God does not call the qualified; God qualifies the called - Part 1

The voice of God

Many times, the question often is asked,

“How does one distinguish between the voice of God and the voice of the mind?”

This is difficult to explain precisely because an experience can only be experienced and not explained. However, as long as we live with a mind, we shall never cease to seek explanations. And so, based on Swami’s guidance and teachings, there are some practical ways to distinguish between the mind and the heart. I still maintain that the best way is to seek that experience of hearing the Divine Voice from within, for, once the voice of God is heard, there will be no doubt as to how one can distinguish between it and the mind’s prattle.

There is no single way by which the voice of God comes to us. If there are as many ways to God, as there are many people on earth, there are at least those many ways by which God can speak to us! The Voice can come to us as an inspiration, as a dream, as some text in a book, an idea or even as a direct command which our ears perceive. Though it can come in myriad ways, when it actually comes, one just can not miss the Voice. Having ‘heard’ that voice, a sense of calm descends and a happy anticipation arises within oneself. That was exactly what happened on the 7th of December, 2013, as I woke up in the city of Chennai.

I had a dream of my Lord, my best friend, my Swami, Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba. That put me in a state of great peace. As I got ready to meet the day, one Christian quote kept bobbing within me. I had not thought about it or read about it in the near past. I had heard it years before during a Trayee session when the speaker mentioned it in Swami’s presence. There was no reason why that quote should have surfaced in me (at least, at that time it felt so). Little did I realize that Swami was actually gifting me the title for a new blog-post!

Yes! That quote was:

“God does not call the qualified; God qualifies the called.”

Whenever one reads an article, one sees the heading before delving into the actual body of the article. Swami, in His infinite love, seemed to be doing the same for me too. Even as I was pondering over the meaning and profundity of the above quote, I met Mr.Nitin Kanade, an alumnus of the Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning (SSSIHL), currently residing in Chennai with his wife and two sweet little daughters.  He narrated the ‘story of his life’ and the quote attained greater meaning for me. And so, instead of delving into the quote, I shall dive into his unique and thrilling story.

When the call comes...

Right from his birth in Nagpur in 1973, Nitin grew up with Swami. His father was serving in the Indian Air Force and so was regularly transferred to different parts of the country. Wherever Nitin went, he always was ‘in touch’ with Swami. A regular in Bal Vikas classes, he took Swami as his God just like his parents before him. However, the amazing thing is that till 1989, 16 long years after his birth, he never had even one darshan of Bhagawan Baba! Little did he know that the first darshan would be the turning point in his life (just as it has been in several others’ lives as well).

How his first darshan happened in May 1989 is an interesting prelude to his story. Having completed high-school education, Nitin was bent upon pursuing a career as a doctor. He applied to many prestigious colleges and was having a tough time in deciding where he would actually study. In the meanwhile, his father who was keen that Nitin be under Swami’s love and care, applied to the SSSIHL for the Bachelors of Science course. Nitin was surprised when the application form for the Institute arrived home. This was definitely not a place he wanted to be in because he felt that a BSc degree would not fetch him any career worth its name.

When God calls, one has to respond
without a choice!

And so he protested. He did not fill out the application form. Instead, he just let it be in a corner of his study table. It was weeks later that his father found it, dusted it and filled it himself. The last date for the submission of application forms was already round the corner. He played an emotional card with Nitin,

“Son! I have allowed you to do whatever you like so far. Can’t you fulfill one wish of your father? I am not asking you to join this Institute; I just want you to apply and write the entrance test. Will you lose anything by just doing that much for your father?”

Nitin felt bad. He immediately took the filled application form and posted it to Puttaparthi. His father was happy and so was he because he knew in the inner recesses of his heart that he would never get a call letter - how could he if the last date for submission of application forms would elapse in the next couple of days? There was no way that the posted application could travel all the way to Puttaparthi from his current residence in Chandigarh in just 2 days. Nitin did not know then that when the Lord decides to enter one’s life, no force on earth can stop Him!

Within a week, he received a call letter. He had been selected to write the entrance examinations for BSc at the SSSIHL!

I came, I saw, I was conquered

Nitin and his father set out together for Puttaparthi. The bookings that they had got ensured that they would be arriving at Puttaparthi on the evening before the entrance examinations. However, a 10-hour delay (which was common in long-distance trains in India in those days) caused them to reach Dharmavaram on the day of the exams. Nitin had a bath on a platform at the Dharmavaram railway station itself before starting off for Puttaparthi in a rickety bus.

The duo landed right in front of the main entrance of Prasanthi Nilayam, at the temple of Lord Ganesha, the remover of obstacles. Praying to him and placing their luggage in the large accommodation shed (that existed next to the Ganesha temple those days), they rushed to the Institute campus. Nitin was just in time for the entrance exam! He wrote the exams and also attended the interview and group discussion. It would take nearly a week before the results would be announced.

NItin’s father had bookings to leave for Chandigarh. He was in for a pleasant surprise though. Nitin told him,

“Dad! You please go ahead, I shall stay on here, in this shed, till the results are announced.” Surprised but glad at this change of heart in Nitin, his father left. Nitin had no idea what made him speak thus .Today he knows that it was the case of Swami at work!

Swami was then at His Bangalore ashram, Brindavan in Whitefield, where He would stay till the end of summer in June. Nitin thought of seeing Him after the results were announced. Since he was free during the whole day, he volunteered to help in the ashram. He met and enlisted under a certain Mr. Wadegaonkar. Mr.Wadegaonkar was the unofficial head of the toughest service group of the ashram - the sanitation group. Inspired by him, Nitin eagerly and enthusiastically got involved in cleaning several septic tanks in Prasanthi Nilayam.

“Just a minute”, I interrupted his narrative, “you who did not want to even come to Puttaparthi, was now staying there and cleaning drains and septic tanks? How did you get this change of heart?”

“I don’t know what happened. But I just fell in love with the place and everything around. I loved sweating it out. I never felt that I was amidst excrement. I felt that I was surrounded by great love and divine peace! In fact, I was now sincerely hoping to get a seat at the SSSIHL.”

That is definitely some statement on the power of selfless service - it inspires, is self-sustaining and it transforms.

As was the practice those days, Nitin too accompanied all the volunteers of the sanitation group to Brindavan, Whitefield for blessings.

“We were told that Swami would give us padanamaskar. That did not happen. Something grander took place. As Swami walked out of His residence, I was entranced. I did not know what was happening to me but a surge of great joy and supreme peace welled within me. What I felt is simply indescribable. It was maddeningly beautiful and overwhelming. People say that when you see Swami, it is wonderful, when He sees you it is magical and if you get an interview it is absolute fulfillment. But that day, I felt fulfilled and complete in just seeing Him. I felt that I needed nothing else in life.”

Thus was Nitin conquered. It was love at first sight. And so, when Prof. Nanjundiah announced the names of the selected candidates in Swami’s presence, Nitin waited with bated breath. Sure enough, his name was called out too and he felt exulted. This, he felt, was the greatest achievement of his life - a blessing from the heavens above. He immediately dispatched a telegram to his father announcing the good news.

An unexpected death blow

On the 4th of June 1989, Nitin Kanade became a ‘Sai-student’. His happiness knew no bounds. He felt that he had never been happier in his life and looked forward to years of love with his Sai. But destiny had other plans.

It landed its first blow when the results of the XII grade Board Exams were announced. He had failed in Chemistry! This meant that he was ineligible to embark on any University course in India. He kept quiet about it but these things do not tend to remain quiet.

One day, in the middle of the class, he was summoned by the principal of the College, ‘Mahajan sir’. Mahajan sir told him that he could not be a student of the SSSIHL because he was not academically qualified to be one! The next day, Sri. K. Chakravarthi, the registrar of the Institute summoned him. Returning all the submitted certificates he told him to leave the institute and the hostel campus. There was nothing that could be done about it because those were the rules. The rules remain the same even to this day.

As a teary-eyed Nitin was wending his way out of the college building, the shutters of the exit door suddenly were closed. Nitin wondered what was happening and was told that Swami was driving on the road towards the hostel. He did not like any students loitering on the streets.

“The students must either be in college, in hostel or in the mandir. Why should they be loitering on streets?” He would often ask.

So, as a preventive measure, the college shutters would be pulled down especially when Swami went out for a drive.

As Nitin had been kicked out of college, Swami had come out and the shutters of the exit had been closed. Just like any of us, Nitin missed the symbolism in all these signs. He stood crying at the door, not realizing that Swami does not call based on qualifications. His call, in fact, is the greatest qualification in itself!

A lecturer of the college, Sai Giridhar, who knew this Truth about Swami and also knew Nitin’s plight, called him to a side. He told him,

“Don’t think all is lost. Swami is always there as the greatest refuge. He is going to the hostel to see the students’ music practice for Guru Poornima. You too go there. Things will change. You may not need to leave tomorrow...”

“But how do I go to the hostel when these doors are closed?” cried Nitin.

“Follow me”, said Giridhar sir, holding the ‘key’ to his problem.

Nitin sneaked out of the college as Giridhar sir took the risk to let him out. He ran to his hostel and scaled the wall since that gate was also locked. From there he went to the entrance of the hostel where he came face to face with the warden, Sri. Narayan Rao. And Sri.Narayan Rao’s face swelled in anger when he saw him. What was this student doing in the hostel when Swami had come there for witnessing the music practice? The fact that Nitin would be leaving and he could upset Swami with his ‘indiscipline’ (which could later affect the entire student community) only angered the warden even more.

“Stop there”, he commanded.

Was the warden Sri Narayana Rao (to Swami's immediate right) destined become an obstacle for Nitin (the
boy in spectacles to warden's right)? Read the second part to witness the unfolding of a drama divine.
Also seen to the extreme right of the photograph is Venkatachalam sir, the kitchen in-charge.

... to be continued in Part 2 located in the link below:

God does not call the qualified; God qualifies the called - Part 2

For all readers:

(If you enjoyed this and wish to subscribe to this blog, please go to the right hand side and choose the last 'box' which says subscribe. Another blog which I maintain with more than 200 articles on it is at http://aravindb1982.hubpages.com You may visit that at your leisure. If you wish to be added to my mailing list, please email me via this page with the subject "ADD ME TO MAILING LIST".

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Living in the present - sure way to avoid all sorrows

Taken from the animation movie - Kung Fu Panda

Past is past.

Future is uncertain.

Present not an ordinary present; it is the ‘omni’present.

- Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Not once or twice, I have heard my Swami state this many times. In fact, I am so accustomed to hearing it that even as He begins with the first line, I have already completed the rest in my mind. However rote learning and repetition of a phrase is no indicator of one’s understanding of it. And I must say that the power of the ‘present’ that God gifts us is overwhelmingly immense. This ‘present’, if unwrapped and lived to the fullest, has the ability to bestow great calm and peace. All the fears, worries, sorrows and the like result from us living either in the past or future. If we are able to forever ‘be’, then we are always in a state of peace. But then, as Baba beautifully puts it, being is lost in becoming. We seem to be perpetual time-travelers, restless to get out of the present and live in the past or future!

Let us understand this with one example of what anyone will consider as a tragedy - the loss of a beloved due to death.

Just imagine, if someone who is dear to you is suddenly hit by a moving car and is in death throes. What do you do? You immediately rush with first aid and summon an ambulance. Once the victim is in a doctor’s custody, you call the family and close friends. The doctor comes out and says that the patient is critical and is in need of a few pints of blood. You do your best to organize the necessary blood. The patient is put on external support and is stable, though critical. You now begin a two pronged approach - taking expert advice and opinions from different sources on one hand and praying for the recovery of your dear one on the other. Hours and days pass this way when, one day, the doctor says that its up; the patient is no more.

You reel from the shock and sit in a daze. Now, the tears well up. Without realizing it, you are already crying. The tears turn bitter and within moments you are sobbing. It is definitely a vulnerable and emotional moment.

Isn’t this a very plausible scenario that has been drawn up? Only the yogis will disagree! Yet, this very scenario, when analysed in the light of wisdom (which is unemotional), holds a great lesson for all about the power of the ‘present’ or the ‘Power of Now’ as Eckhart Tolle puts it.

When a tragedy strikes, we somehow are given all the intelligence, energies and resources needed to respond - call the ambulance, administer first aid, call the family. A tragedy transforms us into generators of energy and prayers. All this happens because, believe it or not, we are living in the present and responding to the ‘blows’ as they come. However, analysing logically in the above example of the patient’s death, a change comes over when the dear one passes away. The shock that strikes us stops us from living in the present.

Our minds immediately move into the past - recollecting the wonderful moments with the person. The mind also travels to the future - picturing the void that will exist with regards to the person. And, in no time, we get tears in our eyes. Sorrow is born the moment we stop living in the present and dwell in the past or future. I don’t know about the idle mind being a devil’s workshop but it sure is a time-traveller!

Let me share an incident, a bitter-sweet episode with my master and best-friend that taught me this lesson of living in the present.

A fool on April 1st?

Closely on the heels of the memorable trip to Hadshi and Mumbai, Bhagawan had agreed to bless the devotees from Delhi and Simla with His Divine visit. As is the case whenever Swami plans a trip, there was excitement among the staff and students to see who would get the Divine opportunity to accompany Him. I had got the privileged opportunity to travel along with Swami on the Hadshi trip. I was hoping to get a chance to accompany Him on this trip as well. It was the 1st of April and Swami, sitting on the dais after the darshan rounds, summoned the former vice-chancellor, Sri.S.V.Giri. Giri sir had a thick file with him which he began to show  Swami. Sitting on the steps of the main dais, I was sure that the file contained the profiles of ‘probables’, the candidates for the forthcoming Delhi-Simla trip. I could also see the photographs of a few staff and students as the papers in the file were flipped. My excitement was stirred and I began to crane my neck to see whether my profile would turn up and get selected.

I could see that I was not the only one with such thoughts and feelings. Almost everyone was eagerly waiting to see if they would be selected. As I was watching, Swami seemed to stop at one particular profile. He looked long at it and asked Giri sir about it. Covering his mouth, Giri sir said something into Swami’s ears (that was to ensure audibility over the Veda chanting going on rather than to have a secret conversation) after which Swami nodded. Swami then said something which thrilled me. I could not hear Him but I could clearly read from His lips that He asked,

“Photographer?”

Giri sir nodded. Swami also nodded. I felt a calm descend on me. I had been selected.

It just needed another 15 minutes for the calm to be shattered. Swami finished going through the file and moved into the interview room. He sent word for a few students and staff members to gather in the bhajan hall. This would be the group selected for the trip, I understood. As the different names were called out, I eagerly awaited mine to be called too. That, however, did not happen and a set of about 20-25 people walked into the bhajan hall. The pieces of my shattered calm began to prick and poke me.

“Oh My God! You are not there?”

“Did Giri sir forget to call you or was it somebody else that he discussed about with Swami? But then, who else could be ‘photographer’?”

“How wonderful the Hadshi trip was! And that was only for 6 days. This is a 10-day trip and you will be missing it...”

“Has Swami left you out on purpose? Is this a message for you?”

I had no idea about the number of thoughts that flooded me. I closed my eyes in an attempt to shut out the various scenarios that were forming before me. My external calm was in sharp contrast to the internal storm. The session concluded after the bhajans. As I was walking back, I could see the beaming faces of those that had been called in. That just made me burn from within. No, it wasn’t jealousy. Maybe, I wouldn’t have felt so bad had I not ‘heard’ Swami ask, “Photographer?”. But the fall from heights of expectations is a real hard one and that pained me.

I felt like I had been fooled by destiny on the 1st of April. I felt like a fool no doubt, but a like a fool with a hurting heart.

My heart longed to pray to Him to include me too in the list of 'probables' to Delhi-Simla. 

The ‘present’ lost in the past and future

I was feeling so bad that I decided to get up on my knees the next day during darshan and ask Swami to include me in the trip. I had never asked for anything worldly from Swami. My disappointment was such that I decided to make an exception this time. I was stopped in my foolish line of thinking by my colleague, C.G.Sai Prakash. He told me,

“Aravind, if Swami has decided not to choose you, will you impose yourself on Him like this? Won’t it be embarrassing for Him if you ask Him when He has decided not to take you?”

I was thinking, that it was easy for him to advise me that way as he was already in the select group. However, what he said was also sensible.

“I am not trying to embarrass Him. But what if there has been a mistake... It can be rectified when I bring it to His attention right?”

“Aravind! Mistake?! Hear yourself now. Do you think that the Lord makes mistakes? No. Keep a calm heart.”

How could I keep a calm heart? I was feeling so bad and left out.

“Okay, I will not get up and ask Him. But I will certainly write a letter about the same.” I concluded.

And that is exactly what I did - wrote a letter expressing my strong desire to accompany Him on the Delhi-Simla trip.

My diary entry for the 3rd of April reads like this.

In the evening, I had the letter where I had expressed my desire to accompany Him to Delhi. As He passed by me in the lines, He looked at me and kept looking at me. But then, He did not take my letter and I felt that maybe it was wrong to pressurise Him. So I put the letter back into my pocket. When He came on the stage, I made no efforts to even show the letter to Him. I sat doing bhajans with all enthusiasm. Swami looked at me once or twice and smiled. I felt  happy that He was smiling at me and I also felt that He was happy with me not trying to pressurize Him. He received Aarthi and left.

As I returned to my room, I saw the letter in my pocket. In an instant, all the joy that I was having after that beautiful darshan session was gone. My mind again travelled to the past and the future and, in no time, I was sad again. I sat brooding over what I would be missing in the future. My ‘being’ was surely being lost totally in ‘becoming’.

But these are retrospective thoughts. This wisdom did not dawn on me then and I spent the evening and night being morose. Anybody who had received what I had received that evening at darshan would be happy but not me. I was on my time-machine - reliving the past which I felt would never come to me again and visiting the future which I felt was one big void. The present, God’s gift to every person, was ‘sadly’ forgotten.

...to be concluded in next part which is at the link given below:

Accepting God's Presents and Presence

For all readers:

(If you enjoyed this and wish to subscribe to this blog, please go to the right hand side and choose the last 'box' which says subscribe. Another blog which I maintain with more than 200 articles on it is at http://aravindb1982.hubpages.com You may visit that at your leisure. If you wish to be added to my mailing list, please email me via this page with the subject "ADD ME TO MAILING LIST".

Also, use the Tweet and FB buttons below here liberally to share with your friends and family! Thank you)

How I got my job and career at Radiosai Global Harmony (Part 4 of 4 of my career story)

This is Part 4 of the story of how Bhagawan Baba helped me make my career choice.

If you have arrived straight here, please take a few minutes to read the first few parts to ensure continuity and better understanding. Part 1 is posted here.

How Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba helped me make my career choice

Part 2 is posted here.

God's Masterplan works subtly and silently for each of us

Part 3 is posted here.
How God changed my disappointment into appointment.



This is the concluding Part 4

A message from the Lord can come in many ways...

Tryst with Divinity

For the second time in 3 days, the three of us went into the bhajan hall and took seats in the front. There was no ‘emergency’ as such but ever since we had received that encouraging nod from Swami, Bhagawan Baba, on 31st March, things had changed for us. We were given the front seats without any problems. We waited for the Veda chanting to begin and usher into the Sai Kulwant Hall that beautiful orange-robed form. That happened within a few minutes.

Even as I waited, I picked up an inspirational book of short stories that one of the students was reading. Suddenly, my mind said,

“Seek a message.”

It is a habit among many to randomly open a book and seek a message. I too am part of that ‘message seeking’ mass! So, I closed my eyes and opened the book. The short story that came in front of my eyes was - The meeting that was not to be.

Immediately, I did not feel so good. And the Veda chanting began, signaling Swami’s arrival for darshan. Within ten minutes, the darshan was completed and Swami came towards the interview room. As He was entering the interview room, He cast a cursory glance into the bhajan hall. His face seemed to contort in irritation (that is what I thought). It seemed to ask,

“What are these boys doing here?”

Then He went in.

I did not want to confide my fears to the other two boys. I opened the book again and went to that story which seemed to have negatively sealed my fate. As I read the story, I saw a happy ending (naturally it had to be good because it was an inspirational book). In the end, the ‘meeting’ actually took place in the story and gave me the same hope for my story too.

Swami came out within a few minutes and stopped near the bhajan hall entrance. He beckoned to us and we three moved to the wheelchair that He was seated on.

“Swami, the vice-chancellor met us...”, I began.

“The vice-chancellor met me too. He showed me the photos of you three as well”, He replied with a smile.

He then looked at Dhananjay, the other boy and asked,

“What does your mother say about this?”

“Swami, my mother is very happy. She told me to do whatever you say and be with you always...”

It was such a touching moment. Dhananjay’s story has been one filled with love and grace. (Hear Dhananjay’s interview by downloading the Morning Glory audio file.) After losing his father at a young age, Dhananjay has had Swami stand by him like a father, taking important decisions. But Swami, on His part, never goes against the words of one’s parents. He ensures that whatever the child does is in sync with his/her parents’ wishes.

“Mother is the first God. Father is the second God. A teacher is the third God. Then comes God”, He says.

He did not ask me or the other boy about what our parents feel because He already knew the answers. To take the conversation further, I started,

“Swami, the vice-chancellor gave us a choice. He told us to choose...”

“Ay”, Swami cut me midway, “if you want to make Swami happy, go make that Venkatraman (Prof.G.V) happy.”

That was it. Final! All the three of us fell at His feet and told Him that we would go and join Radiosai immediately. Swami said,

“What is the hurry? It is your vacation now. Go for your holidays. You can join after the vacation.”

The brief but fruitful meeting was complete. We were all very happy and touched. It is amazing how Swami thinks of the little things in such a perfect manner. Though I was very keen to get a ‘job’ at Prasanthi, it was definitely true that I was desperately in need of a break after a hectic examination schedule.

Doubt is a real demon

The reader would have surely concluded that by now, I was the happiest man around. I wasn’t! There was this lurking fear in my mind that I should not count my chickens till they hatch. Swami had promised to give me a job no doubt, but the job was not yet mine. So, I didn’t leave for vacation. I stayed on at Puttaparthi, regularly attending darshan and bhajan sessions. In the meanwhile, I also started going to Radiosai studios in the free time to learn photo-editing and video-editing softwares. Days turned into weeks in this manner.

Then, news arrived that Swami would be leaving for Kodaikanal in the summer. As always, He would be taking a few students along. My hopes were raised. I was hoping to be a part of the group selected by the Lord to travel with the Lord. That was not meant to be and so, I felt, I would have to take my vacation as Swami had said. But then, Dhananjay was picked by Swami to accompany Him to Kodaikanal. I felt very happy for him. At the same time, this fed the demon of doubt in me.

Why only Dhananjay and not the other two of us? Does this mean that he is in and we two are not?

I had no answers and had troubled thoughts. I was thinking,

“Tomorrow, Swami will leave. Will He remember to give me a job when He returns? I am sure Dhananjay will get through, but what about us two?”

I did not want to bank on being a tag-along to Dhananjay because of my previous experience during MSc days (as mentioned in Part 1 of this article). What was I to do?

I decided that I would make myself as ‘visible’ as possible to Swami so that He doesn't forget!

The vacation

Armed with my camera, I moved towards the Sri Sathya Sai Airport to bid goodbye to Swami who would be flying to Madurai and then going to Kodaikanal. Soon, His car arrived and I started firing away at the shutter release button. In the process of taking pictures, I even boarded the aircraft (without a boarding pass)! Swami sat in the first seat along the aisle in the aircraft. I took a picture of Him and He smiled. Then, I took a picture of His feet which were covered in beautiful sandals. He again smiled and granted padanamaskar to both me and Sai Prakash who was on the video camera. Then, we ‘shooters’ alighted from the aircraft, craning our necks to catch a last glimpse of Swami through the window.

The plane taxied on the runway and took off. A day later, I too took off to Mumbai, to spend the vacation with my parents. Before leaving, I told Sai Prakash,

“The minute you receive news that Swami is returning to Puttaparthi, please let me know. I will rush back. I was the last person whose face Swami saw when He took off. Mine should be the first face He sees when He lands back in Puttaparthi.”

My body went to Mumbai no doubt, but my heart and mind were left behind with Swami. All my focus was on when Swami would return I hoped that in Kodaikanal, Dhananjay would ‘remind’ Swami once or twice about the pending appointments. As a family, we took a vacation to Ganapatipule in Maharashtra. One day, as I was swimming in the resort there, I got a call. It was from Sai Prakash.

“Swami is coming back the day after”, he said, “Are you planning a return?”

That was the end of my vacation. I pleaded with my father to get me a flight ticket back to Bangalore ASAP. We left Ganapatipule the same day and were back in Mumbai. The way things panned out, I would be flying back the same day that Swami would be flying back to Puttaparthi. I was in the taxi from Bangalore airport to Puttaparthi, when I got another call from Sai Prakash.

“Swami is due to land in about an hour’s time. I am going to the airport now.”

“Please bring along my camera kit too”, I told him desperately.

Now, I turned to the driver.

“How fast can you take me to Puttaparthi from here?”

“It takes about an hour sir. But I can do it in 45 minutes...”

“My life is at stake here. Please do it as fast as you can.”

He nodded and stepped on the gas. I opened my suitcase and began to rummage through it for my whites. In the speeding taxi, I changed from my T-shirt and jeans into whites. I wet my hair and combed it in place and then applied the vibhuti dot on my forehead.

It was the 17th of May 2007 and my heart raced faster than even the speeding taxi.

Welcome and anti-climax

I made it in time! And just as I had thought, mine was indeed among the first few faces (if not the first one) that Swami saw as He descended from the aircraft. I was there again, taking photographs of the rousing welcome that Swami was given as He returned to Puttaparthi. My body united with my mind and soul and thus, it felt very welcome to me too!

From the next day onwards, it was back to waiting for me. I asked Dhananjay whether Swami had made any references to our appointments during the dozen or so days of the Kodaikanal trip. He said that on one occasion, Swami had asked him where he would work and he had replied,

“Swami, in Venkatraman sir’s studio...”

Swami had then looked at Prof.G.V and had said,

“So, it has now become your studio is it?”

Dhananjay continued,

“Sir came to me after that session and told me that I should never make that stupid mistake of calling the studio as his studio. Everything is Swami’s alone and all were just custodians.”

That, I felt, was an important point to remember for all. Whatever we have been given do not belong to us. They belong to God and we are just custodians.

Dhananjay and I decided to contact the third boy, Raju, to tell him to come over. However, we received some shocking news. Raju would not be returning to Puttaparthi. Many personal pressures had forced him to look out for a job elsewhere. Amid tears he said that he would not be able to come to Puttaparthi. We were taken aback. This was definitely a setback. For the first time, Swami had been a little ‘lax’ and ‘easy’ with taking others’ advice for appointments and here was a dropout even before the appointment! We were told that it could be detrimental for our appointments too. I feared for mine because I felt Dhananjay was through already. I continued with my prayers and daily sitting in the front.

The D-Day

The 30th of May arrived. I longingly looked at my ‘Student’ badge. It said, ‘Valid till: 31/05/2007’. I knew that this would be the second-last day for my student privileges. The same was the case with Dhananjay and Swami had not told him anything too. We decided to foray once again to the front lines of the bhajan hall. The emergency now was - no deliverance for us even after the arrival of the due date!

Swami came into the bhajan hall a few minutes before bhajans. He saw Dhananjay and me right up in the front.

“Now what?”, He saked, “You have come again?”

“Swami, we are ready to join for the job”, I said.

“Job? Where?”

Dhananjay got up on his knees, “Swami in Venkat...”

He was cut mid-sentence by the sharp pinch I gave his leg.

“Swami, in your studio...” I completed.

“Hmm”, said Swami, “What work will you do?”

“Swami, I will do photography, video-shooting, video-editing, writing articles and radio programmes...”

“Ah! That is a lot of work... And you?”

“Swami, I will do audio-recording, audio-editing and audio-mastering”, replied Dhananjay.

“Very nice... very happy.”

We immediately bent and took padanamaskar. Now, I felt, we had finally clinched it. But a little surprise packet had still been reserved by Swami.

“Don’t join now”, He said and I had surprise written all over my face. But that soon transformed into a smile as He continued,

“Join tomorrow. It is a good day.”

He gave us padanamaskar for a second time. We had feared that He would ask about the third boy. He didn’t. He knows everything right?

And so, on the 31st of May, 2007, the day my ‘Student’ badge expired, a Thursday which is Swami’s special day, I was officially a staff member of Radiosai Global Harmony. The next day, I was issued my ‘Staff’ badge and I happily ‘retired’ the ‘Student’ badge. Indeed, Swami had ensured that I would not be a ‘waiting boy’ for even a single day. The transition from ‘student’ to ‘staff’ happened for me like night transitions into day and we were the first two students from our batch to be placed in our careers.

This truly became my 'official' home page... www.radiosai.org... 

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