Shivapuri Baba

Shivapuri Baba — Books, Media & References

Where to find them, organized by source type. Prices and stock change constantly and several titles are out of print, so links point to vendors/catalogues rather than fixed prices. Internet Archive links are free controlled-lending (borrow), not purchase.

1. First-hand books (by people who met him)

Long Pilgrimage: The Life and Teaching of the Shivapuri Baba

J. G. Bennett with Thakur Lal Manandhar (1965). The primary biography — start here. In print.

Witness: The Story of a Search

J. G. Bennett (autobiography, 1962). Contains his own first-hand account of the 1961–62 visits. In print (modern editions).

The Shivapuri Baba and His Message: Four Lectures on a Great Indian Sage

J. G. Bennett (lectures delivered London, 1962; Collected Works vol. 11). Short, accessible summary of the teaching. In print.

Strange Places, Simple Truths

Dr. Ainslie Meares (1969). The independent second eyewitness — the “Nepal” chapter. Out of print → secondhand only.

Right Life: Teachings of the Shivapuri Baba

Renu Lal Singh (Kathmandu, 1975; rev. ed. Coombe Springs Press, 1984). Disciple’s record of his conversations. Out of print → secondhand / Kathmandu shops.

Right Living: The Teaching of Sri Shivapuri Baba

Dr. Y. B. (Yogendra Bhakta) Shrestha Malla. Disciple compilation; English. Available mainly from Nepal.

Swadharma

Bishnu Prasad Timilsina (in Nepali). Disciple compilation. Hardest to source outside Nepal.

  • Try Ratna Pustak Bhandar / Daraz Nepal (search “Swadharma Shivapuri Baba”) and Kathmandu bookshops.

2. Audio & video

3. Other references / further reading (secondary — not first-hand)

Useful for orientation, but these retell rather than witness; treat their more colourful claims with the caution noted in the biography.

4. In person

  • Shivapuri Baba Samadhi & Ashram, Dhrubasthali (Dhruvasthali), in the forest behind the Pashupatinath temple, Kathmandu — his hermitage of the final decades and the site of his shrine; still a meditation/pilgrimage spot.

Quick guidance

  • If you read only one book: Long Pilgrimage (in print, widely available).
  • For the independent outside view: Meares’s Strange Places, Simple Truths — secondhand, or borrow free on Internet Archive.
  • To hear him: the 1962 audio at the J. G. Bennett Foundation.
  • A note on sourcing: pirated full-text PDFs of several titles circulate online; the Internet Archive links above are the legitimate free-borrowing route, and the publisher/Kathmandu links support the people keeping these works in print.