he imagination of a medium," as some sceptics had suggested. It was no
dream of the night; it was between nine and ten o'clock of the
forenoon. There was the sun shining and silently witnessing the scene
from above. I see him before me in flesh and blood, and he speaks to me
in accents of kindness and gentleness. What more could I want? My
excess of happiness made me dumb. Nor was it until some time had
elapsed that I was able to utter a few words, encouraged by his gentle
tone and speech. His complexion is not as fair as that of Mahatma
Koothoomi; but never have I seen a countenance so handsome, a stature
so tall and so majestic. As in his portrait, he wears a short black
beard, and long black hair hanging down to his breast; only his dress
was different: Instead of a white, loose robe he wore a yellow mantle
lined with fur, and on his head, instead of the turban, a yellow Tibetan
felt cap, as I have seen some Bhootanese wear in this country. When the
first moments of rapture and surprise were over, and I calmly
comprehended the situation, I had a long talk with him. He told me to
go no further, for I should come to grief. He said I should wait
patiently if I wanted to become an accepted Chela; that many were those
who offered themselves as candidates, but that only a very few were
found worthy; none were rejected, but all of them tried, and most found
to fail signally, as for example---and---. Some, instead of being
accepted and pledged this year, were now thrown off for a year. The
Mahatma, I found, speaks very little English--or at least it so seemed
to me--and spoke to me in my mother-tongue--Tamil. He told me that if
the Chohan permitted Madame Blavatsky to visit Parijong next year, then
I could come with her. The Bengali Theosophists who followed the
"Upasika" (Madame Blavatsky) would see that she was right in trying to
dissuade them from following her now. I asked the blessed Mahatma
whether I could tell what I saw and heard to others. He replied in the
affirmative, and that moreover I would do well to write to you and
describe all.

I must impress upon your mind the whole situation, and ask you to keep
well in view that what I saw was not the mere "appearance" only, the
astral body of the Mahatma, as we saw him at Bombay, but the living man,
in his own physical body. He was pleased to say when I offered my
farewell namaskarams (prostration) that he approached the British
territory to see