The Incredible Adventure

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Periodically, PremRawat.com publishes first-person reflections from people around the world who are experiencing the benefits of practicing the techniques of Self-Knowledge as taught by Prem Rawat – a simple way to turn one’s attention from the outside world to a place of inner peace. This month’s reflection is from John Slowsky, currently residing in San Diego, California, USA.

Several years ago, I attended a corporate dinner in Osaka, Japan. Seated at the celebration were all the senior executives representing the Japanese game developer I was working with at the time and their American game publishers responsible for the success of the project. The president of the Osaka team, our host, sat at the head of the table and directed the evening’s festivities.

The conversation had been light and friendly when the president posed a question to the group:

If you could live your life over,
what would you want to be?

He then began describing how he would have enjoyed being a professional baseball player with his favorite ball club and how it would feel to win the championship. Much laughter followed and there was a lively spirit in the air, as our host invited the woman to his left to share her dream life with the rest of us.

There were about 12 of us there that night. I was the eighth person in line before I took the stage.

When my turn came, after hearing stories of people wanting to be actors, musicians, and professional athletes, I calmly said, “I would like to repeat this life all over again. It has been an incredible adventure. Without hesitation, I would love to do it again. Even with the awful years, I would pay good money to relive every second.”

Oops! I instantly realized my error when everything became very silent in the room.

“Wow, this is awkward,” I thought to myself. “You moron, you should have talked about wanting to be a professional surfer or something the others could relate to.”

Clearly, my response had caught everyone off guard, and I didn’t know how to continue. The person seated to my left seemed to be suspended in midair with a blank look on their face.

In that silent moment, our host (the president of the company), knowing me to be an honest and talented contributor to the project, began to speak. Looking back now, I wished I had recorded what followed for the next few hours. It was as if we had all given ourselves permission to speak our truths without fear of judgment.

Our host began with a raw story of his own, which led the group to do likewise.

We shared one remarkable life story after another, no longer hiding from each other in plain sight. It takes courage to see others discovering just how incredible their lives really are. That night, all of us became friends. It was a very good night.

Peace Education Program meeting, Colombo, Sri Lanka, October 30, 2018

Looking back at my life, I realize I have found a great reward in the experience of Self-Knowledge that Prem Rawat helped me discover. It has given me a perspective on life that is filled with an abundance of gratitude.

During my daily meditation practice, it is not uncommon for me to experience an unraveling of mental tangles and knots I never knew were affecting me—knots of confusion, social fears, ridiculous concepts, and cultural stigmas.

Peace Education Program meeting, Soweto, South Africa, December 16, 2017

I found it surprising during my practice of Self-Knowledge one morning that I was experiencing being within. As shallow as it might have been, it was a discovery, not a belief. The awareness of this internal realm was not a mystery. It felt natural. Had I been here before and forgotten? Why does this feel so natural? Can I stay there for hours? It feels as if I could. I never knew my breath contained everything within it. Absolutely everything!

Practicing Self-Knowledge reminds me of scuba diving.

I never knew my breath contained everything within it.
Absolutely everything!

If you have never tried scuba diving, the buoyancy from your wetsuit and air tank makes it challenging to start a dive. Watching beginners is quite funny as they struggle to break the surface. They kick and flail but remain on the surface until they manage to get about three feet underwater, at which point the water pressure on the body makes their descent easy.

The same applies when sitting down to practice the techniques of Self-Knowledge I learned from Prem Rawat. I kick and flail with my thoughts until I get under the surface turbulence, and then the practice becomes an enchanted walk with a dear companion.

I have always delighted in becoming saturated with the NOW.

After one morning’s session, while making breakfast before I had to get on the road for work, I was standing over the kitchen counter when I realized that I was in love!

That sublime feeling of ambrosia (if ambrosia could have a feeling) bubbled up and filled my apartment. That intoxicating feeling of joy mixed with ecstasy when it occurred to me that this should be impossible!

I have no girlfriend or significant other; I am not dating anyone. And yet, I am drunk in LOVE. It has to be Self-Knowledge!

Peace Education Program meeting, Medellin, Colombia, July 28, 2017

What a life-changing moment to recognize that I carry the source of intimacy within me! This wonderful feeling will always be with me and is mine to indulge in, as long as I want to keep going deep within.

I am so very grateful for this gift of Self-Knowledge and to the man who accepted me as his student.

I am confident that history will remember Prem Rawat and what he brought to countless people, but what will be lost and never documented is just how much fun we had with him along the way.

“Living Legacy” (3:28)

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