Table of Contents

Acknowledgments

Introduction

1 Meeting Cartouche

2 I Dream India into Existence

3 Hari Puri Baba

4 Becoming Rampuri

5 “I Can Only Show You a Path”

6 What Is Remembered

7 Kashi: The City of Liberation

8 Kumbh Mela

9 Angrez: Foreigner

10 Tantric Attack

11 The Healing Mantra

12 A Question of Paths

13 Hari Puri’s Miraculous Return

14 Gangotri Baba

15 The Ghost of Hari Puri Baba

16 The Process of Un-Becoming

17 Possession

18 Deconstruction

19 The Nectar of Immortality

Afterword

Glossary

About the Author

Rampuri is the first foreigner to be initiated into the ancient society of yogis and shamans known as the Renunciates of the Ten Names, or Sannyasis. He has been a Naga Baba since 1970. A yogi and teacher who gives workshops and retreats around the world, he established the Hari Puri Ashram, in Hardwar in northern India in 1984, where he continues the oral tradition of his lineage.

Reviews

“This book will entertain and enlighten you. A bold journey that explores the true intersections of Eastern and Western thought.”
*Deepak Chopra, author of The Book of Secrets*

“Rampuri’s search has carried him into the very depths of one of the great ancient wisdom lineages of India. He has gone where very few Westerners have gone.”
*Krishna Das, “Chant Master of American Yoga” (New York Times)*

“An authentic and fascinating account of a Western yogi who has made India his home for his body and his spirit. Autobiography of a Sadhu is bound to challenge your view of reality and the spiritual life. It is not just the story of a personal quest but of a journey beyond the Western civilization mind-set to the real India of the yogis, where the limitations of both our cultural ideas and our egos are continually exposed. An adventure into a different kind of reality.”
*David Frawley, director of the American Institute of Vedic Studies and author of Yogi and Ayurveda a*

"Personally, I found reading Autobiography of a Sadhu enlightening and educational. Knowing very little of this specific sect, I was enthralled with the mysticism. I'm grateful the author included a glossary because some of the terms used were beyond my knowledge. I certainly recommend this book to anyone willing to expand his or her knowledge of another culture."
*Irene Watson, Reader Views, March 2010*

"At the end of this compelling autobiography, the author says that he hopes readers will be edified and entertained by his quest for Truth and his adventures in the Extraordinary World. We are."
*Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, Spirituality and Practice, April 2010*

"Rampuri's account of his spiritual journey is an intentionally entertaining story with personal accounts of many fascinating characters that changed him completely. He also gives the reader valuable glimpses into authentic life in India."
*Allyson Gracie, New Age Retailer, June 2010*

"Highly Recommended."
*Light of Consciousness, October 2010*

"Whether he is truly a holy man or a real-life Indiana Jones, Rampuri's journey looks like a compelling read."
*Whole Life Times, October 2010*

“Lovers of imagery and the sounds of words will be mesmerized by Autobiography of a Sadhu.”
*CurledUpWithAGoodBook.com, April 2011*