Our Price: AUD$25.95 (USD$)* ISBN: 978-1-921456-40-4 Subject: Non Fiction/Biography/Spirituality Publication Date: August 2010

Synopsis
How did an Indian village boy who loved climbing trees, playing with his pet monkeys and dogs, roaming in the jungle and sitting in on cases being conducted in the High Court, grow up to be one of the most beloved spiritual Masters of the modern era?

In this series of essays, the writer recreates many scenes from Sri Chinmoy's carefree childhood years when he was known as Madal - the kettledrum - including some dramatic moments when he seemed to face certain death and was saved by some stroke of divine intervention.

The writer also pays tribute to Hriday, Madal's eldest brother, who left the family circle at a tender age to join an Ashram in the south of India, thousands of miles away. Following the deaths of Madal's parents, Hriday would bring all his brothers and sisters out of the war-torn region to join him in that sanctified abode.

Madal was only twelve when he left his little village and all his childhood pastimes behind to immerse himself in a life of prayer and meditation.

About The Author
Vidagdha Bennett became a student of Sri Chinmoy in 1975. Originally from Perth, she completed her Ph.D. on Sri Chinmoy's poetry at the University of Melbourne, Australia, in 1981. She later lived in New York for twenty years, where she assisted with the publication of many of Sri Chinmoy's books.

Vidagdha has written extensively on Sri Chinmoy's music, art, philosophy and sporting activities.

From The Book
Sri Chinmoy loved to regale us with stories of his village life in India. He was a wonderful raconteur, able to convey the subtle accents and emotions of different characters, punctuating his narration with gestures and facial expressions, vividly recreating the most dramatic episodes so that an entire hall would hang on his every word.

But it was not until that captivating voice and presence were no more that I began to dwell on the events of his childhood more closely. I wondered what it must have been like for that little boy to travel to Chittagong by ferry with his father and why he liked to spend his days at the big Court House on Fairy Hill watching the proceedings...

These essays are my humble attempts to fathom the mystery of this great soul - my Guru, Sri Chinmoy.