Hilda Charlton of New York in her outstanding book "Saints Alive" has spoken about H.H. Yogi Ramsuratkumarji of Tiruvannamalai thus:

"He is very incredible and a beautiful person. He lives in Tiruvannamalai. There is a set of brass shops nearby the temple and every night by eight O'clock or so they all shut down. Here he sleeps in the night and then in the morning he gets up and usually goes to the Railway Station. He stays under a very very small tree in the Railway Yard and does his work of emancipating the humanity " (Saints Alive - Hilda Charlton).

It was given to me also to meet the great Yogi in the year 1967 in the Railway Station surrounded by heap of old newspapers as if they formed a fortress guarding the great Guru. Later he transferred himself to a very small cottage and from there he went to the spacious Ashram built by his devotees at Agrahara Collai. This transition from the Railway Platform to the Ashram symbolized perhaps that he took all his devotees standing in the platform to divinity and then to greater divinity and the Divine Train that moved out of the platform carried with him all his sincere disciples.

Today people say that the Yogi is no more. I would modify it by saying Yogi is no more in mortal coils but he lives in the atmosphere. I honestly feel that he is still with us. Before He attained Siddhi I met him twice at Dr. Rangabashyam Nursing Home at Chennai. I touched his feet and requested him 'You should always be with Us". I prayed. To this he replied "Sure Doctor, I will always be with you". Revered Mataji was also with him then at the Nursing Home.

Shri Yogiji also added significantly that Justice T.S. Arunachalam will always be available to you. Now only I could see the significance of this statement. When the Yogi had attained siddhi, Justice T.S. Arunachalam had taken charge of the Ashram as H.H. Sri Yogi's nominee and perhaps His heir.

Justice T.S. Arunachalam is a rare combination of integrity and erudition. His Bakthi has taken him to heights at the Ashram. I am positive this first disciple of Sri Yogi will take the memory of H.H. Yogiji to peaks.

It was the great Paramacharya of Kanchi the Centenarian Mahaswami who once said that every nation has preference in some special way, and India has a preference for religion and faith. The great Tamil saint Thiruvalluvar speaks of God Almighty "as one without favour or disfavour

The Gita spells the doctrine of unity of the Lord. 'Whosoever comes to me through whatsoever form, I reach him, all men and struggling through paths which in the end lead to me."

Swami Vivekananda thundered at Chicago, "had it not been for these horrible demons of hate human society would be far more advanced than it is now." "I fervently hope" the monk added, "that the bell that tolled in honour of this convention (Chicago) may be the death knell of all fanaticism of all types and spread love for all"

This goal set by the Swami Vivekananda 100 and odd years ago has not yet been reached. On the other hand, we find the modern world aggressively pursuing paths of self and pleasure without even, for a moment, thinking there is a God above.

The Sage of Tiruvannamalai came into us from Benares to save the suffering humanity and to give relief to the toiling millions.

Of quite a few sages, who are working at uplifting humanity today, Yogi Sri Ramsuratkumar The Godchild Tiruvannamalai" was very unique in many respects. What made the Yogi different was his utter si plicity, piety and absence of any paraphernalia and pomp.

He was not attached to the material world at all. The "taraka mantra" of the Yogi is "My Father alone exists, nothing else; nobody else".

The Yogi shone a beacon light to men and women from all walks of life. People from all over the globe thronged to follow the Yogi who gave peace, solace and sobriety.

H.H. Yogi Ramsuratkumar had influenced myriads of his devotees by his simple living and high thinking and his unmistakable emphasis of the Supremacy of the Divine.

Tiruvannamalai, the holy place, held in reverential awe from time immemorial, has been a great center of devotion attracting savants from far and near. The great Festival of Lights known as "Annamalai Deepam" draws devotees from all over the world. Saint Thirugnanasambandar said "those who pray to Annamalai will get relieved from the pains of fate and their ills will get demolished at once".

Arunachala Puranam states that if you go to Chidambaram, you get Mukti, if you die at Varanasi, you get Mukti, if you are born at Thiruvarur, you get Mukti, if you walk into Kanchi, you get Mukti. But if you just think of Tiruvannamalai, you get Mukti. Such is the greatness of this temple town.

The first time I saw the Great Yogi at the Railway Station he was sitting, clad in old clothes with bundles of old newspapers around him and with a fan in the hand (He was known as the Visiri Swami). When I saw him there, Istood transfixed as if I faced the SUN. It was Guruji Mahayogi, who spoke first. He said, "My dear son, I was expecting you, sit down." I realized that I was in the glorious presence of a holy Godchild, but never realized that He was going to have great impact on my life. My association with the Yogi continued with vigour for years till he left his body. I have visited him a number of times. While I was asked to become the founder Vice-Chancellor of the Central University, Pondicherry, I went to Tiruvannamalai to seek the Yogi's blessings. There have been several incidents in my life which have helped me strengthen my faith and belief in the Yogi. He knew everything, past, present and future.

Tiruvannamalai has the "Karthikai Deepam" once a year, but at Agrahara Collai, (NO.1833/1, Chengam Road, Tiruvannamalai), even today sits the Yogi for ever "the Ball of Fire" as I would call Him, even after he left his mortal frame.

He performed miracles silently and cleansed your soul completely. His touch was magic and it revived you. But His thought today is magic. Whoever was privileged to meet him, returned home a better person. His devotees are thousands in number including eminent men and women from all walks of life. The Yogi's formula for happiness is simple - "Think of Master and He will protect you." That is all.

This Yogi was constantly asking His Master above to help his devotees. Thus, the Yogi of Tiruvannamalai was a rare phenomenon and his very presence in our midst was a benediction to us then. Now even, I feel he still permeates the air around. As a tailpiece, I have a true incident to narrate. It was the times of Rajiv Gandhi. I wrote the biography of Indira Gandhi with a foreword from Shri R. Venkataraman, former President of India. Yogi Ramsuratkurnar was also very fond of Indira and her son. We were thinking of taking Rajiv to Tiruvannamalai to have Darshan of the Yogi, during his tour of Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry, in May 1991.

In early May 1991, I met the Yogi and told him that I was going to Delhi to meet Shri Rajiv and I wanted the Yogi's permission to take him to Tiruvannamalai to have His darhsan. As soon as I uttered these words, the Yogi became tense and uttered the word "No, No don't attempt to bring him here. He cannot come. He cannot come. " And the Yogi disappeared in the inner rooms of the Sannadhi Street house. I was taken aback, but I kept mum. My friend the late Shri A.R.P.N. Rajamanickam Nadar and I were not able to decipher these prophetic words of the Yogi till May 2 1st, when Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated.

Was it divine intuition, prophecy, second sight, clairvoyance or mere casual words after looking into the future? I don't know. But, this episode haunts me even today. Yes, the Yogi knew everything.

But the real fact was that this saint, who was the Master of the past, the present and the future at Tiruvannamalai, said these words and Rajiv really could not come. As Justice Shri T.S. Arunachalam, the former Chief Justice of the Madras High Court and now the Chairman of Ashram and the principle disciple of the Yogi used to say, Shri Ramji knows all and everything."

Yes. The Incarnation of God AImighty the Great Godchild Sri Yogiji knew everything and He stands as a Sentinel today in our memory guiding and safeguarding us.

Let Him bless us.