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    Sadhu Sundar Singh in Switzerland

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    Arthur Rosh

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    LIBRARY OF THE WORLD COUNCIL OF CHURCHES BIBLIOTHEQUE DU CONSEIL ECUMENIQUE This book must GiGsAs Sadhu Sundar Singh ~ in. Switzerland (His Sojourn as recorded by Alys Goodwin in Switzerland, March 1922) ALYS GOODWIN a Edited by A. F. THYAGARAJU 2c Published by THE CHRISTIAN LITERATURE SOCIETY CONTENTS Post Box 501, PARK Town, MADRAS-600 003, 1. First MEETING AND SERMON TL A Picrure FoR AN ARTIST cn eaten IIL. ON PRAYING FOR THE Sick of. oeaeanlo IV. THE Pressinc Crowd .. ma Bae V. ‘SMELLING’ THE CouNTRY ie 4 20. | 3 VL. No Ipue TALK is g 08 | VII. [HAD BEEN RUSHED. es 7709 VIEL. Questions AND ANSWERS be D. ©. CLS, 1989 TX. ‘1 Come, Nor FOR My PLEASURE” 23) X. Testimony .. fc a #4 38; XI. Gooppyr bi " oe 405 © PRINTED IN INDIA AT THE DIOCESAN PRESS, MADRAS 600 007—1989. C 777 INTRODUCTION This is not an attempt to introduce either Sadhu Sundar Singh or his writings. ‘This would be sheer presumption. The sermons of the Sadhu recorded by. Alys Good Switzerland in March 1922 compiled under the title LIFE IN ABUNDANCE and edited by A. F. Thyagaraju was pablished by the Christian Literature Society in 1980 with a reprint in 1986 Miss Alys Goodwin, a Shorthand Typist was engaged to travel with the Sadhu and his party to take down all his addresses. including his answers to several questions asked in small groups and parties. Miss Goodwin kept a diary in which she put down every little incident and saying of the Sadhu including some of his short extempore prayers. This personal record of her impressions and experiences makes an excellent eye-witness account of the Sadhu’s Sojourn in Switzerland. In a way, an edited version of this personal diary would have made a fine companion to the collection of Sermons earlier wublished. But this might perhaps also have diluted if not distracted the focus of attention of the reader from the Sadhu’s Sermons, replete with sincerity and simplicity. During this memorable birth centenary year of Sadhu Sundar Singh, we are happy to bring out an edited version ‘of the manuscript maintained by Miss Alys Goodwin. Entitlsd SADHU'S SOJOURN IN SWITZERLAND, this small baok presents in interesting detail every little incident, anecdote, exporience intimately connected with the Sadhu’s tour in Switzerland. ‘This frank and intimate account kept vi by the accompanying recording Secretary, refreshingly reveals the human and. yet typically Indian aspect of the Sadhu’s personality. The reader might wonder how the Goodwin's personal diary—written some 65 years ago and that too in Switzerland with all its local colour and idiom—would interest us today, “ What value the subjective sentiments and personal impres- sions’ of a swiss Steno-typist about an Indian’ Sadhu could have for us today ?* Personal diaries have always provided. rich resource material for authentic history. Miss Goodwin has mostly put down only those incidents in the Sadhu’s Sojourn which have arrested her attention. Some of the responses of the Tndian saint in certain situations and set-up, his spontaneous reaction to people and places have endeared him as a youn; patriot of the Punjab. His subtle sense of humour, his pleasing manners as well as his sharp and occasionally stern NOs’ ona few occasions reveal the individuality of the robust Sadhu. I have kept in tact for the most part, Alys Goodwin's record of her impressions and other anecdotes, deleting only a few of the portions of the account which may not be very consistent with the character and personality of the great visiting Sadhu. Nothing has been added by way of editing, excepting for some minor revision correcting a few language errors. In fact there was very little left for me to do, as the manuscript has already had the master’s touch of my 00d old Guru—Prof. A. F. Thyagaraju, CLS is beholden to the Professor’s valuable contribution. It would be a,bad omission if I do not put on record the silent but significant services during birth. centenary vii et another learned Author and Literateur, or ajanspstaa Reaucis, wha thesONE busy Cone svones, briskly promoting’ the publication of all literature— in English and vernacalar languages—connected with the life and work of Sadhu Sundar Singh: May, 24 P. DHARMAGNANI Birth Centenary Year Editor 1989 A BIOGRAPHICAL INTRODUCTION By the Rr. Rey. A. J. APPASAMY, DP! Formerly Bishop in Coimbatore In Ap 1904, some missionaries and Indian Pastors gathered together for prayer at Sialkot in the Punjab. They were distressed by the low spiritual ebb of tho Ch Church in the state, the wordly and indifferent Christians, the slack ministers and Christian workers, the want of evan. gelistic fervor and zeal. ‘The news about the revival in Wales, then taking place, filled them with hope. They decided that they would not leave the place until they knew dofinitely from God what they should do to meet the situation in the Punjab. In that meeting the Punjab Prayer Union was formed. Those becoming members pledged themselves to set apart at Teast half an hour every day to pray for a spiritual awakening. A Vision of Christ Before the year closed, on Decembet 1904, God re- vealed Himself through a vision of Christto a Sikh boy of fifteen years of age named Sundar Singh. boy sought for peace by the study of the scriptures of India and by the practice of Yoga. He had sat at the feet of Hindu religious teachers. But he had not found the peace for which his soul . The vision of Christ which he now saw revealed that Christ was the living Saviour of mankind and that he should follow Him. This he did and found the peace for which he had hitherto striven in vain. On September 3, 1905, he was baptized and joined the Christian Church. ix We nead to ask whether this is a mere coincidence—the earnest prayer of missionaries and Indian pastors and the vision of the living Ohrist which was granted to Sundar Singh. I cannot but believe that God in answer to the prayers of his people raised up from an unexpected quarter a witness to His power and love. Sundar Singh began immediately preaching Christ to others. influence for good steadily increased and in the course of the years spread throughout the world. The Rev. S, Selvaretnam once said to me, * When I visited Holland, I met Princess Wilhelmina (who was for over 50 years the ruler of Holland). The Princess said to me, “I feel very close to you”? Selvaretnam was somewhat sur- prised and admitted to her, ‘I don’t understand. This is the first time we have met.” And she answered, ‘I constantly read Sadhu Sundar Singh's books. You come from his country. That is why I say I feel very close to you.” Chronicling the Great Life Some sketches of Sundar Singh’s life (including one by Canon B. H. Streeter and me) had been published ftom time to time, but there was no full-length biography. In 1949 it became clear to me that the time was now ripe for a complete biography. Sundar Many of his friends were slowly p: T was one of the few people who had known him intimately. T first met him when I was a postgraduate student in theology at Queen’s College, Oxford, in 1920. I heard his addresses in Oxford, London, Paris, Lausanne and Geneva. In 1923 and again in 1928 I spent a week with him each time inhishome at Sabathu near Simla, x When I wrote to people asking for materials, they respon- ded promptly and generously. Several books about him in English, German, Swedish, French and Tamil were sent to me. Shorthand reports of his addresses; newspaper cuttings mesting in various parts of the world and his ers to his frionds as well as their reminiscences of him also came. They needed considerable study. As a bishop T had little time for literary work, When T was not on tour I got into the habit of going to bed early waking up in the middle of the night and working at the book for about a couple of hours every day for some years with- out any disturbance. This biography of Sundar Singh was published by the Lutterworth Press in London in 1958. I may say that the work of this book was a continual inspiration to me, It was good to lay aside for some time the normal work of a bishop and to live in the company of man of God, J also found it helpful to speak frequently about his life and work in the churches of the diocese. - Most of our people were keenly interested in him. All Things by Prayer Some of the letters which people wrote about him gave beautiful glimpses of tho intense life of prayer whi behind his ministry, so widely blessed of God. Mrs. Brilling, a Swedish bishop's wife, wrote: * Never shall I forget how I saw him once in our small chapel, lost in meditation, his figure clad in his Sadbu garment, looking towards the altar, inwardly and outwardly almost perfect, rejoicing in God and as near Christ as it is possible to be. After his blessed stay here I felt surer than ever before that this little chapel ” was a House of God. He indeed had consecrated xi i “Iim the Pastor Otto Lauterburg of Switzerland wiote : “I morning afver his two hours of prayer and meditation on 2 Bible passage he enters the room for breakfast, one’ feels that something of his peace and benevolence is coming upon one and that one has been led into a good way for that day.’ i ive at least one address Sundar Singh made it a rule to give at on prayer in every city he vi He gave an address on prayer in the Uppsala Cathedral in April 1922, which is well ‘orth quoting. He took as his text the verse: * Pray with- ‘out ceasing ’(I Thess. 4:17). Archbishop Soderblom stood by his side and acted as his interpreter. He has printed the address in full in his book Sundar Singh's Budskap i ion wi i God Prayer is communion with God. It is not asking G for Aisne is opening our hearts to Him it is asking God for Himself. ‘Asa boat must be in the water but cannot be filled with the water, prayer Keeps the world away from us, so that ‘we are not drowned in it. i f our heart, ‘The language of prayer is the language o! , not Swedish or English or Hindustani. God speaks to fis in a language which every heart understands... . From such a life of prayer sprang his incessant evangelistic ‘ties all over the world. “His work as a preacher was so activit effective because it was so deeply rooted in prayer. Spreading the Fire oy, the soul-winner’s fire was kindled in him. Be aa have aly seen, he was baptized on September 3, 1905, when he was exactly sixteen years old. Thirty days ‘after his baptism he became a Sadhu and decided to preach Christ, He was particularly attracted to Tibet, Nepal, it Sikkim and other states in the Himalayas, all of which were at that time closed to the Gospel. From 1912 to 1917 he wrote detailed reports of his work in these countries, which were published in, Nur Afshan, an Urdu Christian paper Fortunately an English translation of these reports is now available in the Central Library in Zurich. I studied these voluminous reports with minute care, They showed me how fully he was occupied in preaching the Gospel under circum- stanges of extraordinary difficulty. He was a Sadhu and never carried any money with him. He depended on God from day to day for his food, If people did not offer him food he would go hungry. Sometimes he had to sleep ina eave or under a tree or in some broken-down house when People refused to give him shelter under their roof for the night. On two or three occasions he was imprisoned and perscouted for his missionary work. He realized the presence of Carist even more clearly in the midst of his suffering and Persecution than at normal times. In Perils Oft He wrote in one of its report ig by way of Khaibar Pass, I went to Afghani- stan, Here the people troubled me very much, first be- ieving me to be a spy and then because T preached the Gospel. Tn one place the villagers had made complete arrangements for my murdet, when one person secretly informed me ubout the intention of the people... . Rising by night, I fied in another direction, As I went, there were sudden torrents of rain, and I was drenched through. On the evening of the next day I atrived at another village, dead tired, hungry and thirsty and wet through. Besides, it was hilly country, the cold of the month of February, no place to stay for the xiii 1d cow-dung. night exoopt a ruined hut, full of mud an me I shivered throughout the night. ‘The people were 50. hhardshearted as not to offer me either fuel or bread. I was sure that before morning 1 should contract either pneu- monia or rheumatism, but thank the Lord, in spite of all this exposure, I took no harm. ‘The next morning, when 1was drying my clothes in the sun, those very people who had designed my murder, followed my track; the people of the two villages to- gether came to see me, and I feared escape would be now impossible. But the Lord changed their hearts in a won- derful way. From among those would-be murderers one came out and fell at my feet and said, ‘ We were sure you would have perished with cold, but you are not even sick. Certainly your God is with you and you are His servant. Forgive us our ill-treatment of you’. ‘Then they took me back to their village and I served in thoi midst for a week. When I left them, they presented me with a turban and a coat. [hope the Lord will fructify the seed sown there. ‘The Sword of the Spirit ‘Again Sundar Singh reported : ‘When I was passing through the hill forest named Bbeclera, I saw four men sitting by the side of the road. One of them sprang at me with a big knife in his hand, Seeing no possible way of escape, I bent my neck. Then he refrained from striking, but snatching my blanket from my shoulder, he cleared off. When I had gone about @ furlong, he called me back. I thought to myself there was now no hope for me, but it turned out exactly opposite to my foreboding. When he xiv ‘sal Who are you?” I told him about myself and my Purpose in touring these parts and read bim the story of the rich man and Lazarus, This parable struck him to the heart : that if the rich man who had never robbed was in hell, then what would be his own fate, who had robbed hundreds of times ? He then repented on the spot and asked for my forgiveness, He returned my blanket to me. He made for me some tea flavoured with saltand gave me some aried fruit to eat. ‘It was as though the Lord bad taken out for me * meat from the eater and sweet- ness from the strong’ and * spread a table before me in the. presence of mine enemy °. T prayed with him, but he was very distressed, ‘Then he took off his coat, spread it under me and, going to one Side, he began to weep over his condition. When I woke up in the morning he told me all about his evil life and, showing me a lot of bones in 2 cave, said: This is my sin” Then I pitied ‘him very much. But for myself I thanked God that He had been with me, otherwise today my bones, too, would have been found. on that heap . ‘To Earth's Remotest End After the year 1917, Sundar Singh’s name became widely nvitations to visit many 'ger to preach in every country, jurma, China, Great Britain, the Switzerland, Scandinavia, Germany, Even the largest churches and halls ced to speak would be generally well filled an hour before the mecting, and hundreds of people would be turned away for lack of accommodation. Known and he was flooded with in parts of the world, He was ea; but he could actually go to B United States, Palestine, What drew such multitudes to his meetings? What made them listen spell-bound to his addresses? His was a pictur- xv esque figure, tall, handsome and serene, hen aesing aa of Jesus Christ. His yellow robe, fei ye are feet even in the coldest weather set him off from of men. a faker in the sense im which we s not an eloquent speaker in t A sdnaly feaidbcrianlglsgets knowledge of Zosil ana Timited and there were many grammatical mista pa itt He sid But every address was the result of several e said. a of prayer and meditation. i reted the Bible in afresh d a creative mind and interpret sor inal way. The thousands of men and pee Game fo hear him kaew that he had suffered much for st Tid aadrosses' were aliraysisatimonics to te saving power Gna They wore not learned Seance ee ple a 1 f books, but they i we after much study ol if y 3 ea fies Byen folk who saw him and heard biap ee i i ith them unforgettable memori¢ eek aecaas detached from the world and absolutely scsonality, unique) surrendered to Christ. e One of his favourite verses ai eee eas ¥ Me rit is, even unto the end of Reres aa es a clear evidence of the abiding presence an of Christ. ‘The Page and the Pen : After 1922, there was a breakdown in his pe ae 1d no longer travel widely or bear the strain of a seung cenistey in the terrific glare of unsought publicity. ak eee to write devotional books and thus continu i . world-wide ministry. i i ith At the Master's Feet, slim volumes, beginning wit 1 , von written and published. They sold in enormous num xvi bers and were translated into forty languages. [am informed that the German omni nib ka circulation. MT CHEER dear a ene Biographies Multiplied Three Christian scholars in E ristian lurope took Sundar Singh’s theology quite seriously. They were Canon B. H. street, Dr. Nathan Sdderblom (the Archbishop of Uppsala for some years) and Professor Friedrich Heiler of Germany. Canon B. H. Streeter was a distinguished theologian in Oxford. In collaboration with me he wrote a book entitled The Sadhu This was published in England in 1921. It went through eight editions and was translated into several languages: i Sundar Singh stayed in Archbishop Soderblom’s pal for ten days in 1922. The Archbishop made a careful ea of the Christian religion as well as of the religions of he world, and he was able to interpret Sundar Singh effe ey : against the spiritual background of India. He wrote aad in Swedish about Sundar Singh, Sundar Singh's eee beinging tin panel the siguifeane of his inet, wee ook of the i i 4 ee eee Archbishop ought certainly to be Dr. Heiler, professor of the History of igic Universiy of Marbure, wats in Gaiters Hoste oa, sbout the inner life and the Christian theology of Side Singh, with the vite, Sadhu Sundar Singh, Ein Apostle des Ostens and Westens, The German book had a wide ie culation and 15,000 copies were sold. It was translated bits English under the title, The Gospel of Sadhu Sundar ih ‘This English translation did not have a large circulation, a many people are not aware of its existence, oe xvil It is curious that even in India, the native land of Sundar Singh the path to a olearer understanding of his creative per- sonality comes via Germany, Professor Heiler has a larger collection of the addresses of Sundar Singh in different Iauguages than any other person I know in the world. He has studied them all with a well-equipped mind and a deop religions experience. ‘The many comments which he makes con the place of Sundar Singh in the Golden succession of Christian mystics and saints are stimulating. In his last article, published in 1929, Sundar Singh gave a testimony about what the Bible had done for him. He said: Ttis now about a quarter of a century since this precious book introduced me to its Author, and all this time I have found my Saviour to be exactly the same as recorded in this book. He has been to me all that we read concerning Him there. Language difficulties and textual criticism have not hidden its truth nor hindered in the least its life giving influence in my heart because of these words— “They are spirit and they are life’. In reading the Bible T have found such untold and eternal wealth of riches of which I neverthought nor dreamt before, and now in passing on its message to others, and sharing it with them, its blessing to me and to them continually increases. ‘An English translation of the Sadhu’s Urdu book The Real Life was found in manuscript mong Sundar Singh's papers. His Urdu book, The Real Pearl, originally published by the Punjab Religious Tract and Book Society, has been translated with their permission into English by the Rev. M.R. Robinson, United Theological College, Bareilly. The Chris- San Literature Society, Madras, now proposes to put sundar Singh’s devotional books in a series. Thi , Lam convinced, a real service i , to the i arts of the world.”* eae * Thi i repthit ance om Sundar Singh appeared in World Vision Magazine Febroasy 1968, Pasadena. US.A. We ae thankful io the Eitor for permission to reprint it as an introduction to this book, THE SOJOURN CHAPTER I FIRST MEETING AND SERMON On Tuesday morning, February 28,1922, I was giving & lesson at La Casita when I was told that someone wished to speak to me. It was Dorian Maybury, whom E.* had seat with a letter marked “Urgent. I opened it and read = © would you entertain the following offer? To accompany the Sadhu during the month of ‘Maroh in Switzerland and take down a shorthand report of all his addresses”. The etter was from the chaplain. Well, as the dear Sadhu so ‘often says, “I was rather surprise At 12.20 we were seated near the booking office, anxiously watching the main entrance, A motor-cat stopped. “There he is!” A tall, turbaned, black-bearded figure came forward, making huge strides, with a sturdy, be-spectacled individual on his tight. T went boldly up.“ Etes-vous monsieur le secretaire?”” and he passed on, General con- sternation. There seemed to ‘be nobody else. I couldn't make it out. Said E., “I’m sure that is the secretary. Til tell him who you are,” and she rushed after the monosyllabic gentleman. In a few minutes she returned. “T's all right You are to take a ticket for Bienne.” That done, we made our way to the train. Mr. S., the famous guide, came to see me and lent me Canon Streeter’s book The Sadhu to read, fas T had not had time to study anything about the great man, part from a short article published in the church magazine, * Miss Goodwin's Sister. 2 What a day! Shrove Tuesday ! Princess Mary’s wed- ding day! and there was I, a shorthand-typist, engaged by the Swiss Committee to travel about with the wonderful Sundar Singh ! There were several people about, and they thoroughly enjoyed gazing at the Sadhu. He wore a long, dark grey coat, like a rainooat, over his saffron coloured robe, with a turban of the same material on his head, and good strong sandals on his feet, but no socks, I noticed the folk were invariably struck by his feet, especially when it happened to be a rather cold day. “ Mais, il doit avoir froid, ce pauvre homme!” “Ce pauyre homme” did not say much, but smiled continually, showing his beautiful white teeth. Besides, he did not understand French, and the dear Swiss were a little bit afraid of their English, and also of the great Sundar Singh, His smile, however, soon put them at their ease. We reached our destination, a children’s hospital. We were shown into a small reception room where the Sadhu was seated on the couch (the place of honour in this country !) surrounded by nurses and pastors. He was drinking tea and trying to eat a huge slice of cake made of pastry and caraway- seeds. There were piles of this cake, so I suppose it must be a speciality of Bienne. It was quite good, especially if you happened to be hungry. Conversation was general, half English and half French. I managed to ask the Sadhu he did not learn English at the mission school and he said, “No, I did everything in Urdu”. Supper was served carly. Supper over, Sister Helene suggested that the Sadhu i so we left the main by yards. 3 : ed in front fe entered the boys’ ward. The Sadhu stopp ol esis tad God bless you” and accepted an offering in an envelope for children in India. He spoke of the Jad whose loaves and fishes fed the five thousand. Next we visited the girls’ ward. The Sadhu walked to the far end, and accepted a few flowers and a message written jin English from one of the little ones. He stayed longer here than in the boys’ ward, but did not walk round the beds. One little black-haired girl was so anxious to get a closer view that she climbed out of her cot and went bate-footed towards the Sadhu. But he said very little, only looked and smiled. ‘The meeting was to be in the Eglise Nationale ateight o'clock. i ing, and then the ‘The service began with prayer and singing, at . sadhu and his interpreter, Mr. de R., entered. the pulpit. t a picture the Indian made in his b e ee ch is jet black hair and pointed beard, his olive skin ‘and beautiful white tecth ! I was curious to hear him. ‘ith, * ik to you T am going to read He began with, “ Before I speal Tan ‘what our Saviour said. Matt. 11 :28— Come unto Me, all ye that are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you iit tos" “There is nothing in this world that can satisfy our hearts... ae i anon-Christian Tused to think it was a pity I was born in ano1 country, but after visiting these countries [had to change my opinion... . one jing and listening so attentively. T thank you all for coming an: i it is a great pleasure to see Christian brothers and sisters. 4 ‘The address lasted barely an hou were short and spoken aa: bat daa tikes i i became more excited, until the words were in danger ef falling over each other. Mr. de. R. interpreted very well and te con; esata not lose one word. You could have heard two men in the pulpi type of Eas and West, foz Merde Rhos avery fir sn golden, almost reddish, hair and moustache, they. ete theguipisaud eat Conk We RE Ae o hymns and prayer. It was quite along time before the youn; perky sarees ‘and I could leave the church, for pe i¢ Sadhu were F Se be ane at the entrance, and everybody On reaching the hospital we fo M und that the guest had retired to his room. Pastor F. Bence ladies who had run after the Sadhu. “ Why are they run- ning? he asked. “To shake hands with you”. “Oh is that all !” he had said, or words to that effect, CHAPTER 2 i ‘A PICTURE FOR AN ARTIST March 1, Ash Wednesday. I was up at 5.30 an. and soon at work, transcribing my shorthane notes of the evehitig before, I had managed to take down the address pretty Iiteraily, and had very little trouble with my Pitman. — ff was not warm under the roof, in fact cold, and 1 was glad (0 seat Tnyself at the breakfast-table at 7.30. Again they placed me nearly opposite the Sadhu, He looked tired and was very quiet, only making a remark or two about the mountains in india, A sister told me what one of the little girl patients had said after the Sadhu's visit to the ward, “Crest le Christ 1” Many persons have mace the same remark end J too have neticed the resemblance to pictures of Chtist. | Broakfast over, we were grouped on the steps in front b¢ the hospital for one of the sisters to take a photo. The Sadhu made a fine central figure and did not move. He said the was *, used to it” | Before leaving we were requested to ‘write out names in the visitor’s book. The Sadbu inscribed tent from St, Luke then wrote the following; “* From the unreal Tead me to the real, from darkness to light, from death to immortality,”-a quotation from the Hindu Scripture.* We thon took the train in Tavannes the Sadhu Mr. S.. Pastor L. and myself, We all sat together in a third class carriage, the Sadbu facing the engine, his nose glued to the Gindow, He did not lose much of the scenery! We had to change at a small place and had ten minutes to w: Me, S.s the “ gendarme,” whisked the Sadhu off to the wa * From the Brhadaranyaka Upanishad. 6 ‘ag room, for he was always terribly afraid o} form- ly afraid of crowds for: 2 oe ‘next conducted to the Parsonage and intrady am ghtadame HH. and about twenty pastors from nk neighbouring vilages, Soon there was & most interesting onversation in the large, comfortably furnished deawings ‘pm, the good pastors were told that the Sadhu par answering questic i , ca ions. Th for ae hour, Mr. S. acting as Lee eae ped of the pastors could speak English and took questions were not very original eee Seda “ When is the best time for prayer 2” “ Early morning.” “Do you kno ie w anything of the secret Christians in The Sannyasi.” “Do you know Tago re?” (This tion and always elicited the ae cee ae Yes, he is a friend of sine, I have stayed with hii im. He is a nice man, & Por only poems for the world: n° 8S RO message, he has Pastor H. was anxio AN Us te ernie 10 know the Sa to ask such a question as 2 the Sadhu i \ z would n Hhainhaipis but I'm quite sure we Be ood ing worth hearing had that oe ave Bad uesti he was never at a loss for an answer, oe” Skea. as Towards 12.30 we ; Ms all a dinner. Grace was said dap iy fo 8 hotel nearby for \d we stat Pastor H. had a brilliant idea, ne Then @ general 7 conversation in which the Sadhu might join; really more ‘questions and answers. ‘The honoured guest, however was equal to the occasion and replied, “In India we have a proverb, ‘One mouth, one work !” ‘There was a hearty Taugh, and the hint was taken. Half-way through the meol the hotel manger came round with souvenir albums of Tavannes, I thought I should like mine autographed by the Sadbu, so I passed it to him with my pencil. He at once wrote his name and told me what it meant. Sundar—beautiful and Singh=lion. Of course the pastors sitting near me wanted their albums signed too; T was expected to pass them up, being able to speak English to the Sadhu, while Mr. S. proposed that he should haye a rubber stamp. The meal over, we returned to the parsonage for coffee and the Sadhu retired, tc be quiet before giving his address. It was a beautiful afternoon, but windy. The factories were to close at three o'clock so that the workers might have a chance of hearing the Sadhu, as he would not hold ‘a second mecting in the evening, He suggeted that what he said in the afternoon might be repeated by someone else, but that would not have been the same thing at all. It was most interesting to see the country people waiting outside for a glimpse of the Sadhu. They had come in from miles away, on foot or in carriages. Pastor Secretan told us Iater that a special train had brought them in hundreds from ‘Trammelan, and that even the postal van was full. ‘The meeting was to be in front of the school-house, 3 new building standing on a height above the town. At three, ‘we left the parsonage, the Sadhu, Mr. S., and Pastor H. leading the way, and walking quickly, for the Sadhu takes Tong swinging strides. ‘The crowd pressed round us, and I 8 had some difficulty in keeping near the leaders, could not help thinking of the crowd mentioned in the Bible who Pressed against Christ, to hear Him preach. . It was a curious sensation to find myself following that man from the East, in his saffron robe and turban, and it was a sight for-any artist ; the little town wit factories down below, the Schéol-house on the-hill above, mountains and woocs all around, people hurrying up the road and swarming over the lds, and the Sadhu striding along in front. We passed through the building and stood on a wide baleony.on the first floor, a sea of upturned faces in front and on either side, ani boys perched on every tree in the neighbourhood’ of the school, a (Tavannes, March 1, 1922) He preached on John 10:10 . {See Sermon No, 1). Soon after the meeting a fresh shower of snow fell upon the countryside. “God was His servant,” wrote Pastor Houriet. Sundar Singh had preached his beautiful sermon on life in abundance. ; ‘The address lasted in all about one hour and -then we returned to the parsonage for tea, A group soon formed near the sofa and we each tried to talk to the Sadhu. I asked a few questions about the vision of Christ, as to what he had really seen. He told us that he saw-the whole figure of Christ, His long hair, His robe,the wounds in His hands and feet, but they were “glorious, not bleeding". He was not standing on the floor,* and His face was wonderful, 8o loving, Did you hear the exact words He spoke to you?” *T can’t express what I heard, not in English, nor even “in my own language.” olay uhh 1. Xf this reminiscential of the Hindu idea that divine. beings ever stand 6n ground level ?—Ed, CHAPTER 3 ON PRAYING FOR THE SICK ‘At six o'clock, the Sadhu, Mr. S., Festa fe pa < for Berne, changing at Bienne. We travelled thir the carriage was pretty full. me i feached Berne, rain was fal ents, reat tg and venereal Ged, On evn he igs te sual Tittle ceremony took place, Mr. S. went fist 10 clear the way, then [stood aside forthe Sadhu to pass son He always protested, but it was out ofthe question for me get out before him, especially when distinguished p pt were waiting on the platform to receive the vi “You must go first, Sadhu. . “T don't like it - yh held back, dar When a Frenchwoman saw how Sundat (Gow polite she said, “ Quiil est oli! J'aime cet homme he is! I love this man.) Jeotric train for Spiess. we changed and took the el i aA tat cold and snow was all around us, We ee a ‘and down the platform and greatly interested the officials and passengers standing there. I called the Sadhu's i that was to. take us farther attention to the wonderful motor oo ¢ said, ““ Man can control the air, hi ee machinery, but he can’t control bins eS all his attention to the scenery. The Bible and nathee Ae his favourite books. He does. not, like towns. “rough pages in the book of nature”. 0 “Yes, I like country people,” he once said. “They are like sheep. Our Lord liked sheep. He would not have called the people in towns sheep’. Town-people are clever, with a cleverness of the serpent and the snake. They are mischievous. God did not choose a sheep to tempt Eve, but a serpent.” Pastor L. asked him to pray for one of his sick parishio- ners at Saanen. He replied, “ We must not pray for others, they must go themselves straight to God. He is not only say Father, but their Father too. God does not like us to approach Him by roundabout ways, He likes us to go straight to Him ; when we pray for others, for their illnesses for physical help, we come between them and God, we are interfering with His Sickness is sent to them in order to realise His purpose. It is too often ‘My will be done’ and not ‘ Thy will be done ’, We pray for health, for money, when we should ask for spiritual guidance and blessing. Spiritual blessing is given without being asked for, but it does not stay. It is not appreciated and we lose it.” “Saul lost both the Holy Spirit and his kingdom. He went out in search of his father’s donkeys, not to find the Holy Spi there is a great difference between the Holy Spirit and a donkey. The Holy Spirit came to him and he began to prophesy ; then he became king. Both the king- dom and the Holy Spirit were given him without his searching for them and the result was worse than if he had never had them.” “We must pray for spiritual blessing, then it will stay with us and we shall not lose it. Pray for spiritual guidance for all, but not for physical help. I know others think other- wise. They may pray, but it is not my work to pray for others. I have come to this decision after much reflection Ml sd consideration; I thought about it for a Tong me, itis for the si now I know it is not my work. If you pray “ee ick person should know it himself and so help in the mae lotic Father. I know a leper who was glad oe leprosy and would not lose it. He said it was sent _ CHAPTER 4 ; THE PRESSING CROWD Snow was falling heavily, so that by the time we resiched Saanen, about 10. Szanen, about 10:30, there were 0 em of lovely, clean snow The address was given in the Church at ei long tefore that tine the country Polk arched ve sieht; eo Stier 0 English people who had taken the train from Chateau d'Oen. was given a special seat in the gallery to - good view of the church and the congregation. Ik was most impressive gathering, and the only place, tour, where I noticed tears. It certais ly was a st ing spectacle ; the dimly-lighted old church, decorated with branches of pine, the sea of upturned faces, the picture- sque figure of the Sadhu in the pulpit, and Pastor L anil beside him. The latter translated the sermon into ‘Getnin and gave an interpretation specially suited to his people While he was speaking the Sadhu leant back rae the grey stone pillar, with hands folded, and one could not helj thinking of the portraits of Christ ; there was such a striking resemblance. His A A No. 2). ©. His text was Matt, 20:22 (See Sermon Saanen, March 2, 1922 peu end of the address the Sadhu Jeft the pulpit and a pu re ati Mr. L. spoke a few closing words inked the preacher ii ing wit ep tee ial preacher in English, finishing with At Montreux, Miss Sanders, the Se , 8 cretary for the C.S.A. entered our carriage, and, seeing the Sadhu, asked if I would 13. ow her to sit near him as her cousin (Miss Dobson, India)" new ith very well. Then I heard another interesting eon versation; for the two spoke of India, and of different people they ‘both knew over there. It was Miss Sanders’ cousin, Bishop Lefroy of Lahore, who wished to ordain the Sadhu, ut the latter decided he would rather be free to go his own way, . They spoke of Mr. Stokes, the American with whom, Sundar Singh used to work, (they had met in 1906) and the Sadhu said, “ He began to organize and gave less time to prayer. “He said to me, ‘You are an unpractical man” because I don’t like organizations. 1 prophesied He would ose all, and [ was right, Now he is in prison, and the “unpractical man” is free and working”. ‘Speaking of a Mr. Newton,* the Sadhu ., quiet man. People are always talkin listen, ‘I say, ‘slow to. speak, eager to listen’ ‘Then he related something which does not reflect great credit.on our countrymen out in India. “

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