Like many others, the first I heard about Babaji was a long, long time back through the book, Autobiography of a Yogi.
I had been in India for three or four years and when I went back to Italy I heard, from a friend, for the first time about this present incarnation of Babaji. He told me that Babaji was in the Himalayas. At first I was a little bit skeptical. But after this meeting, I was three or four months more in Italy, and many different people began to tell me about this Babaji.
So when I was back in India, I remember the first or second day that I was there I met some Indian friend and he told me actually you should go and see Babaji. And then I began to understand that I should go to see Babaji. This was in 1981.
Then I came to Haidakhan and this is where I first met Babaji in physical form. I came to understand that this was truly Babaji and I began to have a very deep story with Him.
And since that day in 1981 I am here living. When I first came to Haidakhan I had very long hair and when Babaji asked me after three days to do mundan (shave the hair off) He told me in a way that something happened again very deep. It was like when you are looking for something and after a long, long time you realize you find what you have been looking for.
And since Babaji has left His physical body there is a good Indian saying that describes it well - same, same but different. Many things are different but the spirit is still the same. I believe that Babaji is always here.
When Babaji told me to wear black, I had just come up from the river from my bath and I had a beautiful clean white kurta and dhoti. I also had one black scarf around my neck. And when I came up all shining in my new white kurta and dhoti, Babaji was there and He told me to come. So I went and He said to me, nice this black scarf you wear. And I said, yes Baba but what about my new kurta and dhoti. He said no, no, no, you only black. For you only black allowed. And so since that time I start to wear black.