Annihilating sacrificial fire

The goal, the realisation of Golwalkar's lifelong austerities, was to see India arise in all her glory - civilisational and spiritual, as a beacon powerhouse for humanity and for the world

- ANIRBAN GANGULY

From Sargachi, Golwalkar carried with him a "rare wealth", which would remain his physical link to this transformative past and to his Guru for the rest of his life.

The "wealth" consisted of a life-size photograph of Shri Baba and carried the signature "Akhandananda", a "woolen sheet" used by him, a "sacred yellow" cloth used for daily worship, "two white towels carrying the impressions of the right and left feet, two white towels of square type of 15 inches size," writes Ranga Hari who had seen these sacred objects. "On both towels foot impressions in vermillion of both legs could be seen. That is, a pair of foot impressions of both legs," "two saffron handkerchiefs," a dress worn by the Guru, "a teaspoon and his pocket watch." Apart from these, were the ashes and some pieces of bones of Swami Akhandananda, collected after his cremation and some sacred hair-relics of Sri Ramakrishna, "handed over to Amitabh Maharaj by Swami Akhandanandaji, and handed over by the Maharaj to Shri Guruji.

Ranga Hari describes his indescribable feeling of seeing Sri Ramakrishna's sacred relics decades later in 2005. "That small packet contained a few hairs, both black and white, I was seeing the deathless relics of an incarnation, who attained "Brahmapada" 119 years ago; not in a dream but in a thoroughly waking state. I kept the sacred relic over my head for a moment and saluted it with utmost reverence...I was really transported to a new extra-terrestrial world." With these sacred valuables as his only possessions, Golwalkar, "an ordained sannyasi now, returned to Nagpur.