Somerset Maugham: Swami-Loving Third-Rater?
In his 1944 essay “The Saint,” Maugham describes a mostly silent meeting
with the swami, who was “of a dark honey color with close-cropped white
hair and a close-cropped white beard” and wore only a loincloth. When
Maugham said he felt sick and weak, Sri Ramana replied, “Silence is also
conversation.” This and many of the details of his visit found their
way into “The Razor’s Edge.”