Pilot Baba is a revered Indian spiritual guru who had been
Wing Commander
Wing commander (Wg Cdr in the RAF, the IAF, and the PAF, WGCDR in the RNZAF and RAAF, formerly sometimes W/C in all services) is a senior commissioned rank in the British Royal Air Force and air forces of many countries which have historical ...
Kapil Singh, a pilot in the
Indian Air Force
The Indian Air Force (IAF) is the air arm of the Indian Armed Forces. Its complement of personnel and aircraft assets ranks third amongst the air forces of the world. Its primary mission is to secure Indian airspace and to conduct aerial w ...
.
Early life and career
Kapil Singh claims to have been commissioned in the
Indian Air Force
The Indian Air Force (IAF) is the air arm of the Indian Armed Forces. Its complement of personnel and aircraft assets ranks third amongst the air forces of the world. Its primary mission is to secure Indian airspace and to conduct aerial w ...
as a fighter pilot in 1957. He also claims to have participated in the
Sino-Indian War
The Sino-Indian War took place between China and India from October to November 1962, as a major flare-up of the Sino-Indian border dispute. There had been a series of violent border skirmishes between the two countries after the 1959 Tib ...
of 1962, the
Indo-Pakistani War of 1965
The Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 or the Second Kashmir War was a culmination of skirmishes that took place between April 1965 and September 1965 between Pakistan and India. The conflict began following Pakistan's Operation Gibraltar, which was d ...
and the
Indo-Pakistani War of 1971
The Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 was a military confrontation between India and Pakistan that occurred during the Bangladesh Liberation War in East Pakistan from 3 December 1971 until the
Pakistani capitulation in Dhaka on 16 Decem ...
wars, rising to the rank of Wing Commander.
Leaving the IAF and transformation
During the
Sino-Indian War
The Sino-Indian War took place between China and India from October to November 1962, as a major flare-up of the Sino-Indian border dispute. There had been a series of violent border skirmishes between the two countries after the 1959 Tib ...
of 1962 Kapil Singh was flying a MiG aircraft in the North-East of India also known as
NEFA when his aircraft lost control. Radio contact with his base was also broken and he was believed lost.
According to Pilot Baba, Kapil's spiritual guru, Hari Baba, appeared in his cockpit and guided him to land his fighter aircraft safely.
This event became a turning point in young Kapil's life and ten years later, at the age of 33, he retired from the Air Force to pursue his spiritual life.
Spiritual career
Pilot Baba is known for his claim to enter lengthy ''samadhi'', or death-like bodily states, often under the ground.
Ashrams
Pilot Baba and his followers have set up
ashram
An ashram ( sa, आश्रम, ) is a spiritual hermitage or a monastery
A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or a ...
s (spiritual retreats or meditation centres) in both India and other countries.
Ashrams in India include:
*
Sasaram
Sasaram ()sometimes also spelled as Sahasram, is an ancient historical city and a municipal corporation region in the Rohtas district of the Bihar state in eastern India, with a history that goes to thousands of years. During the prehistoric ag ...
*
Haridwar
Haridwar (; ) is a city and municipal corporation in the Haridwar district of Uttarakhand, India. With a population of 228,832 in 2011, it is the second-largest city in the state and the largest in the district.
The city is situated on the righ ...
*
Nainital
Nainital ( Kumaoni: ''Naintāl''; ) is a city and headquarters of Nainital district of Kumaon division, Uttarakhand, India. It is the judicial capital of Uttarakhand, the High Court of the state being located there and is the headquarters o ...
*
Uttarkashi
Uttarkashi, meaning Kashi of the north, is a town located in Uttarkashi district in Uttarakhand, India. Uttarkashi town is headquarters of the district. Uttarkashi is also known as Somya Kashi. Uttarkashi is a religious place for spiritual and ...
Ashrams in other countries include:
*
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
*
Nepal
Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne,
सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...
Publications
Books written by Pilot Baba include:
* Kailash Mansarovar
* Pearls of Wisdom
* Discover Secrets of The Himalaya
* Antaryatra' The Inner Journey (2 volumes)
* Pilgrimage from You to Yourself
* Himalayan kah raha hai (2 volumes)
References
External links
Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Baba, Pilot
Indian Air Force officers
1938 births
People from Sasaram
Banaras Hindu University alumni
Indian Hindu spiritual teachers
Indian spiritual writers
Living people