in her childhood itself, so she always harbored a fear in her mind, and it was due to this fear that she started doing excessive worship after Ravishri's birth. Amidst all these things, Ravishri turned one year old. By the time he reached this stage, a fondness had developed in him: "for bathing."

Whoever was bathing in the courtyard, he would insist on bathing with them. By the time he stepped into his second year, his fondness for bathing had reached the point that he would refuse to eat or drink anything without bathing. The mother and grandmother took this to mean that 'he has a fondness for bathing, so this rule has been adopted by his childish intellect.'

It is noteworthy here that even after observing all these things, Thakurdasji did not mention his guru's blessing to anyone. He would say that he is a cultured child from a previous birth, or sometimes that he is a saintly child, or sometimes that these are the natural qualities of a Brahmin child, but he did not discuss the blessing until this time. One funny thing was that his guru had blessed that a saintly man would be born, but it was not elaborated whether he would be of a saintly nature or a self-realized saint himself.

Let's now step into 1970-71 when Ravishri was two to two and a half years old. By this stage, he had started walking and had become dear to everyone, not just his family but also the neighbors. Teenage girls would take him to their homes with them, and when the grandmother would get worried, she would go from house to house asking and bring him back wherever she found him.

Two notable events of 1971 are: first, the death of his grandmother in this year, and second, the birth of Ravishri's younger brother, Harishankar, on the thirteenth day after the grandmother's passing. Both these events occurred in the month of October.

Ravishri has long arms reaching down to his knees (ajaanubhuja), which is given great importance in Hinduism because 'Lord Rama was ajaanubhuja,' meaning having fingers that extend below the knees when the arms are hung down, considered a symbol of the supreme man. Regarding his nature at the age of two-three years, his mother says it was a mixed nature. Sometimes he would create a ruckus for salty snacks or biscuits, and sometimes if there was an unintentional delay in giving him food or if they couldn't give it for some reason, he would remain silent. Regarding the things of this time, his mother says, "One strange thing I noticed was that he would cry for salty snacks and biscuits only on the day his father would bring them. If his father didn't return one day or forgot to bring biscuits, he would not automatically fuss about it that day, whereas his father would suddenly remember and fear that he might start fussing, 'Where are the biscuits?'" His mother says, "These things were such that even if I told anyone, what would I tell, and who would believe it?" This was also true; only a mother can immediately sense even the subtle changes in her son's nature, what her son's thoughts would be on what matter, and what the answer would be – every mother knows well.

Listening to Ravishri's mother's accounts of that time, it seems that she must have indeed been in a very strange dilemma because many things that seemed strange and divine to her, her husband considered just superstition or madness.

She says, "In winters, we would think of not bathing him because it was cold, but he would refuse to eat or drink. Then hot water would be made, he would be bathed, and only then would he eat or drink something. Then this became a rule for winter: make hot water for him, bathe him, and then he would eat and drink. By the time he was three years old, he would go and pour water on himself. Water containers had to be kept out of reach because there was no certainty that he wouldn't bathe again just because he had already bathed."

You can dismiss many things here as coincidence, but coincidence has always held a special place in human life, and in daily life, they hold an important place that cannot be denied. Scientists feel backward in calling these miraculous coincidences miracles, but they become silent about what lies at the root of these coincidences.

While talking about Ravishri, a divine radiance comes on his mother's face; she feels very good talking about her son. If you have met the mother of a soldier and studied her face while talking, if you said, "Your son in the Indian army is like a true son of Mother India," her face would be similar to hers. Broad forehead, with a shining glow, she is a living, breathing idol of gentleness and affection. She gets annoyed at the fact that she doesn't remember many things; she wishes she could remember everything, but at the age of 54-55, remembering things from 25-30 years ago... she says in frustration, "What did we know then that he would reach such heights, otherwise we would have kept writing things down." She now also says to her husband, "If I told him anything about him when he was small, he would say, 'You have become crazy in your love for your son, that's why you see God's play in everything all the time.'"

It's true that Sant Ravishri's face bears a striking resemblance to his mother's. The 'feminine grace' that is still seen on Ravishri's face, along with his gentleness, seems to be a clear reflection of his mother. If you have met Sant Ravishri at Rawatpura and have become well-acquainted with him, what lack do you observe there? You might call the person who asks this question eccentric – how can someone who has the ability to conjure anything from a mustard seed to a mountain in an instant have any lack? But if you ever go from Rawatpura to meet Ravishri's mother, her questions are so simple and emotional that seeing her innocence, simplicity, and affection, tears involuntarily well up. She asks – are they not fasting? Do they eat anything during the fast, or not? Do they sleep at night? Did they drink milk during the fast? Did they drink it in front of you? A long barrage of questions, even though she knows everything is there. 'Motherly love' is truly an amazing feeling! Despite being 54-55 years old, she does all the household chores herself, from cleaning utensils to sweeping and mopping. More than half of her hair has turned gray, and there is a slight weariness of advancing age on her face, but she is extremely quick in her work, every task has a fixed time, she generally talks less, gets momentarily angry, which quickly subsides, and tears well up in the eyes of this gentle woman of a highly emotional nature at the slightest thing, then she tries to stop them and continues talking. Her words and eyes always clearly reflect her longing for her son, who is a saint for the world and 'Baba Ji' for her husband.

In 1972, at the age of four, Ravishri's 'Mundan Sanskar' (tonsure ceremony) took place at the famous temple of "Achhru Mata." Recalling the time of the tonsure ceremony, his father Kripa Ramji says that children definitely cry before or after the tonsure, but he happily got his done and then happily ran his hand over his head where his hair was gone. The bewilderment that children express when their hair disappears was completely absent, and after the tonsure, he even asked the barber to 'do it once more,' meaning to shave again. These things had astonished me; I didn't say anything to anyone, but I was forced to think internally that there was something different.

'I had come to know that he was an incarnation of some saintly man,' Mother Ramsakhi Devi says. 'I had also reconsidered the dream's implications after seeing his characteristics, but I had no words to express all these things. He would play in the mud, make Shiva lingams out of mud, and then tell the children to offer flowers on them. If he was taken along to any discourse or satsang (spiritual gathering), he would not cry like other children but would keep looking quietly, as if he were listening and understanding. What is said in our tradition, 'The signs of greatness are visible in the cradle,' this saying was coming true here! To what extent could that innocent mother even understand the boundless expanse and infinite seriousness hidden in this small child? Neither she nor anyone else could have ever imagined...'

Year 1973 - 1981

It is certified that Shri Ravi Shankar Sharma, son of Shri Kripa Ram Sharma, according to the school records, his date of birth is 04-01-69. He passed the 5th grade in the year 1981. His admission number is 422, dated 25-7-73.

Govt. Primary School, Chhipri

District - Tikamgarh (M.P.)

The above certificate was given to us by the school in Chhipri, which was only up to primary level in 1973.

His mother says that when he was four to four and a half years old and the discussion about sending him to school started, he would refuse, saying, "Don't send me to school, I don't want to study, I will not study." Kripa Ramji, by nature, had maintained his dominance in the house from the beginning. He never pampered Ravishri excessively, didn't hold him in his lap much, so it was natural for him to be less outgoing and for a fear to develop in the child. Additionally, scolding severely on small matters and getting excessively angry was in Kripa Ramji's nature from the beginning, which had such a psychological effect on Ravishri that until he reached Rawatpura, he always maintained a distance from his father. 'A tension was always felt in their relationship.'

His father himself went to get him admitted to school. He got his date of birth written down as one year less, thinking that this would be useful later when he would get a job etc. He was the first son, regarding whom the father had a vast store of ambitions. Kripa Ramji says, "I asked my brother several times to get him admitted earlier, but when I would come home from the office in the evening and ask about it, I would find out that he was unwell today, Ravishri's mother stopped him today, he had a stomach ache today, sometimes this, sometimes that. I understood that his uncle wouldn't be able to get him admitted. Finally, I had to take a day off from my office, and only then could his admission be done."

In 1973, Ravishri started going to school from home, and around the same time, the social environment of Chhipri started changing. The reason for this change was Shri Ramakrishna Mishra, who had been an MLA from Tikamgarh in 1957 and was given a ticket by the Congress from the 'Jatara assembly constituency, under which Chhipri village falls.' He was not only famous for his honesty but was also called the Chanakya of politics. Upon winning the 1972 election, Mishraji emerged as a messiah against the oppression happening in the villages. His honest image, strong hold on power, and angry stance against those who violated democracy brought about an unprecedented change not only in Chhipri but in the entire region, and from 1972-73, the graph of criminal elements started falling rapidly.

By the time Ravishri completed five years of age, his upper and lower sets of teeth had fully emerged, but his father says, "It was a matter of surprise and concern that not a single one of his milk teeth had fallen out, and when I got him examined by a doctor at the age of 13-14, he was astonished that 'the set of teeth which are called molars did not even exist in him.' But since the doctor said after the examination that 'there is nothing to worry about,' we were reassured."

When asked about this, Dr. Rajendra Pateriya, a dental specialist posted in Tikamgarh, and Dr. Ashok Nayak, a pediatrician, say that 'not falling of milk teeth' is neither surprising nor impossible. Sometimes 'permanent teeth' themselves remain as milk teeth, but this happens with one person out of a lakh. The two doctors certainly find the absence of milk molars surprising; they say, "We have neither seen nor heard of such a thing, but it is not impossible."

Mathura Prasad Tripathi was the headmaster of the primary school where Ravishri was admitted. Tripathi Ji is now retired and resides in Chhipri. Looking at Tripathi Ji, he appears like a retired army man – tall stature, broad shoulders, large mustache, and a booming voice. His hair color has now turned gray, but in his younger days, he must have had a very impressive and commanding personality. He says, "I can never forget one incident, and now it seems how profound it was. It was about the fourth grade; Ravishri was sitting in the classroom facing the wall, while all the other children were looking towards me. Suddenly, my attention went towards him, and I got angry. I called him near and scolded him, 'Will the wall teach you?' To this, he angrily said, 'What will you teach us? The Almighty will teach us.'"

Ravishri did get admitted to the first grade, but he didn't come to school regularly from the beginning. Ultimately, in 1974, his father asked Tripathi Ji again to keep him in the first grade so that his foundation could be strong. But in the same year, he went to his ancestral village Aari, where Ravishri's aunt had come from Piparaua Kala (Bhander district, Datia). From Aari, he went to Piparaua and would just go and sit in the school there. By the time he returned, the year had ended, and as a result, from July 1975, he again started sitting in the first grade in Chhipri itself. "Ravishri was not very bright in studies, nor did I understand anything special during this time," Tripathi Ji says. "My special attention was only drawn towards him because he was a child from a Brahmin family of the village. Besides this, his parents kept saying, 'Please take care of him.'" When he came to the first grade again in 1975, he had become regular, and there was also strictness at home regarding his studies. By the time he reached the second grade, his regularity was maintained, and whenever he started skipping school, I would complain at home, and his father would take my complaint seriously. In this way, he remained regular 'out of fear' until the third grade, and I kept passing him every year. It was about 1979 when Ravishri was in the fourth grade that I saw children starting to surround him! If he was in class, the children were in class, and if he was absent, all the children were missing. It was from this year that he started his irregularity. I called him and scolded him many times, but it had no effect. One habit he definitely had was that he was very serious. If I ever scolded him, he would listen quietly and say that he would come every day from now on, but the result was the same: 'the same old story.'"

Tripathi Ji further narrates, "But what I couldn't understand was why the children were always surrounding him. Finally, when I found all the children missing again, I caught four or five of them, made them sit near me, and scolded them for disappearing with him. 'What do you all keep doing?' I asked. Scared, one of them revealed, 'That Ravi feeds us pedas (Indian sweets).' So I said, 'What's so special about that? He must be bringing them from home.' But the children said, 'No, he makes pedas with magic and feeds us!'"

"I didn't pay much attention to this because I really couldn't even imagine him being able to do all this at such a young age. Then, gradually, I saw that not only the boys in his class but also those in other classes started getting attracted to him. Besides this, older boys, like bullies, would also bother him and take him along with them during school hours. Upon inquiring, the same thing came to light: 'Ravi' feeds pedas! And that's why the children bother him and surround him."

Tripathi Ji continues, "Neither did Ravishri ever complain to me about any child, nor did he ever fight with anyone. Even if a child ever hit him, and I asked him about it, he wouldn't complain; he would just keep looking at me quietly with a calm expression. When he started being absent from school very often, I would mark his attendance at the end of the day. During that time, I asked other children several times where he goes? They would say that he goes to the cave of the Siddhas and disappears after reaching there. I considered the story of disappearing to be not just a hundred but two hundred percent false and fabricated. It was around this time that his father, upon my complaint, beat him after tying him up – regarding the 'incident of facing the wall.' Since then, I had stopped complaining at his home; then I also started feeling pity for him."

Tripathi Ji says, "Once at home, during this time, my wife Savitri Devi told me, 'Ravi has attained Siddhi; he can conjure pedas.' I was shocked! Because my wife is an intelligent woman, and only then did I also notice that the children who until yesterday used to call him 'Ravi' had now started calling him 'Ravi Maharaj' (Ravi, the Great). I pressed my wife, 'He must have fooled you, brought them secretly,' but she said, 'No, I have tested him in every way, and many times. Ravi had even forbidden me from telling you that if the master sahib (teacher) finds out, he will complain to his father, and I will get beaten.'"

"I didn't say anything to Ravi," Tripathi Ji recounts, "but I couldn't digest the fact that a 10-11 year old boy could do all this. I had heard a lot about such powers but had never seen them, and what I had heard was about accomplished tantrics. So, my mind couldn't accept my wife's words. I didn't think it appropriate to ask Ravi to show me all this because it was proper for a student and a teacher to maintain a distance. However, one incident fulfilled my wish. A fight among the children came to me. In school, the children had beaten Ravi. When I asked, the same thing came to light. I sent all the children away and asked Ravi, 'I have been hearing all this for a long time, what is the truth?' He kept denying it at first, but upon giving him assurance of safety, he said, 'Okay, take this,' and truly, a peda appeared out of thin air! I asked, 'Ravi, how do you do all this?' He replied, 'We go to the cave of the Siddhas, and that's where I got the Siddhi (spiritual power).'"

Tripathi Ji says that after this, he warned him and let him go, saying that if he ever did this in school again, he would complain to his father. Considering his age, it was an astonishing miracle. After this, he didn't completely stop doing all this in school but did it very rarely. However, his irregularity persisted. He would leave home for school but disappear in between. Children would say, 'Ravi Maharaj has gone to the cave of the Siddhas.' There wouldn't be two consecutive days when he would come to school. He was extremely careless about studies; just let him stay away from school, and he would go anywhere."

Tripathi Ji says, "During that time, there wouldn't be any child at whose place he hadn't gone to eat. He had a fakir-like and carefree nature from his childhood."

Mathura Prasad Ji Tripathi's wife, Savitri Devi, says, "Running away from school, he would often come to me and say that the master sahib couldn't find him here. Then he would say, 'Feed me, and I will feed you prasad (blessed food) from Orchha, or sometimes I will feed you prasad from Ayodhya,' and afterwards, he would actually feed them. She says, "Once I asked, 'Ravi, how do you do this?' He replied that he had met a Baba Ji near the cave of the Siddhas, and he had given him the blessings."

This was the year 1979 when the miracles related to Ravishri conjuring prasad etc., started in school. It's difficult to say which was the first incident in this box of wonders. However, from 1978-79, he had started opening his miraculous pouch. Discussing this period, his mother says, "Earlier, when he was small, he used to go to the temple with us, but then he left the temple and started going towards that mysterious cave of Sharda Maa and the platform of Siddha Baba. At home, his father would often get angry at him for not going to school and not paying attention to studies, so he had stopped even coming in front of his father. Whenever we would inquire about him, we would get news that he had gone to the platform of Siddha Baba or was sitting near that cave."

You have already read about that mysterious cave. What is inside this cave? Only God knows! But it is an indisputable truth that Ravishri started going inside this cave from this time. But how he would go inside this cave is a mystery because the path leading inside this cave is very small, through which only a cat can pass. Many of his childhood friends from that time say that he would disappear after reaching that cave. They would go there with all their friends, and he would tell the other children to sit away from him. He himself would go up to the mouth of the cave. The children would be busy talking, and he would disappear. His friends say that they would search for him everywhere, but he would not be found anywhere, because initially, even those childhood friends did not believe that he had gone into the cave. But there was no hiding place around the cave where he could hide, and his friends wouldn't be able to find him!

From this time onwards, such a passion for going near that cave took hold of him that he started going there even at night. Mother Ramsakhi Ji says, "He would often disappear at night. At that time, there were many thefts in Chhipri, due to which everyone would sleep after properly closing all doors and windows at night. And when his disappearing started, we started locking the doors, but still, we wouldn't know where he went! And he would return before dawn so that his father wouldn't find out." His mother was also afraid that his father would find out, so she would explain, "Look, Ravi, don't go anywhere at night," but he would clearly deny ever going anywhere at night. His mother says, "I never caught him exactly at the time he would leave the house at night, but several times in winter, it would happen that he would lie down with me, and when I would suddenly wake up, due to the coldness of his feet, it would seem as if he had returned after wandering somewhere. I would ask, 'Where had you gone? Why are your feet so cold?' Or I would see him missing at night and then find him back in bed in the morning, and upon asking, he would start giving vague answers."

Amidst all these things, time was flying at its full speed. In 1978-79-80, and then in 1981, Ravishri passed the fifth grade. Before this, in 1980, he didn't even sit for all the fifth-grade exams, and as a result, he got a supplementary exam. It's difficult to say exactly in which month and year the various incidents that I am now going to mention, which happened in the villages, occurred, but it is certain that these are things from between 1978 and 1981, that is, from the age of ten to thirteen years. Here, the conclusion that clearly emerges during his age is that the personality of a great saint was contained in the body of a small boy. This boy had brought with him the impressions and experiences of his previous birth. The world was looking at him through the eyes of a child, and he was taking advantage of this.

This was the life of a child with mature thoughts. It is in itself a very thrilling and interesting imagination that if our mind were fully aware in that period of life called 'childhood,' we would live that 'childhood' by grasping it tightly, but for that, it would be very important that it should not become apparent to people that in reality, you possess a mind belonging to an experienced person. Everything you say should suggest that you are a child. Take a ride on this flying chariot of imagination; you won't feel like getting off.

Radhe Yadav of Chhipri says, "The mouth of the cave is certainly very small, but he took me along and made me sit at the opening in such a way that my back was towards that hole. Then he asked, 'What will you eat?' I said, 'Gulab Jamun (Indian sweet),' so he said... 'Wait... I'll bring it... close your eyes first.' I closed my eyes, and barely two seconds later, he disappeared, then didn't come back for a very long time. I went up and sat near Sharda Maa. Then when he came, his hair was so wet as if he had just taken a bath, and he had sweets in his hands!"

It is impossible for a 10-12 year old child to go inside that cave, yet eyewitnesses cannot be denied, and there isn't just one eyewitness but many. Radhe says that all the children had strict instructions not to tell anyone anything; whoever told would have 'utti' (a form of silent treatment or breaking off friendship), nor would they ever be fed pedas. Ravishri would ask the children, "Let's go, shall we go inside the cave?" But childish minds didn't think about how they would go inside. All the children would refuse because they were scared. After he went, all the children would get busy playing on that hill and wait for him.

In all the incidents up to Ravishri reaching Rawatpura, it is also seen that the person in front always responded according to Ravishri's wishes with their own intellect. He never had to face unfavorable responses. The implication is that if the children had said, or even one child had said, "Come, take us inside," it might have become an unfavorable situation, but it never happened. Truth or lie, God knows, but many people in the village said that years ago, when the Siddha spirit would possess someone here, and they were asked what was inside the cave, they would reply that many great souls were absorbed in penance inside. Ravishri's mother says that when it started spreading that he goes inside the cave, I asked, "Ravi, what is inside the cave? Why do you go?" Ravishri's reply was that there is a white-haired Mahatma (great soul) inside; you will be scared to see him. Then he would give his mother prasad, saying that the Mahatma had given it for her. Besides this, he would say that there is a reservoir inside, a garden with fruits and flowers. His mother said, "How will you take me inside?"

(Where does this cave end? It's a mystery, and many people are eager to know this secret because it's felt that the cave goes very deep inside, but no one knows how far. Due to the narrow entrance, no one can go in. However, Ravishri had discussed this mystery with his mother. Ravishri had learned this age-old secret in his childhood itself. Many years later, this secret is being revealed through this book, according to what Ravishri told his mother in childhood)

Ravishri told his mother that "This cave goes all the way to the fort of Lidhaura; a very big treasure is kept inside! I will take you inside from the fort." But his mother refused, saying, "I don't want to go; just thinking about it scares me." Apart from his mother, Ravishri never told anyone where the cave ends.

His mother recounts a childhood incident when Ravishri was 7-8 years old: "I was going to the temple in the evening, and he was following me when suddenly a bullock cart came from behind. Hearing the sound, I moved to one side, but he kept walking in his own world. As it came near, a bull pushed him from behind with its horns, and he fell under the wheel. When I saw this scene, my eyes closed, and the puja plate fell, but as soon as I opened my eyes, he was standing there unharmed." His mother says, "His survival seemed like a coincidence to me at that time... but now... it seems like a miracle."

In 1980-81, Ravishri expanded the scope of his miracles, and he started telling people suitable places to dig wells. If a well was dug at the place he indicated, there were neither any particular difficulties in digging nor any failures. The depth at which he would say water would be found, water would astonishingly be found at exactly that depth. He started helping the rural people solve their small problems, from lost objects to lost animals. If anyone lost or had something stolen, he wouldn't reveal the thief's name, but he would tell where the thief had kept the goods. If a cow or buffalo was lost, he would tell them to go to a certain place, and they would find it, and everything would turn out to be true. As a result, talk about Ravishri spread to other villages, but despite these discussions, his father would not find out about these things because it was his strict instruction that they were telling, but no one should know about this.

During this time, a significant role in the spread of these miraculous बातें (things/incidents) of Ravishri was played by Kadore Kachhi, a resident of Chhipri who worked as a laborer in their house and fields. Kadore Kachhi's age at this time is 60-65 years. His way of talking is so impressive that if he were to set out to prove that he knew some Siddhis (spiritual powers), he would prove it through his words alone.

'Kadore' had created an image of himself as a 'guniyan' (sorcerer/tantric) in the village who could perform exorcisms and find buried treasure. It is often seen in villages that some people, to show off a different image, start pretending to be tantrics and begin to deceive innocent people.

Kadore was also one of these clever individuals. As soon as he got the news that Ravishri could do all this, he immediately started befriending Ravishri and, on the other hand, started telling people that he now got all this work done by this boy. If anyone had any problem or wanted to ask anything, they first had to contact Kadore. In a nearby village 'Varma', a Ghoshi's (milkman caste) boy went missing. Hearing about Ravishri, when he came, he had to meet Kadore. Kadore said, "Yes, he is a boy I have trained; he will tell you, but it will cost seven hundred rupees." The Ghoshi agreed. Ravishri was called to the field, and the problem was presented. At that time, Ravishri said he would tell later and postponed the matter. The Ghoshi wanted to give 80 rupees as an advance, which Kadore eagerly took. The Ghoshi left, and here Ravishri got angry with Kadore, saying that his boy was not going to return, and then why did you take the money?

A few days later, the same person came again. Kadore tried to mislead him, but he understood Kadore's trickery and went back with his money. After coming into contact with Kadore, Ravishri started tying 'gada' (amulets). Tying 'gada' means tying amulets; if someone doesn't have children, they tie an amulet for them. There are many people in the villages who do this work.

Kadore had been doing this work for a long time but hadn't been successful. Once, he thought that this boy had the grace of a Siddha, so he should get an amulet tied by his hand. And indeed, he succeeded in getting an amulet tied by Ravishri's hand, and another task was added to Ravishri's works.

Kadore says, "Once, an officer from the irrigation department, whose name I don't remember, came to me asking me to introduce him to Ravishri. He didn't have children. Ravishri gave him an amulet and told him to make his wife wear it. After 9-10 months, he came again and started offering money etc., to Ravishri. Astonishingly, he had gotten a son after many years. Ravishri refused to take the money and said, 'Get a Bhagwat Katha (religious discourse) done.' Kadore says, 'I told him many times to take the money, but he wouldn't listen.'"

Kadore was called 'Dade' (grandfather) by Ravishri, and there was a lot of closeness between the two. Kadore says that he was a carefree Baba (saintly figure), would eat anywhere, sleep anywhere, had no attachments, no worldly desires. Once, when Kadore asked, Ravishri told him that near Sharda's cave, a Mahatma was sitting on a white horse. He asked me what I would eat? I said, 'Feed me prasad.' So, he took me on his horse to a cave in the forest, fed me prasad, gave me water, and said that from today onwards, whatever you ask for, you will get, and wherever you point, water will come out. Hearing this, Kadore said, 'Let's find that cave.' Then both of them kept searching for the cave in the forest but were disappointed.

Kadore says, "Seeing his miracles, I was stunned, and his words convinced me that he does everything by the grace of Siddha Baba. Then, once, he climbed a Mahua tree in the field to pluck 'guli' (Mahua flowers), and a branch broke from about 30-35 feet above. He came down spinning like a wheel and stood up as if he had jumped from only two feet and said, 'I survived.' Since then, not only I but many people had started believing that this boy had the grace of a Siddha, which is why he survived."

However, due to these miracles, the number of people meeting Ravishri started increasing, and what he and his mother feared happened: Ravishri's father found out about all these miracles he was performing. Kripa Ramji says, "Earlier, I used to see only children surrounding him, then I saw that even older people were standing outside. If you asked them... what's the matter?... they would say, 'We want to meet Ravi Maharaj.' Until this time, his father and those who associated with him in the village did not know that he gave blessed food, even though he had been doing all this for three years."

His father first got all this information in August 1982 when he came home early from the office on August 15th, and a person asked him, "...Isn't Ravi Maharaj's father inside?"...Why, what's the matter? Ravi Shri's father asked. "Oh, we need to take Ravi Maharaj with us; our daughter-in-law can't conceive; we need an amulet tied." Kripa Ramji's anger reached the seventh heaven, yet he suppressed his anger and asked, "Then why are you asking for the father?" The person replied, "Ravi Maharaj had said to first find out if his father is not at home, and if he is at home, then call me outside the village." Kripa Ramji understood everything, and that person who had come faced his wrath. In the evening, Ravishri was also properly dealt with, and strict restrictions were imposed on Ravishri, and those who came to meet him also started getting scolded.

Kripa Ramji says, "Hearing all this, I was mentally disturbed because predicting wells and tying amulets for children all look good in the hands of Babas (holy men). For a boy from a respectable family to do all this was not only indecent but also against the honor and dignity of the family. I used to think about what people would think and say that the village worker's son is going around performing exorcisms." Kripa Ramji was deeply shocked by all this; he couldn't tolerate it at all.

After his father found out, the number of children and visitors to the house decreased significantly, but this number started increasing outside the village. Those who came would meet him very cautiously and get their problems solved, but what was commendable was that despite all the children and people from other villages knowing about this, he was not much talked about in Chhipri until this time. Whoever found out either kept it to themselves, like Master Mathura Prasad Ji, or didn't believe it, like Sobran Singh and other elders, who would say that they had heard that he could make pedas and locate wells, but initially, until 1981-82, no one took this matter seriously. Instead, they thought that those who saw and heard must have been mistaken; what could this crazy boy do?

During this time, a cow that was locked in the Kanji House (cattle pound) was auctioned. Ravishri also went to that auction with Kripa Ramji; this was in Chhipri itself. It was a black cow with small horns. As soon as Ravishri saw it, he insisted to his father that he wanted this cow at any cost. His father says that his insistence was so great that ultimately he had to buy that cow for 60 rupees. The cow came home, a rope was immediately brought from the market for it, it was bathed, Aarti (a ritual of worship) was performed, and it was named "Shyama."

Ravishri took complete responsibility for Shyama cow upon himself. He would take her to graze, prepare her feed, bathe her, and milk her, all with his own hands.

Ravishri's mother says that he was extremely attached to that cow. Once, he left the cow in the forest and came home. The rope was still tied around the cow's neck. In the evening, the cow came home, but the rope was missing. Ravishri was called and scolded. He, along with his brother and friends, barged into the house of a woman named Kashi Bai, who lived in a nearby village but was known as "Maai," and started saying, "Give back that rope that was left around the cow's neck." "Which rope? What kind of rope? What do I know?" Maai flatly denied. Ravishri said, "The same rope that you have put in the 'kuthia' (a closed mud storage for keeping grains in villages)." Hearing this, Maai was stunned. How did a 12-13 year old boy know something that only she knew? In a bewildered state, she touched his feet, apologized, and returned the rope. Ravishri came back and said, "Here, Shyama, take your rope; don't let anyone untie it now."

That cow had also become so attached to Ravishri that if Ravishri was not seen for two days, she would shed tears and stop eating fodder. Singing the melodious songs of Shri Krishna grazing cows, Ravishri would wander through the forests with other shepherds, always with a sweet smile on his lips, a sweet voice, and a love for freedom like the wind. Even in his childhood, Ravishri had a vast and independent spirit. He would lead his peers and roam around with everyone like a bird.

His mother says, "His father started getting very mentally disturbed, and seeing his worry, the whole house was troubled. I would go to the temple, make vows, recite stories, and have stories recited at home so that Ravi's mind would become alright." At the same time, a sadhu (ascetic) came to the village to beg for alms, who would beg at only one house a day. When he came to Ravishri's house, his mother told him her problem, "Tell me something about Ravi." The sadhu replied, "Either your son will go mad, or he will be worshipped like God. If you want everything to be alright, then feed young girls and make the boy offer water to the Peepal tree; otherwise, your son will split like bamboo." His mother says that she fed the girls, but even after a thousand pleas, she could not get him to offer water to the Peepal tree.

Ravishri could not pronounce 'machis' (matchbox) correctly. He ate very little sweet food. From the beginning, he was extremely careless about eating and drinking, never combed his hair, stayed away from oil and soap, never ate jaggery but drank a lot of tea.

He greatly liked spinach curry, colocasia, and urad dal (black lentils). One thing from his childhood that points towards the fact that he knew he had to become a saint later in life is that he would sit in the kitchen and eat, and he would tell his mother to throw the roti (Indian bread) to him, not to come and place it in his plate. His mother disliked this, so he would say, "You also give it to the sadhus in the same way, give it to me the same way." This would often become a reason for arguments between mother and son. His mother says, "I understood all his बातें (things/ways) only when he reached Rawatpura. His nature, conduct, and values were all like a saint's; never fought with anyone, never complained to anyone, never answered back to anyone, a very calm personality."

Before moving forward, some other significant incidents occurred with Ravishri in his childhood. One of the main ones was the brutal beating of some miscreants of the village by the police. When MLA Shri Ramakrishna Mishra reprimanded the police regarding the increasing incidents of robbery and dacoity, the police force became active and caught a gang of twenty people in Chhipri itself who were involved in those incidents. To teach a lesson to others and instill fear in the minds of criminals, the entire gang was brutally beaten in front of the villagers. This incident left such an impression on Ravishri's mind that he started calling the police wicked and demons and advised his friends to stay away from them. Many people believe that it was due to the psychological impact of this incident that he would become frightened upon seeing policemen.

In January 1978, during a discussion at home about Ravishri's birth, when the pre-birth dreams and some of Ravishri's special habits, such as drinking milk only from a washed bowl, not eating or drinking anything without bathing, having a serious demeanor from childhood, and worshipping the Shiva lingam, etc., were mentioned, Thakur Dasji told Kripa Ram about the blessing given by his guru 'Lal Ji Sarkar,' saying, "My guru had said that the son born to your daughter will be of a saintly nature, and one day the world will bow down before him." However, Kripa Ramji says, "Just as Thakurdasji never took this blessing seriously, similarly, despite his telling me, until Baba Ji (Ravishri is addressed as Babaji by his father) reached Rawatpura and I found out about the crowds gathering there, I also did not consider this blessing at all noteworthy, nor did I ever pay attention to his activities, which were definitely those of an extraordinary saint, that as a result of such a blessing, bound by a law of nature, he was born in my house. Until the very end, my only effort was that he should live life like ordinary children." Kripa Ramji says, "If Thakur Dasji had lived until Babaji's adolescence, perhaps he would have again emphasized his guru's blessing, and we would have believed that he was indeed a saint. But destiny is inevitable. Babaji's maternal grandfather passed away some time after mentioning it only once during a casual conversation."

After Thakurdasji's death in 1978, Kripa Ram Sharma became the head of the household. The atmosphere of theft and robbery persisted in Chhipri, and the police would often arrest someone or the other; most of these people were innocent and caught on suspicion. Kripa Ramji always had a fear that no one should ever point a finger at any member of his family. After Thakurdasji's death, he had become extremely serious. It clearly seems that Kripa Ramji had not been able to fully adapt to the environment of Chhipri by this time. He always tried to ensure that nothing happened that would bring any member of his family into the limelight for any reason. In the atmosphere of fear and terror spread all around, Thakurdasji's death had snatched away his father-like support. One thought always remained in his mind: when Thakurdasji was there, everything was there; now if any trouble came... to whom would they turn... and who would support them?

Kripa Ramji's younger brother, Laxminarayan Ji, says that during this time, they had bought land for farming, so the influential people around them also started feeling jealous and envious upon seeing them prosper. My brother was afraid that these people might falsely implicate them in some case out of spite, and at the same time, Ravishri's antics started increasing, so instead of publicizing his name, we would suppress and deny his miracles, saying that no, he can't do anything, it's all wrong. He says, "We hadn't fully mingled with the villagers by this time either. Ravishri mostly roamed outside, and there was no telling when and where a theft would occur in the village. Therefore, there was a fear that if someone implicated him in theft etc., where would we bring his testimony from that 'where was he at the time of the theft?' That's why as soon as he disappeared from home, the search for him would immediately begin, and this was the reason why his father kept him under excessive control."

The family members never saw these miracles of Ravishri, nor did he ever admit to them that he could do anything. Until 1981-82, the family members, especially the male members, were in a dilemma as to why people were after him when he couldn't do anything. Only his mother had an inkling that there was some divine power within him and that the people who talked about his miracles were not wrong. Apart from his mother, his younger brothers had themselves eaten prasad etc., many times, but Ravishri had strictly instructed his younger brothers never to tell anyone anything. It was never certain what would appear as miraculously conjured prasad. If the children expressed a desire to eat fruits, fruits would appear; if they asked for raisins, they would appear.

When Ravishri would take the cow to graze, the shepherds who were with him would look at Ravishri when they felt hungry. Ravishri would first make everyone swear that they wouldn't tell anyone, and then he would ask everyone to close their eyes and ask what they wanted to eat. Radhe Yadav says that 'whatever vegetable we talked about, a plate adorned with that vegetable, poori (fried bread), and kheer (rice pudding) would appear.'

His younger brother, Vijay Shankar, who was called Baby at home, was the one Ravishri loved the most. If it got late while wandering in the forest, he would carry Baby on his shoulders and bring him home. In the meantime, if Baby felt hungry, kheer would immediately appear. 'After eating, the utensils had to be washed,' Radhe says, 'The utensils etc., were made of silver – gleaming new plates. After washing, we would give them to Ravishri, and he would again ask us to close our eyes, and the plates would disappear'.........!

The accounts of Ravishri that you have read so far are up to the age of 13-14 years of his physical body. These are the accounts of that child whom no one saw worshipping, nor performing tantra-mantra, nor meditating, nor had he taken initiation from anyone until this age, nor was he seen in the company of any saint or sage. Many incidents were observed when he was only 3-4 days old, for which his mother says that he would drink milk only if the bowl was washed, he would not drink anyone's leftover milk, if there was a washed bowl on one side and an unwashed bowl on the other, he would look towards the washed bowl – all these incidents happened numerous times. Upon contemplating these incidents, one feels that he was a born saint and was definitely in complete senses at all times. Every incident up to this time hides strangeness within itself, which seems impossible, but all this is the play of nature and that unseen power, which made it happen through a child to show its capabilities.

I will keep acquainting you with many other astonishing feats that happened in the village from time to time. For now, let's accompany Ravishri on this exciting journey from Chhipri to Rawatpura and go to Lidhaura, where Ravishri took admission in class 6th in July 1981. The school in Chhipri was only up to the fifth grade. After passing the fifth grade in 1981 and coming to Lidhaura in July, Ravishri's wings stretched, just like when a bird is released outside after being caged for a long time. Until the age of 13, he could not stay away from home due to the strict discipline of his mother, father, and uncle, because a search for him would immediately begin. If you were not found at home and school, punishment by the father was certain, and you would not have a suitable excuse to offer. Here, the school was also very close to home, otherwise, that would have been an excuse that you were on the way to school. Upon coming to Lidhaura, Ravishri got all these facilities. Lidhaura is about five kilometers away from Chhipri. Upon reaching the new school in Lidhaura, Ravishri did not face any difficulty in meeting new friends. His peers from Chhipri immediately made him famous, saying that he feeds prasad, and soon he became the center of attention for the boys in his class, and children started surrounding him. Initially, everything was fine, but after a month or two, he started getting annoyed by those children, and then children from other classes also started bothering him for prasad. But at such a time, Ravishri became friends with Sudeep Pastore, who was the son of Swami Prasad Pastore, who was the MLA of the Lidhaura region in 1982. Sudeep was also in his class and had a dominant presence among the boys in the class. As the friendship between Ravishri and Sudeep grew, other boys reduced bothering him, and the hassle of Ravishri distributing prasad became limited to Sudeep.

Many classmates from that time don't have any specific memories of him now, except that he would miraculously conjure prasad. However, Sudeep recounts some more. He says that during the initial days of their friendship, Ravishri had developed itching in his hands, so he brought a tube from the market and gave it to him, which cured the itching. Sudeep explains the reason for giving the tube: "It was true that I protected him from other boys, but besides that, I was eager to gain his close friendship. After giving the tube, he would often come to my house with me, eat here, and even stay here if it got late." Sudeep's mother, Smt. Bhageshwari Pastore, says, "All the school children would come to the hand pump near our house to drink water. Once, I saw a crowd of children standing at the hand pump at an unusual time. When I scolded everyone and chased them away, one child remained standing. He told me that Ravi Maharaj had distributed prasad to everyone, so they had come to drink water. 'What kind of prasad?' Upon asking this, I found out that the boy could conjure pedas with magic." Smt. Pastore inquired which boy it was and called him through Sudeep.

According to Smt. Pastore, Ravishri's appearance at that time was like this: "Tangled hair, no oil, no comb, an old kurta, big shorts, itching in his hands, a face with extreme innocence and naivety, a habit of looking with a deep gaze!" When Sudeep's mother asked, Ravishri flatly denied it, saying, "We don't make prasad, the boys are lying." Possibly, this was Ravishri's first day of coming to Sudeep's house, but after this day, it became his permanent hangout where he would often stay for ten days at a stretch. Sudeep's mother was acquainted with Ravishri's family, and Kripa Ramji had the satisfaction that his son was in a safe place, so there was no problem. Ravishri came to Lidhaura to study from July 1981 to March 1983. During these two years, he didn't have any fixed routine. He would stay at Sudeep's house, eat whatever was available – though he especially liked roti with tomato chutney and khichdi (a dish made of rice and lentils), that too only once, in the evening. He would bathe at the hand pump, wash his clothes, dry them, and wear them again. Recounting an incident of finding buried treasure, Sudeep says that once he told me, "Let's go and dig up some treasure for you," and at night, both fourteen-year-old boys started going towards the temple with a hoe. Just then, a policeman was seen, and Ravishri postponed his plan, saying, "Some other time," and that 'some other time' never came.

Sudeep's mother says that once Ravishri told her, "Amma, let me dig up some treasure for you; it's buried near the temple." So, she lashed out at him, saying, "Do you think I'm a fool like the children?" She says that "he looked half-mad, as if he had lost something. Then, at such a young age, no one could even think that it was a mistake to consider this boy a child."

Shri N. D. Ahirwar, who taught Sanskrit in the 6th grade and was a man of serious demeanor, says, "His nature was different from ordinary children – extremely serious, very quiet, would stand silently when scolded." He recounts, "He used to come to the 6th grade regularly. When he became irregular in between, I explained to him that he was a Brahmin boy and Sanskrit would be useful for him in the future. He understood this, and he became regular. I had heard about the miracles, but I never asked him whether these things were true or false. However, I believed that all these things must be wrong because he was very young."

Another teacher, Kamal Ahirwar, says, "When I heard that he could perform miracles, I inquired about it from him. He told me that there was Siddha Baba in 'Chhipri' whose grace it was, and at that time, the boys who came from Chhipri used to say that he would go near that cave and disappear. Then I took him to my house to test his powers. He surprised me by telling me such inner things that only I knew, and I kept staring at him in amazement. I understood that there was some divine power within him." Shri Kamal Ahirwar says, "I have no hesitation in saying this, and I admit that I used to be afraid of him, a hesitation that 'this is a divinely powerful child' – I always had."

In 1982, Ravishri passed the 6th grade, and from the 7th grade onwards, he adopted a path of irregularity. N. D. Ahirwar says, "Despite my repeated explanations, he did not become regular again; he would disappear sometimes for seven days and sometimes for ten days."

Another classmate, Rajiv Daroga, says that his personality was impressive, especially his forgiving heart. No matter how much someone troubled him, his lack of anger and taking things in stride would embarrass the person in front. He hadn't studied in the 7th grade, and it was decided that Kamal Master Sahib should be asked to pass him, but he returned from some distance from his house, thinking, "Now leave it, the exams are over, whatever will happen will be seen." Ultimately, Ravishri failed in the 7th grade, and when he came to collect his mark sheet and saw that he had failed, he tore it up, threw it in the pond, and moved on.

Antarpura

From July 1982, he had started being irregular in class but remained consistently regular in coming from Chhipri. In fact, 1982 was the year when the bird had not only preened its feathers but had also started preparing to fly. Antarpura is a village adjacent to Lidhaura, about 4-5 kilometers away. Many classmates from here were also friends with Ravishri, who would often insist that he come to their village. In July 1982, upon the insistence of his friends, Ravishri reached Antarpura and soon became friends with Jalim Singh Yadav, who would be about seventy years old at this time. Ravishri had immense affection for Jalim Singh and remained continuously connected with him from 1982 to 1987. Jalim Yadav is a person of extremely emotional nature. As soon as I (the author) told him that I had come to ask about Ravishri, the old farmer started crying and said, "He left us by deceiving us." Then, composing himself, he says, "He had told us that he would keep us with him, now he says to come to Rawatpura, but where do we go leaving our village and fields?"

Jalim Singh Yadav and Prabhakar Pathak are neighbors. When Jalim Singh became friends with Ravishri, he also met Pathak Ji. Prabhakar Pathak, about 60 years old, says that the greatest ability he saw in him at that time was that sitting here, he could narrate the eyewitness account of what was happening at his relatives' homes. He had verified this many times, and he would tell everything correctly, for example, who all were at home? Where was the stove, where was the water pot? Every single detail was absolutely correct and precise. Pathak Ji says that he asked him about such things many times, and every time he would astonish them by giving a correct eyewitness account, and many times he would also say that today our Siddha (divine power) has refused to work. Jalim Ji says, "Ravishri ate with us, operated our Persian wheel, watered our fields, and slept in the fields, but despite seeing all these miraculous abilities in him, we used to call him crazy and considered him crazy. Otherwise, if we had seen the same abilities in any other sadhu, perhaps we wouldn't have let him go, but what to do, we were deceived by his body! Telling the deepest secrets of any person was child's play for him! In Antarpura, Ravishri mostly ate at Jalim Singh's place, and in two or three meetings, he became so close that he had no hesitation in going inside and taking food to eat, nor did he have any discrimination of caste or status. At night, Jalim Yadav, Pathak Ji, and Ravishri would lie down on a mat and sleep. Yadav Ji says that he would wait for us to fall asleep for a while, then get up and go somewhere, and return after 3-4 hours, trying not to wake us up. When he would return, his feet would be completely cold. When I would angrily ask, he would say that he had just gone up to Sunrai Wale Babba Ju (a respected figure of Sunrai). Sunrai is the same place that is considered the place of penance of Lal Ji Sarkar, and there is a Siddha Hanuman temple situated in the forest here.

After this, Jalim Singh narrated another strange incident, which was verified not only here in Antarpura but also by people in another village, Jitkora, which is about 50 km away near Jatara. According to him, "Ravishri would often make a small paper frying pan, put ghee in it, and place it on the fire. Surprisingly, when the ghee would start boiling, he would fry small puris (Indian fried bread) called 'athwai' in it, take them out, and give them to everyone to eat." Many people are eyewitnesses to this unique and strange incident.

He would often tell Jalim Yadav about the cave in Chhipri too, saying, "Come, let me take you inside for a tour," but Yadav Ji would always refuse, saying, "You have no work other than wandering around, but we have farming to do and fifty other tasks."

Once, Jalim Singh's daughter-in-law was believed to be possessed by spirits. She would often babble incoherently and throw household items outside. Despite seeing so many miracles of Ravishri, no one trusted him enough, so a Shastri Ji (a learned man) came and charged the Yadav family two to three thousand rupees for exorcism, but the daughter-in-law did not get better. Despite Ravishri's repeated explanations, the Yadav family remained engrossed in the Shastri Ji's words. Finally, when faith in the Shastri Ji waned, they started following Ravishri's advice with complete disbelief, and only one religious story (katha) was conducted. After spending only twenty-five rupees on the materials for the story, the daughter-in-law recovered, but Ravishri still couldn't shed his childlike image or didn't want to.

Prabhakar Pathak says, "On one hand, we would see his strange miracles, and on the other hand, we would see him playing gilli-danda (a stick-and-ball game) and marbles with children. Ravishri was so afraid of the police that if someone just lied and said that policemen were looking for him, he would hide inside and say, 'Tell them I didn't come here.' He felt that someone might implicate him in a theft or other incident in the village. Seeing all these things, the image that he himself was a Siddha Purush (realized soul) never formed in our minds. Yes, we definitely believed that sometimes a Siddha spirit would come upon him, do its work, and when it left, he would become an ordinary boy again."

From July 1982 to February 1988, that is, for about 6 years, which was his adolescence, Ravishri spent entirely wandering around. His father says, "Wherever he went, news would reach us, and I would meet the head of that village and just tell him, 'Take care of him.' Besides this, his staying away from Chhipri seemed appropriate to me from the perspective that at least he was away from the atmosphere of theft, robbery, and police here."

Ravishri would stay in Antarpura for a day or two and then return. The restrictions on him had lessened because, firstly, he had passed the 6th grade, and secondly, school was the excuse to leave home. If you disappeared from home for two or three days, everyone would think that he was in Lidhaura. When the news of him staying at Jalim Singh's and Prabhakar Pathak's place in Antarpura reached home, his father didn't have much problem because he was acquainted with both families.

Sunrai - In Antarpura and Lidhaura, Ravishri heard about the temple of Sunrai. This place is about 6 kilometers away from Lidhaura. Situated about a kilometer inside the forest on the Lidhaura-Katera main road, the picturesque environment, the chirping of birds, the shade of dense trees, and the divine peace here compel one to stay. The temple here is famous as Jarkhand Siddheshwar, Hanuman Ji of Sunrai. It is said to be ancient, and besides that, it is believed that the shadows of many Siddha souls reside here, fulfilling wishes. People say that immense wealth is buried in the womb of the earth here, dating back to the time of 'Alha Udal'. Hanuman Das Ji, 65 years old, and Avadhut Ji, 75 years old, who live at this temple, perform the worship and rituals here. The villagers from the surrounding areas have been associated with this place for a long time with great reverence and faith. Shri Avadhut Ji says that 'when Ravishri first came here, many boys from the surrounding villages were also with him. On his first visit, he left immediately, but soon his visits increased, and then he started staying here as well. Once, when Ravishri stayed here continuously for ten days, probably around Diwali of 1984, his father found out that he was staying at the temple in Sunrai. So, his father called Avadhut Ji and said, 'Why do you want to make him like yourself? Don't let him come or stay there.'

Avadhut Ji says that after that, I thought about how to stop Ravishri. An idea came to my mind, and when Ravishri came, I told him that if he wanted to stay here, he would have to go begging for alms. My thought was that he would refuse, but he immediately agreed and went to a nearby village with a small bucket to beg for alms. In the evening, he came back very enthusiastically and said, 'Here, I have brought alms.' I felt that my plan had failed. But the next day, when he went to beg for alms in the village called 'Bari', a woman scolded him, saying, 'You are healthy and young, aren't you ashamed to eat by begging? Go away from here.' The woman's scolding bothered Ravishri. Avadhut Ji says that when he returned, he was very sad and said, 'I will not go begging from tomorrow,' and recounted what the woman had said.

Avadhut Ji says that then I told him, 'You don't want to study, you don't want to go home, you don't want to do any household work, you have a passion for becoming a sadhu, but you don't want to beg for alms, so now there is only one way left: beg for alms from the Almighty.' Hanuman Das Ji says, 'He found peace here. He didn't perform any miracles in front of us; we would find out everything by hearing about him. He would say that he had the grace of Sharda Maa of Chhipri and Siddha Baba. Here in Sunrai, we have seen him absorbed in meditation, but we never saw him performing prayers or rituals. When he would sleep at night, he would often go somewhere for three to four hours and would say that he had gone to the cave of the Siddhas in Chhipri. Even after the aforementioned incident of begging, his visits here did not stop; he remained continuously associated with this place until 1987-88.'

It is extremely difficult to confine this period of Ravishri's life within a specific timeframe because during this period from 1982 to 1988, he went to many places and remained continuously associated with the places he visited, such as Antarpura, Sunrai, and other places. Everyone from these places says that after coming once, he continued to come until 1988, but he did not remain bound to any one place. After ten to fifteen days, his family members would start searching for him, so leaving Chhipri was also difficult. We will proceed by dividing his life during this period into places.

To study in Lidhaura, Ravishri would come and go from Chhipri with his friends on foot, sometimes through the forest, sometimes through the hills, and sometimes via the paved road, entertaining his companions along the way. His childhood friend Mahendra Singh, a resident of Chhipri, says that initially, they tested him to see if the sweets really came miraculously or if he was doing sleight of hand, but he would also realize that they were testing him. All those who ate the prasad and sweets say one more thing: Ravishri himself never ate the things that were miraculously conjured, whether it was kheer, food, sweets, or cloves, cardamom, and dried dates.

Mahendra Singh says that he greatly liked orange candies. He would buy them from the market himself and eat them as well as give them to his friends. He had such a great fondness for orange candies that if he didn't have money, he would leave his books and sometimes even his schoolbag at the grocery store and take orange candies in return. Later, his uncle would go and pay the money and bring the schoolbag back.

Keshav Yadav, who lived right in front of Ravishri's house and was his close friend, says, "We were extremely poor, and many times there wouldn't even be roti (bread) to eat at home. Then Ravishri would secretly bring rotis from his house for me." Recounting one incident, Keshav Yadav says that we were about 12-13 years old. He said to us, 'Let's dig up some treasure for you; there is treasure buried in your house.' The matter was settled, but the problem was Keshav's father; it wasn't appropriate to do this work in his presence. So, once he went out, both boys made all the arrangements, and when they gathered at night, Keshav's father suddenly returned, and the matter was averted in such a way that the opportunity never arose again. Keshav says, "We used to roam together, graze cows, swim in the river and splash water on each other while swimming, and go to work as laborers together."

His childhood friend Mahendra Singh recounts, "He never liked teachers who gave homework. He would stop going to the class of any teacher who gave homework. But after coming to the seventh grade, even the teachers started insisting on seeing miracles, which troubled him, and then he slowly stopped going to school altogether."

One reason for Ravishri's fear of the police was the psychological impact of the ruthless beating of criminals by the policemen. Another reason was a theft incident in 1981 at Ramdulla Kachhi's house in Chhipri village itself, and that too during the afternoon.

Coincidentally, there was a land partition going on in the village at that time, and Ravishri was present at the partition site all day with Kadore Kachhi and others. During the police investigation of the theft, when the names of the concerned persons were asked, Ravishri's name was also written down because he used to roam around the village all day and didn't do any work. Moreover, there was a dispute between the person whose theft had occurred and Kadore, due to which the gun was being aimed at Ravishri's shoulder. When all the potential suspects were called to the police station, Ravishri got scared on hearing his name in that list of potential thieves. Kadore Kachhi says, "Then we went and testified that he was with us at the partition site all day, then the Daroga Ji (police officer) released him." However, other people in the village say that the Daroga Ji didn't want to implicate him. These incidents happened every day in Chhipri; where could they go?

Village Yara

Entangled in this dilemma, Ravishri once went to school and met Dhruv Ram Yadav at the Lidhaura bus stand. In their very first meeting, Ravishri not only sketched the entire layout of his house but also astonished him by telling the names of his entire family along with their fathers' names.

Dhruvram Ji, about seventy years old, was a resident of Yara and had come to Lidhaura to buy some goods. Yara village falls in the Mauranipur tehsil of Jhansi district. The distance from Lidhaura to here is about twenty kilometers. Dhruvram was so impressed by Ravishri in their very first meeting that he insisted on him coming to Yara. Ravishri said, "You go, I will also reach there." It was around twelve o'clock in the afternoon. After meeting him, Dhruvram immediately left for Yara by bus, and when he reached home tired, he found out that someone was sitting inside waiting for him. Going inside, Dhruvram sees Ravishri sitting on a cot! Surprise... the astonishment crossed all limits! Dhruv Ram immediately prostrated himself. He couldn't believe that all this was true, but he had to believe what he saw with his own eyes.

This incident happened in November 1982, and after the incident, Ravishri immediately took responsibility for saving a child 'who had no hope of survival, had become extremely weak, and even the doctors had given up.' 'Hope on the horizon' - all the villagers, parents, who were initially disbelieving, started believing in him. Ravishri asked for water, put tulsi leaves in it, and gave it to the child to drink. Surprisingly, the child's condition started improving from that very day! That child, named Manoj, recovered completely. The villagers revered Ravishri, and on his very first visit and arrival, Ravishri stayed in Yara continuously for a month. He had no concern about what his family members might be thinking or what was happening at home. Most of Ravishri's adolescence was spent in Yara. In Yara, he found everything he was looking for: fields swaying with pure breeze, the sweet chirping of birds, no hassle of school, no problem of police, easily available food, and a long army of children, love all around. What more could a child with the mentality of a bird want?

The people of Yara soon became admirers of his sweetness, simplicity, joy, and independent spirit. Within the first month of his stay in Yara, the situation became such that every household considered him a member of their own family. Until 1983 and 84, he would come and go here once or twice a month, but after 1984, Yara became like his permanent residence. Before his arrival in August 1982, a robbery had occurred in Yara. The villagers asked who those people were and who had orchestrated the robbery. Ravishri said, "What will you gain by knowing the names? Everything will come to light in three months." Within three months, all the culprits of the robbery were arrested, which further increased Ravishri's respect. However, despite all these things, his 'childlike mentality' always prevented people from giving him the status of a great saint. People did not underestimate his abilities, but due to the coating of boyhood on those abilities, they always considered him a child.

All the elders of the village would remain busy with their work throughout the day, and in the evening, they would gather at the Chaupal (village meeting place) and start discussing him, examining and dissecting his miracles. Here too, Ravishri said that everything happened by the grace of Siddha Baba of Chhipri, and many times Ravishri would pretend to fail and say that Siddha Baba was not coming today, it seemed he had gone somewhere. The villagers never gave him the status of a distinguished saint, and perhaps Ravishri also wanted people to be impressed by him but to love him without giving respect, the kind of love given to a child.

Ravishri would wrestle with Munna Lal, a peer from Yara village, and after losing during the fight, he would immediately be ready to wrestle again. Ravishri was never physically robust during his adolescence; his body remained that of a weak and thin boy. One reason for this was that he had developed a habit of staying hungry since childhood. He drank a lot of tea and endured a lot of hunger. Additionally, due to hereditary traits, his physique remained slender. His constitution was healthy, and illnesses always kept their distance from him. While talking about Ravishri, a glow would appear on the faces of the villagers of Yara. Upon recalling the interesting, strange, and miraculous incidents here, a sweet smile would float on everyone's lips. Almost every person in Yara has some memorable and sweet incident associated with Ravishri from this period. As soon as they are asked about those times, their faces would turn towards the sky, then they would try to remember, and as soon as an interesting incident came to mind, they would start narrating it with laughter. Yara is a village of a hundred percent Yadavs. The village head, Bhaiyan Yadav, says, "During a recent visit to Rawatpura, Ravishri had said that in one of his many past lives, he belonged to a Yadav family, a part of which resides in your village. That was the reason why I spent so many days in your village."

Once, Ravishri told his friends Munna Lal and Murat Singh, "You guys should take initiation (diksha)." All three were about 16 years old. Munna Lal didn't understand what this initiation was. Upon his asking, Ravishri said, "Consider me your guru and give some money as guru dakshina (offering to the guru)." Both boys agreed to consider him their guru, but they had nothing to offer as dakshina. Now a problem arose. Ravishri put his hand in his pocket and found a 10-paisa coin. The problem had to be solved. That 10-paisa coin was first lent to Munna Lal, and upon receiving it back as guru dakshina, the same coin was lent to Murat Singh. Then he took guru diksha and offered the same coin back to Ravishri as guru dakshina.

I told you earlier to contemplate his incidents. On one hand, he was extremely serious, and on the other hand, he had a completely childlike nature. This interesting incident of taking 10 paisa, which was his own, as guru dakshina, in which Ravishri is behaving like a child, also seems to hide seriousness. Such behavior was possible in only two scenarios: first, if he was just a child and had no other uniqueness, or second, if he was truly far beyond maturity and looked at everyone as children. What he was in his own eyes is a serious question, and the answer to this question will be the proper answer to his mysterious practicality.

A horse was kept at the house of Bhaiyan Yadav, the head of Yara. When Ravishri saw everyone riding the horse, he decided to learn horse riding himself and soon became an expert rider. Once, Bhaiyan Yadav sent three members of his family to the Gwalior fair with money to buy a horse. While bringing the horse back, the police stopped them for some reason on the way, and because of this, they took two to three extra days to return. Everyone in Yara was naturally worried. They had gone with money; what if some other incident had occurred? Ravishri was present in the village. All the people gathered and went to Ravishri. At that time, Ravishri was wrestling with children in the temple. The crowd reached and surrounded Ravishri and told him the problem. Smiling, Ravishri said, "The horse has been bought; it is standing near Datia; it will arrive by tomorrow evening. The color of the horse is red, it has three white legs," and in this way, he described the entire appearance. With disbelief, the villagers waited for the next evening, and as if the horse was also in a hurry to testify to Ravishri's words, the horse with the rider came galloping into Yara in the evening. Its appearance was exactly as Ravishri had described.

A group of fifteen men from the village, including Ravishri, were going to Monian for a 'Gramin Garba' (a rural folk dance). It was decided that they would go to Balaji (near Datia) through forests and villages. Upon reaching the forest, night fell, and everyone lost their sense of direction. It was so dark that they couldn't see their own hands. Who would find the way in such a situation? Everyone became frightened. No one had any expectations from Ravishri at such a time; he was visiting this side for the first time. When fear and terror increased beyond limits, Ravishri suddenly said, "Follow me," and he walked as if he knew the way. After walking for about half an hour, everyone was standing on a paved road. Ravishri performed more miracles in Yara village. In Chhipri, he was always afraid of getting complaints at home, but it was not so here. Because of this, he openly displayed his divine powers. Here too, people did not connect the miraculous events performed by him together, nor did they try to understand the reason behind these events. Otherwise, a great personality would have emerged. Despite all these miracles, whenever there was any discussion about him at that time, people would only have the feelings that arise for a child in their minds.

When I (Manjul) reached Yara, there was a huge neem tree in front of the village head's house, under which was a large platform. Sitting on it, I started asking the village head about Ravishri. In hardly half an hour, so many people gathered there that the platform became small. Every newcomer wanted to participate in the discussions and share their experiences. The villagers say that once, on the same platform where we were sitting, Ravishri, with the help of the villagers, organized a Ramayana recitation. After the Ramayana, during the evening Aarti (prayer), Ravishri suddenly became so engrossed that his hands joined in a gesture of salutation rose upwards, and his whole body started trembling. The dholak (drum), manjeere (cymbals), ghanta (bell), etc., were playing; women and children were dancing with joy while clapping their hands. Everyone was absorbed in singing the Aarti 'Om Jai Jagdish Hare.' Suddenly, both of Ravishri's hands rose upwards and, joined in a gesture of salutation, went up and slowly opened, and from between his palms, a continuous stream of laddus (sweet balls) and pedas (Indian sweets) miraculously started falling onto the floor, forming a heap. Seeing this wonder, children and old people alike were stunned and bewildered. The playing of musical instruments stopped; the players and those performing the Aarti forgot to sing while looking at him. The falling of laddus and pedas continued incessantly; people could not believe their own eyes. Then suddenly, as soon as Ravishri came to his senses, the falling of the sweets stopped. A pile of laddus and pedas had accumulated around Ravishri. People could not understand what all this was. Finally, Ravishri asked the villagers to pick up the prasad. People say that there was not a single person in the village who did not eat that unique prasad. People filled their bags with that magical prasad and took it to their homes. This incident of the falling of laddus and pedas must have been extremely thrilling and amusing, as is clearly evident from the faces of the villagers.

The villagers say that after this incident, Ravishri started the tradition of Kanya Bhoj (feeding young girls) every month on the day of Amavasya (new moon), collecting the necessary items from the villagers themselves. A large group of children, who were his peers, especially helped him in these endeavors. This tradition started by him continues in Yara even today.

"Fear breeds respect"! Ravishri did not limit his personal miracles to just childlike displays; if that were the case, people would not have hesitated to trouble him. He knew the deepest secrets of any person, and if he was troubled by someone or saw that person doing something wrong, he would make them realize that he knew about their deeds.

Once, news of the theft of a large bronze bowl called 'Bela' reached Ravishri. Ravishri told Bhaiyan, the village head, to give the person who had it until evening; if it didn't reappear, he would reveal the culprit. When Ravishri said this, all the villagers were present, and before evening, the Bela was back on the platform, quietly returned by whoever had taken it. After this incident of Ravishri's, his peers Raghuveer, Bhajju, and Kunwarlal thought of testing Ravishri and hid a pair of scissors with Kunwarlal. In the evening, when everyone gathered, this was mentioned to Ravishri. Ravishri smiled and said, "You are testing me! The one who has kept the scissors has a name starting with 'J'." Everyone looked at him in disbelief, so Ravishri said, "I am talking about the surname." Kunwarlal's surname was Zamindar (landlord). Everyone was speechless, and Ravishri kept smiling.

The list of Ravishri's miracles is very long; it seems that everything was possible for him. There was no divine quality left that was not seen in him at this young age. Near Yara, in village Kunwarpura, a religious discourse (katha) was organized, and there were seven kathas simultaneously in seven different places on the same day. Accompanied by two or three people, he went to all seven places and ate so much at each place that people themselves would exclaim, 'Maharaj (revered one), please stop, that's enough!' Afterwards, when they returned to Yara, his companions told Bhaiyan Yadav about this feat. Bhaiyan Yadav started looking for him regarding this miracle and found out that he was sitting and eating at Bhaiyan's house, saying, "...the food there wasn't enjoyable!!"

The village head recounts that at that time, their feelings towards him had become such that they felt they had to protect him and obey his every word. Looking at his character, they tried to improve themselves from within. When they compared themselves to him, they felt deeply ashamed. He would address every woman with some familial term of endearment. His demeanor and conversation were so sweet and so innocent that the thought of any impropriety with women never even occurred to them.

Ravishri would walk ahead, followed by a long line of boys, wandering through the forests. Everyone was his close friend. They would eat wherever food was available and sleep wherever they found a place. If his army of companions entered someone's field, a complaint would come to Bhaiyan Yadav in the evening, which he would resolve at his own level. The elders of the village say that it was indeed a village of Yadavs, but before his arrival, no one understood what religion was, and perhaps hardly any religious work was ever accomplished here. After his arrival, not only in us but also in our children, a religious consciousness seemed to have awakened, so his words were very pleasing. We didn't believe in him just because of his miracles; there was an attraction in his saintly nature, his momentary anger, and his innocence. Everyone thought that he stayed here leaving his home, without any worries or sorrows.

Whenever the topic of marriage was mentioned, he would say, "I will not marry. I will always remain alone." Kadore Kachhi from Chhipri also says that he would jokingly say to him that they would get him married twice, but he would refuse very seriously. Regarding Ravishri's marriage, his mother says that once a proposal came for him. His father thought that getting him married might make him settle down, but on the very day the girl's family came to see him, he disappeared for the first time for a month. Then it was found out that he was in Yara. His mother says that then they thought that he was already refusing, what would happen if he ran away at the time of the wedding? Besides, if he didn't improve even after marriage, where would the poor girl go? So, they ended the matter.

Due to his miracles in Yara, people from the surrounding villages had started coming to him. He continued to perform every miracle and solve every problem in Yara that he had done in Chhipri. There are numerous examples of children born due to his blessings, wells dug, and people being told about lost objects, animals, etc.

The people of Yara say that the most astonishing and heart-touching thing was that whenever they thought that it had been many days since Ravishri had left and he hadn't returned, or if any woman, man, or child became emotionally overwhelmed in his memory, he had told them, "Chant 'Jai Shankar Bhagwan Ki' three times, and I will come." And all the children would gather, remember him, and sit at the platform of Shankar Bhagwan, first sing hymns, then chant the slogan three times, and ninety percent of the time, while chanting, they would raise their hands in the forest and shout loudly, "I have come." And he would appear. In the remaining ten percent of cases, he would definitely arrive within twenty-four hours. This was an unbelievable truth and a strange thing that every resident of Yara testifies to.

Ravishri kept coming to Yara from November 1982 to February 1988, that is, for about 5 years. During this time, he also kept coming to Chhipri from Yara, and continuously roamed around Antarpura, Sunrai, Katera, Jitkora, Madia, etc. He would stay wherever and for as many days as he pleased and then move on. The state of his carefree nature was such that upon reaching a place, if he met a completely new person there and that person asked him to come along, he would not feel any hesitation in going with him and would immediately leave. Bhaiyan Yadav of Yara says that he went to every relative's house in their family and had no hesitation in moving on to even further relatives from there.

In 1983, he left his studies in Lidhaura and took admission in class seven in Jora. Jora is about 15 kilometers away from Prithvipur on the Tikamgarh-Jhansi road. In the Jora school, he would have barely attended for ten days in the entire year. He would leave his bag at school and go wandering, saying that his bag would study. In Jora too, an army of his friends was ready, but the status of a special friend was given to Kundan Luhar, who was about 65 years old at this time, that is, about 50 years old then. Let's see what memories Kundan Luhar has of the miraculous child saint Ravishri.

Kundan Luhar's personality is extremely simple and natural, minding his own business, neither interfering in others' affairs nor expecting any from them, content within himself like Lord Shiva. He is very emotional. He met Ravishri when he came with school children. Due to his ability to conjure prasad etc., everyone's attention naturally went towards him. Kundan thought that he must possess some Siddhi (spiritual power). Everyone in the village knew his father. This was an introduction that was always associated with him – that he was a boy from a respectable Brahmin family, because of which no one ever harbored any wrong misconceptions about him. A child may or may not directly inherit anything tangible from his father, but indirectly, he receives a wealth called name or reputation, due to which he gains much from society even without achieving anything himself. Now, whether it is 'respect and love' or 'disgrace and hatred' depends on fate. Beyond this, the child has to bear the consequences himself, because this inheritance is like a beedi (Indian cigarette) – if you don't take a puff, it goes out. If you have received respect as inheritance, keep taking puffs, it will keep burning as fire; and if you have received disgrace, don't keep taking puffs of that beedi, it will go out on its own. As long as the smell of the beedi lingers, people will keep watching if he is also smoking the same beedi, and then it doesn't take long for hatred to turn into love – this is Hindustan. Always remember that there are two philosophies about life: the first is that life is like a beedi, if you don't take a puff, it will go out; and the second philosophy is also like a cigarette... whether you take a puff or not... it will keep burning... it will keep going!!

Ravishri, even when he was not properly acquainted with Kundan Luhar, and their interaction was limited to exchanging greetings, one day reached his house and with complete authority asked Kundan's mother for food, ate, and left with his friends. And then this became a daily occurrence – he would eat whatever was available and leave. Kundan would quietly watch and think to himself that he was an innocent boy who didn't understand caste distinctions. Gradually, their closeness increased, and Ravishri himself would go into the house, pick up whatever was cooked, eat, and leave. Then Kundan also mingled with him. As a result, leaving his childhood friends, most of his time started being spent at Kundan's farm, and then he started staying there. He would sleep at night and go to the farm in the morning. Many times, he would take roti while working and reach Kundan to feed him, shouting, "Come if you want, otherwise I will eat everything," and to tease Kundan, he would often eat himself. But Kundan was full of generosity; he would appreciate his love from within. Kundan says that initially, there was only this much acquaintance; after that, he didn't come for 4-5 months. Until this time, I had neither seen any miracle nor had any desire to see one. By this time, he had become more open with my parents than with me.

'Kundan further narrates,' It was around 1984, probably July, my younger brother Prakash, fifteen years old, went missing somewhere. He was mentally ill. We searched for him a lot, even reported it to the police, scoured all our relatives, but he was nowhere to be found. My mother was in a terrible state, crying incessantly. There was no news of Ravishri for 4-5 months, and neither I nor anyone in the village thought of him, and until then, no one had such faith in him that he could tell us about the lost brother or bring him back. After being troubled for a month or two, we went around asking pandits (priests); some said one thing, some said another.

The discussion had spread everywhere and reached Ravishri's ears, and as soon as he got the news, he came running. Seeing the atmosphere at home, he also became sad. We were gathering things to organize a religious story (katha). Ravishri first scolded me for not informing him until now. I didn't say anything directly, but in my mind, the thought came, 'What could you have done?'

Then Ravishri said, "This katha and pandit are all fine, listen to what I say... your Prakash has gone somewhere in a jeep and is still safe. Just as Hanuman Ji helped Ram, he will help you too." Then he said to his mother... Amma...! From today onwards, no tears should fall from your eyes. I, Ravishankar, promise that if your Prakash doesn't return by the evening of the fifth day from today, which is Tuesday, I will remain your Prakash for life...!!

Kundan narrates, "We used to consider him eccentric. We had absolutely no faith in his vow, but a drowning man clutches at straws. Ravishri said to hold a five-day recitation at the Hanuman temple. Devkinandan Panditji from the village started the recitation. Everyone thought that the boy had said it emotionally; no one believed him. However, on the fifth day, a boy named Jhallu arrived with Prakash, saying, 'They were wandering near Niwari.'" When I (the author - Manjul) asked Prakash about this incident, he said, "I don't remember anything from that time; I only remember everything after returning. Ravishri had told me... 'Wherever in the world you go, you will have to return.'"

After this incident, Ravishri became quite famous and started spending time with Kundan Luhar again. According to Kundan, "After this, our closeness increased a lot. During this time, he once said to me, 'Let's go, I'll show you the Chipri cave.' I went with him. Reaching near the cave, I suddenly felt scared and said, 'I don't want to see it,' and stopped about 100 feet before the cave. He said, 'You sit here, I'll come.' It was evening, about an hour before dark. He went inside the cave. I lit a bidi. About an hour later, when he came out, he was bathed and had a rose in his hand."

When asked how he could go inside the cave when its entrance was very narrow, Kundan said, "At that time, it was the first time in my life that I had gone there. I didn't know that going inside was impossible. Later, when a Yagya was held there in 1993, I peeked into the cave and was surprised how he could have gone inside that day. That day, I had only seen its opening from a distance and thought it went straight inside."

Anyway, besides the children, Kundan Luhar is also an eyewitness to the fact that Ravishri used to go inside the cave. Kundan found his going inside the cave astonishing ten years later when he saw the cave up close.

Kundan says, "Once in the summer, he went to the field with me. My well was about 15-20 minutes away, and it was the only well nearby. Ravishri said, 'Dada, I'm feeling hot.' I said, 'I'll sit under the tree, you go to the well and operate the Persian wheel.' Ravishri said, 'Oh, who wants to bother? You wait, I'll come.' We had a water pot with us; he took it and left. When he returned about fifteen minutes later, the pot was full of water. Kundan Dada says, 'I knew every nook and corner there; there was no other well or water source nearby. Yet, he not only filled the pot without a rope but also took a bath and came back. It was summer; even if he had jumped into a distant well to bathe, how would he have come out?' When asked about this, Ravishri laughed it off. When I drank the water from that pot, I understood just by tasting it that this water was not from the surrounding area; it was extremely sweet and very cool water."

Regarding his स्वभाव (nature), Kundan says that he had a lot of आत्मीयता (closeness/affection) and was एकांतप्रिय (solitary). He would only stay with those he liked, but even a gathering of such people did not please him.

Around this time, when Ravishri was fourteen years old, a मस्सा (wart) appeared on his right cheek. When it started to grow and fester, his father scolded Ravishri for not seeing a doctor and taking medicine. Ravishri always stayed away from medicines. Once, he went to Lidhaura and got that wart cut off by some 'नीम-हकीम' (quack) and came home. His mother says that when he came home, blood was still dripping from his wart, and there were bloodstains on his clothes everywhere. Then, his mother forcibly got medicine from a doctor and made Ravishri take it, and continuously applied ointment on his cheek for a week. Even then, a scar from the wart removal remained on Ravishri's cheek forever.

Around the same time, Mrs. Kamla Devi, Ravishri's aunt (wife of Laxminarayan Sharma), mentions an astonishing incident. According to her, a few days before Diwali in 1982, she went to Chhipri with her husband, who was posted in Tikamgarh, carrying sweets. Ravishri's mother kept the sweets in the cupboard, saying that they would first be offered as prasad (offering) to God. Ravishri kept insisting on the sweets, but his mother did not listen to him. She locked the room with the cupboard from the outside, handed the key to her sister-in-law Kamla Devi, and went to sit with a neighbor for some work. Meanwhile, Ravishri kept insisting on the sweets from his aunt, but she flatly refused.

After some time, when the mother returned home, she saw that Ravishri had the same sweets, which were in the form of ladoos (round sweets), in both his hands. Seeing his mother, he started eating the ladoos with relish. When his mother asked, he said, "Auntie said, 'Here, take the ladoos and eat them.'"

The mother immediately went to her sister-in-law Kamla Devi and said, "Those sweets were to be offered to God as prasad! Why did you give them to Ravi?" Kamla Devi was surprised, thinking, "I didn't give the key to Ravi, nor did I give him any ladoos. How is my sister-in-law saying this?" She ran outside. Ravishri was still eating the ladoos. She asked him, "Where did you get the ladoos from?" Ravishri's reply was, "Mother gave them." Finally, the mother and aunt opened the room and the cupboard. Two or three ladoos were missing from the box. Regarding this incident, both the mother and aunt say that Ravishri was scolded for the missing ladoos, hearing which he ran away laughing. However, at that time, no one even thought about how the ladoos could have gotten into his hands, while the only way to enter that room was completely locked, and there was neither a window nor a ventilator.

It was the early days of 1984; prospective in-laws were coming to see Ravishri's sister at their house. To welcome them, the mother had kept two kilograms of देसी घी (clarified butter) so that it could be used for making poori (fried Indian bread) etc., when they arrived.

When the guests arrived, there was a flurry of activity... first tea and snacks... then the viewing ceremony. In the hustle and bustle, the mother forgot where she had kept the ghee (clarified butter) containers.

When it was time to cook, ghee was needed, but despite searching everywhere, the ghee containers could not be found, and tears welled up in the mother's eyes. At that moment, Ravishri arrived, having been out somewhere. Upon learning the reason for his mother's tears, he said, "The ghee is kept under the cot," and brought one container. He went straight to the kitchen and poured it into the kadhai (wok). The hurry was such that the mother didn't pay attention to the container, and the other women busy taking out the pooris (fried bread) didn't care. The meal for 10-12 people was easily managed, and there was no need to add more ghee to the kadhai, so no one looked at the container from which the ghee had been poured again. In the end, a significant amount of ghee was still left in the kadhai, which the mother covered. The guests left after finalizing the wedding arrangements. When the rush subsided, the mother suddenly remembered that she had kept the ghee containers in the cupboard. She went there and saw that both containers were present. The mother says, "I was stunned...!" I immediately went and looked at the ghee in the kadhai; its ghee was gone. I scolded Ravi, asking where the ghee had come from? Had he stolen it from somewhere? He just laughed it off." The mother says, "It was an astonishing incident, but even today, I can't understand why I didn't ask him anything when he laughed off my question at that time. For many days, I kept thinking I would scold him and ask, but then the matter slipped my mind."

Finally, the marriage of Ravishri's sister Shashi was fixed with Mr. Rameshwar Sharma, the third son of Mr. Raghuveersahay Sharma of Simthari, Jhansi district, where the viewing ceremony had taken place. Subsequently, in 1984, the wedding procession came to Chhipri from Simthari. The day after the wedding, before the departure of the wedding guests, कच्चा खाना (uncooked food items) was to be given to all the baraatis (wedding guests).

The entire arrangement of the house was primarily in the hands of Kripa Ram Sharmaji. At the last moment, he had to go to Tikamgarh for some important work. By mistake, he could not hand over the responsibility of the कच्चा खाना to another person. At the time of eating, there was chaos among the 'gharatiyon' (family members) that there were no food arrangements, while the baraatis started coming to the house to eat.

Inside, in a भगोना (large pot), there were a few bara (lentil fritters) kept. The remaining bara were locked in a room, the information about which only Kripa Ramji had. Seeing no food arrangements, just as the baraatis were about to return, Ravishri called everyone and asked them to sit upstairs. Initially, there were about ten baraatis. Ravishri seated those ten baraatis and asked one person to serve them 'bara - shakkar' (bara with sugar). The bara and sugar were so delicious that the baraatis started eating their fill of it. In this way, in groups of ten, the entire wedding procession ate 'bara and shakkar'. After the departure, when this unique meal was discussed, Kripa Ramji asked, "How was the lock of that room opened in which the bara were kept?" Everyone looked at each other's faces. When the room was checked, it was still locked as before. When the lock was opened, the bara were lying there as they were, and the बर्तन 'भगोना' (utensil 'pot') that Ravishri had contained only enough quantity that could barely feed 25 people. A light of amazement enveloped the faces of all the family members... Ravishri was immediately searched for... but he had already gone somewhere...!!