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...”

Slow Miracles are also miracles - an experience with Sathya Sai

This is a story that has spanned nearly two decades... and it comes with a powerful message. The story seemed to culminate on the 22nd of November, 2010, the last Convocation of the Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning 
in the physical presence of Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba. 

When I think of a miracle, the words that come to mind are along these lines - unimaginable, stunning, fast, mind-blowing, unbelievable, happy, unnatural, mysterious, extraordinary. I am sure that the list is much larger but this sampling of words is sufficient for my present context.  Among these words, in my opinion, a key one is ‘fast’. A miracle has to happen suddenly and fast. Then only will it be ‘unbelievable’, ‘extraordinary’, ‘mysterious’ and ‘unimaginable’. If it does not happen fast, then I don’t consider it a miracle. Speed is of essence here.

A magician puts a seed into a pot and covers the pot with a cloth. He pulls away the cloth mumbling some abracadabra and presto! There is a flowering plant. I applaud hard for him. Yet, when the same thing happens over the span of a few months in the pot in my balcony, I hardly notice. Sometimes, I don’t even pause to admire the beauty of the multi-petalled jasmine or enjoy its rich fragrance. It is all my obsession with speed. I give so much importance to speed that I applaud its presence in a magic show though I know what is happening is false but I refuse to acknowledge a true miracle of God in my balcony!

God can do things in a trice but He is not obsessed with speed! Sometimes He does things real fast; the other times he does it slow. Do I miss out on miracles in my life just because they happen slowly? I am convinced that is the case because, looking back at my life with Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba, I am slowly discovering several slow miracles that have happened. And I thought that sharing one such miracle would be my way of expressing gratitude to my Swami.

When shooting became difficult...

When I joined the Sri Sathya Sai Higher Secondary School in 1998, like many other students, my sole aim was to gain the physical proximity and blessings of Swami. One of the ways in which I intended to achieve my goal was through photography. I had been blessed with a good SLR camera thanks to my dad and I intended to put it to good use in taking me closer to my Guru and my God. However, there were multiple obstacles to this plan of mine.

1. I was not the only one with a camera or the idea of using it as a means to get closer to Swami. Several senior students and a few teachers too were regular photographers in the Sai Kulwant hall. I was possibly the most junior among all photographers. I felt that I would have to really work my way up the ladder to catch Swami’s eye.
2. It was necessary to get a permission slip from the warden in order to carry a camera to the Mandir. The Seva Dal volunteers at the gate would ask for this slip before allowing one to carry the camera inside. The warden would regulate the number of people carrying a camera lest they become a trigger-happy nuisance in the sacred temple. So, I could possibly take the camera once or twice a week for darshan. The competition for permission slips became more intense on festival days when there were greater chances of Swami spending time outside.
3. The school warden had an interesting (and, in my opinion, sadistic) strategy to combat what he considered as indiscipline and reward what he felt was discipline. He would find out what was closest to the heart to different students and deny them that as punishment. For instance, when I was protested what I thought was a wrong decision on the cricket field (where the warden was the umpire), the warden didn’t issue the camera permission slip to me for more than two months! He knew that taking the camera was so important for me and strategically punished me in that manner. This was just one example. Many lesser ‘crimes’ of mine were also punished in the same manner. Therefore, I lived in constant fear of the warden coming in the way of my plan to become a regular photographer in the Mandir.
   

Antaranga Sai - The innermost experiences of Sai student Balaramchandra_Part 2

Look for Swami within

The first year of college life was wonderful for Balaramchandra (aka BRC) as he became a regular singer in the bhajan group. But, BRC also noticed that Swami did not seem to physically respond to him as regularly as He would to other students. All messages to him from Swami were delivered in a subtle manner and BRC had to be absolutely in tune with his inner Swami to get them. One place where many such messages were delivered was in Trayee Brindavan during the Trayee sessions. BRC had already received the message that he should develop an inner connect with Swami during an earlier Trayee session.

{This episode as well as many other incidents from BRC’s life have been detailed in the first part. In case you have not read it, please do read it before reading this second part. The first part is at the link below:

Antaranga Sai - The innermost experiences of Sai student Balaramchandra_Part 1}

An year later, the time seemed ripe for yet another message. And again, it happened through another Trayee session or rather, the lack of it! Those were times when a Trayee session was considered a guaranteed event everyday at Brindavan. However, in BRC’s second year as an undergraduate, Swami did not call the students in for a Trayee session one day. The same thing repeated the next day. Now, all the students and teachers were worried. Why wasn’t Swami calling them for these most intimate and wonderful sessions.

“I have a bad cold”, Swami said. But all the teachers and students knew that it was something else also. A mere cold is not strong enough to keep Swami away from bestowing His warmth on His children!

Prayers and Sadhana intensified in the hostel. Academics and other activities took a back seat as the focus of everyone’s thoughts, words and deeds was on eliciting a positive response from Swami. The efforts were a success as Swami called for a Trayee session on the fourth day. When Swami arrived, He had a solemn look. He walked silently up to the jhoola (ornate swing) and sat on it. After a few moments, He asked,

“Swami came to Brindavan 3 days back. But He did not call you in. Do you know why?”

A few more moments of silence followed after which Swami Himself gave the answer,

“Swami is teaching you to look for Him within you...”

Whatever Swami said after that were a blur for BRC. That statement had hit his heart like an arrow would strike the bulls eye.  He knew that he would have to focus more on his internal Swami - his Antaranga Sai. Little wonder that the frequency of him singing that beautiful bhajan with the same lyrics kept  increasing.

This is a magical thing I have seen about whenever Sathya Sai speaks - each statement is meant for someone on whom it makes a profound impact and each statement has a different impact on different people! That gives us a clue as to how we can understand which part of Swami’s discourse we must follow and which is meant for the others! Further dilation on this present in the article entitled - Sathya Sai Speaks but who listens?

Tough situation or an opportunity to learn?

An year later, BRC graduated with a Bachelors degree in Commerce. He applied and enrolled for the MFM (Master of Financial Management) course at the Prasanthi Nilayam campus of the Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning. No doubt he enjoyed a few interactions with Swami and got a few chances to go near Him. He also earned a nickname from Swami - ‘Parrot Voice’. His prayer was he should actually become Swami’s parrot, parroting all that He said and did! But then, like in Brindavan, a majority of his experiences with Swami were via the Antaranga pathway - the internal pathway. It was during his stint as a student in MFM that his understanding of the Antaranga Sai went up a few more notches.

Playing the harmonium for Sai's bhajans - student S.V.Satheesh's experiences_ PART 2

When the Divine Mother opens doors...

It was with a heart full of fear of losing something very valuable that Satheesh landed in Brindavan after completing his M.Tech exams. In the meanwhile, Swami had initiated the exercise of preparation for the annual Convocation drama, guiding a few select teachers and students.

That year, Swami had insisted on having the Burrakatha as part of the drama. (Since then, Burrakatha has flourished as another art form among the students. In fact, for a few students, Burrakatha has been the experience of their lives!) So, apart from the main cast for the drama, three singers too had been chosen. These actors and singers would be called into Trayee Brindavan, Bhagawan’s residence in Brindavan, daily for practise sessions. Though the Burrakatha had three main singers, it required a host of others to act as the supporting-music team. And Satheesh was part of that team.

(If you have come straight to this article, it is highly recommended that you read the first part of this story before proceeding ahead. the first part is located at the below link:

Playing the harmonium for Sai's bhajans - S.V.Satheesh's experiences Part 1 )

“One evening, after the actors were called inside Trayee, we were waiting and praying outside. After sometime the singers were called in. I was waiting near the trees. As I was looking at Trayee, I remembered Swami's words to a Sri Atal Behari Vajpayee in Trayee,

"This is your home, your Mother's home; you can come here anytime.”

Tears filled my eyes as I realised that after a few months I may not even be able to step into these hallowed Trayee grounds once I pass out of Swami's college. Would these be my last few days? Would I never get a chance to enter my Divine Mother's home again? Within moments, I was fighting to hold back my tears.”

“Knock and it shall be opened unto you” is a popular biblical verse. It appears that it is best to ‘knock’ through tears of love and pining because even as Satheesh was battling his tears, the twin doors of Trayee Brindavan were throw open. The teacher who walked out beckoned to Satheesh and Sharath, a student of grade XII who played the tambourine, to enter. Swami, who till date, heard the Burrakatha songs with just the pocket-keyboard accompaniment of Sailesh sir (the music group in charge), had today asked for the harmonium and tambourine accompaniments! Ah what divine mercy! Satheesh rushed in along with Sharath. Both were right in realizing that it was just Swami’s grace that was getting them this opportunity. But they had not imagined the extent of that grace.

Broaden your vision because beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder - a student's experience with Sri Sathya Sai

Nature beckons

The rains had arrived in great bounty over the parched and summer-scorched landscapes around Puttaparthi. A lush-green, velvety carpet seemed to spread over the hard, dry earth. Standing by the window at home, I looked at the looming hill, nicknamed Shiva, standing majestically beside a slightly smaller hill, Parvati. This Indian habit of naming anything beautiful and majestic after different gods and goddesses had got into my colleagues at the Prasanthi Digital Studio too. Thus, the otherwise ordinary hills near the neighboring village of Karnatenagepalli had got these divine names.

The sight of the lush green hills was too much for me to contain. My heart erupted in joy and I felt a strong desire to wander into the green and peaceful embrace of these hills. As the sun mellowed down from a harsh afternoon into a pleasant evening, I mounted my bicycle and was on my way towards the hills. Nature, in all its majesty, is such a powerful intoxicant and attractant for me. It just pulls me with such spontaneity and urgency that I drop whatever I am doing and get drawn to it.

The inspiration was great but the cycling was not that easy. 3-4 kilometers of country road which went up and down soon had beads of perspiration dripping from my forehead. I reached the edge of the grounds beyond which there was no navigable road. From here on, the journey had to be made on foot. I dismounted, parked the cycle and started off.

The path here was quite bad. Strewn with thousands of rocks and pebbles, it presented quite a danger of a slip and a fall. Adding to this was the fact that my feet were in ‘slip’pers instead of in shoes. Naturally, I began to place each foot after testing the ground. My progress was slow and laboured and my mental focus was at its peak. The perspiration continued and I realized that it was one thing to gaze at nature from the comforts of home but a totally different thing to be a part of it and explore it.

In fact, I now began to ponder over the spontaneity and impulsiveness of my decision. Wasn’t it a mistake to have walked this path? Nature looked quite good from home and so, where was the need to have ventured out? My mind was soon a muddle of such thoughts as my body battled the harsh terrain in its bid to maintain balance and control.

Drama of Life

It would be a good idea to leave my huffing and grunting on the hill slopes for a while and enjoy an interesting episode which concerns my master and best friend, Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba. That would definitely be more ‘dramatic’ than my plight on the path. The episode dates back to the November of 1998 when Swami (as He is reverentially and endearingly called) was in the Poornachandra auditorium with a group of students preparing for that year’s Convocation drama.

For those that have come in new, the Convocation Drama is an annual cultural event enacted mostly by the senior-most students of the Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning on the 22nd of November. The drama has an audience running in tens of thousands and Swami has always given its theme, dialogues and actors the greatest importance. As a matter of fact, Swami would often attend the rehearsals of every scene in the drama several times. He would select the costumes, check the script, compose songs and even make subtle changes in the plot to make the drama a wholesome and entertaining spiritual food for the audience. So much was His involvement in the drama that it was indeed a marvel at how He could sit and watch the same drama, completely engrossed, on the 22nd of November every year.

Deepak Anand in his costume
as Ramakrishna Paramahamsa.

Ah! Now coming to the main story. In the year 1998, the drama had a scene from the life of Swami Vivekananda and Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa. Deepak Anand, currently a doctorate in the School of Business Management at the Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning, then a student of the same Business School, was chosen by Swami to act the role of Ramakrishna Paramahamsa. As expected, a major part of the role included the devotion of the saint towards his ‘Maa’, his mother, the Goddess Kali.

Ramakrishna and his Krishna

The rehearsals began and soon, Swami was involved completely in the planning and practice of the drama. When the scene involving Ramakrishna came, Swami looked at the altar and asked,

“Why is there no idol in the shrine?”

Getting a statue of Goddess Kali is not easy in this part of the country. That was the reason why no idol adorned the altar. Swami went and fetched a statue of Lord Krishna. Giving it to the teacher-in-charge, he said,

“Here is the Krishna which Ramakrishna will worship. Place it in the altar.”

The teacher-in-charge did as he was told but he realized that Swami was making a rare ‘mistake here - Ramakrishna was a devotee of Mother Kali and not of Lord Krishna. Maybe Swami had got ‘confused’ because of the ‘Krishna’ in the saint’s name!

The next day, an idol of Goddess Kali was brought. Swami glanced at the idol. Mother Kali, baring her blood-red tongue stood over the carcass of the demon she had slaughtered. A garland of human skulls adorned her neck and a huge sword shone in her hand.

“No! Place the Krishna statue in the altar and continue the practice.”

An artist's impression of Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa and Mother Kali. The fearsome
form of the Goddess can be seen clearly. 

Now the teacher was in a fix. If Swami were to insist on keeping the Krishna statue in Ramakrishna’s altar, it would be historically inaccurate. He tried to point out the error but Swami would listen to none of it. The teacher even tried replacing the Krishna idol with a smaller one so that the ‘error’ would not be noticed by a large section of the audience that were far from the stage. Swami did not agree to that too. He wanted that same Krishna idol to be in Ramakrishna’s altar. On his part, Deepak Anand, continued to improve on his acting with each passing session. He seemed to keep himself totally out of the Kali-Krishna controversy. Swami showered special attention and grace on him, telling him in detail about Ramakrishna Paramahamsa’s love for Mother Kali. Though He had bestowed a mantra for this boy to chant as his personal sadhana, Swami changed it into one on the Mother. He told him to chant the mantra on the Mother for the next few days. The boy was in bliss and felt his love for the Mother grow by leaps and bounds every passing day. In spite of all this, Swami stood firm on His decision on Krishna.

The unexpected turn

A couple of days before the actual drama, when everyone had resigned to having the idol of Krishna in the altar, Swami came up with a surprise packet. He asked for the Krishna idol to be replaced with the idol of Goddess Kali! He said that Ramakrishna Paramahamsa was a devotee of the Mother and it didn’t make sense to have the idol of Krishna in his altar.

Everyone was relieved. Finally, Swami seemed to have realized His error. Before He could change His mind again, the idols were quickly exchanged and everyone smiled at each other. It was only after Swami left that every person of the drama troupe came to know the secret behind Swami’s error. The secret came as a revelation from an overwhelmed Deepak Anand.

“When I saw the idol of Mother Kali, my feelings were of fear and even a little disgust. I wondered as to how I would be able to inculcate feelings of devotion and yearning towards such a fearsome and fiery form. Even as I was thinking thus, Swami brought in the beautiful idol of Krishna, my family deity. The connection and bonding was instantaneous for me. In the meanwhile, Swami Himself worked on my love and devotion towards the Mother. Incessant and intense chanting of the Mother’s mantra and hearing about Her from Swami stroked a deep and intense love in my heart. Today, I could see the change. When the idol of Mother Kali was brought to the altar, I did not see an idol, but my Mother, the object of my deep devotion and love.”

Swami with the students after the finale of the 1998 Convocation Drama. Deepak Anand can be seen clutching on to
Swami's right elbow, straining to remain in the frame. 

Everyone was stunned by this revelation! They could not imagine in their wildest thoughts the wisdom behind Swami’s apparent mistake. What a Masterstroke Swami had played! Now, everyone was lost in admiration for His subtle and beautiful ways. Being very ‘focused’ often makes one narrow in one’s vision. Broadening of one’s vision enables one to see the beauty that otherwise is missed.

Trekker’s Delight

The memory of Deepak Anand’s inspirational experience brought a little smile on my sweaty face. I decided to take a little break from my trekking and catch my breath. As I stood still, my eyes raised from the path they had been so diligently focusing on all this while. And then, what I saw took my breath away.

The hills and the dales that spanned before me were beautiful beyond description. The lush green carpets with bushes dancing in the wind, the fluttering butterflies and chirping birds, the soothing blue sky with its fluffy clouds - everything seemed so ethereal and other-worldly. The scene was as beautiful as it was when I had seen it from the window at home. How on earth had I missed all this?

I understood that being narrow-minded and too focused on just my perspective often blinds me to the beauty and glory that the Lord embodies. No wonder that it is said, "Beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder." If one's vision is broad, one is able to appreciate beauty. If one's vision is narrow, one is just not able to understand and realize the beauty! The members of the 1998 drama troupe realized it through Deepak Anand’s experience and I realized it through my little trek!

For all readers:

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