I spotted a picture on the wall at a client’s house. It was a photo of an old man. I pointed to it and said:
Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj.
The homeowner looked at me in amazement. He’d lived there for 30 years. No one had ever mentioned the picture, and suddenly a house inspector shows up knowing who it is.
For those of you who don’t know, he was an Indian spiritual teacher in the mid-1900s. The reason I’m familiar with his work is because I’m an expert on South Asian gurus. Just kidding, of course.
I just happened to read the book I Am That, a collection of conversations with Nisargadatta Maharaj. I liked it, and his hard-to-pronounce, hard-to-remember name just stuck with me. Don’t ask me why.
The client, though, might have thought I’m wiser than I really am. He might still be wondering what the hell happened that day.
Now, I was going to write something about this as an example of how we can become “experts” by laser-focusing on one small niche. I’ve ended a few recent posts that way (and I guess I just did it again).
Anyway, I didn’t feel like it this time. Sometimes it feels so, hmm… guru-ish. Maybe I’ll quit doing it.