Sadhu Sundar Singh: A Personal Memoir

In a time of profound personal crisis, in which his lifetime of intense spiritual devotion still offered no peace, Sundar Singh was defeated and determined to kill himself if he could not find the True God. Half an hour before the appointed time with the deadly train track, he had a vision of Jesus Christ, the one who saves. This encounter forever changed Sundar Singh and set him on the path of being a Christian Sadhu, or holy man, who-with "neither purse, nor scrip"-walked barefoot from village to village and over mountain passes to Tibet, preaching the Good News of Jesus Christ.

In the ultimate expression of cultural adaptation, Sundar Singh's lifestyle as a Sadhu brought the Gospel of Jesus directly to the Indian people, without all the distracting and harmful Western trappings. Archbishop Söderblom wrote, "Here is an Indian soul, who has remained as genuinely Indian as possible, in the best meaning of the word, while becoming absorbed in the love of Christ and completely accepting the Gospel. It would not be easy to find anyone... who has more thoroughly assimilated the Gospel to himself than Sundar Singh. What is typical about him is not a fusion of Christianity and Hinduism, but a fresh presentation of Biblical Christianity that is in many ways stimulating and illuminating for ourselves."

Sadhu Sundar Singh's life of simple faith in-and total devotion to-his Master impacted millions, not only in India, but all over the world. In addition to his annual treks over the mountains on the Hindustan-Tibet Road, he had the opportunity to preach to huge audiences in Europe, America, and Asia. Although he did not have kind words for the materialistic lifestyles of Western Christians, he was able to point people to Jesus, away from their idols, toward lives of total devotion; thereby strengthening their faith.

Author Charles Freer Andrews was many things, Anglican priest, missionary, educator, social reformer, and activist. He was one of Mahatma Gandhi's closest friends, having the intimacy to use Gandhi's first name, Mohan. In turn, Gandhi nicknamed C. F. Andrews Christ's Faithful Apostle, based on his initials. Another of C. F. Andrews' intimate friends was Sadhu Sundar Singh, and it is from that friendship that this intimate memoir has been written. From the last chapter, "The constant remembrance of [Sundar Singh], during all these intervening years, has brought me nearer to Christ. When I was with him in the Himalayas and at Delhi, as this memoir will show, he strengthened my own faith and helped me to keep the pure flame of Christ's love burning bright. Therefore, it has been my one great longing that the reading of this book may be the means of passing on to others that same devotion to Christ."