Falling in Love, the Gayatri Mantra Way

I still remember the first time I saw him.

He was still a ‘he’ then. You’ll see what I mean in a bit.

It was my first time visiting his place. I entered the room silently, a little nervous, a little eager, a lot apprehensive.

I’d have to wait 10 minutes for him to arrive. No problem.

I looked around as I waited. There was soft music playing but I didn’t understand the words. It sounded pleasant and lovely – pleasing, like he wanted me to have a good time while I waited. The golden lights in the room were equally lovely.

At one end, I saw a statue of him. Hmm. Not sure how I felt about that but I held my judgment. Maybe I didn’t understand it yet. He must have had a reason to install himself there, surely.

I looked at the clock. It was nearly time.

And almost like he had heard my thought, I felt the air around me shift.

Everything felt still, silent.

Just like his arrival.

(A sidebar: Google the Gayatri Mantra lyrics. Read it. Then Google Gayatri Mantra in English. We carry on now.)

Do you know how the Red Sea parted for Moses?

That’s what it felt like to me.

I saw bits of him at first – his feet, his attire, the top of his head, until all of a sudden, there he was. In entirety. Like he had appeared just for me.

I watched curiously as he made his way to the front of the room.

I’m not going to lie. It wasn’t love at first sight. I observed him as he took his seat, settled down and smiled. He was certainly handsome and he had an aura around him that felt calming.

Settling.

“Good evening,” he said. I simply smiled.

And for the next 45 minutes, he talked. Mostly, he talked of things that I had heard of but didn’t know too much about. While, like always, I itched to share my thoughts and perspective on what he shared, I held my tongue. Like most times.

My thoughts weren’t worth sharing.

A while later, he looked at the clock and petered to a close. Well, ‘petered’ is the wrong word, perhaps. Even in the short time I’d known him, I understood that he didn’t like wasting time. He spoke as much as was needed, and then moved on to the next thing.

He stood up and moved over to the keyboard. I was befuddled. What was he going to do?

He sat down and looked over, smiling. I got it then. He was going to play something. Well, alright.

He tuned the keys a bit, cleared his throat and slowly, began singing. His voice shook a bit and it wasn’t entirely in key. About halfway there, if that.

But I was mesmerized. He sounded strong, powerful. In control, like he had discovered music and she was following his every bidding. Like music had been made for him.

Maybe that was the moment I began to fall in love. The soulful tune carried from his lips, wafted through the air and landed straight in my heart.

His words spoke of how he already loved me; I just didn’t know it yet.

And maybe I didn’t want to be loved by him. He looked, sounded and felt so sure of himself. His confidence, his demeanor, his gaze – it all overflowed with affection, gentleness and certainty. He knew who he was and he wanted me to step up and be the same.

I couldn’t. I wouldn’t.

I didn’t want to.

I wasn’t ready for it yet.

And so, he made me wait. He watched over me, looked after me and held my hand as slowly, but surely, I fell in love too.

The lasting kind of love isn’t an explosion. It builds up, minute by minute, day by day, even year by year, until it has cemented itself in every pore of your being, until every breath you take is so that you can hear and see him one more time. Everything in your world revolves around him. Your life begins and ends with him.

Or her.

That’s what he did. He allowed me to build myself in love, the kind of love that placed my whole being at His feet, where His every word became my prayer, and my joy became the sound of His laughter.

That’s how ‘he’ became He.

He allowed me to see who He really was.

Falling in love with the Divine is not easy. He demands complete surrender. Nothing else will do. If you aren’t willing to give all of yourself, this love is not for you. You’d be better off loving a human being instead, who carries the same hang-ups you do.

That’s why He doesn’t go easy on you. Because falling in love with Him is falling in love with yourself.

And that’s our biggest fear.

What does the Gayatri Mantra have to do with all of this?

It was how I fell in love with Him. It was how He showed me who He really is.

Have you Googled the Gayatri Mantra meaning yet? I’ve made it easier for you :)

Let’s keep falling in love together. He’s waiting for you too.