Ashrita's Record Blog

Way back in 1974, after a meditation with his students, Sri Chinmoy invited us to suggest a spiritual quality. He then composed an aphorism especially for each of us around that quality. When my turn came, I suggested the quality “grace”. Sri Chinmoy meditated for a few seconds and then in a melodic voice, he composed an aphorism. I have learned so much from that aphorism and yet there have been times when I have forgotten those valuable lessons.

Regular readers of this blog are familiar with my good friend, Bipin, who often breaks records with me. This past July, Bipin and I were looking for an adventure and we decided to go to the Grand Canyon to attempt the 3-minute record for catching the most grapes in one’s mouth thrown from 15 feet away. Bipin is the thrower and he is a virtuoso at throwing small objects, especially fruit, very rapidly and with pinpoint accuracy. Upon our arrival at the Grand Canyon, we were awed by its beauty and vastness. That evening we explored the area for a suitable record-breaking location and decided to attempt the record the next morning right on the walkway of the Canyon’s South Rim overlooking the vast panorama.

One of the greatest blessings of my life has been to travel to different parts of the world to attend Sri Chinmoy’s concerts dedicated to world harmony. This would also present the opportunity to attempt a Guinness record in a foreign country. It has made for some interesting sightseeing – I explored the Great Wall of China while hopping on a kangaroo ball and I experienced the power of Ayer’s Rock in the Australian desert while hula hooping!

A particularly fun part of breaking records in other countries is observing people’s reactions to my – admittedly wacky – feats. How people behave says so much about their culture. For instance, Japan is an incredibly polite and reserved society. As I pogo sticked up the foothills of Mount Fuji, the Japanese appeared to hardly notice, acting as if seeing someone hopping up the mountain was an everyday occurrence. However, as soon as I was a few yards past them, invariably I would hear delighted giggling.

At the other end of the spectrum are the Malaysians. The Malay people are incredibly proud of their national achievements and all kinds of Guinness type events are officially encouraged. They even have their own book of records! When I visited Malaysia, I was surprised to find myself looked upon as a minor celebrity. Everyone bent over backwards to accommodate me, and I incredibly got permission to attempt the underwater juggling record in the country’s main aquarium. Minutes before the event, the director of the shark-filled aquarium told me not to worry – he would have divers in the tank ready to come to my rescue. I might get injured, he said, but he reassured me that I would make it out alive!

I love dogs…tail-wagging dogs, rub-my-belly-please dogs, enthusiastic dogs, loyal dogs, always-willing-to-please dogs. Some of my blog readers may recall that I once broke the record for the most jumps on a pogo stick in a minute while holding a cute dog named Suki in one arm, in front of Scotland’s famous Greyfriars Bobby dog statue.

During a recent trip to Vermont to attempt a stilt-climbing record attempt up Mount Equinox, I was delighted to see a sign in our motel’s lobby:
 
Dogs are welcome in this motel. We never had a dog smoke in bed and set fire to the blankets. We never had a dog who stole our towels or played the TV too loud. We never had a dog that got drunk and broke up the furniture or punched holes in the walls. So, if your dog can vouch for you, you are welcome too.

And sure enough, the next day, I met a super energetic Cocker Spaniel in the parking lot who had obviously vouched for his owners!

Anyway, I gave that introduction about dogs just so when you heard about my latest record you wouldn’t think I was totally crazy! When the 2009 Guinness Book came out in September, a new category caught my attention: catching the most Maltesers in a minute in your mouth thrown from 15 feet away. (Maltesers are the British version of chocolate covered maltballs.) This record seemed quite beatable because my friend Bipin and I hold a similar record for the most grapes caught in a minute. But, to make it more challenging, I instantly decided to attempt this record with a dog on my back!

My spiritual teacher, Sri Chinmoy, is a relentless advocate for newness, always seeking fresh and creative ways to express joy and aspiration. For me, this inspires me to look for new and different types of Guinness records, sometimes beyond the fitness categories (star jumps, sit-ups, etc.). Lately, I've made a few forays into categories that have led to some interesting failures:

Category: Slicing apples mid-air with a samurai sword. Result: A sliced finger and, somehow, I managed to stab myself in the stomach.

Category: Continuous rotations on a giant gyroscope. Result: After 10 minutes, I had to quit for fear of losing my lunch. (I later realized eating an entire package of Swiss cheese just before the practice was probably not a wise thing to do!)

Category: Smashing watermelons with my forehead. Result: One bruised forehead, a giant headache and not a single smashed watermelon!

Fortunately, Sri Chinmoy would always remind me that failures are the pillars of success. "Never give up!" is one of his favorite mantras. After some more experimentation, I finally discovered my talent for eating garlic! As the manager of a health food store, I've learned of the great health benefits of garlic, but shied away from it because of the odor issues. I have to talk to people all day and I don't want to torture them with garlic breath. There is an old New York saying, "Three nickels will get you on the subway, but garlic will get you a seat"! Anyway, I decided to throw caution to the wind and look into breaking the garlic eating record.