Steve Jobs’ letter on attending Kumbh Mela fetches over $500k at public sale: ‘I want to go to India…’ | India Information – Occasions of India

A handwritten letter by the late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, expressing his need to go to India and attend the Kumbh Mela, has been auctioned for an astounding $500,312.50 (INR 4.32 crore). Jobs’ spouse, Laurene Powell, is at present in India attending the Maha Kumbh Mela 2025 in Prayagraj.
The letter, written on Jobs’ nineteenth birthday, February 23, 1974, was addressed to his childhood good friend Tim Brown. In it, Jobs displays on Zen Buddhism and his aspiration to attend the Kumbh Mela, a significant Hindu pilgrimage and pageant. Jobs wrote, “I want to go to India for the Kumbh Mela, which begins in April. I can be leaving someday in March, not likely sure but.”
The letter supplies a uncommon glimpse into Jobs’ religious facet, closely influenced by Hinduism, as he indicators off with “Shanti, Steve Jobs.” He additionally mentions having “cried many instances.”
In accordance with the letter, Jobs deliberate to go to the ashram of Neem Karoli Baba in Uttarakhand. Nonetheless, upon reaching Nainital, he discovered that Neem Karoli Baba had handed away the earlier 12 months. Regardless of this, Jobs stayed on the ashram in Kainchi Dham, discovering solace within the Baba’s teachings.

Throughout his seven-month keep in India, Jobs immersed himself in Indian tradition. Upon returning residence, his mother and father barely acknowledged him resulting from his remodeled look. Jobs stated, “My head had been shaved, I used to be sporting Indian cotton robes, and my pores and skin had turned a deep, chocolate brown-red from the solar.” He was additionally seen sporting the orange robes of a Sadhu.
The letter, written precisely 51 years in the past, was auctioned by Bonhams, a non-public worldwide public sale home, for $500,312.50 (INR 4.32 crore), as stated on its web site.

Spouse fulfills Steve’s want
Steve Jobs handed away on October 5, 2011, resulting from issues from pancreatic most cancers. Whereas Jobs by no means attended the Kumbh Mela, his spouse Laurene Powell Jobs fulfilled his long-held want by attending the Maha Kumbh Mela 2025 in Prayagraj, India. Laurene, given the Hindu title “Kamala” by her guru Swami Kailashanand Giri, arrived with a 40-member staff and has been collaborating in religious practices, together with meditation, Kriya Yoga, and Pranayama.

The Mahakumbh Mela, held each 12 years, attracts hundreds of thousands of devotees worldwide, celebrating India’s wealthy religious heritage.