Delta
of Delight
Lucky are the seekers
of love and light, who get the privilege of seeing Baba, the perfect
embodiment of being, awareness, bliss, Atma; witnessing His divinity, hearing His
teachings of universal love and on pursuit of absolute truth. Luckier
still amongst them are those who implement His advice and ever remain
in the consciousness of the divinity pervading the entire
manifestation. They consider His advent as a chance for their own
adventure into heaven. They celebrate His Birthday as their own.
Charles Penn exclaimed, "Our Lord's Birthday! 1965 was the year of my
birth, for I came to know Baba that year. Now I am only three years of
age," he wrote in 1968.
The 43rd Birthday
(1969) was celebrated all over by groups of devotees in rejoicing and
in thankfulness, with a variety of programmes dear to Baba. In Kakinada
they had Bhajans for 42 days prior to the auspicious day. In other
places, the celebrations included Bhajans in hospitals, jails, homes
for disabled and defectives, mass feeding and giving of clothes, plays
and entertainment items for children, discourses, musical recitals,
special worship, processions, Gîtâ recitation contests and
a number of other spiritual items. Vedic schools, Sanskrit classes,
Telugu lessons, libraries, service homes, eye treatment camps, Seva
Dals, and study circles were inaugurated that day. Baba blessed them in
their own places, by various signs of His Presence and sometimes, by
appearing in His Own Form for all to see!
'Concierto' -
MP3 - 'Concierto'
'Cosmic
Notes'
At Prasanthi Nilayam,
the Conference of the Office Bearers of the Sathya Sai Organization of
Andhra Pradesh met on 21st and 22nd November, and so, the atmosphere
was full of consecrated faith.
"Every
one," He told the delegates, "has three sources of power: as an
individual, as a shrine where God is installed, and as the Atma which
is God Himself. Hanuman once told his Master, Rama, 'When I feel I am
this body you are my Lord; when I feel I am a Jiva among many, impelled by the Grace of God,
I am the reflection and You are the Original; when I know I am the
Atma, I am You and You are I.' God walks along the road of truth; Man,
His shadow, if he holds on to His Feet, can safely traverse fire and
water, dirt, hollow and hill, and reach Truth."
He told them that the
Organization was intended as an arena where they learn the value of
cleansing the mind.
"Whether
it is meditation that you are encouraging, Bhajan you are organizing, a
discourse you are announcing or clothes you are offering, or worship
that you are conducting, the object to the achieved is cleansing the
mind of the tarnish of egoism, greed, hatred, malice, lust and envy. In
place of all these, fill the mind with Love. That is the sign of the
Sai Devotee."
During the discourse
that Baba gave, prior to hoisting the flag on His birthday, Baba spoke
about devotees who develop and demonstrate fanaticism when speaking
about Him or adoring Him.
"I
have no wish to draw people towards Me, away from the worship of My
other Names and Forms. Perhaps you guess from what you call the
'Miracles,' that I am attracting and trying to attach you to Me and Me
alone. They are not designed to demonstrate or publicize; they are
spontaneous and confirmatory proofs of the Divine, which can change the
sky to earth and earth to sky. I am yours whether you like Me or not;
you are Mine, even if you hate Me and keep away from Me. Therefore,
what need is there for impressing and attracting, exhibiting My Love or
compassion to win your adoration? I am in You, You are in Me. There is
no distance or distinction." He declared, "you have come to your own
home. This is your home, not Mine! My home is your heart!"
The Birthday
Celebrations, which began virtually with the Conference on the 21st,
continued until the 27th.
Dr.
Vinayak Krishna Gokak said, "If we want to see truth
with a capital T, where can we see it and realize it, except in Him? If
we want to experience and realize beauty with a capital B, where else
can we have it except in Him and through Him? He is goodness incarnate,
showering succor on humanity and healing it in distress. He is Love
incarnate, Love that fosters and protects even those who have not
visualized His Divinity and Power! He has come to transform the rampant
disorder of the Present into a New World Order. For our guidance and
benefaction, He has put on the robes of mortality. He bears on His
Atlantean shoulders the burden of Humanity."
A dramatic instance of
the succor and healing that Baba showers was noticed by over 20.000
people on the 23rd, at the huge Auditorium, during the morning session.
Baba was taken in
procession from the Nilayam to the Auditorium by devotees; there were
students of the Vedic School reciting the invocatory hymns; there were
Bhajan parties; there was the beautifully caparisoned elephant, Sai
Gita, intelligent, sensitive and even, one can venture to say,
'devoted'. Above all, there was the Mother of Baba, revered Easwaramma,
by His side, for this was a Day to commemorate the Day of His
Incarnation.
At the Auditorium, on
the dais, Baba seated Himself on the silver chair, amidst the
acclamation of the immense gathering. Then, Baba graciously allowed
some devotees to place a few drops of consecrated oil on His Head: they
touched His Feet and placed flowers on them. The mother who has won the
gratitude of the world for ages, placed the oil, first. Then, a few
others followed: Begum Tahira Sayeed, a Persian and Urdu poetess; M.S.
Dixit, a revered old devotee who had served Baba even in His previous
body, while He was at Shirdi; the Rajmata of Jamnagar; the Rajmata of
Sirohi, Dr. Gokak and Indra Devi.
While Indra Devi was
placing a few drops of oil on His Hair with a flower dipped in the cup
I was holding, Baba saw a certain Mrs. Anderson who had come from the
United States. She was a chronic invalid, unable to walk or use her
lower limbs, being helped around by her husband in a wheeled chair. As
soon as she came to Prasanthi Nilayam, she was admitted to the Hospital
so that she could be nursed there by professional hands. Baba presented
her, and all other ladies from beyond the seas, saris on the 22nd, so
that they could wear them on His Birthday; He deputed some ladies to
help this one to wrap it around her. On the 23rd, she was brought down
from the Hospital hill and allowed to watch the function from the far
end of the dais, where she sat on her inevitable wheel chair, which had
become more or less a part of her anatomy!
Baba turned to me and
said, "That lady in the wheelchair will be happy if you take the cup to
her, and get a flower dipped by her in the oil, which can later be
placed on My Head." I was thrilled by His compassion but, there was
more to follow.
Before I could turn to
the left and proceed towards her (the distance from the silver chair of
Baba to her wheelchair was over 40 feet), Baba stopped me and said,
"Wait! I shall Myself go to her!" People were astonished when they saw
Baba descend from the chair and proceed towards the invalid lady, with
me holding the oil cup. Baba bent His Head before her, so that she
could place a few drops of oil on His halo of glorious hair! The
gathering was overwhelmed with grateful joy, when they saw this
spontaneous flood of Divine Mercy, and the happy glow of ecstasy on the
pale face of a foreign invalid! She applied the flower three times. The
third time Baba held her hand, saying, "Stand Up" ... and she stood!
The gathering was
amazed with delight! "Come with me!" Baba said. And she walked the
forty feet, towards the silver chair, keeping pace with Baba! I was so
overcome with joy that I ran towards the mike and announced to the
entranced gathering that Mrs. Anderson, who had not walked for years,
was cured of her illness, and that she has risen from her wheeled chair
at the bidding of Baba and got her limbs back in perfect condition.
Every one was thrilled by this miracle of healing. "Normal feet" was
the Birthday Gift she received from Baba.
Speaking on His
Birthday, Baba said that children are born for five ordinary unnoticed
reasons. There are Nyasaputhras, born in order to realize the
value of some deposit that they had made with you in the previous life
which you had misappropriated and misused. There are Runaputhras,
those born in order to recover undischarged loans given by them to the
man who has now come as the father. There are Suputhras, those
born as a consequence of the blessings of God, and there are Upekhaputhras;
these are the Avatars, with no sense of attachment towards the
parents, kith or kin, with no sense of obligation of them, with love
and compassion for all. This was a revelation of Baba's attitude
towards the parents, which has puzzled many, as different from the
attitude of even Rama and Krishna.
On December 4th, Baba
left Prasanthi Nilayam for Bangalore where He spent about a
month, with devotees from America and other places, helping them in
their spiritual exercises. He was in contact personally with the
arrangements to open a Boys' College in the premises of Brindavan,
where He stayed.
On Christmas Day, He
blessed the Christian devotees with gifts and on Vaikunta
Ekadasi which came five
days later; He created Amrita (Ambrosia) which He Himself distributed to about 4.000
people who had gathered for Bhajan. On New Year Day, he gave a
discourse on "The Spiritual Resolutions" one must make for the New
Year, and the practices and attitudes one has to ring out with the old!
January 13 saw Him back at Prasanthi Nilayam, for Makara Sankranthi,
the day of the tropic of Capricorn, when the divine half of the year
begins, with the northward movement of the sun in the northern
hemisphere. Baba said
"The
Sun journeys north from today. But, be concerned more with your own
journey from birth to death and then again to birth from death, until
you set yourselves free working out your sentence, through good
behaviour."
On the 16th January,
'69, Baba was at Rajahmundry, on the Godavari River, a river dear to
Him since Shirdi days, on the first lap of a whirlwind tour of the
coastal districts of Andhra Pradesh. The Godavari flows near Shirdi;
and it has saturated itself with the glory of the Previous Body of Baba
and learnt to love the Name. Every one who went to be blessed by Baba
while in His previous abode at Dwarakamayi in Shirdi used to
take a bath in the Godavari. Now, too, by some trick of divine
dispensation, the east and west Godavari districts are studded thick
with Bhajan Mandalis and Seva Samithis heralding the new Sai era of
devotion and dedication. Some one from the east Godavari district wrote
to Baba that,
"there is no house here without Your picture in the altar; there is no
house that does not resound to the chanting of songs on Your glory!" and Baba replied to him:
"Reserve
your joy for something grander! My Name and Form will soon be found
getting established everywhere. They will occupy every inch of the
world."
On the 17th and the
18th, mammoth gatherings assembled at Rajahmundry to hear the
discourses of Baba, Sri V.K. Rao, I.C.S. and Swami Karunyananda of the
Gouthami Jeevakarunya Sangham, spoke on the great good fortune of the
present generation in being contemporaries of Baba. Baba spoke on the
conquest of the Mind as necessary for liberation from the world of
change.
"Know
the One; attention must be concentrated on the One. Alternations of
acceptance and rejection, affirmation and negation, are but appearances
on the One. Let nothing move you; be still, be detached, be but a
witness. The world is but a play enacted and directed by Him. Let your
love and longing, desire and search be directed towards God."
He asked them to give
up inflammatory assertions, malicious talk and angry negations.
"With
the twenty six letters of the English alphabet, all English books in
existence are written, composed and printed. The letters themselves are
without attributes, they are neither good nor evil, but out of their
combinations in various ways, are made either dull, insipid, trashy
books or books with cosmic revelations of the highest order. So too the
operations of the same mind can make or mar the career of man here or
hereafter."
On the 18th, Baba
visited the Andhra Paper Mills and gave a discourse to the staff and
labour, in which He emphasized the sacred partnership and the mutual
love and respect that must govern all dealings between them. That
evening, Baba inaugurated a school named after Him and run as per His
message and teachings. Baba felt great pity, such as God feels at rare
intervals, when He sat facing the children. He said,
"The
spacious mansion called Sanathana Dharma erected with great toil and
travail by the sages of the past of enable succeeding generations to
live in peace and prosperity is, alas, being condemned today as
uninhabitable and fit only to be given up as dilapidated! The peace
which those sages had envisaged is noticeable in the faces of these
children, having no envy, no greed, and no hatred in their hearts. When
they grow up, the joy is turned into grief and the peace peters out
into anxiety and fear. The elders have lost the art of regaining,
retaining or transmitting peace and joy."
"Children
must grow up in the atmosphere or reverence, devotion, mutual service
and cooperation. Now they learn only copybook maxims, devoid of any
sincere urge to put them into practice. Parents drink, gamble,
scandalize others and utter blatant lies in full hearing of these
tender flowers! Do not sow hatred or contempt of any caste or class,
faith or cult in the virgin minds of these fresh blossoms. Parents
first, teachers next, playmates and companions later and the leaders
who command the allegiance of community or region last, have to be on
the alert, constantly examining themselves whether they are fit
examples for the children of the land. This school bears My name; so,
it has a high responsibility; it should inspire all schools in this
region, to treat little children with love and care and fill the
atmosphere with the fragrance of Divinity."
'Children' - MP3 - 'Children'
'The
Betrayal of the Dream'
Words that announced
the advent of the new era of Truth, Virtue, Peace and Love!
For five days from the
20th, Baba moved on a merciful mission of Love along the road of the
delta and a few beyond, showering grace on nearly a million souls
gasping anxiously to secure it; the visit to more than a hundred
villages and a score of towns has transformed the viewpoints of
everyone whom He rewarded with a smile or a glance, a pat or a word, a
gift of holy ash or a precious memento. Like the many canals that
emanate from the Dhowaliswaram Anicut and take the waters of the
Godavari into a million fields to confer life and vigour to the crops,
Baba went along the roads on the banks of these same canals, taking
with Him the infinitely more sustaining waters from Heaven itself to
grant immortality and infinite Bliss. [See
also: Srîmad Bhâgavatam: Canto 1, Chapter 11]
The Godavari of
Grace consisting of a caravan of over twenty cars moved out of
Rajahmundry very early in the day; tidings carried delight and
exaltation throughout the Delta; for, the Darsan of Baba,
listening to His enthralling discourse and perhaps getting the rare
chance of touching His Feet are benedictions for which even the
remotest villagers were pining. Every yard of road was lined on both
sides with men, women and children in their best clothes; the roads
were swept clean; miles ahead of every village designs were drawn with
rice flour by devoted women; inside the village, decorated sheds were
put up, so that Baba may ascend the dais underneath them and give
Darsan to the vast concourses that sat there, doing Bhajan for
hours, in expectation of the golden moment. Festoons, flags, lines of
green leaves were hung across the main roads; hearts were beating
faster this day in the hope of Divine Darsan. Sometimes, elaborate and
even costly arches of welcome were erected on the roads that lay
through the towns or that led into them, the townsmen spending hours on
end to make the arch a picture of exquisite charm.
Baba's car led the way.
At Kesavaram, Baba directed the other cars to stay on the main road
itself, while He drove into the hamlet, for, as He said, there was not
enough parking space there. The deltaic region utilizes every square
foot of land for cultivation and so, open spaces are hard to find. Baba
was received by most of the villages with the piping of primitive
instruments, the blowing of long brass horns and the vigorous beat of
drums, expressing folk delight!
Baba moved slowly up
the passage between the men and women, and ascending the dais, spoke a
few words on Namasmarana, the efficacy of Bhajan and the necessity of continuing it
sincerely, with deeper faith. Then, the cars moved on to Palathodu, a
bigger place where all the cars could find space to drive in and halt.
Here too Baba emphasized in a short speech the need for
Bhakthi and Sraddha, the two wings of the bird Jnana, which flies towards Realization of the
Reality.
On the 21st the caravan
took another road and every human habitation accessible by that road
and its tributaries throbbed with delight, for He had chosen to bless
them that day! The entire population of the countryside seemed to be
ranged as a never-ending guard of honour for Baba; they shouted 'Jai'
when they espied the cars; Baba slowed down His car, so that they may
have Darsan. His Hand could be seen waving to them, long after He had
passed the place where they were standing. Halts were made often and
Baba condescended to open the door and stand on the footboard, so that
the surging masses could have better Darsan, for, only then they could
imprint that portrait on their hearts for worship in the silence of
their altars.
The Delta is acclaimed
as the granary of Andhra Pradesh. And it is full to the brim with
populous villages, barely a mile or two apart. Baba alighted at most of
these on the way, and even a little afar - Gummileru, Pinapalle,
Gangavaram, Pamarru, Narasapur, Rapurpeta, Rajupalem, Anaparthi,
Kuthukulur, Someswaram and finally Sampara tobacco barns, rice mills,
locks and pump houses were the landmarks that raised their heads over
the level green. At Sampara, the entire village was in the mood of
Gokula welcoming
Gopala back home! As a matter
of fact, this village has lived on the
Bhagavatha [ see also: Bhagavatha
Vahini] for many years, since
a great exponent of that ancient text on Bhakthi, Sri Kadiyala
Seetharama Sastry kept the village conscious of its teachings and
message for years, through his heart-touching expositions. Baba stayed
there for some hours and discoursed on the practice of the constant
presence of God. He also sang a few Bhajans, to arouse in them the
ardour to glorify God. Then the party returned to Rajahmundry itself.
On the 22nd, the road
led towards Thamrada, and Peddapuram. At Peddapuram, Baba went to
Challa Appa Rao, a devotee since many years, and there happened a
miracle restoring him to health. He was bedridden since three years;
his condition had worsened eight months back, "but," says, Dr. G.
Kesava Rao, "he relied solely on Baba and refused to take any medicine.
He had acute anaemia, due to bleeding piles. His body was swollen. The
haemoglobin percentage had gone down to as low as 30; urination was
affected. Many doctors and I advised blood transfusion, and warned that
his chances of survival without it were one hundred percent nil! When
some anxious friends approached Bhagavan to persuade him to
resort to medicine, Bhagavan retorted, "Why? Do they not die,
the people who take medicine?"
When He visited
Peddapuram, Baba went to his house and sat by his bedside. Baba created
a Linga while
seated there. He directed that it be bathed in water ceremonially, with
appropriate rites. The Thirtha or consecrated water was to be
given internally to the patient daily. "Wonder of Wonders!" writes Dr.
G. Kesava Rao, "the patient was transformed the very next moment into
health. The swelling oedema completely disappeared. Evacuation and
urination became normal. Bleeding stopped dramatically. Exhaustion was
overcome. Within a month, he was quite refreshed, shining with new
youthfulness." Appa Rao described the blessing thus: "Before the visit
of Baba, I was a corpse; after the visit, I was the victor over death."
After addressing a
public gathering, Baba laid the foundation for a Center for the Sathya
Sai Seva Samithi at the village. He then moved on to Kotapadu, and
Medapadu, where He inaugurated a Sathya Sai Mandir. Reaching Vadlamuru
He laid the foundation for a Sathya Sai Mandir, and proceeded to
Kothpeta where a mammoth gathering engaged in Bhajan was waiting since
hours for Darsan. The college campus was full of people who had trekked
miles on foot or by cart or cycle or omnibus or country boat. Baba
turned aside a mile and a half from the highway to bless devotees at
Palivela. He reached Ambajipeta, where too, a big gathering brightened
when He gave Darsan and spoke a few words of advice and exhortation.
Emerging into the main
road, the flood of Divine Compassion moved on towards Bandaralanka, a
famous center of weaving as a cottage industry. Here, the community of
weavers, with great enthusiasm, heralded the arrival of Baba. They had
put an imposing reception structure with arches and greeneries and
flowers, adjacent to the road itself. Baba alighted from the car to
bless them and spoke a few words of encouragement so that they may earn
peace, and understand the purpose of life.
Then, Baba motored to
Amalapuram, where nearly fifty thousand people had gathered to hear Him
and fill their eyes with His Charm. Baba chided the person who made the
welcome speech! Really, this conventional item on the programme of
public meetings has no bearing, for, how can Baba who is present
everywhere at all times be either welcomed or taken leave of? And, the
welcome speech was in the English language! Baba said that the region
with Amalapuram as the focal point was known geographically as Konasima
(Delta), but, lovers of Bharathiya Culture knew it as Vedasima,
the region which was the nursery of Vedic scholars and the
Academy where Vedic Science and Vedic Research were
pursued with avidity by generations of scholars. "Why thrust down the
ears of these simple people and the pundits learned in ancient lore, a
language they do not know?" He queried.
On the 24th, Baba left
Amalapuram very early for Manepalli. After visiting an aged devotee on
his sickbed at Tatipaka, He moved on to Razole, where elaborate
arrangements were made for a public address, and a sizeable gathering
had assembled. After satisfying their thirst, Baba proceeded along the
main road towards the next destination. While driving fast, Baba
noticed an insignificant token of adoration hung across the road, near
a village which is barely mentioned in maps, Poathumatla. It was a thin
festoon of a dozen mango leaves, strung from one coconut tree to
another with a piece of paper pinned in the centre waving in the wind,
with the word 'Welcome' inscribed on it by a hesitant hand. The car had
gone on about fifty yards when He wanted it to stop, and turn back to
where that paper 'Welcome' called Him. There were two old women
standing there with garlands in their wrinkled hands. Baba opened the
door, so that they could touch His Feet, leaned forward so that they
could put the garlands round His neck. He invited them to do so without
fear. "Here
is your Swami! Quite near you! Come on, garland Me!" That was the happiest moment of their lives,
and Baba too appeared equally happy! One lady extended her hand and
asked, "Prasadam, Swami?" She wanted something to treasure from the
Divine Hands. Baba plucked some petals from the flowers of the garlands
they had offered and placed them in the hands of both and moved on.
While driving on, Baba
noticed two very old women tottering forward with the help of sticks
held in their shaky hands. His Divine Pity flowed towards them. He
asked the car to stop near them. When the car pulled up, He inquired,
where they were going to. They said in quaking voices, "to see Sai Baba". Baba laughed and said, "I am Sai Baba, don't you
know!" They thought some one
was ridiculing them and they walked forward. The others in the car got
down and persuaded them to retrace the few steps they had taken, and
have a good look. Baba created Vibhuti for them, filled their
hands with fruits, and told them to return home.
Lakkavaram was reached
soon, and after a mile or two, Baba turned into a sandy fair-weather
road, a road that was rambling wildly across the fallow wastes into
what appeared to be no man's land; the party wondered where Baba was
leading them, but Baba told the nervous interrogators that there was a
devotee in the village Kaththi Manda that lay a mile ahead. His wife
had died and he had married again. She lost a number of children when
they were quite little babies, a tragedy which superstitious villagers
ascribed to the machinations of the deceased wife's ghost! Baba allowed
the next child to be born in the seventh month of pregnancy at the
Sathya Sai Hospital, Puttaparthi, so that she may be rid of the fear
that was haunting her... and the son had grown now into a chubby boy of
three! Baba was going to that place in order to bless that boy and his
parents!
Returning to the main
road, Baba proceeded to Kadali, a small village set in the midst of
coconut trees. They had erected a dais and decorated it with sincere
artistry. Baba addressed the peasants who had come in large numbers. He
visited the house of the Principal of the Veda Sastra Patasala,
Prasanthi Nilayam, an unrivalled reciter of the Vedic hymns, a
master of the complicated styles of rendering the Vedic
syllables in the orthodox complex of permutations and combinations, who
recognized the Divinity of Baba, the day he first officiated at a
Yajna he was asked to
supervise at Prasanthi Nilayam.
Baba sent all the cars
that were trailing behind Him to move on and wait at the canal bank, a
few miles off and He went to Sakhinetipalli, to the home of Sri
Ramalingaraju, Minister for Religious Endowments, in the Government of
Andhra Pradesh. The cars waited for full four hours, exiled from His
presence, with ears attuned to the horn of Baba's car so that they may
catch the signs of His arrival to restore joy in their hearts! At
midnight, Baba's car was spotted proceeding towards them. The caravan
then returned to Rajahmundry on the Godavari.
The 25th day of
January, was a Day of Delight for the devotees of Rajahmundry. Towards
evening, about three hundred of them boarded three motor launches, and
went over the Godavari with Baba to the sand dunes on one of the
islands formed by the Godavari when its waters subsided after the
monsoon floods, which make the river one vast roar of raging waters.
Baba sat on the sands surrounded by Bhaktas. Bhajan was sung; stars
listened intently from above. Then, Baba answered a few questions on
Sadhana put by some Sadhakas, and while elaborating the directions He
gave while quoting from the Bhagavatha, He drew forth from the heap of
sand before Him a golden idol of Krishna, crawling as a child,
with a ball of butter in his Hand.
Baba was at that time
speaking of the inner meaning of butter; the purity of intention
attained after the churning of Sadhana and of the theft of
such butter committed by Krishna.
The questions then
turned towards Siva and the Linga symbol, with
ramifications of conversation into the various types of Lingas, the
Earth Principle Linga, the Water Principle Linga, the Fire Principle
Linga, the Wind Principle Linga and the Sky Principle Linga.
Then He spoke of the
places sanctified by the installation of these Lingas and referring to
the Akasa Linga in a temple, He explained that the Linga there hangs in
mid-air with no support! Devotees stared in awe for they could not
understand how this could happen, and continue to happen. Baba
explained that the Linga is of some ferrous material and that two
magnets, one on top, on the underside of the roof and another fixed on
the floor, exercise equal and opposite pulls on the Linga, so that it
remains in the center, in mid-air, without support. Then, He asked, "O!
Do you desire to see it? I can dislodge it from the pulls and bring it
here!" Saying so, He waved His Hand and Lo! The egg-shaped ferrous ball
was in the Hand. It was passed from one person to another until all had
the feel of it and the thrill. Then Baba wrapped it in a kerchief and
gave it to a young man to be kept with him. The entire group of three
hundred sat for dinner on the sands, with Baba in their midst, joking
and keeping every one in the best of spirits. It was about eleven at
night when the launches returned to Rajahmundry. The young man was
shocked to find the ferrous Lingam gone!
On the 26th, Baba
addressed the Lions Club.
"You
are members of a Club that bears a great name, the Lion. The Lion and
the Elephant are natural enemies according to poetic convention. There
is a great lesson latent in this fact. The elephant wanders free and
furious in the thick entanglements of the jungle; it is the symbol of
the mind which rambles, goaded by whim and appetite. But, it surrenders
before the superior skill and sinew of the lion. The lion is the
intellect; the elephant is the mind; the intellect distinguishes
between the real and the unreal, the transient and the eternal. When
this winnowing is neglected, man moves from one illusion to another. If
the intellect is sharpened and sublimated, peace and harmony will
reveal the one basic reality, behind all the apparent contradictions
and confusions. So mere compassion and the passion to do service are
not enough; they may even be dangerous, if no enquiry is made into the
causes of suffering, and into the safest and surest means of
alleviating the suffering," Baba advised. "It must be understood that
the root cause of suffering is due to the lack of wisdom which enables
you to realize the indwelling unity amongst apparent diversity, and the
safest and surest means of uprooting this sufferance is by removing
ignorance, resulting in the Realization of the Real."
Baba then left the
Godavari, and began His return journey, with a halt at Eluru, where the
office bearers of the various units of the Sathya Sai Seva
Organizations met Him and received His guidance and blessings. Leaving
Eluru, He reached Gudivada and addressed a gathering there. Resuming,
He went to Vijayawada, into which city trains and buses, cars, scooters
and cycles had brought thousands of people. On the 27th, He went on a
short visit to Aukiripalle, near Vijayawada, and from there, He left
for Madras, after a hectic week of beneficence and benediction.
Howard Murphet, an
Australian Sadhak and writer exults in this strain: "How inexplicable fortunate
are we - the few - who have found here in physical form one who can say
as Christ said long ago, 'I am the Way.' This statement soon
becomes a self-evident truth for those who can accept it. We see in Him
qualities we have always associated with the idea of Divinity. Love and
compassion flow from the heart which hitherto had been no more than a
dream. When in His company, we are elevated to a golden world where the
atmosphere vibrates with inner joy and all mundane things are
forgotten, or, at least take their correct place well down the scale of
values."
"Only
India through ages past has been able to provide a suitable land for
the birth of Avataras, such as Rama, Krishna and
Sathya Sai Baba. It is only in India that Buddha can be
born, to attain Nirvana. The spiritual heart of
India is the heart of the world. It is my spiritual heart, as an
American, for were it not there, surely life would be a living death,
of ashes and despair," writes John Hislop.
One fact is interesting
and may be mentioned here, since it has provoked many into a very
profitable line of thought. I shall quote the letter written by one
such inquirer, R. Ganapathi of the 'Kalki'. "Sri Aurobindo, who
by the power of his integral Yoga delved into the Cosmic Mind was
suddenly absorbed in an intense awareness of the Supramental Light's
descent into the earth-consciousness. On page 208, of the book, 'Sri
Aurobindo on Himself and the Mother' (1953 Edition), it is said, '24th
November, 1926, was the descent of Krishna into the physical.'
'A power infallible shall lead the thought, in earthly hearts kindle
the Immortal's Fire, even the Multitude shall hear the Voice!' It is
almost certain that the Descent noted by Sri Aurobindo was the
Incarnation the previous day, November 23, 1926, of Sri Sathya Sai
Baba."
John Hislop, on
Sivarathri Day prior to the hoisting of the Prasanthi Flag by Baba,
said, "What an
amazing thing has come to happen! This slender body walking so
gracefully amongst us, the charming personality exhibiting all the
qualities of God, omnipresent, omniscient, and omnipotent, with
boundless power to create, maintain and destroy." Hislop's words meant more than he
anticipated! For, that evening, the unique Lingodbhava acquired a still
more unique importance; it was beyond the power of words to describe!
Sivarathri, as
Baba expounded that morning, means that man must transform by
Sadhana the 'Rathri' into 'Sivam', the night of darkness and fear, doubt and
delusion, into the day of wisdom, courage, the certainty of faith and
realization. Rathri means night; Sivam means
auspiciousness, victory, triumph. The vigil that is prescribed for the
festival and the fast, relate not to the eye or the stomach, but to the
senses which have to be starved and the intelligence that has to be
alerted against complaisance and the tactics of casuists (experts)
The atmosphere of
Prasanthi Nilayam becomes vibrant with the flag carrying the symbol
of the ascendant Sadhak who has overcome lust, anger and hatred, who
has broadened his love and universalized it, who has established
himself in Yoga and ascended through the various stages of Sadhana,
resulting in the blossoming of the Lotus in his heart, and thereby
attained Pra-kanthi, higher illumination, Prasanthi,
highest tranquillity and Param-jyothi, the higher splendor of
realization, merging his 'imagined self' into the Universal Self;
conquering sleep, sloth, Thamas, and the clamorous demands of the senses, Rajas, winning the unshakeable equipoise of the
wise, Sathva.
The Vedic recital, the
procession from the Mandir to the Auditorium, the astonishing emanation
of Vibhuti from an empty pot to consecrate the silver idol of
Shirdi Baba and fill the area with fragrance and ecstasy and the
evening gathering of 25.000 people facing the Santhi Vedika
where Baba sat on the Dais, while Bhajan was sung by devoted souls -
these incredible experiences injected the atmosphere with vibrations of
supreme purity. [See: 'the Wave of the Hand']
The Lingam
that had been growing in Baba's stomach since some days was to emerge
in a few minutes. 'Lingam' means that in which all things merge and out
of which all things emerge. The Absolute, the Ultimate Reality, Brahman
or God has no opposites, no polarities, no contradictions, so, it is
represented by the most perfect mathematical symbol, the sphere. When
the basic desire, Ekoham Bahusyam, 'I am One, let me become
many,' disturbs the perfect balance of the One, the sphere divides
itself into two, we get the ellipsoid. The Lingam is ellipsoid. The One
Brahman has become Siva-Sakthi, the primary polarity principle of the
positive and negative.
Cars and buses were
speeding up from Bangalore, Madras, Bombay, Hyderabad and other places
to reach Prasanthi Nilayam in time for witnessing the
emergence of the Lingam from the Brahman. And, Baba
was with each of them, for, it was due to His Grace that they were
present in that sanctified atmosphere. "We yearned long to witness the
Sivarathri Festival," says Dr. A. Ranga Rao, the renowned
ophthalmic physician and surgeon of Madras, he came in a car that gave
continuous trouble! The engine got too hot every ten miles! When the
flag hoisting took place, they were at Ranipet, 250 miles off; when
Vibhuti Abhishekam took place he was at the border of Mysore, 180
miles off! 60 miles away from Puttaparthi, the car came to a dead halt!
While the chauffeur was tinkering with its entrails, says Dr. Ranga
Rao, "To our utter consternation, petrol got ignited! Big tongues of
flames shot up. The poor fellow jumped off in the nick of time and
saved himself. His clothes were on fire; he managed to scotch the
flames. I threw some handfuls of sand from the road on the fire,
calling out Sai Ram, Sai Ram! And the miracle happened! The
fire became extinct, the car was saved, though the tank was three
quarters full and it was petrol! I went back to Chikballapur, by bus,
(12 miles) and got a mechanic from that town. At 3.30 p.m. we were
still at the place of the mysterious fire. Cars coming from Bangalore
stopped and sympathized and some even offered lifts. But, I said, "No,
we will be there to witness the Lingodbhava, you can move on;
Baba will bring us to Him." At 5.30 p.m. we were 50 miles off, with
that rickety car! I sat at the wheel, the mechanic sat in the 'dickie',
shaking the pump whenever it struck work! We raced and rushed. When we
stood gasping at the Lotus Circle in front of the Prasanthi Nilayam,
Baba was slowly proceeding from the Nilayam to the Santhi Vedika!
While passing, Baba,
smiled at us and said, "O, you have come! Santhosham!
Santhosham (happy, very happy)." With tears of gratitude welling
from my eyes, I said within myself, "Lord! While thousands of devotees
were adoring you here, you heard our anguish! You quenched the fire and
drove the car safe, to bring us in time to witness your Glory. Here is
my heart; my life, my hopes, my everything, at your Feet!"
Dr. S. Bhagavantham and
Dr. K. Bhaskaran Nair, both Doctors of Science, one in Physics and the
other in Zoology, one the Vice-chancellor of two Universities and the
other the Director of Collegiate Education of a State studded with
colleges (Kerala) spoke of the gathering on the Avatar of the
Age. Dr. Bhagavantham spoke on the implications of Baba's statement "My
Life is My Message". "It has astounded me to see that, though He
has no wants, nor is He ever in need, He is so busy at Prasanthi
Nilayam or elsewhere, at all times with a multitude of problems
concerning the devotees! Not only does He expound
Nishkama Karma,
but He also practices it Himself, setting the best example," Dr.
Bhaskaran Nair confessed, "My life has acquired a richness and a
validity as a result of my surrendering to Baba's Lotus Feet. I still
continue to be a student of science. I know where science has to walk
warily and where it can walk in confidence. I cherish the culture of
this land which bowed to the spirit and honored sages and saints, more
than men of might. Sivaji placed his Empire at the feet of his guru
Ramadas; the Kerala Monarch, Marthanda Varma dedicated the entire
kingdom at the altar of the God installed at Trivandrum,
(Thiru-ananthapuram). Asoka renounced war when his conscience was torn
into shreds as he witnessed the blood, the fury, the falsehood and the
agony that war caused! And, he ruled more than twenty years over a
peaceful prosperous empire, even after publishing the fact of his
having renounced the use of the army, publishing it on pillar and rock,
all over the land, from the Himalayas to the Kaveri, from Kandahar to
Kamarup! Today when values are being lowered, and the infection of wild
excitement and depressing drugs is attacking youth in all countries,
the traditional values of Sanathana Dharma have to be
asserted, for they have perennial value. The advent of Bhagavan
is positively significant in the history of the world."
Baba spoke for about
forty minutes on the mind and its manifold tactics to confuse and
confound, and how man has to discover the strategy by which it can be
controlled and made subservient to the intellect, thereby leading to
the realization of the Atmic reality. Suddenly the gushing stream of
superb eloquence and supreme guidance was interrupted by gasps and
gutterings - premonitions of the emergence of the Lingam -
which Baba endeavored to put down, a little while; then, He signaled
for Bhajan to start and Himself sat on the chair, behind the
table. No one heard the Bhajan, though they were mechanically uttering
the words in the tune allotted to them. For, the crucial moment was
fast approaching and no one in the gathering wanted to miss it. All
senses were now concentrating their efficiency on the eye, so as not to
miss the Divine Event!
Baba was under the
flood lights, squirming, turning, twisting, sitting forward and leaning
backward, sipping water and showing signs of exhaustion, all parts of
the amazing Drama that He was now allowing these thousands to witness,
so that they may stand witness in their own lives to the glory of being
contemporaneous with the Avatar! Fifty thousand eyes were focused on
that serene Mouth - for over fifteen long laborious minutes! "Ah! It
has emerged, in one leap; a blue shaft of light, was it? No it was the
blue Lingam oval shaped, oval sized gem, celebrated in the Sastras as
specially sacred, on account of the color and the size." It has fallen
from His mouth into the cupped palm of Baba. He held the Wonder in his
Hand, high in the light, to be seen better by the vast gathering, now
in the height of Bliss.
Baba continued sitting
in the chair. He would, usually, descend from the Dais on the
Santhi Vedika and move into the Nilayam; but, He sat in the chair
and remained motionless. We thought that another Lingam may emerge
after a little while. But, no! He was getting stiffer, and motionless.
The right hand was lying flat on the table. The left was erect, the
elbow fixed on the table, fingers near the eye, the head was slightly
inclined to the left, the thumb held apart, the ring finger and the
little finger folded, and the other two straight up - the breathing was
slow; it became slower.
Who dare touch Him? Who
had the courage to draw His attention away from the place or mission on
which He had gone? I was sitting on the left of the chair and Dr.
Bhagavantham and Dr. Bhaskaran Nair on the right. Five minutes sped by
- I expected Him to return from wherever He had gone. For, this is
special occasion, where anxious souls were getting alarmed. At no time
previous had He left His Body on a transcorporeal journey when so many
were looking on!
But, his Compassion
knows no limitations of festival or gatherings. When the devotee calls
out in agony He rushes to his side, whoever may be with Him or whatever
the work he is engaged in, at that time. On other occasions, He has
fallen on to the floor, but this unusual posture amazed everyone;
anxiety was imprinted upon each face.
After twenty minutes, I
could restrain myself no more. I leaned towards Him on my knees and, in
a subdued voice called 'Swami! Swami!', as if He would come back when
we call, from where He had gone in response to the sincere yearning of
some one in pain. His mission of Bhaktharakshana knows no bounds of class, creed or nationality. He blesses,
whatever be the name by which He is called.
Thirty minutes ... all
eyes were now watching the face for the slightest sign of any movement;
they prayed as never before ... The fortitude of the devotees was being
transformed into nervousness ... the hand was stiff, upright, the
finger did not jerk or come together... the angle of the head was the
same since the past fifty minutes.
One or two from the
Bhajan party came on to the dais ... a few began to weep, here and
there ... courage faltered before the onslaught of concern!
Fifty five ... Ah ... a
slight movement of the fingers ... of the left hand! The hand came down
... I broke into tears ... His eyes opened ... He saw! He smiled!
Fear and doubt vanished
shamefacedly from the gathering. Baba rose ... the fateful minutes were
over!
Baba went into the
Nilayam, and when some of us, including Dr. Bhagavantham followed Him,
He said that He had gone on a Manasa-sanchara, round the World!
He went in order to
give signs in every home or hall where Sivarathri was
celebrated that hour, that the Lord is here, that His Grace is
available in plenty for all who need it, and pray for it, with pure and
sincere faith. He showers mercy; and they become humble, wise,
victorious.
What we were privileged
to see that night was the sight of Baba journeying far and wide to
confer peace, to foster the erring brood of willful, peevish,
half-blind children, into ways of justice, peace, love and
righteousness. He was converting the Rathri of Rajas
and Thamas that was darkening the horizon of man into the Sivam,
the splendor of love and joy. We saw two Udbhavas (oncomings)
that day - the Lingodbhava and the Premodbhava (bhava:
being, becoming).
'Brightness
in the face, splendor in the eye, a determined look,
a noble gaze, pleasant voice, open-hearted charity,
unwavering goodness: these are the signs of a progressing will
to attain the vision of God.'
Can this be true, the
sceptic may ask! I can only give the answer which Baba gave to another
such question put to Him by a celebrated sceptic, hailed by many as a
redoubtable doubter. Baba told him, "How can you understand Me? Can a fish
know the sky? It may see the reflection in the water of the lightning
flash; it may hear the echo of the rumbling thunder - but what can it
know of the mysteries of the ethereal region, being sunk in an element
from which it cannot escape and survive". We are bound by Maya; how can we gauge the glory of One,
who controls Maya?
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