When Sri Sathya Sai Bled to Keep His Children Safe and Happy...

He rose after the fall as though nothing had happened. It was 3 days later that the actual damage was made public.

"Jesus Christ, the saviour, bled to save mankind from its sins."
I have heard this story many times when I studied in a Christian school as a child. Though I knew the story by heart, it never touched my heart because it remained only in the realms of the head. I understood the meaning and significance of Christ bleeding for His children when I experienced the supreme love behind such an act on the 11th of January, 1999. That is a day etched in my heart coupled with mixed emotions. It is a day whose memory makes me smile and cry at the same time. It is a day when my dear Swami, my God and Master Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba, bled so that one college student could be safe and all the students of the educational institutions could be happy!

The Annual Sports and Cultural Meet

I had joined as a student of the XI class in 1998 and I was very excited about participating in my first ever Sports and Cultural Meet of the Sri Sathya Sai Institutions. Each passing day, my relationship with Swami was growing in different dimensions. Ever since that first memorable experience where He accepted my love, I looked forward to each day for events to add to my experience-bank with Him. The Annual Sports and Cultural Meet is a time when the students from all the different campuses of the Institute - the Prasanthi Nilayam Campus and Puttaparthi, the Brindavan campus at Bangalore and the women’s campus at Anantapur - and the schools at Puttaparthi - Primary school and Higher secondary school - join together in a mass effort to please their dear Swami with a display of physical prowess and mental magnificence.

The significance of the timing of the Sports Meet, 11th January, is very profound. It is the time of the Uttarayana or the northward movement of the sun. This is considered as a very auspicious time for contemplating on the Lord and it is said that such contemplation leads to oneness with the Lord. In fact, the grandsire in the Mahabharatha, Bheeshma, who had a boon that he could die only when he willed, decided to do so in this period of the Uttarayana. For the students studying in Swami’s schools, thinking of the Lord becomes an automatic affair as they plan and prepare in full gusto for the Sports Meet. As Sami puts it, this is a time when the students bend the body in an attempt to mend the mind and end the senses.

Well, delving into the Sports Meet would be a matter of an entire article. It would suffice here to say this much that students do all sorts of activities - dangerous stunts, dances, drills, displays and, at times, death-defying acrobatics. And they do it with full faith in Swami. It is their way of showing how much they love Him and all that they are ready to do for Him. It is not that Swami ever asks for these expressions of their love. In fact, He is always concerned about their safety and well-being. And that is why He chose to bleed for them...

"This body has come for the sake of devotees and shall be utilised for doing anything and everything for their welfare." 

The Sports Meet of 1999

I remember that day very vividly. As soon as Swami arrived at the Sri Sathya Sai Vidyagiri stadium, a beautiful music theme filled the stadium. (This was a theme song from a famous movie that had been just released then.) I was seated near the Shanti Vedika, the stage on which Swami would ascend. When Swami’s chariot entered the ground, 150 metres away from the Shanti Vedika, I could feel the electric waves of excitement flowing through the atmosphere.

Power of the Gayatri Mantra is beyond imagination

 

The beautiful Panchamukhi Gayatri idol installed in Prasanthi Nilayam, Puttaparthi. 

Gaayantham Thraayathe Ithi Gayatri

The Gayatri mantra is considered as one of the most powerful, all-encompassing and comprehensive mantras. Commonly, it is said,

Sarva Roga Nivaarini Gayatri (Gayatri Mantra is the reliever of diseases),

Sarva Duhkha Parivaarini Gayatri (Gayatri Mantra wards off all misery),

Sarva Vaancha Phala Siddhi Gayatri (Gayatri Mantra is the fulfiller of all desires).

Those apart, the mantra also ensures that bad thoughts do not arise in one’s mind. It filters thoughts to allow only good and noble ones. It also increases one’s focus and concentration abilities. 

The Gayatri Mantra was discovered by Sage Viswamitra. It was the same Sage Viswamitra who initiated Sri Rama. It is a Universal Mantra and can be chanted by anyone, irrespective of religion, nationality, gender, caste, creed or race. In fact, as Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba (Swami) puts it, this mantra can be chanted at any place and any time. 

There are innumerable instances, public and private, where Swami has dilated on the power and potency of the Gayatri Mantra. One thing He always says is,

“Gaayantham Thraayathe Ithi Gayatri. (Gayatri is that which protects and redeems the chanter of the mantra.)”

Though I have heard and read this multiple times, the enormity of that statement hit me when I read an incident from the book, “Avatar’s Prescription” by Dr. M. Vijai Kumar (MD, DA). This book is a collection of experiences of this venerable doctor who has done free medical service for over four decades. It is the story of his association with Swami and the guidance he has received from his Guru and God. It is on page 109 of the book that he reveals this incident which makes our jaw drop in awe about the power of the Gayatri Mantra. 

Bhagawan Baba chanting the Gayatri mantra. Play 

it as you read the article. You will get the merit of

hearing the Gayatri Mantra a few times atleast! :)

The accident in 1985 that could have a different ending

In the year 1985, Dr. Vijai Kumar and several others were with Swami in an interview. Swami was speaking to all the assembled people. However, He seemed to evince lot of interest in talking with a six year old girl seated on her mother’s lap. The girl was asking Swami many questions in rapid succession and Swami was answering all of them with great patience and love. After a while, Swami gifted her with a photograph of Himself. Now, the girl wanted to know whether to put the picture in a big frame and hang it on the wall or put it in a small table-top frame.

“Put it in a small table-top frame...” Swami answered.
“Swami, where should I keep it? Should I keep it in my bedroom or in the living room?”
“Dear one, keep it on the window sill in your house - the one where there is direct sunlight. Then you can view it from your study table and well as from the living room,” Swami revealed in His omniscience.

The conversation went on and soon, the child seemed to be the sole focus for Bhagawan. All the while, the mother was sobbing silently but uncontrollably. Swami allowed her to cry. Everyone in the interview room were amazed at this unique interaction and were wondering why the mother was crying.

As if to appease everyone’s curiosity, Swami informed them in a very soft voice that the girl’s father had traveled on board “Air India Kanishka”.

When man's adversity becomes God's opportunity - Devesh Srivastava's tryst with death

Devesh Srivastava got into the front seat of the luxury car with a great deal of satisfaction. The task he had wanted to accomplish had been completed better than he had imagined. Savouring the sweet taste of success, he had decided to leave with his two friends, Manas and Vivek (*names changed to protect privacy). Manas was at the wheel while Vivek stretched himself in the backseat.

Devesh was on the verge of taking charge of his father’s company, N S Corporation, a talc mining firm which started with less than 25 employees in 1953. In the 40 years of it’s existence, the company had grown into the largest producer of talc ore in the present-day Uttarakhand state of India. Devesh’s plan was to make it the leading producer and exporter of high quality talc in the country with distributors in all states. Having been educated in the highly reputed Delhi Public School (R.K.Puram) and the St. Xaviers College (Calcutta), he knew that he had it in him to achieve his dream.

A glimpse of the kind of roads one encounters in these regions.

It was November 1994 and the chill descended very soon at Almora. Devesh gratefully turned on the heater in the car to complement the warmth of satisfaction he felt within himself. It would take more than 3 hours to cover the 90-odd kilometers between Almora and Haldwani (where the NS Corporation’s administrative office was located). That was because the roads in these mountainous regions were all narrow and curvy. Even an average speed of 30 km/h could be considered as good progress!

“Watch the road Manas! In your hurry to take us to the next town, don’t take us to the next world!” Vivek quipped.

“Back-seat driving as always Vivek! Just relax. I have got it all covered.” Manas replied.

“These curves and bends are treacherous”, said Devesh, “and I don’t mind if we go a bit slow...”

“Says a man who is ever so quick to reach his goals”, Manas laughed aloud, “I am just doing on the road what you are doing in life!”

A steep curve to the left was coming up ahead and Devesh felt that Manas had not slowed the car enough to navigate it safely. Manas seemed to sense his unease and indicated to him to relax. With the panache of a Formula-1 driver, Manas went to the extreme right of the road to give himself greater room at the curve. He knew that there was a deep ravine on the other side. But this would only be a momentary manoeuvre.

Like life, these roads also take many unpredictable curves!

The horror of his mistake hit him only when he was actually making the curve. What he thought was a C-curve had turned out to be a U-bend! Instead of a 90-degree turn, he had to make a 180-degree turn but he was going too fast. The car would inevitably plunge into the gorge!