Showing posts with label discourse. Show all posts
Showing posts with label discourse. Show all posts

Friday 17 March 2017

The pilgrimage to Prasanthi Nilayam - a very special private discourse

The 3 stages of a pilgrimage

A journey or search with a spiritual significance and meaning is a pilgrimage. Frankly speaking, I cannot think of any other reason why anyone would want to visit Prasanthi Nilayam on a regular basis. If one comes as a tourist to enjoy a vacation, one is bound to get bored very soon. If one comes as a seeker of worldly comfort, one is bound to get disappointed. If one comes out of curiosity, he/she will leave once that curiosity is satiated. But if one has the slightest inclination to seek the spiritual, Prasanthi will attract him/her over and over again. For, after all, isn't the ultimate goal of a spiritual journey Prasanthi (Supreme Peace)?

That is why it is important that whenever we visit Puttaparthi, we treat it as a pilgrimage. Any pilgrimage has three stages.


Welcome to Prasanthi Nilayam... and there is Sri Sathya Sai's name greeting you even as you arrive!

The first stage is when you learn about the place, delve into its history (which is nothing short of delving into His Story) and develop reverence for it. There is faith that the journey to be undertaken is the most special one.

The second stage is the actual stay at the place with the conviction that each and every thing happening to oneself is part of a Masterplan that will help you in the spiritual journey.

The final stage is to return to one's home, carrying the place of pilgrimage in one's heart. Then, one shares about the journey to others in the spirit of selflessness. This sharing serves as the first stage for other wannabe pilgrims.

It is indeed a piece of good fortune that when it comes to Prasanthi Nilayam, we have the presiding deity speak on how one should prepare for it and benefit from it. This is a very special discourse that I located by the sheer grace of our beloved Swami. Though it was addressed to the overseas devotees, it applies to anybody coming to Prasanthi Nilayam even from within the country. Needless to say, it applies the most to people like me, who have made Prasanthi Nilayam their home. It is with great joy and love that I am sharing this discourse. It was first published in the Sathya Sai Newsletter, the 1984 Fall edition, on page 28. It is reproduced sincerely below.

Close your eyes, visualize your Swami sitting with you and speaking to you in all love. Then proceed with reading.

The unexpected call

On the evening of August 20, 1984, word was circulated within the ashram at Prasanthi Nilayam that Baba wished for all the foreigners to assemble in the mandir (temple) the next morning. So, shortly after eight on the morning of the 21st of August, virtually all of the foreigners crowded into the mandir bhajan hall. The doors and windows were ordered shut by Swami, and two translators were summoned. Mr. V K Narasimhan translated from Telugu to English, and Mr. Craxi translated from English to Italian. The transcript of that discourse follows below.


DISCOURSE BEGINS


What is the use of being a human without knowing what humanness is?


Having taken this precious birth as a human being, we must realize what that humanness means. Man means the mind. Mind means desires. The result of desires may be good or bad. You experience the consequence of those good or evil things in your daily life. Therefore, the first thing you have to do is to realize that you are human. Having been born as human beings, we must make an effort to live up to our human values. In matters relating to food, sleep, and enjoyment, the behavior of man has much in common with animals. We take food. We sleep. We enjoy the pleasures of the senses. Similarly, birds, animals, and other creatures also experience this. What is the distinction between human life and the life of other animals? What is the purpose of life?


Many people do not think about this. Having been born as human beings, we must live as human beings. There are four things in which we must behave like human beings.
  1. Discipline
  2. Manners
  3. Behavior
  4. Dress
Today we are living very much the life of animals. We think that man's job is to enjoy the senses. This is not true humanness. Compassion, love, adjustment, conduct, manners, understanding —these are the qualities that human beings should develop.


On multiple spouses...


In these days man is regarding life as consisting of sensual pleasure and, therefore, is wasting his time. You must realize that this is really animal behavior. You must develop character. Nowadays, man does not devote much attention to character. Without character man is like an animal. Animals have many husbands and wives. If man also, or woman, has many husbands or many wives, he or she is worse than the animals. So, you must develop the point of view of one husband and one wife.


What is the purpose of coming to Prasanthi Nilayam?


All of you are coming here spending a lot of money. Why are you coming? Are you regarding this as a picnic, or a holiday? Or are you regarding it as a tourist attraction? No! No! You have come to broaden your hearts. You must confirm the principle of Love. It is not a love based on selfishness. This is a love which is combined with Divinity. We must make a firm resolve to pursue the spiritual path. You must journey from the starting point of "my" and "mine" to "we" and ours." You must come to understand why you have come. You come after spending a lot of money, yet you are wasting your time strolling about and engaging in unnecessary and useless talk.

Wednesday 30 July 2014

Kumar wins the greatest gift of life from Sri Sathya Sai_Part 2

The bhajan that he could never forget


The bhajan that Kumar had chosen to sing was full of pathos and meaning. It called out to Swami as one’s everything - mother, father, Guru, friend, sibling. It also addressed Him as the Vedas, Upanishads and the Geeta of life. It was a bhajan of complete surrender to Him. Since Kumar had completely been shattered by the tragedy that was happening meters away from where he was singing, he was almost sobbing as he sang. It had taken superhuman effort to sing that day. In fact, such was his emotional turmoil that he sang the first line of the bhajan - Sai Pita aur Mata Sai - twice. He sought some response and solace from Swami but all he had got was to see his Lord turn His face on him, looking outside the hall. Even as he sang, he prayed to Swami within,
“Swami, even in this hour of need, you are not setting aside the cold treatment! You are deserting me and going away from me. who do I turn to now? You don’t even want to hear what I want to say. Have I become so unwanted?”


(Dear reader, if you are reading directly from here, let me assure you that you have missed quite a lot of the story. Please come back to this after reading the first part which is at the link given below:



Soon, Kumar completed his bhajan and the rest of the session went on. It was almost after 5 bhajans that Swami returned after His bonus darshan round. Would there be some compassion for Kumar at least now? He recalls his feelings at that moment.


Swami walked into the bhajan hall, took his seat on the throne. He continued looking outside and enjoying the bhajans like everything was fine. After the 6th bhajan, he got up to receive Arati. Forget talking to me, He did not even glance at me. He simply received Arati and walked out of the bhajan hall, back to his residence. I was totally devastated. I considered it as my worst fate and walked out of the bhajan hall. I wanted to rush home and hoped that Amma would be alive.


Yet another shock


As Kumar exited the bhajan hall and rushed towards EA1, scores of students and teachers walked up to him and patted him on his back saying,
“Blessed you...”
“You are lucky...”
“You are Swami’s very own...”
Kumar was wondering what that all meant. Even the warden walked to him and gave him a gentle pat. Not able to comprehend what was happening, Kumar sprinted towards his house.

Friday 16 May 2014

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

Swami is all smiles as He enters the hall where all the members of the Jadhav family have gathered.

Padapooja or Padasevanam or the worship of the Lord’s feet has been considered as the fourth among the nine forms of devotion. Though Swami has given the unique interpretation of worshipping the Lord’s feet as following in the footsteps of the Master, He also allows the devotees to actually perform worship to His feet when they pine for and pray for it. The Jadhav family had been blessed thus.

(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.


As expected, it was the parents that got the opportunity to worship His feet.
The worship of His feet began once they had been prayerfully washed with scented water and dabbed dry with a soft cloth. The parents of the Jadhavs began the ceremony by offering rose petals and golden flowers at His feet. Mr. Shivajirao Jadhav recalled later,
"We thought that our parents should get this chance to worship His feet. But Swami was so merciful; one by one, He allowed this coveted opportunity to all the members of our family. The last time He was at Latur, many of our family members were unhappy as they did not have close darshan to their heart’s content. But now all are so happy."

A pair of wooden sandals and a pair of silver sandals were offered at the Lotus Feet.
Swami permitted the padapooja to go on for about half an hour. His feet decorated with red and gold was resplendent. Swami then moved around granting namaskar and blessings even to the workers, staff and servants of the household! At about 5:20 p.m., He emerged out of this hall and once again was by the poolside. I got a few wonderful photos from across the pool and Swami looked at me from there too. Once in the car, Bhagavan started His return journey to the Residence.

What joy to behold the beautiful, divine feet adorned thus!
We started to follow Him but He said, "All the boys go down and start bhajans." Implicit obedience was the nature of everyone among the team for Swami always has His wisdom behind everything He says. We went to the porch of the Vitthala temple on the first floor and started bhajans. Ten minutes later, as the door of the lift opened, Swami arrived onto the makeshift dais. Bhagawan then asked Mr. Shivajirao Jadhav to address the gathering. As this speech progressed, Swami gently dropped the rose that the Jadhav had given Him onto the floor by Him. I called the security guard seated nearby and told him to take and treasure that special flower. Any rosebud offered to the Lord is definitely special for it has received the divine touch.
Mr.Shivajirao Jadhav addresses the huge gathering.

Mr. Jadhav, who spoke in Marathi, thanked Bhagawan profusely in all humility for His visit. He was also grateful to the masses who had stepped into that pristine surrounding sanctified by Bhagawan’s Divine Presence. To the delight of all gathered he declared that Pandurangakshetra was in the shape of the Divine ‘Om’ – the source of all knowledge, the seat of all dharma. Mr. Jadhav then reverentially reminisced the day’s events when Bhagawan had graciously performed the Prana Pratishtha ritual for enlivening the divine energy in the Ganesha, Vitthal Rakhumai and Shirdi Sai Baba idols. He had no words to express His gratitude to Bhagawan for His grace and earnestly prayed that each one involves themselves in spiritual and service activities. He concluded by urging Swami to visit Hadshi as often as He can even as the crowd clapped in joy.

After this, Swami asked Mr. Srinivasan to speak. The rose offered by this distinguished elder was also again slipped by Swami onto the ground. As I was going to make another signal to the security person, Bhagawan looked at me and with a smile told me to let it be. I was lost in thoughts again.

“This Swami never gives importance to such ‘memorabilia collecting’ though it is a source of great joy to the devotee. If that security guard is not blessed enough to pick up that rose, I will definitely pocket it at the end of the day’s function”, I thought. The guard was blessed enough indeed for within a few minutes he noticed the rose and pocketed it!

A sweeping view of the gathered thousands.
In the meanwhile, the All India President of the Sri Sathya Sai Seva Organisation spoke on in Hindi and declared that for 37 years Sai devotees from Lonavala and Pune had been eagerly waiting for His arrival. They had severe faced problems as even rains had become scarce. With Bhagawan visiting Pune, even dry and arid lands would now become fertile, the speaker felt. He stressed that bhakti is the only way to reach Swami and reiterated Swami’s teachings on Love. Later he went on to mention about various institutions established by Swami namely, the free University, Hospitals, and so on. Exhorting the devotees to follow His path and making their lives His message, he emphasized that the Sai Avatar has come for our transformation and to help us realize our innate divinity. In the end He appealed to all to engage in service activities in the rural areas saying only through Grama Seva can one be blessed with the fulfillment of doing Rama Seva.

Even as Mr. Srinivasan was winding-up, Swami looked at Nishikant as if confirming with him if he was fully ready to speak. He had fixed him as the speaker in the afternoon and seemed to feel personally responsible for his success. I was touched at His concern and receiving a ‘Yes’ from Nishikant, Swami asked him to begin. He too, spoke in Marathi and started by narrating experiences of his life.

Dating back to the times of Shirdi Sai Baba the stories of Nishikant Barodekar went thus:
In 1912 on one occasion when his great grand uncle and aunt were travelling by train, the condition of their 3 year old daughter who was suffering from typhoid deteriorated greatly. So they alighted at Kopergaon and someone there guided them to go to Shirdi. Once they did this pilgrimage, their daughter was completely cured. Years later, in 1965 the same girl who had by then, become a famous singer, Mrs. Heerabai, was going to be felicitated by renowned artists and other dignitaries at a function to be held in her honour on her 60th birthday. On the very same day Swami called for her to perform before in His divine presence. Without a second thought, Mrs. Heerabai decided to skip the function and landed in Puttaparthi. Once she was in His presence, Swami told her that she had seen Him before, clearly referring to her first encounter with Him during Bhagawan’s Shirdi sojourn.

Nishikant Barodekar is blessed by Bhagawan with an emerald ring after his speech.
At another time Mrs. Heerabai had been invited by the Government of India to perform before a group of foreign delegates. Once again, Swami asked for her exactly on the same day and like before she declined the invitation and rushed to His presence. A few days after she returned from Puttaparthi, came a cheque for her from the State congratulating her for her splendid performance at the all important event! Clearly, Bhagawan had Himself assumed her form and delighted the audience at the prestigious event.

Finally, Mr. Nishikant recalled his own experience. Once his guru, from whom he was learning Tabla, asked him to perform in his place owing to his ill-health. Extremely nervous, Nishikant thought of Bhagawan and His advice to contemplate on Him. No sooner he did this, Swami graced him with His divine darshan and needless to say, his performance was a great success!

The moment he closed his talk, a beaming Swami blessed him with a ring even as everyone applauded. Next, Swami Himself rose to speak much to everyone’s joy. Here is a note about the translation that day which was unique.

There were actually two translators, Prof. Anil Kumar for Telugu to English and Mr. Bhagawat for English to Marathi. The styles of both these people were so distinct and different. While the inimitable Prof. Anil Kumar was at his vociferous and enthusiastic best, Mr. Bhagawat seemed cool and collected! There were times when Swami who is generally accompanied by a single translator would often start speaking just as the Professor would end making the task of the Marathi translator even more challenging. But then, who can stop the flow of the Divine Ganges? However, after about 5-6 sentences Swami seemingly would 'remember' that there has to be Marathi translation and it must be said to the credit of Mr. Bhagavat that he did an excellent job of summing up what the Lord had said in the past few sentences. The whole experience was novel and interesting. This is what Bhagavan said in His discourse:



In the land of Bharat, real beauty lies in tolerance and forbearance.
Is there a feeling more nectarous than what one has towards one’s own mother?
How much ever you may know, there is always much more to learn
As knowledge which is infinite
Bharat is most sacred – it is a land of Divinity. Everyone born here has done a lot of meritorious deeds in their past lives.

What is the purpose of this human life? It is gifted to earn God’s grace. The person who receives His grace in abundance can bring transformation in society. Modern society is full of anxiety and restlessness. Wherever you go, whatever you encounter, you only find misery. We have witnessed several natural calamities recently. These have nothing to do with God; it is because of man’s own mistakes and makings. God teaches only Dharma (righteousness). He never wants you to walk the path of adharma (unrighteousness).

Satyam Vada, Dharmam Chara – always speak the truth and follow righteousness.
We cannot escape from reflection, reaction and resound. Therefore we should know that God is one. We give many names to the One and the same God. All are indeed one. Therefore, in the whole world, there is only One in existence.

There is the same consciousness in all beings - Ekam Sath, Vipraha Bahuda Vadanti.
We feel we are miserable. If you ask yourself, you will know that the grief is of your own making and not related to God in the least. Therefore, never think that everything is given by God. In fact everything comes back to us because of our own thought process. God only confers bliss on all of us which is not dual, ethereal, and one without a second. If we make deep enquiries into our Vedanta, we realize that God gives us nothing. Pain or pleasure is what we gift ourselves with. We are mistaken if we think that someone else is responsible for our joys and sorrows.
Help Ever, Hurt Never; Love All; Have faith in everyone.

The hovering para-motorist was a feature throughout the evening.
There is no human being without love. Even beasts, birds, animals, insects including the smallest of creatures experience love. We should have deep conviction that God is present in everyone in the form of the Atma or Consciousness. When you dislike others, you are in fact hating yourself. Every human being is like a mirror where you find a reflection of yourself. In many mirrors, you see many reflections of yourself. There is always Reflection, Reaction, and Resound.

Therefore, whoever you may come across, have deep faith that they are all God’s forms. Man fails to understand this truth. It is not proper on our part to ridicule or hate anyone. Love is the only royal path that takes you closer to God.

All noble souls merged in God because of their incessant love for Him. Sakkubai  repeatedly chanted “Ranga, Ranga, Ranga”. Everybody insulted her including her husband who persecuted her. Ultimately, she merged in God. She always said “I am not different from Ranga”. In all the three states of awareness, she thought of only Ranga. It is only God who speaks, walks, and listens to every activity.

We go by name and form and identify a particular thing as a snake or scorpion. God is indeed in every creature and has given skills to each of them to protect themselves. The scorpion stings in self-defence and not with an intention to hurt. In a dense forest, a lion hurts only if challenged. Everything therefore is reaction, reflection, and resound. Bad actions lead to unpleasant results. So do good. All that you face are consequences of our thought processes. Therefore be pure in your thinking. A human being should have human values. Today, men are treated like dogs. In fact all defects and mistakes lie within man. That is why it is absolutely necessary that we correct our own follies and not search for them in others.

People mocked at those who were involved in the rescue of flood victims. In the same way, the whole community castigated Sakkubai who constantly chanted the name of Krishna. They were finally taught a lesson by the Lord. God is an ocean of love. Out of gross injustice and utter ignorance, we don’t understand ourselves and blame divinity. The good or bad that we face is the consequence of our own doing. We therefore have to correct ourselves within.

The Christians believe in the Cross; cut the ‘I’ and it becomes a cross. The ego has to be killed. Once we get rid of this ego, we can then realise the real self. Man today is knowledgeable in all aspects of life. He is conquering space and is prepared to count the stars but fails in simple things. Love is the undercurrent of everything. There are different kinds of sweets, but the sugar is one. The Upanishads say that whomsoever you salute, it reaches God. Understand your own mind and realise your own mistakes.

Help Ever. Hurt Never. He is a true man who knows this fundamental truth and has morality and character. If you understand this, you will never put the other person to suffering. Recognise the unity in diversity. God is only One, He is Atma or Consciousness, and has no name or form. It is the Spirit or Cconsciousness which permeates all beings. Several lights exist, but current is one. We may undertake different spiritual activities but it all comes back to oneness. If you recognise this, you will have peace and bliss. You are Atma, the only One eternal. God is only one – never think that He is many. When we face difficulties, we chant many names. But when we don’t have any problems, we forget God. We should cling on to ‘Soham’. In fact this is the name given to everyone at the time of birth. We will redeem our lives, working for liberation, if we know the divine principle and divine nature.

It was late in the evening when the discourse concluded and Bhagawan received Aarthi.
Many people speak of Swami differently. It is their imagination; all of this should be dispensed with. If only the politicians know the Truth, the nation will be a better place. Do not follow politics. There is no relation between what the politician says and does. Follow only that person who does good! This is the message of Baba to all of us today. 

The whole world should be happy. Let all the beings live in joy. You will acquire this bliss through love. We say ‘Peace, peace, peace’. Where is this peace? There is only pieces outside.

As I sat on the steps to the grand temple, listening to Swami, the security guard called me and said, "There is an ant on Swami's lap! What should we do?"
As he spoke to me, Swami saw me. What was I to answer? Being an embodiment of sweetness, it was but natural that He attracted ants (whom does He not draw?). I just sat straight and told the guard to look ahead. Sitting in such a prominent position and being caught talking by Swami is not an experience that one usually pines for! Swami also seemed to have left the matter there once I sat motionless and quiet. The ant crawled on Him for a while and then on its own, left having fulfilled its desire maybe!

Swami completed the discourse and wanted the mike to be removed. As I moved ahead to do this He looked at me and said,
"Tell the boys to do bhajans."
So a Vitthala bhajan began and as it progressed to the second speed, Swami signaled to me again and mentioned,
"Let them sing fast - Vitthala, Vitthala....Panduranga, Panduranga." I conveyed this to the singers (It was only later when I thought about it I realized that Swami wanted the bhajan to proceed to the third speed too! Ah! I prayed then for forgiveness and better understanding). Midway in the next bhajan, Swami asked for aarthi.

As I clicked away I saw Swami blessing all the thousands gathered who were all positively charged at this shower of nectarous words and grace. It was now 7:50 p.m. and Swami moved down the lift towards His car. There were many devotees who had sat by the side of the temple to have a glimpse of Him from close quarters as He left for the Residence. All the students made a security belt around the car as always to ensure that sudden outbursts of devotion did not turn to disasters of indiscipline.

A quick discussion on the evening's proceedings before dinner.
As Swami arrived, dinner was ready at the Residence. Bhagawan called the elders to sit by Him and the conversation then centered on Swami's discourse, AIP's talk in Hindi and Nishikant's speech in Marathi. After taking a bite or two, Swami told all of us to occupy the tables. He then moved up the lift and retired for the day. Meanwhile, I collected a few pictures on a DVD to be sent to Pune for printing. It was another blissful sleep that night, the second one at Hadshi.



to be continued in Part 7.

For all readers:



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Friday 25 April 2014

Hadshi Mumbai diaries - Part 2 - First flight with God

Swami's 2001 visit to Latur and Chakur

There were experiences galore as the construction of the Mandir progressed in right earnest in Latur. It was a daunting task no doubt, but the Jadhavs felt the comforting Divine presence throughout the period in so many ways. For instance, the holy ash, Vibhuti manifested copiously from a photograph of Shirdi Sai Baba. And on another occasion, they saw Swami’s face replace that of Lord Vitthala in a large picture! The miracle happened in plain sight for all to see.

A full-sized capture of Swami near
the residence of Sri.S.B.Chavan at Nanded.

Photo Credit: S.Balasubramanya
It was in 1999 that the Jadhavs returned to Puttaparthi to inform Swami that everything would be ready in twelve months’ time. At that time, Swami said, "Not one but two years." Perhaps, Swami had heard it wrong, they thought, and so Mr. Uttamrao Jadhav repeated,
"Swami, it will take only one more year."
"No! It will take two years," Swami clarified again.

(This is part 2 of the serial. Ensure that you have complete joy by reading from the beginning. The first part is given below:

Hadshi Mumbai diaries - Part 1 - The blessing materializes )

The Jadhavs had no doubt that the temple would not get ready before 2001. In perfect accordance with the Divine words, everything was ready and set in the year 2001. The historic visit to Latur and Chakur finally did materialize. Swami fulfilled the promise of sitting in the golden chariot that had been created especially for Him. The experiences and details of that Divine trip is part of the folklore in the Marathawada region and it needs to be documented as another separate book, but for the record, here is a brief account. I shall switch from my detailed ‘running commentary’ to a quick ‘galloping commentary’ before returning to the Hadshi trip.

July 15, 2001 was the glorious day when Swami left for Latur by a special plane which took off from the Sri Sathya Sai Airport at Puttaparthi at about 7.30 a.m. The journey was made in an hour. The then Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Mr. Vilasrao Deshmukh and his Cabinet colleagues, former Home Minister of India, Mr. S. B. Chavan, the Lok Sabha Speaker, Mr. Shivraj Patil and other dignitaries welcomed Baba on His arrival at Latur airbase at 8.35 a.m. When the motorcade proceeded towards the town, masses of people in their traditional costumes lined the entire route to offer Bhagavan their respectful salutations. The road was decorated with beautiful arches and welcome gates depicting Baba's teachings in Marathi and English.

At Latur, Swami addressed a congregation of intellectuals at the residence of the local M.L.A, Mr. Diliprao Deshmukh. Bhagavan also gave darshan to devotees at the residences of Mr. Vilasrao Deshmukh, Mr. Shivraj Patil and Mr. Uttamrao Jadhav.

On the following day, Swami went to “Sai Nandanavanam”, a temple built for Him in Chakur. At the entrance of this edifice, Baba ascended the magnificent golden chariot and traveled a distance of 1.5 kms. Mammoth crowds of devotees hailed Bhagawan with full throated shouts of `Sai Ki Jai, Jai Jai Sai'. The entire area was vibrant with colourful banners, flowers, buntings, lanterns, garlands, flags and huge gates; everywhere there were impressive displays of His sayings and teachings in local languages as well as in English.

Bhagawan charging and lending life to the Shiva Linga at the main temple in Latur. The two Jadhav brothersare also seen. The elder Uttamrao, has a towel on his left hand while the younger, Shivajirao is applauding. Photo Credit: S.Balasubramanya

At the Shivalaya (temple dedicated to Lord Shiva), Swami was given a traditional welcome with the Poorna­kumbham. Bhagawan lit the sacred lamp, then placed His hand on the Shivalinga surcharging it with Divine energy. He consecrated the other idols in the Prayer Hall as well as those in the surrounding nine temples. At two in the afternoon, after a few public speeches by elders, Swami blessed the crowd with a Divine Discourse.

Swami addressing a huge gathering in Chakur. There were two translators for the discourse that day - Prof. Anil Kumar for English and Sri Shivaraj Patil for Marathi. Photo Credit: S.Balasubramanya
The next day, Swami proceeded by road to Nanded. This city presented a multi-hued look as lively decorations beautified every corner. Baba arrived at the residence of Mr. S. B. Chavan and showered the bliss of His darshan on the devotees gathered there. In fact, this visit of Baba was the fulfillment of a promise He had given to Mr. Shankar Rao Chavan, the father of S.B. Chavan, about 25 years ago! Swami had told him that He would visit his house when He came to the state for the inauguration of a temple.

At 12.55 p.m., Bhagavan came to Sri Guru Gobind Singhji Stadium to bless the devotees gathered there with His darshan. All of a sudden, Swami advanced the timings for the programme. His enchanting discourse concluded early in the evening itself. He seemed to be in a great hurry and everyone was wondering why. Soon, everything became clear as the hitherto blue sky was covered with thick rain-bearing clouds! Nanded had not yet received its share of rains for the year and everyone seemed to be praying for it. No sooner had Bhagavan completed the discourse and His aircraft left the skies of that city, there was a heavy downpour. It was as if Bhagavan willed to answer the sincere pleas of the devotees instantaneously! It was undoubtedly a memorable trip for anyone who was a witness or a part of it.


Everyone was filled with beautiful memories of their Lord who showered immense grace on one and all in
the Marathwada region
Photo Credit: S.Balasubramanya
The D Day arrives

This being the history of the Jadhav brothers with Swami and of Swami with the Marathwada region in Maharashtra, I was so excited about the divine odyssey to Hadshi, the second ‘pilgrimage spot’ created by the Jadhav brothers. A confirmation list would be announced, we were told, and so, I eagerly waited everyday for that call which would say “Yes, you are in!"

The mind is so funny. My heart asked me in an absolutely confounded tone,
“Swami called you into the interview room and asked for your name to be written. What further confirmation do you seek?”
But the mind kept grumbling, “You never know how things can change with Swami. You are meant to love His uncertainties! So you better be prepared for everything!” And I, though mostly on the side of the heart, cannot say with authority that I wasn't troubled by the mind!

It was on the 26th of October that we were all called to the University’s Administrative Block and the good, nay the best news was communicated. Ah! My joy knew no bounds that day, and I began preparations in full gusto for the D-date, October 28, 2009.

Finally the day dawned – the culmination of many a sleepless night when butterflies romped freely in my stomach. By 6:15 a.m., we had all assembled in the hostel for Senior Students feasting on a breakfast specially arranged for us. At 7 a.m., we were in the airport completing all the formalities of the check-in. A Jet Airways Boeing 737 was to ferry us along with our Beloved Lord to Pune. Soon, we entered the aircraft and took our allotted seats. Within ten minutes, news arrived that Swami was on His way.

It was at this point I realized that the memory chip of my cell phone was not in the phone where it is meant to be! Perhaps it had fallen off when I had accidentally dropped my cell phone on the tarmac. Frantically I rushed out of the plane with Ravi Bhaiya. Imagine my delight when, within a minute of searching, I found the tiny card on that huge road!

Swami arrives to enter the flight via the vestibule life. 
How I had become aware of the missing chip is an interesting episode in itself. Sitting in the flight, I had noticed that on the display of my mobile, there was some other image instead of the usual photo of Swami. I tried to restore that picture on the screen as the wallpaper but was unable to do it as I could not find the photo. I wondered where the photo which I had stored gone? That was when I realized that the folder where I kept the picture was missing which made it evident to me that the memory chip had gone.

Well, that I understood, is the advantage of keeping God as your “screen saver” in life too - you become aware of your problems which can then get sorted automatically!

Dream flight

Swami arrived and boarded the aircraft through a huge vestibule lift. I was right in the front with Sai Prakash (whom everyone fondly calls CG) who was shooting the video while I was taking pictures. I actually moved close to the window of Swami’s seat in the Executive class section of the aircraft. After brother Satyajit had Swami seated, I moved out to the aisle ensuring that my leg does not touch Swami. Swami seemed to be in very good spirits and He was definitely excited about the trip like a child. This was a side of Swami that I was privileged to see – a facet so human and intimate! The members of cabin crew now began to take padanamaskar, one after another, and I went to a prime position to take their photos. Finally, when everyone had got their opportunity, I asked Swami whether I could take a picture of Him. Considering the absence of resistance as permission, I went ahead and clicked twice. Oh! How lovely He looked!


A sweet and lovely smile which He gifted just before take-off. He is buckled and all
set for the flight! The elder Jadhav brother is in the seat right behind Swami.
The flight was ready for takeoff and I quickly returned to my seat. Now the safety precautions to be observed on the flight were being demonstrated. It was an interesting sight to see the usually unemotional face of the steward become tense as if in awe at the Presence in which he was standing and making his presentation. He did his duty sincerely. The announcement was,
“In case of a drop in cabin pressure, masks will descend. Please put them on first before helping others…”
“When the provider of air to the lungs of all beings is amidst us, why should one fear about the ‘fall’ in air pressure”, I thought with a smile to myself.
“In case of an emergency landing on water, the seat below will act as a flotation device...”
“Ah! Don’t you know that Swami is a specialist at saving people flailing and struggling in this Bhavasagara, the ocean of life”, I almost spoke aloud!
It is such a different feeling boarding an aircraft knowing that Swami is with you.

The words have been taken from Swami's letter to Charles Penn.
As we taxied down the runway, we saw hundreds of people wave to us from the road. Not actually “us” but to Swami! But just like the monkeys in the painting alongside Lord Sri Rama in the Coronation scene also get a part of the adoration due to the Lord, we too received the devotees’ loving gaze. Moving slowly to the eastern end of the runway, the aircraft turned around. Facing the west now, the flight thundered down the runway and, soon we were airborne! Up in the skies with Swami! The very thought excited me. I have travelled many a times by flight, but never had I been so thrilled.


Hundreds and thousands of people lined the airport fence in the hope of catching a glimpse of Swami in the front window of the aircraft.
It was past 8:40 a.m. and soon we were cruising comfortably towards Pune. The refreshments arrived presently, but all the while, my concentration was at the front end of the aircraft where the Goal of my life was seated. He was being ‘entertained’ by small talk from the All India President (AIP) of the Sathya Sai Seva Organisations, Sri V. Srinivasan and Mr. Balaram, a long-standing devotee. Unable to hold back any longer, I went ahead and took a few pictures from behind Swami.


Imagine being in a flight where the front seat has been occupied by the goal of your life!
Returning to my place, I saw that the breakfast had been served. As I munched on my food, I noticed that the members of the cabin crew were making the best possible use of their flight time to get photographs with Swami, taking pictures with cell phone cameras!

I felt it would be better to capture these invaluable moments on a professional camera. Calling CG, I went ahead and got into the seat beside Mr. Ratnakar and started clicking pictures.


All the crew members took turns to speak to and interact with Swami - a great chance for them all!
Meanwhile, GV Sir (that is the popular name for Prof. G. Venkataraman, an eminent scientist and currently the Director of the Radio Sai studios) got up and moved to the front. He told the AIP and the people in the seats behind to shut the windows (and I am sure mentally told himself, “There! I have taken care of the problem of backlight.”) and took a picture. Sensing the opportune moment and also utilizing the better photographic settings created by the meticulous professor, I too moved forward and took photos of Swami with the entire cabin. It was another nice frame (that picture is shown above with Swami's quote that He wrote in a letter to Charles Penn.)

When Swami saw CG shooting, He asked as to why there was no flash. That was so sweet I felt. CG replied that it was a video camera. Swami nodded and smiled. After this, we returned to our seats.


Sai Prakash (CG) explains to Swami that since it is a video camera that he is operating, it has no 'flash'.

A small detour here.

Many times Swami asks these ‘common-knowledge questions’. That is to give an opportunity for us to answer. I remember, on one occasion, Swami asked a student,
“What is your name?”
“Swami, you know.”
Where do you come from?”
“Swami knows everything...”
“What are you studying?”
“Swami, you know everything.”
“You prayed that I should speak to you. I am answering your prayer.”
Swami walked away gently.
If information-seeking was the only reason why Swami asked questions, then thousands would have lost an opportunity to speak to Him! It is indeed sweet on His part to ask questions and create opportunities for interaction.

Even as everyone was finishing their breakfasts, it was announced that we should be ready for landing.


to be continued in Part 3 at the link below.

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