Part 3 - Practice makes one perfect and attracts God's grace - Ashwath Narayan's experience with Sathya Sai

Familiarity should breed regularity

Along with daily bhajans, Ashwath was now required to regularly sing songs and Alaap bhajans (Bhajans that have a slow, solo vocal as an introduction). There were two Alaap bhajans in particular that Swami would command Ashwath to sing on several occasions, out of the blue. One was a bhajan that Swami referred to as Shlokam. It was a Rama bhajan that had an alaap, “Sri Raghavam Dasharatha Atmajam”. The other was a Sarva-Dharma bhajan which begins with the Alaap:

Allah Hu Akbar, Allahu Akbar
Awwal Allah Noor Upaya Qudrat Keh Sub Banday
Aik Noor Keh Sub Jag Upajiya Kaun Bhale Ko Mandhe

Looking back, Ashwath feels that there is a special reason why Swami made him sing that Alaap repeatedly. The meaning of that Alaap is so beautiful. If one is blessed with the awareness, conviction and experience of that meaning, one would have discovered the panacea for all problems. The meaning goes as follows:

God is Great. God created light of which all the beings were born,
And from this ONE light, the universe; so who is good and who is bad?

Familiarity often breeds neglect if not contempt. It requires extensive Sadhana and intensive efforts to value something even when it is available in abundance. This holds good for everything - food, water, health, relationships and even Swami’s proximity and grace. There was an episode which made Ashwath resolve that he would never take Swami for granted.

Probably one of the greatest honors for Ashwath was getting the opportunity to give music to and sing a song whose lyrics were written by Swami Himself to explain the Sri Sathya Sai Avatar.

{If you have arrived to this part directly, it is recommended that you read the first two parts before this finale. It will make for more enjoyable and suspenseful reading.

Part 1 - Practice makes one perfect and attracts God's grace - Ashwath Narayan's experience with Sathya Sai

Part 2 - Practice makes one perfect and attracts God's grace - Ashwath Narayan's experience with Sathya Sai }

Swami seemed unhappy with the singers who accompanied him to Chennai for the Athi Rudra Maha Yagnam in January 2007, Ashwath included. That unhappiness seemed to continue even after His return to Puttaparthi. One of those days, Swami entered the bhajan hall and spoke to the singers of the bhajan group. Apparently some devotee had passed comments on the quality of singing and Swami was not feeling good about it. He told it to the boys. Ashwath saw how much Swami cared about their reputations. Swami was emphasizing both - being good and appearing good. They prayed,

“Swami, if your grace is there, we will not get into such situations.”

“There is Grace. There is Grace in abundance. Out of all the people seated here, so few are in the bhajan hall. Out of them, only few of you are selected. You do not understand the value of grace... You are all fit to only eat grass...”

Part 2 - Practice makes one perfect and attracts God's grace - Ashwath Narayan's experience with Sathya Sai

Brindavan, the place where a student develops pining

The absence of the Sadguru or God in one’s life is indeed an unfortunate situation. However, if that absence comes after one has tasted the Grace of the Sadguru or God, it becomes a blessing. Then, it increases the pining in the heart for one’s Sadguru or God. The Brindavan campus of the Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning served as a fertile ground where the devotion of the students and teachers alike grew by pining for the physical form of Swami. Invariably, any student who graduated from XII grade would be sent to the Brindavan campus. Ashwath Narayan thus found himself as a student pursuing the Bachelors of Science degree for Biosciences at Brindavan. That was only the temporary pursuit - his ultimate goal was Swami.

If you have arrived here directly, you are requested to read this part after completing part 1 at the link below:

Practice makes one perfect and attracts God's grace - Ashwath Narayan's experience with Sathya Sai_ Part 1

In an attempt to make up for Swami’s absence, many teachers in Brindavan hold Parayanam sessions. They narrate experiences with Swami to the students, feeding the flames of love for Swami. It was during one such Parayanam session with Sundareshan sir that Ashwath’s heart was set aflame with a desire. Sundareshan sir narrated the experiences of a bhajan singer, S.Ravikumar. The point that struck Ashwath deeply was the silent understanding between Ravikumar and Swami.

“Sometimes Swami indicates to Ravi to sing with a gentle eye-movement. That is enough for him to understand what Swami wants him to sing and when. Nobody else would have noticed but Ravi would have received the communication”, Sundareshan sir said.

'Ravi Bhaiya' or 'Ravi sir' has been an inspiration and role model for many generation of singers that included Ashwath also.

Ashwath knew Ravikumar. He was a legend among the bhajan singer and an icon who had shunned the possible glory that he could have achieved in the world in order to keep singing for Swami. Ashwath had also got the privilege of singing alongside him in the previous year at Brindavan. On that occasion Ashwath had himself sung the Kannada song, “Jagaddhodharana”. It was simply beautiful singing about the little Krishna in Brindavan.

Several days later, when Ashwath offered a rose to Swami before the Arati, Swami asked,

“Voice not good?”

Ashwath did not respond. He just sat at His feet.

Swami waved his palm, materialized vibhuti and gave it to him. Ashwath bowed and took padanamaskar. When he rose, Swami asked in Tamil,

“Sapdacha (Did you eat)?”

Ashwath understood and he put the entire vibhuti into his mouth. Swami then received Arati and left.

Even as he reminisced the day, a desire arose from the depths of Ashwath’s heart,

“How I wish to be able to receive communication from Swami like Ravikumar”, he thought.

As they say, “Do your best and God will do the rest”. Only the efforts rest in human realms but a lot can be done with efforts. Ashwath’s practice went in hand with his pining. The summer of 2004 came and with it, Swami arrived to Brindavan.  The students in Brindavan may get less number of days to interact with Swami but they get something very special - the Trayee Sessions. These were sessions with Swami inside His residence, Trayee Brindavan.

During one such Trayee Session, Ashwath had managed to sit in the front lines near the Jhoola on which Swami was seated. Swami was interacting with the students and teachers. Out of the blue, Ashwath felt Swami look at him from the corner of His eye. Ashwath straightened up and sat in all alertness. Then, it came! A very gentle eye-movement indicating to him to start. It was such a subtle movement that nobody noticed. But for Ashwath, it seemed as loud and clear as an oral order.

Part 1 - Practice makes one perfect and attracts God's grace - Ashwath Narayan's experience with Sathya Sai

Day: 1st November, 2009

Venue: The Brabourne Cricket stadium, Mumbai

Time: 6:10 pm

Thousands of people had gathered in the stadium to have a glimpse of their ‘Swami’ who was visiting Mumbai after a decade. Dharmakshetra, Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba’s abode in Mumbai (at Andheri) had long ceased to have sufficient space to accommodate the thronging thousands who wished to have his darshan. Thus, the Sri Sathya Sai Seva Organizations, Maharashtra, had organized different programmes at different large venues around Mumbai. In this way, everyone could get the opportunity of seeing Him once at least during the 2-day visit. The event at Brabourne stadium - a concert by Santoor maestro Rahul Sharma - was meant to be a grand finale before the curtains came down on the Mumbai visit.

Ashwath Narayan sat on the carpeted stadium lawns with the other members of the entourage which had accompanied Swami, first to Hadshi and from there to Mumbai. Almost all the members of the entourage were singers and musicians. They were naturally excited to be here. But it was not because of the prospects of hearing a maestro play the Santoor! It was because of an instruction that Swami had privately given them the day before.

“Get ready with songs. You will be performing tomorrow in the cricket stadium.”

They were possibly the only people other than Swami who knew that there would be no Santoor concert that day.

Bhagawan Baba arrived to the stadium and ascended the huge stage that had been erected. After the opening formalities, the announcement was made which simultaneously surprised and thrilled the audience - the evening programme would be by the students and staff from Puttaparthi. Ashwath stiffened and readied himself. He was scheduled to sing a complicated Carnatic song, Shiva Shankari.

As they had lined up in front of Swami to take padanamaskar before the programme, Swami exchanged a meaningful glance Ashwath.
“Ready”, he asked.
“Yes Swami. You must only sing through all of us...”

Swami seemed satisfied. The programme began with a couple of bhajans and an opening song by the magical Ravikumar. There was a happy applause. That was when Swami turned to Ashwath and gave a slight nod. The microphone was thus placed before him. Offering a mental prostration at Swami’s feet and closing his eyes, Ashwath began.

The initial Alaap itself muted the audience into spellbound admiration. Very soon, Ashwath was exploring the various highs and lows of the song which is set in Raag Darbari. The highlight of the song originally sung by the legendary Ghantasala, is a rapid-fire sequence of notes towards the end. This day, Ashwath managed to sing it sang it one and a half times faster than Ghantasala himself! He also sang it half a note higher than the legend and added many more gamaks (turnings), khadkas and murkis than the original singer!

{I consider myself very privileged to have been witness to the magic weaved that day by Ashwath Narayan. And in order to appease the curious reader’s hunger for that unforgettable rendering, I offer to you, that song for which I have placed a few photos that I shot that day as visuals. In the photos you can also see the maestro Rahul Sharma seated behind Swami’s chair.}

The Live audio recording with a collage of pictures from

that memorable day at Brabourne stadium.

In fact, when the song had been rendered, it took a few moments for people to wake up from their joyous stupor and offer a huge round of applause. Swami turned and looked at Ashwath. Was there a tear in the divine eyes? The face seemed puffed in joyous pride at what His boy had done. The hand went up a bit in silent blessing and benediction. Once again, His boy had become one with Him as he had allowed the magical notes to flow out through his voice.

Delhi-Simla Memories- Part 17 - A concert in the skies and homecoming

18th April 2010 - The Grand Finale

As the day dawned to greet the Lord for the final day in Delhi, in our hearts too, the realization dawned that soon it would all be over. We were told that our flight was at 1:30 pm and that we should board by 12:30. We had no idea about what the morning session would be like. So, we got up, showered and had breakfast like any other day. Returning to the room, we began to pack up. In sharp contrast to the packing I had done before taking off from Puttaparthi, this was no fun at all. Packing up for this visit had been so full of anticipation-joy However, I must say that in spite of all that, landing back at Parthi and going back to life there was an exciting prospect. How ever far the bird might soar, it has to return to the nest for rest.

By 9:15 am, we were all at the lift landing area outside Swami’s room waiting for Him to arrive. Sai Krishna got busy planning with all the singers to sing some songs of love and gratitude to Swami. The plans were quickly made. In a short while, Swami came out of the room in the normal wheelchair. He saw all of us seated and indicated that He would soon come to us. Then, Swami went back into His room for a short while. When the door reopened and Swami arrived, we started off with the song, “Dayaku Premaku”. Swami was welcomed into our midst with that song and He seemed to be very emotional even as He arrived. Quickly we moved towards Him and gathered around His feet. Sai Krishna and a few others around His feet began massaging them too, drinking deep in the bliss of Padasevanam. Swami sat listening to us as all the elders stood around, forming the perimeter of the circle of love.

The 'last supper' with Swami in Delhi turned out to be a 'lasting supper' in our memories.

Even as the first song was complete, we began, “Madhura mohana”. That song has become sort of a “Prema bandham anthem” ( Anthem to express the bond of Love) between Swami and His children. Even as the song was going on and Swami was emotional, He was calling a volunteer and enquiring whether the food and all other preparations were ready. Swami asked us as to who the composers of these songs were. The answers were given and Swami moved to the dining hall. All of us too went there and Swami said that He would have lunch with all of us. To spend time with us and make it memorable, Swami did not even go down for darshan.

{This is the 17th and final part of an ongoing series. You can read the previous part at this link:

Delhi-Simla Memories- Part 16 - Goodbye Shimla; Hello again Delhi

Or you can read from the beginning of the serial where each part is linked to the next. The link to Part 1 is here:

Delhi-Simla Memories- Part 1 - Hello Delhi }

We were all so happy. We had just finished breakfast a couple of hours ago, but dining with Swami is always a privilege and pleasure. We chanted the food prayer and the lunch session began. It was over in a span of 15-20 minutes. Swami told us to get up and wash our hands. Once we did that, we all all returned to the dining hall and Swami seemed to be giving some final instructions. Many of the boys went and gathered around Swami’s table as He told that He would receive Aarthi and then come to the airport. Phaneendra was standing closest to Swami and thus, he became the interpreter. Accepting what he said, we all turned back and made our way to our rooms.

Swami issues final instructions as everyone gathers around His dining table.

Delhi-Simla Memories- Part 15 - All good things come to an end - so does the Shimla visit

A special remembrance

A sweeping view of the evening session in Shimla.... I was doing both - photography and video shooting.

CG was convinced that he had been picked for the visit to Delhi and Shimla as an accompanying artist on the Sitar for the music group. Though it had been more than a week since the Divine Visit began, CG confessed later that he never had felt like Swami had wanted him as a Sitarist for the trip. This feeling had kept getting intense as Swami called different singers and students from the music group and interacted with them. The feeling reached its heights when Swami asked for a ‘final’ music programme in Shimla. (The reason for putting the word ‘final’ in quotes shall become clear in the subsequent parts.) As CG was joining the other students out of the dining hall towards the darshan grounds, Swami had called Lu sir and said,

““Get ready for the programme. Let the Veena also play!”

{This reference has been explained in detail in the previous part which you can access at the link below:

Delhi-Simla Memories- Part 14 - Inaugurations galore at Shimla

Or you can read from the beginning of the serial where each part is linked to the next. The link to Part 1 is here:

Delhi-Simla Memories- Part 1 - Hello Delhi }

Swami interacting with the Himachal youth. The picture captures the wonderful
setting of the dining hall with the Ramayana picture.

Even as Swami mentioned ‘Veena’, He looked at CG. CG was happy that Swami saw him but later, when Lu sir told him what Swami had said, he was simply thrilled. He knew that ‘Veena’ was just a veiled reference to his Sitar! That got him completely charged up and he was raring to go play for the concert. As all the boys filed out, Swami moved to the side and began to look at the paintings and chandeliers in the hall. That was only an excuse to gently amble towards the serving boys. All the youth who were serving us knelt in a row and Swami began interacting with them. Knowing that this was a nice chance for them, I began to take photographs. I had hardly taken three pictures when Swami looked at me and said,

“All boys must go and start the singing!”

I turned around and made a quick exit.

The boys had gone up to gather the instruments. Swami knew that this would take time and so, He was striking two birds at once by interacting with the youth members of Himachal! In spite of that, we were all not ready by the time Swami moved down the lift and arrived on the scene! I was trying to double up as the video cameraman also because CG was now part of the music group. It was not an easy task. Swami began signaling from the stage itself, asking us to start.

A signal from a distance to begin... Like on that day, we should always be on a lookout for the Lord's signal in our life...
May we remember that God is always watching from a distance...

A students’ songs programme

Ashwath, the one who needs the least lead time took the mike and began, “Vataapi Ganapatim”. That was an on-the-spot-decision because there was hardly any ‘discussion time’. But the way Ashwath and P Sreenivas took everyone through the ups and downs of the song, nobody felt that it was being sung all of a sudden. Once the first song was complete, the order followed was the same as the private programme the previous evening. It was as if Swami had watched a dress rehearsal yesterday in the interview room. The second song was the qawwali by Ravi bhaiya and Lu sir - “Sai ke darbar mein”. Since Shimla is a Hindi-speaking region, it made immediate impact. Everyone clapped along with the rhythm and many of them sang along too. After that, Prabhakar and Aravind Sai sang “Maa Prana Deepam”. Then came Bantureethi Kolu - the memorable ‘prayer song’ that Swami had liked so much yesterday.

Delhi-Simla Memories- Part 13 - Magnificent public session and special private session in Shimla

A magical evening on 15th April

After a good snooze, we began to ready for our first darshan session in Shimla by 4 pm. The washroom area was simply wonderful. It had an empty and large central area with the toilets and bathrooms in separate arrays. The windows overlooked the hills around and a constant breeze filled the space. The gusts of fresh air made it rejuvenating to just stand in this area! Soon, we filed up to the second floor of the mandir, in the interview room there and waited for Swami’s arrival. Once He arrived, we moved up.  

Disneyland? For a spiritual seeker, this is indeed Disneyland with the best of nature and the best of Bhagawan!
This is a picture taken from the back-end of the darshan grounds at Anand Vilas. (Download photo and see
it in full size). 

The tiffin session was a short and quick one. Swami called Dario and asked him which country he came from. “Spain” was the answer. “Not pain” was Swami’s retort! Swami also asked Phaneendra as to which place he was from and the answer was, “Hyderabad”. He also made enquiries about his grandfather and enquired whether he had come here. The tiffin session soon concluded and Swami left for the bhajans session.

The “ship deck” had filled up. There were devotees as far as the eye could see. The ladies side presented a very pleasing sight in its myriad colours. In sharp contrast, the gents’ side was like a white expansive sheet! The lovely blue mountains formed the backdrop with the clear blue skies. A gentle breeze was operating and it refreshed everyone in its trail. The bhajans were already on and everyone were singing enthusiastically as they awaited His arrival. The news had already travelled that Swami was out of His room. The ladies had also seen Him descend in the lift.

{This is the 13th part of an ongoing series. You can read the previous part at this link:

Delhi-Simla Memories- Part 12 - Divine promise to Simla fulfilled

Or you can read from the beginning of the serial where each part is linked to the next. The link to Part 1 is here:

Delhi-Simla Memories- Part 1 - Hello Delhi }

The CM of Himachal Pradesh offers his salutations to Swami.

The chief minister of Himachal Pradesh, Prem Kumar Dhumal had come to pay his respects to Swami. He had a bouquet in his hands and he offered it to Swami before touching His feet in the lift-landing area of the ground floor of the mandir. Along with him were also a few of his cabinet colleagues and they too sought His blessings. Swami was smiling as He blessed them and then He moved into the prayer hall.

Delhi-Simla Memories- Part 9 - Baisakhi grace and beautiful dinner

Yet another memorable dinner session

Swami had just arrived after calling upon the former prime minister of India, Sri Atal Behari Vajpayee. It was quite late by daily standards. So, at 8:45 pm we were all told to go and sit for dinner. I went in and stood behind the second chair facing Swami.  Swami told us to sit and then we chanted the food prayer, Brahmaarpanam.  Satyajit was serving Swami and there was a lot of “Vadhoo” (‘Don’t want’) from Him today. Inspite of multiple such refusals, Satyajit went about serving food into His plate; Swami delivered a really loud “Vadhoo!” I could not help smiling and immediately, Swami too looked at all of us and smiled. Then all of us started eating.

The session started with Swami asking,

“A youngster keeps waiting outside to have Swami’s darshan. Who is he?”

Nobody seemed to know the answer and everyone kept silent. I thought that maybe he was referring to Vibhu but did not say anything. Swami called Ravi bhaiya and asked him,

“Why did you not sing Kausalyatmaja bhajan?”

Bhaiya gave his sweet smile and Swami too responded with the same. Yet another instance of God being reaction, reflection and resound! A pleasant conversation followed. Swami seemed to be in a very happy state of mind, having visited Vajpayee. Given below is the conversation, not necessarily in the order presented.

Swami asked GV sir as to when he had come to Simla. He, as always, gave a detailed and elaborate answer. Then Swami was speaking about His trip to Delhi when He inaugurated the international centre. Vajpayee had been present then. GV sir added that Vajpayee was present with Swami even during the inauguration of the Summer course in 1987 at Brindavan. He had addressed all the students then. He summed up that topic by adding -  “We have that picture with us at Radiosai!”

{This is the 9 th part of an ongoing series. You can read the previous part at this link:

Delhi-Simla Memories- Part 8 - Bahai Temple special

Or you can read from the beginning of the serial where each part is linked to the next. The link to Part 1 is here:

Delhi-Simla Memories- Part 1 - Hello Delhi }

The reference to Vajpayee spurred Swami to narrate the conversation the two had during His visit today.

Vajpayee had  told Swami,

“Your voice seems changed and is quite feeble and low in volume.”

Swami had answered,

“I was healthy in Parthi  My voice too was in good condition. Now, here due to the ACs being everywhere, it has got spoilt!”

Vajpayee had agreed wholeheartedly adding,

“Even my voice has suffered due to the AC.When I go out, am active but the moment I come home, the body becomes weak!”  

Then Swami added to all of us,

“I keep telling boys to switch off the AC  but they don’t do it.”

Swami seemed to have got into a “pulling the leg” mode now as He saw the AIP.

“Srinivasan will not agree with me. He will find my view wrong!”

The AIP was just smiling and before he could say anything, Swami asked Prof. Anil Kumar,

“What do you think about air conditioners?”  

Anil Kumar sir was strong in his criticism. He said,

“Swami, I don’t like ACs at all. People use it everywhere - in all places of work. That is why they die when the power cut comes into force! They are addicted to modern technology and not to the natural climate!”

Swami was laughing heartily at his ‘angry’ outburst. Sensing that Swami was enjoying it, the professor went on.

God loves music - The Nada Brahmam story

When stars descend...

The Radiosai studio at Prasanthi Nilayam, Puttaparthi was abuzz with excitement and activity though it was Sunday, a weekly holiday. The Prasanthi Bhajan Group had gathered there for a special audio recording. The brightest stars from the galaxy of singers at Puttaparthi had descended to the studio for this venture. Each stalwart singer present had his own beautiful story of singing for Swami and the collective experience of the group is worth several books! Take for instance the story of Ravikumar and his Sai Bin Raha Na Jaaye or the love-filled tale of the Meera-boy Koustubh Pare; or there is the test of love of Sai Krishna or the sweet stories of Ashwath Narayan. This is just a sample!

The new and young members of the group were excited to just see these ‘stars’ in action. They knew that rubbing shoulders with these senior members would only enhance their own musical skills and experience. But it was not just the ‘music people’ who had gathered. Music lovers who had been given the chance to be present for the recording had turned up too. It is not daily that one gets to witness a recording of this kind.

But wait! What was it that was being recorded? The straight answer would be - Nada Brahmam.

All had assembled at the Radiosai audio studio for the recording of Nada Brahmam.

What is Nada Brahmam?

Radiosai had been spreading Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba’s love in the digital dimension for almost a decade now. In an effort to bring high-quality, audio-visual media into the home of the devotees, it started its products wing - Sai Blossom. One of the first audio products by Sai Blossom had been ‘Prasanthi Mandir Bhajans’, a recording of bhajans being sung in the direct presence of the Avatar of the Age. Though the audio CD had been received very well, the problems of making use of live-recorded bhajans began to show through. The audio levels of various instruments would not be evenly balanced across bhajans which would be recorded across several months. There were also some mistakes made by the singers or instrumentalists which could not be corrected.

That was when Radiosai decided to come up with special, high quality, studio-recorded bhajans in a new series. In the quest for the best possible quality, track recording was introduced. Each singer would be made to sing separately and each instrumentalist would play his piece on a metronome. Days would pass in taking different inputs from the chorus singers, the instrumentalists and the lead singers. Any mistake could be corrected. Thus was born the technically-perfect and musically-rich series called  ‘Bhavanjali’ (an offering of feelings). But even that was found lacking!

The ‘live-feel’ was missing. It was felt that though the melody and rhythm was perfect in Bhavanjali, the ‘feeling’ that is aroused in the heart of the singer and the instrumentalists during an actual bhajan session was missing because of the track-recording employed. What was needed was the perfection of studio recording, coupled with the feeling of an actual bhajan session. It was Prof.G.Venkatraman, the director at Radiosai, who came up with the brilliant idea of a new series - Nada Brahmam.

“Record in the studio but ensure that the bhajan session is conducted as a bhajan session and not like a movie-song recording”, he said.