Prasthan

A life well lived

by Purnima

My beloved friend, lover, and nearly-husband, Prem Prasthan, a.k.a. Vincent Kelly, left his body in Cairns, Australia, the country he had loved so much. He is survived by a son, Charlie, his brother Swami Mahesha, and a few grandchildren.

Prasthan came from a sannyas family. His mother and two of his brothers, Smaran and Mahesha, all took sannyas. His mother had opened the first Osho Center in Australia. In those days this was an important event. Many sannyasins would come from all over the country, as far away as Sydney, to meet up in Cairns.

Prasthan and I met in spring 2009 at the Osho International Meditation Resort (OIMR) in Pune, India. We were both signed up in the work-as-meditation Program. From that time on our love blossomed, and in 2011, I went to Cairns to live with him.

After many ups and downs, in 2013, our relationship became a long-distance relating, with me visiting Australia to see him every year, usually after I had spent a few months working at OIMR. On my visits, he took me all over Northern Queensland to show me the countryside.

Prathan had many talents: he was an avid musician and could play several instruments, especially the flute, saxophone, guitar and drums. He was also an excellent graphic artist. Yet his main passion was that of a being a live performer, doing magic tricks on fairs around Cairns. For several years, he also worked as a tarot card reader at the Night Market in downtown Cairns.

And he was a man of Osho.

Challenges started to come into Prasthan’s life in summer 2017 when he was diagnosed with prostate cancer. He decided to undergo several months of radiation therapy instead of opting for the more invasive surgery. By summer 2018, the treatments finished, it took him some time to get his strength back, as they had taken a great toll on him.

Prasthan and I spent a lovely time together in June and July 2019, not realizing that it would be for the last time. We had great plans for 2020, to finally live together again. I was back in India early February, had just worked six weeks when the pandemic hit worldwide. All countries closed their borders. And it took until the end of February 2022 for Australia to allow tourists to enter the country again.

Much was happening in my life as well; in winter 2022 and 2023 I had my own health issues which prevented me from making the long journey from New York to Australia.

In the meantime, Prasthan’s health had declined further. His dementia had worsened and he had lost the mobility in his legs. Eventually he could no longer live by himself and by the end of November 2021, he was admitted to a state nursing home, named Farnorha, so that he could get the care he needed at this stage of his life. He spoke clearly with me on the phone for the last time on 24 November 2021. For 13 years, the phone had always been our life line. We used to speak once a week, wherever we were.

In September 2023, he suffered a seizure and was no longer able to talk. He was then put into palliative care. A few friends from Cairns kept visiting him during those last months of his life. I was able to have a last face-time call with him on 28 November. Our mutual friend, Angela, had arranged it while she was visiting him in the home. She said he could recognize that it was me and he waved his left hand.

Prasthan’s body was cremated shortly after his death. About 30 of his closest friends had gathered at a celebration organised for him at the house of this best friend, Danny Simony, in Cairns. There his ashes were spread at the billabong (a pool of water near the river).

Prasthan – forever in my Heart

Purnima

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