Sai Kingdom (UK) Grama Seva Group 2005 – 5th-7th October

[Guest guest]

Love. As we gave the prasadam to the householders, they expressed their

gratitude to Baba by doing pranams and saying “Sai Ram”. The village was full

of young children running happily after the trucks and Sumos, constantly saying

“Sai Ram, Sai Ram…” with the hope of receiving a ladoo or two!The Grama Seva

distribution finished around 12:30pm.Afternoon Darshan:The lovely Mother that

Swami is arrived at 2:45pm this afternoon to spend some time with the sisters

from Anantapur Campus who have been preparing the Grama Seva food till the

early hours of the morning every night. Their interview was held inside the

Mandir, from which we could hear the lovely group songs performed by the

sisters.However, Swami also sat for a few minutes on the Portico so that the

rest of the devotees could enjoy a few moments of bliss. Swami spent most of

the afternoon inside the interview room, coming out every now and then, much to

the delight of the

devotees still waiting for bhajans. Bhajans started at 5:10pm today and

continued till 5:45pm, after which Bhagawan Baba left for the Divine abode.

Sai Kingdom (UK) Grama Seva Group 2005 – 6th OctoberMorning Darshan:Thursday is

a very special day for Baba devotees as it is Guru’s Day. However today the Sai

Kulwant Hall was colourfully decorated. There was Nadaswaram music playing and

Sai Geeta also graced the hall with her majestic walk. There were many priests

and scholars chanting the Vedic mantras and all the Vedam boys were dressed in

traditional clothes.As Swami arrived, there was an air of excitement, as today

the Veda Purusha Saptah Jnana Yagna was to commence in the Poornachandra hall.

Everyone moved to the Poornachandra hall to witness the Yagna. The UK Group was

extremely privileged to sit close to the front when the Yagna started.The

priests were chanting mantras as Swami arrived in his chair on the stage. The

holy fire was started by one of the priests using the traditional method of

using wood and friction. They immediately took the flame to Swami to be

blessed. Swami fanned the flame Himself and blessed them to commence the

Yagna.At 10:00am, instructions were giving to the Students to start the trucks

rolling. The Grama Seva was to be carried out in Puttarparthy village itself.

There were several small teams who took charge of distributing the prasadam in

the local streets. The locals were very grateful and happy to receive Baba’s

prasadam.Afternoon Darshan: The Navratri festivities continued into the

afternoon as Swami arrived for Darshan at 3.30pm. Swami’s car drove past both

the sisters’ and brothers’ sides. Swami sat on the Portico for sometime reading

letters He had collected from the devotees. Swami signalled to go into the

interview room at 4.15pm to the disappointment of the devotees present.

However, to everyone’s surprise and joy, Swami signalled to go back to the

Portico to bless us with His presence once again.After some time, Swami

initiated the commencement of the

Prasanthi Vidhwan Maha Sabha whereby speakers over several days would talk about

Indian Spirituality and Culture. The fortunate three speakers for today were

introduced by Sri Sanjay Sahni, Principal of Brindavan Campus. First was the

present vice-chancellor Professor Anil Gokak who spoke about the Navratri

festival. Second was an inspiring speech by Sri Deepak Anand who spoke about

his experiences with Swami. Lastly was a very moving speech by Dr Ravi Kumar.

Dr Ravi inspired us all with his recollection of how Swami came into his life

the day his mother passed away and also how Swami saved his fathers’ life by

curing his cancer. He spoke very emotionally about how Swami gave him back his

sight not once, but twice, after acid had splashed into his eyes. Swami was

very happy with all three speeches. Swami then gave instructions to announce

that He would give the Divine Discourse the following day as it was getting

late (5.45pm). However, our most compassionate mother felt our

yearning to hear His voice and surprisingly the podium was placed in front of

Swami. There was a rapturous applause as Swami stood up and Swami Himself was

beaming with a big smile. He informed all present that Swami was very happy as

he knew that we all felt happy that He was standing. Our Divine Mother

reassured us that He would make us even happier the next morning. He then

instructed the students to distribute prasadam and asked everyone to take some

before they left the Sai Kulwant Hall.

Sai Kingdom (UK) Grama Seva Group 2005 – 7th OctoberMorning DarshanSwami arrived

just before 8.30am . He followed the usual route around the brothers’ side and

onto the Veranda where he emerged from his car. Almost immediately he gave

instructions for the Students to depart for Grama Seva. The UK Group went to

the village of Ramasagaram, situated around 35 km from Puttaparthi and has a

population of approximately 850.It was a wonderful drive to the Village, as we

saw green fields and mountains along the way The residents of this village were

joyful and full of gratitude at receiving Swami’s prasadam. As the village was

small, the UK Grama Seva group was the only team serving the entire village.

After food was distributed, everyone gathered under a tree over looking a small

lake. All the local people where pleased to join in taking photos together while

talking about some of the problems they have in the village. The Grama

Seva group, as usual had lunch which was consisted of Rice, Laddo, and

buttermilk.Afternoon Darshan:Swami arrived onto the portico at around 3.30pm.

Proceedings of the Prasanthi Vidhwan Maha Sabha continued today with two

accomplished speakers who maintained the high standards set by the previous

days’ speakers. First was Sri Rangarajan who gave an illuminating talk based on

unity in diversity. Secondly, Brother Shashank Shah spoke about a variety of

experiences. Swami then touched the hearts of one and all by giving a Divine

Discourse during which he gave an incredibly emotional account of the plight of

the Pandavas after Lord Krishna had departed his body. Swami concluded the

discourse by emphasising the power of chanting “Jai” (victory) and getting the

congregation to chant this sacred and powerful word. This was a wonderful

opportunity for all present in Sai Kulwant hall, as Swami was out on the

Portico for almost 3 hours. The day’s proceedings

finished with the Students singing bhajans and the offering of Aarti.Contributed

by Arvind TankSource and courtesy:

http://www.kingdomofsai.org/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=417

Kingdom of Sai