PRITY BHATT
Born and raised in Kolkata, India, Prity came to the United States as a teenager. She earned a Bachelor's and Master's degree in Computer Science from NJIT. She took an early retirement in 2017 after 30 years of service in the telecom industry.
Prity became interested in the teachings of Sri Sathya Sai Baba when her two sons started attending Sai Spiritual Education or SSE classes at a local Sai Center. She started facilitating SSE classes in 2002 and has since then held several positions in the Sri Sathya Sai International Organization at the regional and national levels. She is grateful for the opportunity to learn and grow through this experience.
Prity lives in NJ with her husband and mother
Brother Jonathan Roof is currently retired and living in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. He was very interested in metaphysics,religion and philosophy from a very young age. He was also a voracious reader of books on saints such as Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, Maharishi Yogi and Zen Buddhism. He had a life-changing, illuminating experience when he was 18 years old, which gave him a great perspective on service. In 1978, his mother became interested in Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba. In Jan 1979, Brother Jonathan first visited Bhagawan Baba in India. In an interview on that trip, Swami confirmed to brother Jonathan about the illuminating experience. From that time on, he was involved in a lot of service activities as part of the Tucson Sai center as well as at a regional level. As a result of his interactions with Swami and his experiences in the Sai-fold, he wrote the three volumes of books that talk clearly about our goal in the spiritual realm, the obstacles to reaching that goal and the ‘Pathways to God’. The first volume came out in 1991 and the third volume in 2004. The manuscripts were blessed by Swami before they were published. He served as an office bearer in the Sai organization in many capacities for 33 years. In 2011 he led the USA pilgrimage to Prasanthi Nilayam. He was the President of the Sathya Sai Baba Central Council USA from 2001 until 2011.
Aravind Balasubramanya hails from a family that has been devoted to Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba for over six decades. His father was a photographer of Bhagawan in the late sixties and early seventies in Brindavan and many of the old black and white photographs we see of Swami have have been through his lens.
Inspired by his parents, especially his mother, to spend his life with his Swami, Aravind joined Sri Sathya Sai Vidyapeeth in Calicut, Kerala for his primary education. He joined Sri Sathya Sai Higher Secondary School in Prashanti Nilayam for high-schooling. With a desire to stay close to the physical proximity of the avatar, Arvind studied Bachelors in Science with Chemistry major from the Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning for which he secured a gold medal. He continued to complete his Masters in Science (Chemistry) and Masters in Business Administration (MBA).
It was in the Institute that he got several opportunities to speak in the Divine Presence, act in many presentations and plays and also pursue photography which he picked up from his father. He was careful in recording almost every day that he spent in the physical proximity of his Lord via his many personal diaries and photographs.
Blessed by Baba to join Radiosai Global Harmony, which has been majorly responsible in spreading the message and life of Bhagawan to all parts of the globe. In RadionSai he had done a host of activities, including the Thursday Live satsangs, producing documentaries on Swami and his message and, of course, writing articles.
He was Swami’s ‘official’ photographer for nearly 5 years and travelled along with Him during His trips to Hadshi, Mumbai, Delhi and Simla. Photography is not just his hobby - it’s his passion and he has worshipped Swami through it. After Bhagawan’s Mahasamadhi in April 2011, Aravind started to write blogs based on what he had recorded in his personal diaries and experiences of several students. He was a regular speaker in the Ashram at Puttaparthi, addressing seekers on various life topics. He has addressed gatherings in USA, the Caribbean, the Middle East and Nepal, also travelling around India. Till recently, he was the content editor in RadioSai and was instrumental in preparing many documentaries and video/talk shows. He counsels and mentors youth from across the world in their personal and professional issues, from a spiritual perspective.
He has authored a few books which have been widely read and his blogs, with over 3 million views, have inspired many. His hobbies include photography, theater, badminton and cricket and he endeavors to excel in all he takes up.
Books by Aravind Balasubramanya
1. Memoirs Of A Sai Student 2014
2. Capturing Divinity (Sai Student Memoirs Book 2) 2015
3. Living with God 2015
4. Stories and Inspirations 2017
5. Sri Sathya Sai Bhagavatham : Part 1 2021
Presently, he freelances in creating content for various clients worldwide.