In 1971, a young Hindu monk by the name of Swami Shantananda arrived for the first time in Malaysia with a prayer to his great master Swami Shivananda of Rishikesh: "Dear Master, I do not know why you have brought me here, but let me be worthy of your love and grace. In Kuala Lumpur, he was hosted by a family and through them met a number of other families.
His gatherings were filled with songs in praise of God and his talks illuminated almost every conceivable subject pertinent to life and living, but most of all it was the way he spoke of God's love that filled the hearts of those who heard him. As time went by, many more came to hear him and many more began to follow him.
His approach was all embracing and his teaching simple: Follow any path, teaching or religion, but believe in it sincerely, because the sincerity of your belief will illumine and guide you to the ultimate common goal - God.
He taught the universal message found in all religions, love for God and service to mankind. By word of mouth, the news of the young Swami spread from Kuala Lumpur to Penang, Malacca and Johor Bahru (all in Malaysia), then onto Singapore and across the seas to Perth and Melbourne in Australia, and finally back to both Sri Lanka and South India (Chennai and Coimbatore) wherefrom he had embarked the oddessey after his parivrajika days.
Over time a core of family regulars formed in each town, eagerly awaiting his visits to listen to his soulful bhajans and mesmerising talks, his youthful banter with the young and old, and impromptu celebrations of festivals and ceremonies, his melodious chanting of prayer in dead earnest, the dances in jovial vein, the sumptuous prasad prepared with love for all who gathered, and his ever consoling reassurances of God's love and mercy for those suffering grief and agonising the vicissitudes of life.
These regulars, his followers, came to be affectionately called the Shiva Family.