Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Sai Spiritual Showers - Issue 3/51


"Baba! Do You hear the Bhajan we do at home every day"? "My dear fellow! Wherever My Name is, there My Form also is. I do listen to your Bhajan every day; I like it”. “But, why is it that I have not yet seen You there, listening, on any single day”? "Ah! You cannot see Me with these eyes. Even Arjuna saw only through the special Jnana-netra that he was blessed with". "How then, Baba, are we to realise that You are Sarvantaryami (the Inner motive Force of everything) and Sarvavyapi (Immanent everywhere)”? "You cannot realise it now. But, I shall prove to you that I Am present everywhere.". "That is indeed my good fortune. Tell me, Swami”! “Four months ago, when it was raining so terribly one evening, that no one dared to move about and you were very sad and downcast that the person who was bringing flowers to offer to Me did not arrive as usual, who was it, can you tell me, that came to your door with those flowers? It was I Myself! Is this proof enough”? It was pouring, pouring, as if the sky had sprung a leak. No living thing dared move out of doors. There was a terrible storm and the trees swayed in terror. Bhajan had to start at 7 pm at home, but, the flowers had not come. The person who brought it for us daily without fail was evidently caught in the rain and could not proceed. How could we start our daily Bhajan without decorating Baba's picture to our heart's content? We waited... hoped... became anxious... sad ...desperate,... downcast. We prayed, we nearly shed tears. Then we saw a figure coming towards our door, along the swollen street, across the swirling pools. The flowers? Yes. The flower-seller had not disappointed us, after all. He had sent them through this frail-looking smiling young man! We snatched the garlands from his hand and rushed in, for it was already late... Next day, when the regular man came, we enquired why he had sent a substitute and how he secured him. Poor fel low he did not know anything. He was apologising to us… Who then could that frail young man be? He did not stay even to take the price ...! Now Baba had told us. Ah! What Supreme Grace! The Lord brings flowers for His own Puja and enjoys the joy of His Bhaktas, when they decorate Him with them.... We fell at the Holy Feet and shed tears of gratitude and Joy. MS Dikshit’s experience from Mangalore... "I shall certainly come to your house." "Mention the exact date, Swami! Why is it You do not give the date? You simply promise to come, some time or other. Since more than a year, we have been living on hope. We cannot bear this any longer. Everybody in Mangalore is earnest. They are asking me, when exactly You would bless the town." "I shall be there in January, no, not in Mangalore, but, in your, house. Don’t worry about the town". ”January means"? “This coming January; about the middle of January.” “Give me definite word, Baba, please." "Here. Placing My hand on yours, I give you word. Believe it, Dikshit." M. S. Dikshit was very happy. He had the, unique fortune of sitting at the Feet of Shirdi Sai Baba as the nephew of the famous Kaka Saheb Dikshit and now, in the evening of his life, he has secured the tenderness and loving Grace of Sri Sathya Sai Baba to foster his spiritual progress and to look after him, like the Divine Mother. He returned from Prasanthi Nilayam, and waited for the middle of January to come quickly along. It came at last... and was about to leave, when, Ah! one noon, when his wife opened the door of the shrine room, she found on the floor seven footsteps of Baba, marked out in soft sweet-scented Vibhuti—beautiful little foot-marks, unmistakably those of The Lord she had planted in her heart. Left, right, they led along the floor, to the shrine where there were two, side by side! So, Baba had come! Her joy brought others in and when they applied the precious Vibhuti to their foreheads, the Foot-marks faded except one, the third, of the left foot, the Foot-mark of Shakti. She prayed that it at least should be visible when Dikshit arrived from office, for, word had been sent to him, of Baba's signal grace. And, lo, it became clearer and clearer, the Vibhuti grew; yes, grew, accumulated, and the Foot-mark could be seen by hundreds and thousands for days! It remains even to this day...! as thick as three quarters of an inch, symbolising how, when His Feet are enshrined in the heart, Baba showers the Mercy of His Presence.

Thursday, May 24, 2012

Sai Spiritual Showers - Issue 3/50


As a boy of fourteen, when Baba was still at the Uravakonda High School, every Thursday evening, between about 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. He became Shirdi Sai Baba and gave Darshan to hundreds of devotees and answered their prayers. I was a teacher in the High School then and I too took advantage of those Thursdays. "My student" Sathya used to take even then as He does now, Vibhuti by a wave of the hand! My 22-year-old daughter had died sometime previously and my wife was in great distress. Sathya used to come to my residence and give her long discourses on the problem of life and death, and, thanks to His wise ministration, she became normal soon, His words full of Prema pacified the agitations of her mind, and restored her devotion to the Lord. On the second Thursday that she offered worship He gave her "the vibhuti" and said, " Ammayi! I appreciate your Bhakti; I am pleased; next week, come, I sha ll give you a gift." That day, He asked her to rise from His Feet when she prostrated. He said, "Ammayi! I am giving you a piece of the gerua I wore when I entered Samadhi at Shirdi for the last time" and closing his Palm for an instant, He opened it to show us a piece of cloth 4 inches square. "Take this and do Puja to My Name; come next week, I shall give you something more." He said and sent us away, in great joy, for, while we took leave, He added: "Be happy henceforth for, I shall carry all your burdens for you." The next Thursday, we both went to Him and did Namaskar. That day he closed His Palm and when He opened It, there had materialised a quantity of Akshatha or rice grains. "Tie this in the cloth given last week and worship It. You will get mental quiet," He blessed. You will not have any cause for grief; I am conferring on you full Bhakti." The 5th Thursday, too, another miracle happened. He told my wife, "Ammayi! Keep a Peetha (seat) in your house, in the Puja Room, and I shall be giving you Darshan there itself," and He made us do it immediately. We have all read how Krishna with His brother Balarama went to the house of Arjuna and granted Darshan to him and his consort and also showered blessings on them. This Sathya Sai too, Who is the same Krishna and the same Shirdi Sai came to the house of this poor bhakta and blessed us with a vision of His Mahima; we can never forget the exquisite thrill of that experience. He came on two consecutive days, the Krishna Janmashtami and the Rohini Day. The wonderful experiences of those days have been described by my wife in a poem published over her name Kamesvaramma in the "Sai Sudha" of April 1944 printed by the All India Sai Samaj, Madras. I have also put them in verse and included it in the "Sainatha Sathakam" I published as a separate book in 1944. He came and sat on the Peetha in the Puja room and asked us to come in and sit by His side; He then asked us whether we did not desire to see the various leelas of previous Births. When we welcomed the idea enthusiastically, He agreed to show them to us and all the family collected around. He ordered us to watch Him and, (Would you believe it? You may not, until you yourself experience the same or similar miracles of Baba) we were thrilled by the Form of Narayana on the Ocean of Milk, reclining on the Vatapathra. We heard only word after word, announcing the next Form. The Forms changed from one surprise to another in quick succession. We were given enough time to imbibe the beauty and splendour of each form and to be struck by the instantaneous power of Baba's Sankalpa! And where was Baba, our Sathya, all the time? He became Gajendra raising his trunk to greet Vishnu on the horizon, Krishna the cowherd boy leaning on a tree and playing the flute, Gopala on the awe-inspiring Kalinga Serpent, Radha-Krishna, Lakshmi-Narayana, Parvati-Parameswara and Saraswati-Brahma too; then, we saw Him as Sita-Rama and lo! we heard the name Sathyabhama and saw Her; we were blessed by a vision at Baba's invisible call, of Mohini the Form that Vishnu once assumed, of Prahlada yearning for Narayana, and immediately thereafter, of Narasimha killing Hiranyakasipu, also of Vamana, Parasurama, and Buddha too; Baba showed us the killing of Sisupala, Saindhava, and of the Rakshasas, there was the scene of the Lord bringing the parijatha flowers; the picture then changed to one of Panduranga and then Narada and his ecstatic praise of the Lord; the next one was of Navaneethachora, the Balakrishna stealing butter; and after that, the kil ling of Abhimanyu by the wicked Kaurava chiefs and, last, there was the magnificent Murthi of Shirdi Baba Himself! How can we ever forget those shining Forms, so full of vitality and life, that glowed before our eyes on those two sacred days?

Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Sai Spiritual Showers - Issue 3/49


Baba blessed me and granted me the Divine Vibhuti and assured me that He will ever be my Guide and Guardian, when I was called in by Him at Prasanthi Nilayam, last month. I am a worshipper of Jaga Janani, having been initiated into it by a great master and I am having in my Puja room a Chakra which my guru had given me. I am doing puja to it since years now. So, when I had the interview with Baba, I made myself bold to ask Him for an idol of my Ishtadevatha (chosen deity), Jaga Janani Herself, from His all-creating Hand. Baba smiled and, patting me on my back, said, “I shall give you.” He then gently pushed me out of the door in order to make room for others, whom He had already called in. I was confused; my anxiety to get the idol made me wait outside for a long time. Two days went by; but, Baba did not call me again; nor did He even once glance at me. So, with a heavy heart, I left Prasanthi Nilayam , praying in my heart that, at least when I am able to come next, He may vouchsafe to me the idol of Jaga Janani. I reached Hyderabad and stayed with a long-standing devotee of Baba there. I did my usual Puja at his place that night and in the morning, I left for my village reaching my home in time for the evening Puja. Seated in the shrine room, when I took the silver container of the Chakra I was surprised to note that it was heavier than usual. Who could have put in the extra weight, I wondered. And, what could the extra heaviness be due to? I removed the lid; lo, something bright and shining…. golden brilliance…. an image…. an idol…. Jaga Janani! I took it out of the cylindrical container. Underneath the image there was a paper packet, containing a beautiful miniature photo of Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba, granting Abhaya to all! O, the overpowering thrill of that moment! How kind, how merciful, how Divine! I wept in joy, I danced, I raved! I lifted up the image and fondly, reverentially, looked at it with tearful eyes. Imagine my ecstasy when I found the letters SRI SAI AMBA engraved on the base of the golden idol! Come brothers! Let us take refuge at the Feet of the Jaga Janani Sri Sai Amba at Prasanthi Nilayam.

Sunday, May 13, 2012

Mother's Day Service 2012


Our members celebrated Mother's Day at the Silver Jubilee Home in Sungai Dua, Penang on March 13th, 2012.  We conducted prayers & bhajans at 10.00am, followed by serving vegetarian lunch to 250 senior residents.  Fruits and ice-cream were also served after lunch.


(For more pictures, click on the link below :

Wednesday, May 9, 2012

Sai Spiritual Showers - Issue 3/48

WITH TWO TEETH

"Your letter has not reached Me yet; but, I have read it already. You posted it to Madras, not knowing that I have come back here. I was near you when you wrote it. Your mother must now be very much better; is it not?" This is what Baba wrote to a devotee, some years back. He is Sarvantaryami; He is in all places, at all times. Our letter did not reach Him. Even when it reaches Him, He need not open it and read the contents! One day, I happened to be in His room when the post came. When He dropped on the floor one letter unread and unopened, some newly arrived person muttered, "Swami, you have not read that letter. It may be some tale of misery." Baba smiled and said, "No, No. It is a tale of joy, He says that a son has been born to him; but, he is worried that the baby was born with frontal teeth."

Then, He told us the whole story with the envelope in His hand. "A Vaisya couple from a village in Telangana had come on a pilgrimage to Puttaparthi a year ago; they prayed that they may be blessed with progeny. I gave the man an apple and asked him to share it with his wife. He took it in his hand and examined it. Finding some marks on the skin, indicating that it might have been bitten by a rat or so, he asked Me what it was, evidently nervous about eating it. I told him that they both could eat it. 'Only, the baby will have two frontal teeth at birth. Don't worry.' He has now written that the child has been born and, (here, He tore open the envelope, took out the letter and turning over the lines showed us the very sentence) "he has asked Me whether any shanti has to be performed, to alleviate what he fears be a calamity!" Looking at that sentence, we stood amazed, in the resplendent Presence of Bhagawan. Baba is Sarvajna, Sarvasaktha, Sarvaantaryami.

Vesak Day 2012



Vesak Day was celebrated in NED on 5 May 2012, at 10.00 am, with Bhajans and Buddhist chants.  After arathi, we proceeded with the 'Bathing Buddha' ceremony which marks the auspiciousness of Buddha's birth and the universal message of cleansing one's 'inner dirt' of greed, anger and ignorance.

Namo Ami Tuo Fo!

Thursday, May 3, 2012

Sai Spiritual Showers - Issue 3/47


THE ASSURANCE

There lived on the banks of the sacred Ganga a poor Brahmin, who was an ardent student of the Bhagavad-Gita. He read it every day; he worshipped the Book, and he tried to live according to its teachings. But his faith was sorely tried, for he was immersed in distressing poverty. His bowl was seldom filled; he and his wife were on half ration all the time. One day, while overcome by grief at his misery, his eye fell on the 22nd sloka of the 9th chapter, where the Lord assures, that He will bear the burden of all who take refuge in Him. He felt that in his case, the assurance was a hoax and so, he took his pen and dipping it in red ink, he struck out the exasperating line! Somewhat relieved of anger, he rose and went out with his bowl. Before long, two boys, brothers by appearance, the younger of darker hue, came to his door, with a bag of rice and a basket of sundry provisions. The wife was surprised, because they insisted that all of it was for her and her husband! She found a bleeding gash on the back of the younger boy, and when asked him, who had inflicted the cruel wound, the reply was, “your husband!” How could he lose temper so much as to stab such a charming child, she wondered. But, the brothers disappeared in a flash. The husband knew nothing about the bleeding boy, he pleaded innocence. He wondered who could have sent them help. His head was in a whirl. As always he turned to the Gita for consolation. The Book opened on the 9th chapter, sloka 22. Ah! His eye fell on the angry gash he had drawn on that page, across that line. That pen had gashed Sri Krishna’s back! His want of faith had “wounded” Him so. He ran about like mad, to discover the Boy and fall at His feet, crying for mercy. But, He could not be found. So, have faith in the Assurance of the Lord; when He says, “why fear, I am here,” He means it; when He says, “I look to you, when you look to Me,” He means it.