The Swami Rama Himalayan University in Dehradun has been inspired by the vision of Swami Rama, a sage who traversed and lived in the Himalayas, including its snowy upper echelons, for four and a half decades and learnt life’s greatest lessons by directly experiencing the truth, and by constantly interacting with highly evolved renunciates and yogis. In his autobiography Living with the Himalayan Masters, Swami Rama recounts how these unique mountains continue to whisper their spiritual glory to all those who have an ear to hear. The love, he says, he received from the sages is like the perennial snows which form the silvery glaciers of the Himalayas and then melt into thousands of streams. His Master, Bengali Baba, a sage who chose to remain in the background always, encouraged his pupil to try out all disciplines. In course of time from music to medicine, martial arts to meditation, Swami Rama excelled in whatever he did. He even became a Shankaracharya at age 24, but gave up the trappings of the high-profile job and silently walked away when he was only 26. Many years later, on the instructions of his Master, he began to travel the world before settling down to start a retreat in the USA, mentoring in the process thousands of students and disciples from across the globe. He eventually returned to his base in Rishikesh, and within a few years entered Maha Samadhi on November 13, 1996.