Narrator:
See if you can recognize it? | Secret seeker Shyamakshayapa provides information YouTube Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJ5HjiwU82c
Narrator:
Here is a clean and well-formatted English transcript of the dialogue in the audio:
Narrator:
(00:00 - 01:00: Ambient sounds of conch shells blowing and temple bells ringing during a ritual)
Interviewer:
Gurudev, we saw a photo at the beginning of this video. We couldn't recognize who it was. Were you able to recognize who is in that photo?
Gurudev:
No, that's an old photo of mine, taken about 30 years ago. Back then, I had a full head of hair. We used to perform a puja every year at the cremation ground on the new moon day, specifically on Mahalaya. This tradition continues even now. On Mahalaya, we used to perform a grand puja for the Mother Goddess. Back then... well, even I would have trouble recognizing myself now. Right? Back then, I didn't have a beard or a mustache. I had hair on my head, whereas now there is nothing.
Gurudev:
I was performing rituals even then; the puja would last all night at the cremation ground, right while bodies were being cremated. Someone had taken that photo-one of my disciples. He showed me the photo and asked, "Can you recognize this person?" I asked him, "Where did you get this photo?" He said he had taken it himself. It's a very old photo, probably 30 or 32 years old. He gave it to me. I thought, "Fine, let people see it." People see me as I am now, but that photo shows who I was back then.
Interviewer:
So, viewers, we've just discussed a photo of Gurudev from about 30 to 32 years ago. We showed it at the beginning, and we'll show it again at the end. Take a look and see the extent of the transformation. Please let us know in the comments if you were able to recognize him at first glance before hearing the explanation. We would love to have your honest feedback on whether you could truly identify him.
Gurudev:
No, no, it is quite right; it's almost impossible to recognize me. No one would be able to. My appearance then and now are worlds apart. It was a long time ago; I used to work in an office back then. During that period, on the night of Mahalaya, we would hold an all-night puja for the Mother at the cremation ground, right beside the funeral pyres. Someone-a woman-kept that photo from the puja. She sent it to you, asking, "Can you recognize this man?"
Gurudev:
Yes, I am that man. I am that same person; I am Shyama Khapa. That is how I looked in the beginning. I was a practitioner even then, but without the beard or mustache.
Interviewer:
We are grateful to the person who preserved that photo. Because of them, we were able to see you as you were after all these years.
Gurudev:
Yes, indeed. There are other photos too. Many people have them. I didn't know about them, but someone asked me, "Do you recognize this gentleman?" I replied, "Yes, I recognize him; that's me." I am that Shyama Khapa. I didn't go by the name Shyama Khapa back then; that name came much later. Much later. Yes.
Interviewer:
So, viewers, you've seen a photo of Gurudev from approximately 32 years ago. My salutations to you, Gurudev.
Gurudev:
My blessings to you, my child. My blessings.