July 13, 2026
Radiance and extraordinary attractiveness were there, however ill Swami Sivananda’s body was. I am speaking not only of the ordinary little influenza; I am talking of when he was at death’s door with a bout of typhoid. He had been confined to bed for about 20 days. He was not used to that. So, one day he told some of us, “Ah, I think I am all right now. Take Me to the verandah so that I can see the Ganges and the Himalayas.”
We literally had to lift Him off the bed; He could not walk. We brought Him outside and He sat in His easy chair. If you looked at His face then, it was as though there was nothing wrong with Him. He was radiant, beautiful, laughing and joking with us all.
After an hour or so, He asked to go back to bed. He planted both His Feet on the floor and said, “Wait, I will try to get up myself.” He lifted Himself off, then collapsed back into the chair. Probably you and I would have had a heart attack. “Oh, what has happened to me? Twenty years ago I was so strong.” Regret, remorse, despair, depression.
But there was no hint of that. As He collapsed, He started laughing, “Oh, My legs have lost their strength.” It had nothing to do with Him; the legs had lost their strength. That is an extraordinary feature, where even an aging body does not dampen the spirit.