Skeletal remains found scattered around  the secluded Vedanta Retreat in Olema over the summer have been linked to Umesh Shantaram Bhende, a known missing person, by state DNA tests. The remains of Mr. Bhende, a 72-year-old retreat resident originally from Goa, India, were discovered in July by another resident two months after he was last seen alive. According to Warner Hirsch, a monk with the society, Mr. Bhende spent long stints at the retreat since the late 1980s and, more recently, suffered from diabetes and a stroke that left him nearly crippled. Even so, Mr. Bhende managed to remove large fallen branches from the property by throwing rope like a lasso over them and dragging them into a pickup. “He always wanted to be busy,” said Swami Hirsch. “He never wanted to lie around and have people serve him. But he was also very unhappy about his growing dependence.” Mr. Bhende’s health began to improve after a visit to India about a year ago, so much so that he planned a lengthy trip abroad with a friend. Before leaving, Swami Hirsch said, Mr. Bhende sent some luggage to a family home and told the society he would soon be departing. Then, one day in early May, he left. “He said goodbye and walked off, down the entrance to the highway,” Swami Hirsch said. “We never saw him again.” An investigation by the Marin County Sheriff’s Office is ongoing, though the department does not suspect foul play.