The Story Behind the Photo

by Adarini Inkei

I would like to share with you the story behind a photo of Guru. In this case, it’s the well-known photo you see here; this beautiful photo has been widely circulated and appears on the back of some of Guru’s books.

This photograph was taken at Annam Brahma on May 1st 1992, on the occasion of Alexander Razvin’s birthday. He was Deputy Ambassador to the United Nations from the former USSR; he was sent by President Gorbachev to arrange future meetings between him (President Gorbachev) and Guru.

After the first meeting with Mr. Razvin on April 19th, 1991, Guru said to the Annam Brahma girls, “When we met for the first time, we looked each other in the eye and saw two brothers.” Guru also said that Mr. Razvin was predestined to meet Guru because of President Gorbachev.

They met many, many times.

On the day I took this photo, Mr. Razvin had come with his wife, Valentina, a real jewel in Guru’s family. She always made me feel part of the party and shared with me her love of photography.

Guru always enjoyed their company and he shared the latest news of the Centre’s activities with them. At this time, Niagara Falls had just been inaugurated as a Sri Chinmoy Peace-Blossom. Guru brought them lots of photos from the event and a t-shirt made by the disciples in honour of the Peace Falls. They watched a video of Guru’s first meeting with President Gorbachev in Canada, and of course, we sang Happy Birthday when the delicious chocolate cake came (made by our bakery).

It was a joyful evening. Mr. Razvin said, “When I met Guru for the first time, it was love at first sight.”

This article was originally posted on Perfection Journey