Sri Chinmoy’s Interviews
about Mother Teresa after her passing (5 September 1997)
ABC News, New York
Interviewer: Our next guest is a prolific author, a poet, an artist, a musician, an athlete, a spiritual guide. He has spent time with world leaders such as Pope Paul VI, Pope John Paul II, Mikhail Gorbachev, Nelson Mandela, Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Mother Teresa, just before she passed on. Sri Chinmoy is with us this morning.
Sir, how were you able to obtain access to world leaders like the ones I just mentioned, and of course Mother Teresa, too?
Sri Chinmoy: I am a student of peace, and I wanted to meet with them. They were extremely kind to me and they complied with my request. Afterwards, I became very close friends with some of them.
Interviewer: I know you had been acquainted with Mother Teresa for quite a bit. What struck you about Mother Teresa the first time you ever met her?
Sri Chinmoy: When I met with her for the first time, I prayerfully offered her a rose, and she blessingfully accepted the rose from me. I saw in her humility, simplicity, affection and compassion in boundless measure. This meeting took place on 24 October 1975, at the United Nations.
Interviewer: Why did you write a book about her?
Sri Chinmoy: I wrote a book entitled: Mother Teresa: Humanity’s Flower-Heart, Divinity’s Fragrance-Soul. I had met with her four times, each time for 45 minutes or an hour or so. I was also blessed with quite a few letters from her, and I had the greatest opportunity to speak with her on the telephone a number of times. All these I wanted to be recorded. Mother Teresa: Humanity’s Flower-Heart, Divinity’s Fragrance-Soulcontains all these things.
Interviewer: Sri Chinmoy, a very interesting book on Mother Teresa. Nice having you on the programme this morning, and good luck to you!
Radio WIBC, Indianapolis
Interviewer: Let me begin by saying the book that you wrote is a beautiful tribute for Mother Teresa. I understand that you have met her on several occasions, and in fact that you share a birthday. Can you tell me a little bit about the last time you spoke with her?
Sri Chinmoy: My last conversation with her has been recorded. She was extremely kind to me as usual. She was both a sister and a mother to me. As a sister, she inundated me with affection. As a mother, she inundated me with compassion. Her affectionate demand was, “You must pray for me, as I pray for you every day.”
Then she had something else to say: “You must come with me to China. China needs light.” Five or six times over the years she has asked me to accompany her to China. When I met with her on the 3rd of June this year and on the 17th of June at the Missionaries of Charity in the Bronx, she said the same thing: “You must come with me to China. China needs light. China needs light.” So I promised her, “Yes, Mother, when the time comes, when you go to China, I shall definitely accompany you.”
Interviewer: Obviously that trip never took place. Will you carry on her request to bring peace, love and compassion and her work to China?
Sri Chinmoy: I shall pray and meditate, and if I get a command from within, if it is the Will of God, then definitely I shall go. But otherwise, I am not entitled to act on her behalf. I am a man of prayer. I was very, very closely connected to Mother Teresa, but it is for Sister Nirmala, who is Mother Teresa’s successor and representative, to carry on her work. It is she who has to go to China and do the needful. I am a great admirer, a sincere admirer, of Mother Teresa. I promised her that I shall help the Missionaries of Charity according to my very limited capacity. I have students who are in the medical field, and they are able to offer the Missionaries of Charity medical supplies which have been donated by large companies. Also, in various other capacities whenever the Sisters need any help from me, I shall gladly do it.
Interviewer: What do you see for the Missionaries of Charity now that Mother Teresa has passed away? Is there anyone who is with us now in the world who can even compare with her?
Sri Chinmoy: Nobody can be compared with her. She is matchless; she is unique. But her successor, Sister Nirmala, will be receiving blessings and guidance from Above — from Mother Teresa’s soul in Heaven. Mother Teresa will be able to guide Sister Nirmala at every step. I know both of them well, so I know the daughter will always get inner guidance and special blessings from Mother, and she will be able to carry on Mother’s mission. I have implicit faith in Mother’s capacity and also I have implicit faith in Sister Nirmala’s receptivity. Nirmala cannot be compared with Mother Teresa, true, but Mother Teresa will successfully be able to fulfil her mission in and through Sister Nirmala.
Interviewer: You’ve met some very spiritual people in your life, obviously Mother Teresa being one of them. You’ve also met Pope John Paul. Can you compare the levels of spirituality in these great people and their works?
Sri Chinmoy: Each one has a special role to play on earth. They cannot be compared. Each human being is unique in his own way. Let us take the Holy Father. I have met with him on five occasions. Each time, he has blessed me most affectionately and most compassionately. To me, the Holy Father is our universal grandfather. No matter what we do, he is ready to shower his choicest compassion, protection and forgiveness upon us. In a family, children may do quite a few wrong things. Their parents may be annoyed, but their grandparents are always ready to forgive them. The Holy Father is like that; he is all compassion and forgiveness. No matter what we do, he is ready to forgive us. Through his affection and compassion, he tries to improve our lives. Not through justice-power but through forgiveness-power he wants to make us good citizens of the world. That is why the Holy Father is so unique.
Interviewer: As I look around the rest of the world, I see more spirituality in other countries, especially in third world countries, than in America. I think there is more praying, more compassion, more of a desire to believe in something greater than physical being, whereas here in America I sense a lack of spirituality. What would you say to that?
Sri Chinmoy: I beg to be excused, but I cannot see eye to eye with you. You are an American, so you may say that Americans are not spiritual. But I feel that Americans are definitely spiritual. I happen to be a seeker of truth and a lover of God. I have been here in your country, America, for 33 years. During these 33 years, God has given me ample opportunity to be of service to the soul, to the heart and to the life of America. I have been to all the states, given talks at universities, answered questions and offered Peace Concerts, and I have found America to be quite receptive.
Everybody has his own way of thinking about spirituality. Some people are of the opinion that one is spiritual only if one enters into the Himalayan caves and gives up the worldly life. Again, others are of the opinion that we do not have to enter into the Himalayan caves; only we have to give up our desire-life and enter into the aspiration-life.
It is our desire-life that binds us. If we have one car, then we want to have two cars, three cars, four cars. One house is not enough; we want a second house and a third house. And each time we increase our desire-life, we bind ourselves tighter. But when we enter into the aspiration-life, we pray to God to give us peace of mind, light and bliss. Rather than try to exercise our supremacy over others, as we do in the desire-life, in the aspiration-life we try to become one, inseparably one, with the rest of the world. It is our oneness with others that gives us peace of mind and real satisfaction. And to achieve this we do not have to enter into the Himalayan caves or lead an isolated life. On the contrary, first we have to accept life as such and then we have to transform it. We have to transform our mind; we have to transform our life. We have to look forward or upward or dive deep within to bring to the fore our inner light. Only then — only when we see, feel and grow into our inner light — can we become perfect citizens of the world. For this, America is an excellent place, just like any other country is, for an individual to practise spirituality.
Interviewer: Well said! Absolutely! Thank you very much. That was beautiful.
Radio WJR, Detroit
Interviewer: Our first guest is a gentleman who has written a book on Mother Teresa entitled, Mother Teresa: Humanity’s Flower-Heart, Divinity's Fragrance-Soul. He was on the telephone with Mother Teresa on his birthday just nine days before her passing. He is a prolific author, poet, artist, musician, athlete, etc. Sri Chinmoy joins us on WJR.
Sri Chinmoy, you mourn the loss of Mother Teresa, but you celebrate the work that she did and you carry on her memory in your book. I know it is important to you that we all remember her and her work and pick up where she left off.
Sri Chinmoy: It is absolutely true. We must try to follow in her footsteps.
Interviewer: You held a special programme yesterday at the United Nations. Can you tell us about it?
Sri Chinmoy: At the United Nations, in the Dag Hammarskjold Auditorium, we offered our prayers to her soul. The Ambassador of Bangladesh sponsored the occasion, and we prayed and sang. Also, some of the guests spoke very prayerfully about her. It was a prayerful service right from the beginning to the end. In 1975, at the same Dag Hammarskjold Auditorium, I had the golden opportunity to be in her blessingful presence. I offered her a rose and she blessingfully accepted it.
Interviewer: It is wonderful that you carry on her memory, and I am sure that it was exactly the kind of celebration Mother Teresa would have liked — with music and prayer. It is nice of you to share with us your book, Mother Teresa: Humanity’s Flower-Heart, Divinity’s Fragrance-Soul, taken from your time with her and your message of global peace, which is the same as hers.
Sri Chinmoy: We are all sailing in the same boat. Those who believe in peace, those who believe in world harmony, are all sailing in the same boat.
Radio WLW, Cincinnati
Interviewer: Sri Chinmoy is on the line. Sir, first of all tell me, what was your relationship with Mother Teresa?
Sri Chinmoy: I am a great admirer of Mother Teresa. Her boundless affection and compassion I cherish and I shall forever cherish.
Interviewer: In your book you have written several poems about her and several tributes. Do you think she had any idea while she was living how many people were aware of her work?
Sri Chinmoy: Yes, she was fully aware of the world’s affection and admiration for her, but she did not care for it. She cared only for her prayerful service to her beloved Lord Jesus Christ in humanity. She did not care for name and fame. She cared only for one thing: her sleepless and breathless service to the poor and the needy.
Interviewer: We had a priest on a week or two ago who had a chance to meet Mother Teresa in Calcutta. He said he was amazed at how nice this woman was. She was truly that way to everybody.
Sri Chinmoy: She was for all with her affection, compassion, simplicity and humility. To stand before her was to feel one’s own divine virtues — such as humility, patience and self-giving — coming to the fore.
Radio WGY, Albany
Interviewer: The world reels at the loss of a frail little woman in her eighties who spent her entire life helping people that the rest of the world tried to turn its back on — Mother Teresa. And one of the people who knew this remarkable woman best is our guest this morning. Please welcome Sri Chinmoy.
Sir, we all know what a wonderful woman Mother Teresa was and how dedicated she was to helping the poor. But what would surprise us about Mother Teresa? Did she have a weakness for candy? Did she enjoy soccer? Tell us the personal things about her.
Sri Chinmoy: I can only tell you about my personal experience of Mother Teresa. For me she was the Mother of compassion and the Sister of affection. Quite a few times she said to me, “I pray for you every day. You must pray for me. I want you to come with me to China. China needs light.” It was her affectionate and emotional demands and commands that she exercised upon me, and I shall always cherish her affection and her compassion.
Interviewer: Sri Chinmoy is our guest this morning, author of the book, Mother Teresa: Humanity’s Flower-Heart, Divinity’s Fragrance-Soul, and a friend of Mother Teresa. Now let’s talk about you for just a minute. I know you grew up in India under British rule. What was that like, being a young man in India when it was the jewel in the crown of England?
Sri Chinmoy: I was brought up in a spiritual community, and I prayed for our independence. In 1947, on the 15th of August, God listened to the prayers of millions and millions of Indians. Recently, our present Prime Minister Gujral offered a momentous utterance. He said, “We are proud to say that Indian independence was won, not given.” Many people are under the mistaken opinion that the British Government gave us our freedom.
Interviewer: Oh, not at all. It was Mahatma Gandhi’s campaign of peaceful resistance.
Sri Chinmoy: That is absolutely correct. Freedom was won, not given. Some think that the British showed a magnanimous heart. But it was not that. It was the sacrifices made by millions of people — the stupendous sacrifices, the sleepless and breathless sacrifices — that made independence possible.
Interviewer: Did Gandhi’s campaign of peaceful resistance influence your life at all? I ask because you are a Guru, a Teacher, and you’ve taught millions how to discover inner peace and fulfilment.
Sri Chinmoy: I was brought up in the Sri Aurobindo Ashram. There I prayed and meditated. So my life was influenced totally by prayer and meditation. I have the deepest admiration for Mahatma Gandhi. But his influence on our national life was mainly in the moral sphere. He practised and he advocated a moral code of life. In my case, from my prayer-life and meditation-life I try to get messages from within. I solely depend on my prayer-life and meditation-life.
Published in Mother Teresa: Humanity’s Flower-Heart, Divinity’s Fragrance-Soul, part 3
Sri Chinmoy grows more powerful with age
Celebrates 69th birthday by setting a new world record
As many people may be aware of, Sri Chinmoy has not at all given up though advancing in age. On the contrary, he is growing more powerful and wants to show that our potential to transcend limitations is without limits and age is by no means a barrier! This international peace leader found it proper therefore to celebrate his 69th birthday by setting a new world record. He lifted simultaneously two 123 kg dumbbells, 8cm overhead with each arm from a sitting position, 246kg in total. This “modern-day Hercules” therefore improved his own world record by an astounding 136kg, but that older record was established 9 months ago, November last year, where he lifted 110kg (55kg with each arm).
In the spirit of the past
The MC at that weightlifting exhibition was Bill Pearl who has won the title Mr. Universe five times and has also been voted Best Built Man of the Century.
Pearl was totally dumbfounded when he saw that lift and said: “In the last lifts he has supported more weight overhead than any man in the world. This is what a short man with a big heart can do.”
Another big name in the weightlifting and bodybuilding world, Frank Zane, who is three times Mr. Olympia and Mr. Universe, explains Sri Chinmoy’s lifts in his magazine Building the Body: “The fact that he is lifting from a seated position makes this lift even more incredible because the hips and the lower back, the main power centres of the body, are not involved in the lift.” Zane also describes the tradition from where these lifts come from: “Powerlifters in the past used to lift extreme weights just high enough to clear a piece of paper, or sometimes they didn’t lift at all but supported gigantic weights with the body.”
A world record every week
A week ago Sri Chinmoy established yet another world record by lifting 800 pounds or 363kg in the bench press. This lift is different from the traditional bench press in that the weight is in two dumbbells, but it is less than a year that Sri Chinmoy started to try this out.
Last Sunday he bettered his record from the week before by 100 pounds and now it is 900 pounds or 409kg.
On his way to Iceland
Sri Chinmoy is also known in other fields, for example as an artist, author and composer. He loves Iceland and soon Icelanders can listen to him because he will be giving a Peace Concert in University Cinema. He has given such concerts around the world and the concert in Iceland will be his six-hundredth Peace Concert.
Photo caption: Sri Chinmoy is strong in both body and soul.
Author: Snatak Matthiasson