Sri gurubhyo namaha.
The strongly sensuous fragrance of heavy Frangipani (plumeria alba) riding the gentle breeze held my inner demons in thrall. Evocative, enchanting, bewitching, deluding and stupefying all at the same time, this strange garden was verily the physical manifestation of the essence of the Erotic sentiment (sringAra rasA). My heart races and in its hyper accented rhythm it skips plenty beats. My body feels as though it is made of air and will float away into the vast open space in front of me. There seems to be no heat in the sun, who is midway on his daily journey. The air is cool but not cold. An abundance of birds of various kinds with plumage so exotic makes me realise that the colours I see are not those I have seen before. Their call, so poetic - now a crisp Haiku, now a long Ballad - conjures visions of millions of lovers, lost in the bliss of the other.
The sweet and indistinct murmur of a thousand bees from somewhere behind makes me turn around. At first there appears to be no one or nothing that could be responsible for the sound. Within seconds however, I can see the beautiful form of a woman who seemingly just appears out of thin air. Her skin glows, radiant, and she is incredibly beautiful. Her poise and the proportions of her body suggest a kind of grace almost unseen in the world and something about her reminds me of my self. Her eyes, deeply piercing scan me almost as if taking in more of me than I even knew existed. Then she smiled.
Without words she makes it clear that she is a Duti. A very essential link in the masters journey to higher realms. In a few moments I can see nine women, all Dutis - each looking as beautiful as the one beside her. They smile in unison and I know instinctively I have come to the right garden.
A man appeared from my right - I say man, for he had the face of a man. His body below the neck was quite unlike what I would refer to as man. Indeed he had the body of what resembled a snake with two disproportionate claws. Upon his arrival a sudden silence and a sense of anticipation became tangible. The song birds held in their breath. The leaves held still their gentle sway. The nine Dutis disappeared as suddenly as they appeared. A sharp note from a conch preceded the entry of the master. That and an internal calm that spread through to my very being. The master was approaching where I was stood. As he came closer I could see that his eyes were red and showing signs of being intoxicated. Was it Ecstasy or rapture? Verily he looked like another Unmatta Bhairava.
I could feel my legs getting lighter and my spine stretch. When I looked down I could see that my legs were not on the ground. In fact, they were a couple of feet above the earth - hovering there. I was floating. I was flying. I was dissolving.
I was nothing.
I was everything.
