Fun With Fins

 

fiji

It is a great feeling to bring joy to others…to make them smile or laugh. In fact, this is one of the main reasons I break Guinness records. I try to find an event that is not only challenging, but also has a joyful aspect to it. For example, one of my favorite record attempts is pogo stick jumping up Mt. Fuji in Japan. Not only were the kids in Japan delighted by the event at the time, but whenever I tell people about it, it almost always brings a smile to their faces.

It’s Lungetime!

My spiritual Teacher, Sri Chinmoy, teaches that the inner life and the outer life must go hand-in-hand. Whenever we do something outwardly, if we can touch it with our spiritual effort,  we can accomplish things way beyond our imagination!


I could be accused of being consumed with record-breaking, but really, for me, it is much, much more than that. Breaking records has become an important part my own spiritual quest. Inwardly, the process of breaking a record requires me to go within and depend on the Divine Grace. Outwardly, whenever I break a record, I get tremendous joy and inspiration and hopefully I inspire others as well – or at least make a few people smile! 

So, I am always looking for new ideas for world records. Sometimes, I’ll go through the Guinness Book and some record will jump out at me. Often, I’ll return to an earlier record which someone else had subsequently broken. And sometimes, an incident in everyday life will give me an idea for a new record that has never been attempted before. Enter the lunge!

A Lesson Remembered

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.

Joy Days in Italy

I get tremendous joy whenever I visit Italy, a joy that starts weeks before I embark on the plane! About a year ago, I was about to head out to the airport to pay a visit to my Italian friend Priyadarshan who lives in a beautiful city an hour north of Verona. Because I tend to get restless sitting still on long plane trips, I decided to expend a little excess energy by sneaking in a quick run. At that time, I was training to break the Guinness record for the fastest mile run while balancing a milk bottle on the head, so I decided to do my run with the milk bottle. I quickly cycled over to Jamaica High School track, but was disappointed to find the 10-foot high gates locked. Normally, I would have headed over to another track in the neighborhood, but because I had very little time, I just hopped the fence to get my run in.

I love running with a milk bottle on my head. Although it is silly, it still requires a high level of concentration. Well, after a couple of laps, along the fence at the far side of the track, I heard what sounded like a dog running alongside me! I could hear his dog tags jiggling and his loud panting. I was running alone inside a gated track, so I imagined the dog had to be running on the outside of the fence, and he had to be large since I could hear him so distinctly. Of course, because I was concentrating on the milk bottle, I couldn’t turn my head to look. On my next lap around the track, again I heard the dog but this time my curiosity got the best of me. I took the bottle off my head to investigate. I was shocked to see that the dog was actually inside the track running alongside me. And it was no large dog. No – it was a tiny dachshund!

My Folly in Bali

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!