Howard Murphet
Howard Murphet (November 4, 1906 – September 28, 2004) was an author and devotee of Sathya Sai Baba.
Howard Murphet was born in Tasmania and educated at the University of Hobart. During the Second World War he served with the Eighth Army at El Alamein and Tunis, took part in the invasion of Sicily and Italy and, later, with the British Second Army, in the invasion of Normandy. He was also in charge of the British Press Section at the Nuremberg Trials. After a period as a Public Relations Officer in the chemical industry, Murphet and his wife travelled to India to visit the international headquarters of the Theosophical Society in Adyar, Madras and also wanted to discover if there was any deeper spiritual dimension in the life of modern India.
They heard about Sai Baba from a wandering yogi. Howard Murphet met Sai Baba in 1966. During those days, it was a very difficult journey to the village of Puttaparthi; he had to travel by bus from Madras to Bangalore, followed by journey through roads of broken rocks ending with a ride on bullock-cart, or on foot across slushy fields of paddy.
One of the first people he met at the ashram was Narayana Kasturi. During the next few days, he was invited to several group interviews.
A dozen people gather in one of the interview rooms at either end of the bhajan hall, or "prayer hall" as it is sometimes called. Sai Baba sits either on the one chair, or else on the floor - and the people sit cross-legged on the floor, fanning out in a rough circle about him. These group interviews usually begin with some talk on spiritual subjects. Baba invites someone to ask a question; then in the answer he expounds on such matters as the meaning and purpose of life, Man's true nature, and the way he should strive to live in order to reach the goal. The teachings are always clear, vivid, and intensely practical.
During his visits to Prashanthi Nilayam (Sathya Sai Baba's Ashram) he also visited the village of Sathya Sai Baba's birth (Puttaparthi) and talked to members of his family living there. Howard Murphet describes the village as lying about a quarter of a mile from the ashram, "a small, sun-bleached place of whitewashed houses and narrow, sandy streets".
He gives accounts of many miracles that he said that he witnessed of Sai Baba and also narrates a number of miracles experienced by other devotees of Sai Baba.[1]
Books
- Beyond Death: The Undiscovered Country
Editions: Paperback (Theosophical Pub House, April 1, 1990)
- Sai Baba Avatar: A New Journey into Power and Glory
Editions: Hardcover (Birth Day Pub Co, October 1, 1977)
- Sai Baba, Man of Miracles
Editions: Paperback (Red Wheel/Weiser, June 1, 1977) Online Edition
- Sai Inner Views and Insights: Inner Views and Insights : 30 Years With the Avatar
Editions: Paperback (Leela Pr, January 1, 1996)
- Walking the Path With Sai Baba
Editions: Paperback (Red Wheel/Weiser, October 1, 1993)
- When Daylight Comes: A Biography of Helena Petrovna Blavatsky
Editions: Paperback (Theosophical Pub House, June 1, 1975)
- Where the Road Ends: From Self Through Sai to Self
Editions: Paperback (Leela Pr, July 1, 1994)
- Yankee Beacon of Buddhist Light
Editions: Paperback (Theosophical Pub House, September 1, 1988)