The following piece has been shared by an Ex-Burghs member Anton Fernando in honor of Ravi Saba:
My good friend Saba Ravishankar passed away this Easter Sunday, April 24, 2011. father of 3, successful engineer, technical leader, community organizer, a good friend, example family man, voice for justice, well wisher of all. I knew ravi from cricket, back in 1996 we played for the same cricket club. Many times I have been to ravi’s house for dinner, drinks etc. we had a very natural friendship, our political views and interest in cricket helped pass many conversations. Ravi was not a spiritual nor religious man, yes on paper he was a Hindu, he would rather stick to practical matters, he never got into religious, spiritual or godly debates.
While visiting him over the years, I would share my recent spiritual discoveries with ravi and his wife, hoping they will join me too. First it was Sai Baba, then Hare Krishna, later the Power of Now stuff, and lastly the message of desteni. Ravi rejected all my spiritual discourses very subtly, except when I spoke about the desteni message, he had an attentive ear, though he could not actively embrace the message. I told him about the Equal Life Party, its policies, I told him about the equal money system, and all the other things about equality, that was about month a half ago when I last saw him. I spoke a statement of self-forgiveness aloud for him to hear and apply it as his sickness got worse. Well, month and a half ago, his illness was serious but death was not in sight. Ravi liked the message of desteni, I am not sure if he had any time to apply the tools as his illness, advanced prostate cancer took over him.
As our last conversation came to an end, I made a point of saying, should death come to you, die as life, not as a mind, meaning give up your mind before the death arrives. Everyone is in process, it’s ok to share, but not cool to preach, I feel I was preaching a bit too much to him last time. As everyone is in process, this preaching thing is not cool, sharing is ok, and at best live the message, live as Life, give up the mind here now. Be an example of Life.
Death of ravi has hit me so hard. Yet death must be faced, death is a grace, imagine if humans were immortal, the abuses that are going on in this world will never end, so
thank god death exist, it ends all abuses in this world at some point. Sad part is Ravi left a world that is filled with abuses, nearly 1 billion starving, and many millions suffering, while a selected few having all the fun.
Ravi has died, his life on earth is over, his family life is over, his busy career is over, his so called successful life is over, all the affection he shared with others is over, all his friendliness is over, as death ends everything. The reason death is so sad is because total equality of all beings is not established here yet, and when equality for all is here, death will no longer be a loss nor a sad thing, it is simply a passing over. I exist as you, while you exist as me, and I exist as everything. Today, I only exist as a noisy mind, and that is a real sad thing, the noisy mind.
I cherish my friendship with Ravi and his family, I am sad about his passing today. He is on his own process as everyone is. Today I realize one thing, equality for all is an urgent matter, it must be established, as it will allow humans to live a perfect life, diseases like prostate cancer will not exist. In fact no disease will exist, it will be a practical heaven on earth. Ravi was not so lucky to see it, he died just too early, he was 47. Certainly, his 3 little children will inherit a new earth, I am certain of that. I am grateful for Ravi’s friendship.
Now I know my own death is around the corner.