Shivabalayogi

In the spring of 1994 I woke up one morning with the name “Shivabalayogi” on my lips. It wasn’t a name that I recognized so I went on the internet to see what I could find. What I found, among other things, is this picture of Shivabalayogi. When I saw it I burst out laughing, “I know you, I know you!” We’d never met physically, but it was like seeing the photo of an old beloved friend whom I had known for a long time. Many times when I’m meditating I can sense him near me, always as a presence of pure joy and laughter. In his physical life his fingers were curled into the palms of his hands, and frequently when I sense him around me my fingers curl into the palms of my hands and my wrists bend inward, as his did. It’s not something I do consciously, it just happens in his presence. As I write this and look at his picture I can feel him with me: I feel his infinite joy and it makes me smile. I love him very much.