Memoirs from India: Three Months at the Ashram of Satya Sai Baba

By Boyd Sibley

Memoirs from India is an incredibly honest and upfront description of my personal experiences at the Ashram of
Sri Satya Sai Baba, Avatar of India. It begins with the first notion of how we were guided to leave Sedona Arizona to
embark on an incredible three month pilgrimage to the land of India as we were ushered into the presence of Sai Baba.
Each chapter was written as it happened and was experienced without editing, additions or subtractions. This
live journal method gives the reader the moment by moment of each experience as it happened to me and what came about inside of me. At first,my reading audience was my beloved Soul Song Family, but as the years have passed, I have realized a greater need to share my story with all, all spiritual seekers, all of you who may have heard of Sai Baba and all of you who may be guided to begin your own pilgrimage to vast and enchanted land of India. It was an incredible adventure into the questioning of my own spirituality and an honest pursuing of the Truth that was uncovered. I offer you this true life adventure with gratitude that you may find some inspiration of truth for yourself as well. Many blessings. Om Sai Ram

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Feb 12, 2014
• ISBN: 9781483520261

Book preview

~Boyd~

Introduction

Our trip to India began as a whirlwind of adventure and never let up until our 747 touched down at the L.A. airport on January 21, 2005. I fulfilled my vow as I prostrated myself kissing the Earth of my homeland. Wow, what a ride. Two and a half months in India actually began on October 15, 2004, when my sweet wife Kelly came to me and said, Boyd, I have a plan; and if you trust me I believe it will work. We’re going to India! India! I thought to myself, trying desperately to keep my teeth from dropping out and my half stunned face in check. India, I said out loud. I fell into silence momentarily as a reel of film rolled before my eyes; a caravan of camels crossing a scorching desert, humidity and jungle fever, minus thirty degrees Himalayans. In an instant my mind imagined all the worst scenarios first. But just as quickly floating into my view, came the gurus levitating and flying on magic carpets oiled in Sandalwood, incense burning like a jet stream behind their carpets. Hmm, may be not so bad.

My mind raced to a time in the late sixties. Our hideaway at Esofea, Wis, five members of our band called Hope jamming away in ecstasy, while the Jai Hind incense burned, filling our senses with the most fragrant smell imaginable. Perhaps I could find Jai Hind again! I only had an empty tube, a keepsake from the good old days. Ah, but knowing it was made in Bangalore, India, gave me new hope once again. Here was my opportunity to find the Holy Grail of Incense. The film reel in my mind started to slow down, I was back in the present. I blinked a few times and looked at Kelly inquisitively wondering how she intended to pull this one off.  She smiled back as if to say, Just watch me!

Just the day before, we had both been bewildered as to where we were going to live. The house we had been leasing in beautiful serene Pine Valley in Sedona was being sold. Our continuous search for a place to house my recording studio, us, all of our furniture, memorabilia from forever, and our two cats, Coco and Squeeky Boy was beginning to become a moment by moment challenge.  None of the houses we looked at felt right.  Time was running short. We needed to vacate in two weeks without a mental clue in the world where to go.  We both had surrendered our plight to God.

Kelly’s intuitive call from Sai Baba to come to India grew louder. Earlier in the year, after returning from a trip to Brazil and meeting with the Spiritual healer, John of God, she had spoken to me about going to India. She mentioned that November of 2004 kept coming up for her.  This transpired in March, so placing it on the back burner we hadn’t discussed it for several months.  Now, here it was again, November only two weeks away, no house no home on the horizon.  As for me, I had my first dream of Sai Baba.  I didn’t actually see his face but strongly felt his presence.  I saw a large outdoor auditorium, seating thousands.  A ceremony was about to begin. We were signaled to all move forward to take up the available seats. I followed an aisle down to the very front and a little to the right of a chair situated on center stage. The chair simply had the word Swami printed as a nameplate on front and back. When I continued to follow the aisle, it came out at a bleacher.  There sat Kelly with ten small children and a place for me. The twelve sat in silent glee waiting for Swami to appear.  Then the dream ended.  So we both began to get excited over the possibility of being joyfully homeless in India, land of mystery, intrigue, and home to the Ashram of Sri Satya Sai Baba, India’s living Avatar. 

Kelly had known for many months before our adventure began that she was to author a book. The book would include an introductory chapter about her own life, but would mainly be a how to live a soul-filled life manual. Her vision also included a non-profit foundation that would help bring children and horses together so both could feel love and acceptance, where healing, if need be, could take place as well.  With this mission in mind, she founded the Ultimate Gift Foundation along with her partner Tiffany.

Kelly and I both wanted to share this vision with the people with whom we felt the closet, our loving Soul Song Family.  Since 1998, several hundred dear Souls had become an integral part of our Universal Soul Family. These were the beautiful Beings traveling on the same road to Eternity with us. We loved all of them deeply and would spend time with them whenever we had the opportunity. So with God as her Guide, Kelly began to tell her story and share her vision. An email was sent to the Soul Family.  We weren’t accustomed to asking for financial support but our commitments were strong, as the pull toward India grew stronger. I followed Kelly’s email with one of my own. I wanted our Family to know how much I believed and supported Kelly’s vision.  I asked the Family to be led by God, and if they also believed in our cause, to go on line and make their donation to the Ultimate Gift Foundation which is a non-profit © 3 foundation set up to receive donations through the National Heritage Foundation. After sending the emails, we detached from the out come, knowing we were in God’s hands no matter what.

The rest of that day was spent setting up both the garage and all the rooms in the house for a good old fashion garage and moving sale.  We had made a decision. Whether it is India, Sedona or Tim Buck Two, we were going to sell everything except my recording studio, two chairs, our crystals, some memorabilia and our two cats.  We began the following day with moving sale signs dotting the horizon from the Village of Oak Creek to Pine Valley. It was early morning, donut and coffee in hand; I was determined to sell everything in the garage including some select crystals, CDs, Essential Oils, Sacred Sage, camping gear, old records, amplifiers, cameras, and all the rest of the good junk I had been accumulating since the second grade.  Meanwhile, Kelly was getting the inside of the house ready. We waited, but not long. A dear friend, Carol, showed up at eight AM. followed by a steady stream of dedicated Sedonian bargain hunters.  Out of curiosity, we turned our computer on to check the morning emails.  From the National Heritage Foundation, we had received confirmation that several donations had already been registered. One of the donations was for a four-figured amount. We were speechless.  I was so surprised I grabbed the telephone, called the National Heritage Foundation to confirm the amount.  It was confirmed!  Kelly and I looked at each other and at the same time screamed, My God, we’re going to India!

The amount, from a beautiful Angel in our Soul Family, was enough to cover our $2,600 airfare and all of the incidentals it takes to prepare for such a trip.  More donations came in throughout the next forty-eight hours.  Our Soul Family was there for us showing us that they truly believed in our cause. And in truth showing us that they believed that this was God’s Cause for peace and healing for children, animals, and for our planet. All of you in our Soul Family are our Heroes!  Your financial support was more than sufficient to send us on our way to India and beyond.  Even during our garage sale on Saturday, a special delivery envelope arrived. I was having lunch at a table set up in the garage when Kelly came out to join me.  We opened the envelope. There was a check inside for $1,000. I nearly fell off my chair. Two beautiful Souls from Texas had sent this loving gift by over night express. There were others from the Family who joined in the support. Gifts arrived from Souls from Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, California, Minnesota and Arizona. We thank all of you so very deeply not only for your financial support but for just knowing that you were there for us, pulling for us, encouraging us, sending us off with your blessings and prayers.  What a wonderful Soul Family we have! Kelly and I hold you in our hearts as the most beloved.

Within three days from the time Kelly had sent her email, we had received enough support to make plans for a two and a half month trip to India.  Kelly was also getting a strong intuitive feeling that we would also visit some in our Soul Family along the way.  So not only did we need passports, visas, airline tickets for India, but also plans for an initial trip to San Diego, Minneapolis and our home town, LaCrosse, Wis.

As these plans were materializing, our house hold furniture began dematerializing. The whole Hopi Nation arrived in a couple of pick up trucks with a trailer and commenced to load up all of our furniture, two large couches, chairs, lamps, tables, etc. It all went magically out the door before our eyes.  As evening came, we sat on an empty living room floor with Coco and Squeeky Boy looking at us with their big cat eyes wondering what had happened to all the big soft furniture on which they were so accustomed to shedding their fur.  It was a good day.  God had blessed us in so many wonderful ways.  We were ready for a good nights’ sleep and prepared for another moving sale at dawn.

Up early, our Sunday sale started slowly. We were tucked away back in the secluded valley and off the main road. We had sent out an email announcing our moving sale. Several kind Sedonians forwarded the email.  By noon, familiar faces started to show up.  They ooooh-ed and ahhhh-ed over the beautiful quartz, amethyst and citrine crystals. Some purchased Sacred Sage, our Sacred Space and Soul Walking CDs, while others sampled our Essential Oils and ended up purchasing from our entire line of oils.  I checked the emails coming in. Oh my, orders were flowing for sage, CDs and oils, all from our Soul Family. Wow, we were speechless once again from so much wonderful support.  In between the moving sales, securing visas, tickets, etc. packing up the remainder of the household items for storage, Kelly and I were bottling essential oil blends, one loving bottle at a time plus making sacred sage as well to fill all of the orders.  We dropped our legs, sprouted wings and flew through the house grabbing oil bottles, caps and labels on the fly.  We didn’t land until all the orders were filled and happily sent out from the post office.  We do hope we didn’t forget anyone’s order. I know going without your Sacred Sage Mix for two and a half months can cause serious withdrawals for some of you.  So I apologize to you now if we missed your order.

Time was now running short for us, only a few days to go before we would need to move my whole recording studio, crystal bowls, keyboards, flutes, drums and tons of CDs from the archives of Soul Songs. We chose Thursday, the 28th as our moving day. The plan was to store everything except breakfast at Tiffany’s garage and closet with the cats going to another household, our 95 Toyota to another for safe keeping until our return.  My good friend Kearn who could leap over tall buildings and lift tons of boxes weighing three times his 140 lb frame was coming with his pick up truck to help me with the move.  There were also four jeep loads of good stuff that didn’t sell that we donated to paw prints, the local Humane Society thrift shop.  Yeah,

Reviews for Memoirs from India

[Jagesh Kamath · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Very nice and well written and Baba has blessed this couple.