He who humbles himself will be exalted - the experience of T.V.Hariharan

Life with God is an endless hope

Mr. T.V.Hariharan playing his very 'special' violin.
After the life-defining episode, he plays it only in
the privacy of his home during Vijayadashami.

It was summer in the city of Bangalore in 1979 (when it had not yet turned to Bengaluru). While the heart of the city sweated and toiled along its daily grind, it was cool and calm at its outskirts. The Whitefield ashram of Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba was enjoying a cool respite from the blazing sun via the Summer Showers at Brindavan. The Summer Showers programme was also called the Summer Course wherein Baba would interact with hundreds of students from around the world, enlightening them on the proper way to lead a life that is moral, ethical, spiritual and practical. (The Summer Course which started as an annual programme in 1972  was the precursor to the more formal ‘Summer Course in Indian Culture and Spirituality’ which was restricted only to the students of the SSSIHL from 1990 onwards.) Although hundreds of students got the opportunity to participate in the Summer Course, there were hundreds of others who wished that they could participate. In the latter category was a lad in his late teens, T.V.Hariharan.

Hariharan was serving as a volunteer in the canteen which catered to the needs of all the devotees who gathered at Brindavan to seek Baba’s blessings. As the Summer Course progressed, he noticed that his craving to become a ‘Sai Student’ was getting stronger and stronger. There was something special about being a student under Swami’s direct care and Hariharan wanted to experience that firsthand.  Driven desperate by the desire, he approached the staff at the office of the college at Brindavan, seeking admission. That was when he discovered the peculiar condition which prevented him from joining the college there.

Hariharan had completed Grade XII in a school in the state of Tamil Nadu. The Educational System in India then had not yet been standardised. And so, while the state of Tamil Nadu followed a ‘11+1 years’ pattern of schooling, the state of Karnataka followed a ‘10+2 years’ pattern. That was causing the trouble and it disqualified Hariharan from getting a seat in the Bangalore college.

“But don’t they add up to the same thing, 11+1 and 10+2?” questioned Hariharan rhetorically.

He learnt the truth via this apparently trivial mathematical question that the means towards an end are equally important as the end itself. So, it seemed as if he was was not destined to become a student in Swami’s college. He resigned to his fate and decided to enjoy the last day of the Summer Course. And then, it happened. Swami, at the end of the discourse, made a revelation, (the gist is given here)

“Today, I have some good news to share. We have decided to start a new college in Puttaparthi. Those desirous of joining there may apply for the same.”

Hariharan jumped in his seat. Just when things had seemed bleak and fate appeared all-powerful, Swami had given him hope. Life with God is definitely an endless hope while life without is a hopeless end!  

A young Hariharan with his Swami.

Facing the all-important interview

The application had been submitted and the interview-call telegram had arrived. ( In a few years, I am sure that I will have to explain to some readers what telegraphy and telegram is all about!)

Hariharan travelled to Puttaparthi with his father via Penukonda. Unlike the developed town of today, Puttaparthi then did not have any amenities. Though there is an entire road (the Vidyagiri Road) of educational institutions today, there was only the Easwaramma Primary School building then (which had been erected in 1975). Hariharan and his father joined the crowd of devotees that had gathered for darshan. Swami picked them for an interview.

Kumar wins the greatest gift of life from Sri Sathya Sai_ Part 1

Off for the darshan of the Lord

The 9th of December in 1986 dawned as usual in the holy hamlet of Puttaparthi, nestling amidst the hills in the Anantapur district of the then united state of Andhra Pradesh in India. The hostel for senior boys was bustling with hectic activity as all of them got ready for the classes of the day. Among the hundreds of such hurrying students was also Mr.V.Kumar, a student of the MBA (Masters of Business Administration) course at the Prasanthi Nilayam campus of the Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning.

Like any other place on earth, for most students in Parthi also, classes were not the most exciting prospect of the day. And that was because the most beautiful time of the day was in the evening when they would go for the darshan of their beloved Swami, Bhagawan Baba, in the mandir. So, Kumar too went through the rigmarole of all the classes, eagerly waiting for the sun to move from the east to the western skies. As the last bell of the day at the Institute went off, Kumar rushed to the hostel. He freshened up, tore away the ‘college whites’ that he was wearing to don the bright, creaseless whites that he had kept aside for the darshan.

A photograph of V.Kumar and his parents in the interview room. Swami has signed the photograph for Kumar. This was
just one among the dozens of interviews that he got. 

Within a matter of minutes, Kumar was at the popular Ganesh gate of the ashram. The Ganesh gate was akin to the pit stop in a Formula 1 race. The only difference was that while tires get changed in a pit stop, footwear get lodged in the region near the gate! But just like drivers compete with each other to occupy the pit for the least time possible, the students too try to get rid of the slippers as fast as they can to rush past the chequered flag (read mandir entrance) in order to occupy vantage positions for the darshan.

As Kumar cast away his slippers, he spied on a few that were carefully hiding their footwear. In a place like Prasanthi Nilayam where a few thousand gather daily for darshan, loss of footwear is a regular affair. Some students, in fact, ran a chain around the belts of their flip flops (the most common student-footwear) and locked it, placing the key in their wallets! Prasanthi Nilayam thus, is not only a place of soul-protection but sole-protection too. Kumar was amused at this. However, he too had his own strategy to protect the protectors of his soles. He would leave his slippers near his home, room A1 in East Prasanthi, right next to the mandir. The house was a gift from Swami to his parents in 1985 - a bountiful blessing for the pious souls.

Leaving the slippers outside the temple is so symbolic and pregnant with meaning. It seems to advise us that we should leave everything that has been contaminated by the external world outside before entering God’s place. It is time for the inner world now!

Playing the harmonium for Sai's bhajans - student S.V.Satheesh's experiences_ PART 1

S.V.Satheesh with his dear harmonium during a programme in Brindavan,
Bengaluru.

A long cherished dream gets fulfilled

In the summer of 2002, S.V.Satheesh sat in the tiny room with extreme exhaustion. It was nearly 3 am and the whole night had been one of great effort for him. For almost a week now, he had been recording what could possibly become his first ever musical album. And today, he had just completed recording the last piece. Though he was feeling fatigued, he was also feeling fulfilled! This was a long-cherished dream come true - a dream that had formed in his student days at the Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning.

Satheesh was ‘just another’ student who got enrolled for BSc in the college at Prasanthi Nilayam in 1992. His bonding with his Swami was almost instantaneous and he decided that he wanted to occupy a special place in His heart - just as He had occupied a special place in his! When he was wondering how should go about achieving his desire, Swami’s statement in several discourses struck him - “God is a lover of music. Lord Narayana told sage Narada that wherever a devotee sings his glory, He will install Himself there.”

And so, with a prayer to play for Him, Satheesh started learning the harmonium, practicing for almost 3-4 hours every day. He had no idea how he would get his first chance to play for Swami, but he just persevered and practiced rigorously. It was the beginning of a life-long saga.

Today, Satheesh has almost mastered several musical instruments - the harmonium, the accordion, the saxophone, the tabla, the mridangam, the violin and the santoor! By virtue of his ability to play the electronic  keyboard, he can surely claim to be able to play another hundred instruments at least - he just has to press the right buttons! It was either the harmonium, accordion or keyboard that he had played throughout his student-life at the Institute. That is why, today he was feeling fulfilled - because he had just completed a music album, playing the Indian santoor!

Satheesh felt an immense surge of gratitude towards his Swami. And in that flow of gratitude, he recollected how he had got his first ever chance to play the harmonium in Swami’s presence.

The wait and the big break

There is a magical thing about diligence that even skill and talent cannot match - longevity. One’s skills and talents may fade away one day but the results of hard work are always here to stay. Satheesh’s persistent practice ensured that he was soon playing the harmonium during the bhajan sessions in the hostel and the college. However, he was constantly aiming for that big break - to play in Swami’s physical presence. But then, there were stalwart harmonium players already - Sailesh sir, Arunesh and Anand Punjabi to name a few. How was he to get his chance? Satheesh waited patiently and worked diligently with faith. After all, faith is believing in what one cannot see which ultimately leads one to see what one believes in!

It was the January of 1993 and the practice for the drama, Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, was in full swing. This was the drama that had been presented in Swami’s presence during the previous year’s convocation (22nd November 1992) and Bhagawan wanted the drama to be re-enacted for a Cardiology conference being held in the SSSIHMS in January. S.Ravikumar was playing the lead role in that drama. Well, his experiences with Swami are beautiful and touching and they have been detailed in other blogs. The point is that the drama was almost a musical and thus involved the entire music group. And since the practice sessions (which Swami attended) were in the Institute auditorium, the music group would also be assembled there everyday. This was essential because in the 1990s, there was nothing like background recording and all the dramas in the divine presence went on with live dialogues and live singing!

Hadshi Mumbai diaries - Part 10 - When God showed that music moves His heart

Bankers insure with the Divine

The first day of November 2009 dawned bright and sunny in Mumbai. After the privilege of sleeping just outside Swami's room for three successive days in Hadshi, I spent a night in the hostel at Dharmakshetra. Most of the music boys had been up late in the night practicing for the concert that was supposed to be held later in the day. In spite of that, all of them had risen pretty early and seemed geared up for the big moment. By 9:00 a.m. we had finished our breakfast and were waiting for Swami.

The Chief Minister, Sri Ashok Chavan addresses the gathering.

Meanwhile the hall at Satyadeep had become full with eminent men from the world of finance which included bankers and heads of national and multinational financial institutions. Also present was Mr. Ashok Chavan, the Chief Minister of Maharashtra as well as the Leader of Opposition, Mr. Gopinath Munde.

Even as these dignitaries were awaiting His arrival, on the request of Mr. Keki Mistry, an orthodontist and a longtime devotee of Bhagavan, many of them started sharing their thoughts and feelings about Swami. First was the Chief Minister who was followed by Mr. Gopinath Munde. The latter in his brief talk mentioned that though, as the Leader of the Opposition, he often disagreed with the Chief Minister, on that day he wholeheartedly concurred with Mr. Chavan’s views because it was all about Swami and His love. We have often heard words of praise about the love of God. But what I witnessed right now was akin to a dog and cat embracing each other!

(Dear reader,

If you have come directly to this post, I would like to egg you on to enjoy the full story with its history. Link to part 1 is given below and the link to the next part will be at the end of each previous part. Thank you.

Hadshi Mumbai diaries - Part 1 - The Blessing Materializes 

The previous part which is Part 9 is located at the link given below in case you missed that.

Hadshi Mumbai diaries - Part 9 - Goodbye Hadshi, Hello Mumbai

Part 10 continues below)

Soon others joined and many corporate heads who were part of the Conference on Ethics in the World of Finance held a couple of months earlier (in August 28-29, 2009 to be precise) in Puttaparthi started recounting their experiences. This session of heartfelt outpourings, which had really turned into a satsang of CEOs, continued for more than an hour. Still Bhagavan had not arrived. So the Sai Youth and students started bhajans. And no sooner did this begin, there were signs of His coming! It reminded me how the Lord is Gaanapriya (Lover of Music). As He has said, He installs Himself wherever His Glory is sung. Was that a coincidence? I didn't think so.

Swami's arrival finally occurred when the bhajans started - Music invariably pulls the Lord!

By 10:20 a.m., Swami was seated right in front of the small group of students who were singing. Two bhajans later Swami began to move amidst the congregation and now all these financial honchos, completely unmindful of their positions and statuses, seemed to simply dive at His feet at every available opportunity. All chairs, therefore, were discarded and almost every one of them was ‘floored’ by His love. As far as I could see, there was nothing "financial" going on here. Many sought guidance for their personal problems while others just wanted one private moment with Him. No one is an exception where the need for the Divine is concerned and Swami showers His Love on one and all in boundless measure! He says ‘If you need Me, you deserve Me’ and He graciously blessed all of them showering smiles and collecting letters all the while. In the end all the business bigwigs gathered around Swami like children and posed for a group photo.

Whether one is a banker, a head honcho, a CEO or a Chief Minister, at the feet of the Lord, all are His Children!

After all were satisfied, Swami moved through the circular corridor to arrive out from the other entrance of Satyadeep. Here too, there were many devotees on chairs who immediately prostrated at His feet. Swami blessed all of them before entering the car to drive to Gandhi Maidan at Worli.

Hadshi-Mumbai diaries - Part 7 - A day for group-photo taking and group-photo showing

A special photo-viewing session with Swami at Hadshi

A beautiful solo-photograph that Swami granted at the request of the Jadhav family at Hadshi

Rising up at 5 a.m. is indeed an excellent practice, I discovered on the 30th of October, as I woke up in Hadshi. It is not only spiritually beneficial as the early hours of the Brahma muhurtam are sacred but also practically useful as one gets quality time with oneself with least distractions or interruptions. Waking early seems to unlock a great energy source within which diminishes in intensity the later one rises! It was during the early hours of the morning that I occupied myself with noting down in detail all the happenings of the trip which is responsible for this comprehensive travelogue today.

(Dear reader,

If you have come directly to this post, I would like to egg you on to enjoy the full story with its history. Link to part 1 is given below and the link to the next part will be at the end of each previous part. Thank you.

Hadshi Mumbai diaries - Part 1 - The Blessing Materializes 

The previous part which is Part 6 is located at the link given below in case you missed that.

Hadshi Mumbai diaries - Part 6 - Sathya Sai's message at Hadshi

Part 7 continues below)

As soon as I finished my notes after returning from the Mandir I got busy getting ready for the day. The morning ablutions time was also fun. Almost twenty of us would be shaving, brushing and getting ready with a lot of talking and singing going on. A lot of leg pulling and discussing never-before-thought-of angles about the events that had happened during the trip brought cheer and mirth to all. Ravikumar (Ravi bhaiya for me) was present and I felt like how a newcomer in the Indian Cricket team would feel when he would share the dressing room with the legendary Sachin Tendulkar! Ashwath Narayan and Koustubh Pare in the meanwhile would have begun their respective Riyaz (singing practice). The whole area would be reverberating with music and swaras. CG would be practicing the Sitar adding strings to the heavenly atmosphere of music. It was just so beautiful.

Yet again we had a sumptuous breakfast by the poolside. Many took photos with the water in the background and tried to capture memories on a memory chip in a camera! Completing our breakfast, soon we were all seated outside Swami's room awaiting His arrival. We all had come up with a plan for the morning- a plan to spend more time with Swami. Eager to have a few exclusive moments with Bhagavan, we thought arranging a photo viewing session would be a good idea. I was all set with a few selected pictures to show Him on a laptop. Something interesting and nice happened. In a corner of the same hall we noticed a 29-inch plasma TV, which when connected, began to read the photos on file! It was as if Providence had liked our idea! Immediately, the laptop was hooked up to the TV. We now could not wait for His door to open.

Once the door opened and Swami came out, we had Him for ourselves for the next 20 minutes or so.

At about 10:05 a.m., Swami emerged and as He came towards us He asked,

"All of you showered well or did you have only a sponge bath?"

We laughed and replied that we did freshen up ourselves in full. Getting up on my knees, I said, "Swami, we have some photos. If Swami agrees, we can watch them." The Lord graciously consented. Soon He moved to the centre of the hall and was seated facing the TV. And then began a most memorable twenty minute session. Even as I began to scroll through the images, Nishikant, Kaustubh, P. Srinivasan and Ravi Teja began to do padaseva to Swami. CG continued to shoot Video and Ravi Bhaiya thankfully took my camera to capture pictures of the whole scene. Here are a few snippets of the conversation that ensued; even though this is not in order of occurrence, I guess the sequence is not as significant as the event itself.

Initially, there were the photos of the concert on Day 1. Swami asked,

"Who is that?"

“Swami, Kavita Krishnamoorthy, that is Nitin Mukesh and.... (I forgot the third name!)”

Satyajit helped me with the answer, “Sapna Mukherjee”.

As the slideshow progressed, there came a picture of a woman receiving a saree from Swami. Bhagavan asked who she was and when nobody answered, He Himself revealed that she was an elderly devotee who sings and has been coming to Him for long.

Swami looking at the picture of Him blessing Sapne Mukherjee. He gave us all the joy of conversation with Him.

The photos of the crowds during the concert were taken mostly from the gents' side and so the ladies were largely seen in them. Observing this Swami said sweetly, as if in justification for me, "The gents were all seated on this side (same side of the photographer and hence he could not click them) There were many people behind too!"

Swami then saw the pictures of the welcome ceremony to Hadshi. Next on the screen was the photo of the sunrise (about which I have mentioned in the fourth part of this serial).

“Ah! The Moon looks very nice,” He commented.

"Swami, that is the Sun," I said.

(And now is a portion when I was in maya or delusion!)

Swami asked me if that was the Sun, why was everything around dark?

The photo exposure of the camera was according to the Sun’s brightness which is why everything around was dark. Instead of going into the details of the exposure levels in the camera, I simply said, "Swami, its orange in colour! It is the Sun."

Swami looked at me as if to say, "Ok! If you say so…"

In retrospect, I feel I foolishly let go of a wonderful opportunity to learn a lesson that I hope I will practice some day. When Lord Krishna pointed out to an eagle in the sky and said it was a dove, Arjuna agreed. When He surmised that it was a crow, without batting an eyelid Arjuna replied in affirmative again for he knew very well that the Lord can easily turn the eagle into anything He wished. I was in a similar position and rather than saying, "Yes Swami! If you say so..." I made Him say that very same statement. I regret now but with the Lord everything is an opportunity to learn and improve. (By the way, this incident in detail forms the heart of an article on how we often become platform heroes but remain practical zeroes.)

Next was displayed the group photos taken in the Vitthala temple. Seeing this Swami asked, "Who are those elderly people?" Before we could answer, He Himself said,

"They are the mother and father of Jadhav brothers." Then came up a photo of the crowd and I said, "Swami, just like the sunflowers turn to always face the sun, people too move to look at You constantly." 

The incident with Ganesha and the wrongly-held umbrella on the balcony was also depicted in the photos. We then moved to the images shot during the tiffin session at the poolside. There were photos of Swami being reflected in the water. As the wide angle shot of Swami eating amidst the natural settings showed up next I said,

"Swami, this picture has a name." When He looked inquisitively, I said,

"Swami, it is called Prakruthi Paramatma."

Swami's reaction to it was the same like the previous day - He opened His eyes a bit wide and with a mocking smile said, "Abba!" All of us laughed and there was so much happiness all around. It is so easy to comprehend at such times as to why it is said, “Happiness is union with God”.

In the photos taken from the balcony were also pictures of lines of cars climbing up the road to Hadshi. I zoomed in to show Him the number of vehicles as earlier He had mentioned how so many devotees were eagerly arriving for His darshan. When the slideshow was complete, Swami asked,

"That’s all? Is it over?"

I said there were hundreds of photos and we had selected only a few. He then asked,

“Where is that picture of Me you took on the balcony yesterday?"

I was thrilled. I had thought that Swami would never want to see pictures of Himself (And I shoot maximum of Him!). I quickly navigated to the folder and brought that up.

The beautiful Lord amidst beautiful nature. This was the picture that I had got the previous day on
the balcony.

He was happy with it but then said, “All My hair has fallen off.”

All of us chorused,

“No Swami; You have such beautiful hair.”

Swami continued, “I had much more; in Kodaikanal, I lose a lot of hair.”

These interactions were so much on the human level and that, I felt is the reason why the whole humanity identifies with Him - He is so less ‘God’ and so much like any of us as we converse with Him in the physical plane.

The picture of Swami in Orange with the Nature in green and blue skies was wonderful and so I blurted out, “Swami, it looks so nice and wonderful.” Swami said, "Avanni photo theesay vadiki trupti, naaku ledhu (that is joy and satisfaction for the one who has taken the photo, not for me).” Instead of waiting for the nectarous flow, I imprudently said, "Swami, You are ever happy. Only our satisfaction is temporary and it comes and goes." The Lord was silent. After a while, He asked for photos of the Residence and the lake too. I showed Him those too and He seemed happy.

Once we were done, He asked all of us to go down. We did just that. In a short while Swami was with us. He directed us to start moving towards the temple complex and start bhajans on reaching there. It was almost 10:45 a.m. as we reached the stage which had witnessed the concert by Kavitha Subramaniam, Nitin Mukesh and Sapna Mukherjee the previous day. A huge crowd was waiting for Him in the afternoon sun. Most of them had cloth pieces or kerchiefs tied over their heads.

A huge crowd had been patiently singing bhajans, waiting for Swami's arrival at the temple grounds.

Morning session leads up to a visit to Pauna Dam

A loving blessing Abhayahasta at the end of the bhajan session.

Swami arrived at about 11:05 a.m. and as always His drive down was accompanied by a set of students whom our teacher Mr. Gopi had selected to be part of a permanent ‘Security’ team. Swami came on the dais and immediately there was so much energy and enthusiasm in the crowd. In spite of the sun, everyone now forgot the coverings on their heads and seemed to open up their hearts to receive the warmth of His Love and Grace. At about 11:20 a.m., Mr. Shivajirao Jadhav sought Swami’s permission for the Bal Vikas children to lead the session. Bhagavan consented and asked the boys to pause as the little ones started.

They sang about four bhajans in their sweet and innocent voices. Swami concluded the session with one bhajan by the students. For this, He called me. When I walked across to Him, He said, "Tell them to sing Panduranga, Panduranga..." I conveyed the same and that was the final rendering following which was aarthi. Now there was a beautiful breeze and fluffs of Swami's hair swayed as if playing with the wind. The flag atop the Vitthala temple too fluttered in all majesty and glory. Swami raised both His hands in benediction for the crowd that had pined for Him. It was almost 12:00 p.m. when He returned to the Mandir.

The devotees are thrilled and many are moved to tears having Swami's darshan.

We were all waiting for Him. Seeing all of us in a row, Swami moved into the Residence and soon we also followed suit. Another banquet had been arranged and Swami was seated for lunch amidst the elders. The discussion on the table meandered first towards the fruits and other crops grown in the region and then into diet and nutritional value of some of them and many others. Thus it was that mangoes, oranges and jamoon fruits ‘cropped’ up in the divine discussion! As lunch concluded, we learnt that Swami had agreed for the boys to be taken for an outing to the Pauna dam nearby.

At 1:45 p.m., our tour began in a special air conditioned bus loaded with cool drinks and snacks! Those were times of plenty and many of us even refused to take advantage of those bounties! The drive was to take about 45-50 minutes and for most of the time, I dozed only to be shaken by someone who said, "Just look at the scenery outside. You will not get such views again. Get up and shoot." In spite of the comforting embrace of the Goddess of Sleep I opened my eyes and indeed it was a sight worth sacrificing the siesta for! In fact, they were captivating enough to make one forget sleep.

A sweeping view of the Pauna Dam

The huge expanse of water was beautiful even at midday and the shapes of the nearby hills resembled the sacred linga! The road was narrow and winding, and a white Audi car formed the pilot for our bus. We came across groups of mules lugging up loads, herded by women in traditional Maharashtrian attire. By 2:30 p.m., we were at the site and had been granted special permission (courtesy the Jadhavs) to actually go along the dam. It was hot with the sun right above us. But a mere glance at the expanse of freshwater before us which was 210 feet deep ensured that neither the salty sweat nor the burning sun dampened our enthusiasm. The staff manning the dam not only showed us the rooms which housed the valves to open the sluice gates but also gave us a demonstration of its entire management. The bus had been sent to the other end where it would wait for us as we crossed the entire stretch of the dam on foot. The blue-green waters below had a sort of calming and relaxing effect and so we easily accomplished the kilometre long walk. As Swami had directed us against going for boating, by 3:10 p.m. we were all aboard the bus ready to return to Hadshi.

Special photo-shoot session

Once we were back we quickly freshened up and rushed to the Mandir. It was well past 4:00 p.m. We could not go up near Swami's room as He Himself was coming down the lift even as we entered. He saw a few of us and asked,

"Have all the boys returned?"

We replied that some of us had reached the Mandir earlier but all the boys indeed were back. Swami then called Mrs. Ratanlal and asked, "Do you still remember your husband?"

“Swami, I recollect nothing of the past. Of what use is it to think of the past?”

Swami speaks with the venerable and sweet Ratanlal aunty - dedicated in His service since the 1960s.

Swami continued to gently prod the elderly devotee. She had been blessed with service of Swami since the 1960s and Swami had relished the food cooked by her for decades.

“Delhi, Lahore, your husband… you must be remembering them.”

“No Swami! We all have come with nothing and we leave in the same manner. If we think of Swami always, it is enough.”

I could not help but admire the wisdom being exuded by this special devotee of the Lord.  I was touched with the surrender and love of Ratanlal Aunty.  At this point, Mr. V. Srinivasan added,

"Swami always narrates to us the story of Alexander who left the earth empty handed."

Swami now moved to His room next to the dining table. Arrangements were being made for a group photo session of the Jadhav family with Swami. The flower vase in the centre of the hall had been made anew with fresh flowers and Bhagavan too arrived around 4.20 p.m. in the beautiful darshan chair. As the family arranged themselves around Him, the angle of coverage needed expansion. So Satyajit and I moved the massive dining table behind. Once this was done, the photo session began. It was very special for me as Swami was constantly looking into the camera with momentary glances at the video camera that CG held. The family members took pictures with Him in various permutations and combinations.

The immediate Jadhav family. The steps on the right lead to Swami's room above. Swami, however,
made use of the lift (seen as a door beyond the staircase) to move up and down.

Soon the boys followed suit. Again, Phani and I requested Swami and He did agree for a complete-group photo. Actually we were all keen to have individual snaps with Swami. However since He has agreed for photos in groups we quickly formed three small teams - a midway compromise between Swami's and our wish! Bhagavan again lovingly got involved in the seating arrangement around Him. I felt so blessed being His student! In the end, it was only CG and I who had not had a picture with Him and so we both sat by His side with our hands on His feet and a beautiful frame was taken. After that, some more people had this blessed opportunity and then Swami Himself called for Prof. Anil Kumar, Mr. Balaram and Mr. Srinivasan to pose with Him. Finally, at the request of the Jadhav brothers, Swami agreed for a solo photograph. With great joy, I took a few good shots. (Shown as the first photo in this part).

A special photo-op for the photographer and the video-cameraman.

As this session concluded by about 4:40 pm, He began to move out. And there He saw all the other members of the family assembled for His darshan. Also present were the workers, gardeners, cooks, helpers and everyone else who had contributed in the service. Swami now began to move amidst them granting them namaskar and blessings. Here, there were other photographers and videographers, and so, CG and I took a small break. This was such a noble act of Mr. Jadhav; he had ensured that none miss the joy of His physical proximity. Towards the end, I noticed that as Swami would move out of the shade, the evening sun would delightfully light up the divine face. So, I rushed there and clicked the Radiant Face smiling brightly. Moving ahead, Swami got into the car.

The padanamaskar session that Swami granted was because of the large-heartedness of the Jadhav brothers and Swami would give us a message about the same, later.

to be continued in Part 8 which is at the link below:

Hadshi-Mumbai diaries - Part 8 - The Vijayabhojanam or the banquet of victory

For all readers:

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