His Story - 15

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Me. But, I was not immediately going to her house, the moment she called Me.

Then, she used to plead with Me in a humble tone, “My dear! why should you not

come to our house?” I used to reply “I am not a beggar to come to our house,

without an invitation. If you call Me, I will come, otherwise, I won’t. One

day, Subbamma called Me and said “Raju! I have prepared dosas today. You kindly

come to our house and partake some”. In those days, eatables like dosas and

iddlies were not available in everybody’s house. Only some rich people used to

prepare them in their houses. I told Subbamma “I can’t leave all these children

and come alone to partake of the dosas in your house.” Poor lady! Then she

prepared dosas for all the children. One day all of us went to Subbamma’s

house.

She was a very pious housewife and a broadminded lady. She felt a little

embarrassed on seeing all the children, since she was not prepared for our

visit. She, therefore, requested Me, “Raju! you have brought the children to my

house. Very good. But, I did not prepare any item and and kept it ready for the

children. You please bring all these children tomorrow. I will prepare some

eatables and keep them ready.” The next day she prepared the dish of My liking,

namely a soup made out of “Pithiki Bedalu” (a particular variety of pulse –

phaseolus radiatus). All the children including Myself sat for lunch. I warned

the children in advance. “Subbamma belongs to the Brahmin community. It is

difficult for them to cast away the differences on account of caste and

religion. Hence, keep some distance from her as far as possible.” She brought

some rice mixed with the soup, in a vessel. She dropped morsel after morsel of

this food, in the hands of each of these boys. All of them ate to their

hearts’ content. I was very happy on seeing the boys eating well. She realized

the truth then that Raju would feel satisfied only when the children are fed

well. That is why, she fed the children first. Finally, a very small quantity

of the food was left in the vessel. She felt very unhappy that she could not

provide enough quantity for Me. Whatever little quantity of food was left over,

she put it in My mouth. On observing this, the children started whispering into

one another’s ears “why did she feed only Raju in this manner by putting it

into his mouth whereas for all of us, she dropped it into our hands?” I could

gauze the situation. I told Subbamma “Look! The children seem to be a bit

agitated by your actions.” Subbamma then explained the whole matter in a

beautiful way to the children thus: “My dear children! It is not that I don’t

love you as much as I love Raju. In fact, Raju will feel happy and contented

only when you ear first. Such was his love towards you. That is why I fed you

first. Finally, only a little quantity of food is left over. It cannot be made

into morsels and dropped into Raju’s hands, one by one. That is why I put it

into his mouth. Raju’s nature is to satisfy others’ hunger first. He feels

satisfied when they eat fully. You cannot find even a trace of selfishness in

Raju. You must also become like Raju. You must leave selfish interests,

cultivate love and consider others’ happiness as your happiness. Then only you

will prosper. Your future will be bright and your life will be an ideal to

others.” So saying, she diffused the situation tactfully, sending Me on an

errand to get her some curry leaves. She told Me “Raju! I will prepare

“chitrannam” (a sort of rice preparation) for myself for this evening. Please

go and get some curry leaves from that tree.” I was older in age to all the

children gathered there, but I was shorter than all of them. However, I had the

knack of climbing the trees easily. I climbed the tree and collected some curry

leaves, as desired by Subbamma. But, do you know the actual reason why she sent

Me to bring some curry leaves? She took the opportunity to explain about My

greatness and noble qualities to the children. She told them “My dear children!

How fortunate are you to have Raju as your close friend! Raju is not an ordinary

boy. He is king of kings. He will prove himself to be so in course of time. You

obey his command implicitly. Never disobey his command under any circumstances.

Never be angry with him. If you are angry with him, the devathas (Gods) will be

angry with you. You

make him happy and derive happiness thereby. If Raju is dissatisfied for any

reason, he will not disclose his feelings to anybody. But, you will surely reap

its consequences. Hence, always make Raju happy and keep him satisfied.”

Subbamma’s husband had a second wife by name Kamalamma. She approached Subbamma

and enquired “What dear elder sister! How do these small children understand the

philosophy you are teaching?” Subbamma replied to her query saying “This is not

philosophy, My dear younger sister! I am teaching to these young children,

certain ‘do’s’ and ‘don’ts’ to be observed by them in their day-to-day life.

Since I have no children, I consider these children only as my children. These

boys move constantly with Raju. And, Raju is my very life-breath.” One day,

she

prepared vadas in her house. But, they were not sufficient in quantity to be

served to all the children. Hence, she wanted to share some with Me,

exclusively. She went near the window for the purpose. Her very next house

belonged to the parents of this body. She called Me through the window “Raju!

Raju! please come here once.” I went near the window. She tried to pass on

through the window, a small packet containing some vadas. Then, I told her

“Subbamma! It is not fair on your part to give vadas to Me only, leaving away

the children. You must broaden your heart.” Subbamma replied “Please excuse Me

for today, Raju! From tomorrow, I will distribute to all the children equally.”

I then took the vadas from her and distributed to all the children in small

pieces, in the evening. You can not understand even one thousandth part of My

loving nature, equal-mindedness and divinity. My love is expansive. However much

you may try to describe it, it still became inadequate. Most people do not ever

make any effort to understand My love. Lokah Samasthah Sukhino Bhavanthu (Let

the whole world be happy) is My motto. “All people must be happy; no one should

undergo difficulties,” is My wish. The dropping down of the collar pin,

leaving the school for ever and the parents requesting Me to come back to

Puttaparthi – these are all the

reasons which promoted Me to come away from Uravakonda permanently. Since then,

My glory has been increasing day by day. People from the neighbouring villages

started coming to Puttaparthi in large numbers in bullock carts to seek

remedies for various types of ailments – mental and physical. They used to

bring persons with various types of mental diseases and those allegedly

possessed by devils and ghosts. They used to think with great faith in Me. “It

seems the devils and ghosts would leave if this boy orders them so.” True to

their faith, the moment such ‘patients’ are brought to My presence, they are

relieved of the devils and ghosts. On witnessing this miracle, several people

believed My words to be true. Venkamma, the elder Sister of this body developed

great faith in Sai Baba. She requested Me “Sathya! I want a photo of Sai Baba.

Please give me one.” Then, I created one photo and gave it to her. She kept the

photo with her till her last breath. The miraculous power of Sai has been

growing day by day and hundreds of devotees from far and wide started visiting

Puttaparthi everyday. The people in the house could not make arrangements for

their stay and food. Pedda Venkama Raju then requested the visiting devotees,

“Please come here only once a week, that is, on every Thursday.” The devotees

were very much disappointed and agitated. They protested, “How is it possible?

How are we to wait till a Thursday? In the meanwhile, our diseases may turn

serious.” Our neighbour Subbamma then intervened and suggested “Venkappa! your

house cannot accommodate the hundreds of devotees visitng this boy daily.

Please, therefore, send him to our house. I will look after the needs of this

boy as

well as the devotees visiting him. She also requested Me “Swami! I don’t have

children. I consider service to the devotees as service to God. I cook food to

all the devotees coming here and serve them. Kindly stay in our house only.”

>From that day onwards, she used to cook food to all the devotees visiting Me

and serve them day and night. In fact, Subbamma’s love towards Me is more than

what Yasoda had towards Krishna, in the Krishnavathar. Eswaramma and Subbamma

were neighbours and they had great love and affection for one another. But, the

men in the families were not on talking terms with each other. Easwaramma was

not allowed to visit Subbamma and she, in turn, was forbidden from visiting her

neighbour. Hence, they both used to communicate with each other through the

window.

0pt">One day I told Subbamma, “Subbamma! You arrange to get one orange-coloured

gown stitched for Me.” She asked Me “Swami! if you wish, you wear a dhoti. Why

should you have to wear a gown?” I replied “No, No. I am asking you to get one

orange-coloured gown, since the time has come for Me to wear ochre robes. She

did not want to say ‘no’ to Swami’s instructions. Hence, she go one gown

stitched for Me and brought it. The cost of the cloth for gown in those days

was two annas. The stitching charge was one quarter of anna (Bottu). Thus, with

two annas and a quarter, a gown was ready for Me. As soon as I wore the gown,

she called Easwaramma. Easwaramma came and shed tears on seeing Me in those

ochre robes. She said “What Swami! Is it for witnessing this form, you called

Me here? Enough, enough.” I convinced them saying “It is only to remove the

kashaya (evil

feelings and bitterness) from the minds of the people, I wore this Kaashaaya

(Ochre robes). Subbamma belonged to the Brahmin caste, whereas this Sai Baba

belonged to the Kshatria caste. Hence, the entire Brahmin community in the

village of Puttaparthi decided unanimously “This lady kept Sai Baba in her

house. We should not, therefore, go to her house nor allow her to visit our

house.” Subbamma was not bothered about their decision. She told her community

people firmly, “I don’t need anybody. Nor I need visit anybody’s house. You may

do whatever you like. I will not leave this boy under any

circumstances.” She did not like to be away from Swami, even for a moment. She

used to treat Swami as her own child. With the result, the entire Brahmin

community bore grudge against her. But, Subbamma did not budge an inch. She

knew that she had to face such difficulties in matters relating to

spirituality. In a very short time, the number of people visiting Me

increased by leaps and bounds, with the result that Subbamma’s house was also

not sufficient to accommodate them. On observing the position, Pedda Venkama

Raju suggested to Subbamma “Revered Mother!

Why should you have inconvenienced on account of our boy? Hereafter, let us keep

Sathyam in a separate house.” Subbamma then donated a piece of land adjacent to

the Venugopala Swam’s Temple, where a small room was built exclusively for Me.

Subbamma also donated some amount for the purpose. They used to keep Me in that

room and lock it from outside. Yet, I used to get away from that room somehow

every now and then and go up the nearby hill where I used to sit for long

hours. Everyone used to be surprised. “How did that happen? The lock we put to

the door is intact. Then, how could this boy come out?” Such miracles were

happening almost daily. One night, some people who did not like Me locked

the door of My

room from outside and set it on fire. At that time, I was sleeping in that room.

Also, some ten children slept in the adjacent verandah. On seeing the flames,

they started shouting “Raju! Raju!” The door could not be opened, since it was

locked from outside. I opened the doors of a small window from inside the room.

The children saw Me laughing. I tried to instill courage in them, saying “you

don’t worry at all! It is said ‘Dharmo Rakshathi Rakshithah! Since we are

protecting Sathya (Truth) and Dharma (righteousness), they will in turn protect

us.” The children however, got panicky. They just closed their eyes shouting

“Raju! Raju!” In fact, that was the manthra they were chanting continuously. In

the meanwhile, a number of people arrived there, fearing for My life. Venkamma,

Subbamma, Easwaramma and all the family members rushed there, crying. In a few

seconds, there was a down pour. But, surprisingly there was no rain at all at

any other place except that small hut. The flames subsided on account of the

heavy rain. Everyone was happy that Swami was safe. They felt very sad,

thinking “Some evil-minded and wicked people might have been indulging in such

heinous acts.” Subbamma then got the lock broken and took Me to her house.

Subbamma liked Swami very much. In fact, Swami was her very life-breath. The

entire land in Puttaparthi used to be in her name, those days. She arranged for

an enquiry into who were responsible for setting Swami’s room on fire. Some five

or six people were identified and held in custody. She thundered “you wicked

fellows! you should not remain in this village. Leave this village forthwith

and go

away”. Then in pleaded with her holding her hands “Subbamma! They should not

suffer on account of Me. Knowingly or unknowingly, they committed a mistake.

Please pardon them. Do not send them away from the village.” They all

approached Me and carried Me on their shoulders, profusely shedding tears of

joy and repenting for their misdemeanor. The group consisted of Subbanna, who

sells liquor and one Ramanna, besides some other people. They expressed “you

did great merit in some previous birth. Otherwise, there is no scope at all for

such noble qualities manifesting in you. This village will earn great reputation

in due course, on account of you. Subbamma then declared “You consider this boy

as an ordinary village urchin. He is not a boy. He is a Thunderbolt, verily.”

From

that day onwards, Subbamma did not allow Me to go outside. She kept Me in her

own house. She was then sixty years old. She was always chanting My name. She

could not sleep if I was not found in her vicinity. One day, she called the

mothers of the ten children who used to be constantly in My company and told

them “From today, these children are not only yours; they also belong to Me.

All these children will be here with our Raju.” Those ten friends were living

till very recently. You too know about Bukkapatnam Sathyanarayana. He was My

classmate. Several such children used to be in My company. One can not describe

how pure and unwavering their love was! Unfortunately today, evil intentions and

bad thoughts are increasing in the children due to the effect of modern age.

Bukkapatnam Sathyanarayana was also a good-natured person. One day, My shirt

got torn. He saw the condition of the shirt. In those days, a piece of cloth

sufficient for a pari of shirt and knicker used to cost only one and a half

annas. He brought the cloth nicely packed in a paper and requested Me “Raju! If

you don’t think otherwise, I brought this cloth for you with great love. You

must get a pair of shirt and knicker stitched out of the cloth.” I refused the

packet of cloth saying “If you feel that the relationship between you and Me

shall last forever, you should not offer this cloth to Me. I will not even

touch this packet.” In fact, I had never taken even a paisa from any one so

far. In don’t need anything. Whatever I need, it will come to Me of its own

accord. Hence, I have no necessity to stretch My hand before anybody. My hand

is always above that of others. It is never below. This has been so, right from

My childhood and will continue to be so. I take pleasure in

giving, not taking. Some jealous people may accuse Me that I did not give

anything to them. But, I do not give credence to such criticism. I never hated

or accused or derided anybody. I used to wish happily even those who derided

Me. There was another lady in the village who was the wife of a prominent

person. She did not like subbamma. She was angry that I was regulary going to

the house of Subbamma and not visiting her house. She decided, “This boy must

be killed somehow”. One day she accosted Me, saying “My dear! Today you must

come to our house for breakfast. Don’t reveal this to anybody. You should come

alone. I will prepare tasty vadas for you.” She came to the house of Subbamma

and requested “Subbamma! Please send Raju to

our hose today, for breakfast.” But, Subbamma did not like that idea. She

suspected that, that lady had an evil plan in her mind. She approached Me and

said “Raju! she is inviting you to her house, with some evil intention. You

please don’t go.” I was however, determined to visit her house. I told

Subbamma, “Come what may, I must fulfill her wish.” I went to her house. She

prepared vadas mixed with poison and brought for My consumption. I knew they

were mixed with poison. Yet, I ate them. Within five minutes, My blood was

poisoned and the entire body turned into blue colour. Some people who observed

this rushed to the house of Subbamma and informed her and Easwaramm about the

incident. They came running. I told them, “You don’t worry. She did what she

wanted to. Now, I will do what I have to do”. So saying, I asked them to bring

some water in a tumbler. As soon as I took the tumbler into My hands, the

entire quantity of water in it turned

blue. Having come to know of the incident, the villagers attacked the house of

that lady. Kondama Raju also became furious. He called some Boyas (people

belonging to the hunting community) and told them to teach a lesson to that

lady. Then, I went near Kondama Raju and gently told him “Grandfather! You are

an elderly gentleman. You should not prompt them to do such things. It is not

proper to indulge in violence against others, especially a lady. If anyone

tries to harm her, I will leave this house and stay in her house only,

hereafter. Thus, it is only after I came out unscathed from several such

tests, people started believing Me as Sai Baba. In the meanwhile, one person

started calling himself a devotee of Sai Baba. Yet some others imitated My hair

style and started wearing a gown like Me and called themselves Sai Baba. Is it

possible to gain the confidence of people merely by adopting such tactics? Very

soon, people realized their efforts as deceit. They came to know the truth,

Gradually, eminent people like the Maharani of Mysore and some other big people

started coming to Puttaparthi in cars to see Me. The Chitravathi river was

flowing perennially in those days. They used to park their cars on the other

side of the river and come to Puttparthi wading through the

knee-deep water. Thus, when devotees from far and wide started coming to

Puttaparthi with great devotion to have My darshan, sparshan and sambhashan,

none could create any more hurdles in the spread of My mission. The name and

fame of Swami spread to far-off lands. After the death of her husband,

Subbamma dedicated her entire life to the service of Swami. Till her last

breath, she spent her time in the service of Swami. In fact, there is a lot to

be learnt about her devotion and surrender to Swami, by you. She used to

provide free food to all the devotees visiting Swami. One day, we were

traveling in a bullock cart. I asked her “Subbamma! what

do you want? she hesitated a bit and looked this side and that side. Having

realized that there was none nearby she told Me “Swami! I don’t want anything.

However, at the time of my departure from this earthly sojourn, please pour a

few drops of water into My mouth, with your divine hands.” I promised her that

I would certainly fulfill her request. The entire property of the village of

Puttaparthi used to be in her name. She was the head of the entire village.

Everyone in the village used to respect her. However, ever since she came into

the fold of Swami, she had no other interest in life except Swami. Right from

early morning till she went to bed, she was

constantly engaged in Swami’s work only. On certain occasions, I used to retire

into the caves of the nearby hills without informing her. Poor lady! She used

to go round the hills in search of Me. She used to pack upma, dosa, vada, idly

etc. in a tiffin carrier and come in search of Me. At last, when she could find

Me, I used to enquire her teasingly “Subbamma! what did you bring for Me? She

used to reply “Swami! I brought the items of your taste”. Then, I used to tell

her “give Me dosa”. She would then serve dosa in a plate and hand it over to

Me. I used to tease her further saying “Subbamma! I don’t like this dosa. Give

me iddly, upma, vada etc.” Poor lady! she used to serve Me all those items.

>From morning till evening, she

used to prepare a number of items and wait for Me. Yet, she was anxious to know

what more I needed. Once I told her “Subbamma! you need not feel anxious. I

don’t need anything. I have put so many questions to you asking for this and

that with a view to make your devotion and spirit of surrender known to the

world”. Subbamma then requested Me, “Swami! please put a little quantity of the

item you have tasted, in My mouth.” Then I took a small piece of iddly from My

plate and put it in her mouth, with a little chutney. Thus, Subbamma

experienced great bliss in the divine proximity of Swami, till her last breath.

The washerman in the village, Subbanna had great strength. Another person by

name Subbanna, son of Chandrappa was hefty with seven feet height. Subbamma

imposed a

condition that one of them should always accompany Me. She told them “Baba

sleeps in the Mandir. He will be alone. One of you should always be there day

and night, by turns. He will also be going to the river, whenever he pleases.

He is a young boy. He cannot walk. Hence, you should carry him on your

shoulders and take him wherever he wants.” Thus, she used to make several

arrangements for My convenience. She had broad-mindedness. Whatever she did,

she did it to please Swami. The Harijans in the village had great liking for

Swami. Every now and then, they used to take Swami to their houses. Subbamma

also used to come to their houses along with Me. One day, one Harijan by name

Gangappa invited Me for lunch in his house. I told Subbamma that I was going to

the house of

Gangappa for lunch. Subbamma said that that she would also come with Me. I told

her “I am going to take My lunch in the house of a Harijan. You should not

come.” Subbamma insisted saying “What Swami! If you are going why not I? I

don’t have such differences. I will also come.” She came alongwith Me. We took

our lunch in that house. Gangappa was very much afraid of the consequences

saying “How did it happen? Subbamma Madam had come to our house for lunch. I

told him “you don’t be afraid. You are Harijans (children of Lord Vishnu). Shed

your differences of religion and caste and live happily with unity among all

people. Thus, right from My childhood, I strove to remove such differences in

the society. If I go on narrating like this, it will become a voluminous

history.

First and foremost, each one of you cultivate love. The one devoid of love is

equal to a dead body. Never keep yourself away from love, under any

circumstances. If not here today, you have to think of Me somewhere and at

sometime. Wherever you are, I have to come to your rescue. What is the use of

not realizing this truth and repenting later? Instead, realize the truth now

itself and conduct yourself accordingly. Cultivate love. Realise the truth,

“love is our life” and conduct yourself accordingly. When I was residing in

the old Mandir, we used to go to the Chitravathi river daily. All the children

in the village used to accompany Me. One boy used to ask for a pencil and

another, a pen. Since they were children, they used to ask for such articles. I

used to tell them

“make a heap of sand and search for the article of your choice in that heap.”

They used to get in that sand, whatever they wanted. One day, we were returning

from the Chitravathi river to the old Mandir. Suseelamma and her sister

Kumaramma (the author of the book ‘Anyatha Saranam Naasthi’) ran in advance to

the Mandir, with a view to make arrangements for giving harathi (waving of

camphor flame) to Swami. Then, I made a signal to Subbamma to stop those two

ladies. I told her, “you go to the Mandir first.” Then, she stopped them and

said, “you stay here itself. I will go in advance.” The two sisters wondered

“Subbamma is a widow. How can she give harathi to Swami?” When Subbamma reached

the entrance door of the old Mandir, she found a big snake there. Subbamma used

to look after everything in the Mandir carefully. She addressed the snake as

“Sai Nageswara! Sai Nageswara!” with a loud voice. In the

meanwhile, all people ran to that place. Subbamma thought to herself, “Swamy

says God is immanent in every living being. Hence, this snake should not be

beaten or killed.” She held the snake courageously with her hand. Immediately

it coiled round her hand, instead of biting her. I reached that place by time.

I jocularly enquired “Subbamma! Are you playing with the snake?” She replied

“Swami! Is it not for rescuing those ladies that you sent me here in advance?”

Thus, Subbamma was a witness to several such miracles. She was a noble, pious

and a very fortunate lady. She did great service to Me, right from the

beginning. Not only to Me, she used to cook food for all the devotees visiting

Me. With the result, all her relatives bore a grudge against her. But, she did

not care. She used to declare, “I don’t need anybody. It is enough if only

Swami is by My side. Whatever He says, I will obey it, imlicitly.” She used to

have such firm faith in Swami. One day, I enquired her, “Subbamma! would you

like to see your late husband?” I used to cut jokes with her like that, now and

then. By that time, her husband had already died. She replied, “Swami! I have no

such desires, What connection do I have with a person who is no more? He was not

destined to witness your glory. Therefore, he died. I have the good fortune.

Hence, I am able to serve you.” But, I prompted her a little more to agree to

My suggestion. I told her “If you wish to see him just once, you may do so. You

will be relieved of that obligation as well.” I told her to go out into the

backyard of her house and watch. There used to be a plant yielding drum-sticks

(Hyperanthera morringa) there. Subbamma witnessed a scene there, where her

husband the late

Narayana Rao was sitting under the tree and smoking a cigarette. She was happy

to see her late husband in flesh and blood, again. At the same time, she was

also very angry that he did not give up his old habits even after death. With

utter disgust, she told him “you did not leave your bad habits even after

death! Strange! I don’t even see your face.” So saying, she came back into the

house. Subbamma’s husband had a second husband wife by name Kamalamma. She is

here in the Prasanthi Nilayam Mandir, even now. I called her and told her

“Kamalamma! you may also go and see your late husband once.” But she refused

saying, “Swami! We are here in your divine presence, happily spending our time.

We don’t wish for anything else.” I, however insisted and said “Just go once,

see him and come back.” When Kamalamma went in and saw him, he was drinking hot

coffee! He was indulging in the same actions as he used to do when he was alive.

Thus, Lord Krishna also showed some incidents of the bygone

era to his contemporaries. Subbamma engaged herself in the service of Swami,

till her last breath. Though she had not bodily relationsip with Me, she used

to have intimate relationship with Me, mentally and spiritually. She was

constantly contemplating on Me. She requested Swami to stay in her house only.

In fact, she offered to vacate her house and give it to Swami. Her relatives

argued with her, “You are a Brahmin lady and he is a Kshatriya boy. Why do you

allow him into your house?” She stoutly refuted their argument and firmly

declared, “I don’t need any of you. I will not come to your houses nor you need

come to My house. If only Swami is with Me, that is enough for Me.” She had only

one desire to be fulfilled by Me. She prayed, “Swami! During My last moments of

life, I must have the good fortune of witnessing your beautiful face.” I

promised her that her wish will be fulfilled. Once the devotees from Madras

(Chennai) pressurized Me to visit that place, urgently. Those were the days of

second world war. Once in every hour, there used to be air raid precautionary

sired blowing and the streets would become empty in no time. I could not return

to Puttaparthi early, in those circumstances. In the meanwhile, the condition of

Subbamma turned serious. She was taken to her parents’ house in Bukkapatnam. She

breathed her last there itself. Her body was kept in the front verandah, covered

with a cloth. All the members of the family were immersed in sorrow. Her mother

and relatives were very sad. The relatives started talking in several ways “Sai

Baba gave a word that he would pour a few drops of water in her mouth before she

breathed her last. Now, she really breathed her last. But,

where is Sai Baba? He did not come even to have a last look at her. No one knows

where he has gone!” In those days, there was no motorable road to Puttaparthi.

I had to come to Bukkapatnam by car from Madras and from there to Puttaparthi in

a bullock cart. By the time I reached Bukkapatnam, I noticed several people

gathered on the road. They appeared to be in a sorrowful mood. I enquired one

gentleman, “What happened?” He replied “Swami! yesterday night, Karanam

Subbamma left her body. Till her last breath, she was chanting ‘Sairam!

Sairam!’ They are now making arrangements for taking her body to the burial

ground”. In those days, firewood and such other articles to cremate a dead body

were not available in

the village as ‘ready-made’ items. Hence, some firewood was collected from here

and there and everything was made ready to take her body to the burial ground.

I enquired someone “Where is Subbamma now?” He replied “Swami! Her body is kept

in the veranda of her mother’s house.” I had a hearty laugh. I did not forget My

promise to Subbamma, nor did she. I asked the bullock cart driver to take it to

Subbamma’s house. There, all arrangements were being made to take her body to

the burial ground. All the people gathered in the veranda were weeping. They

told Me “Swami! Subbamam was remmering you and chanting your name only, till

her last breath.” Then I enquired, “Where has she gone?” as if I did not know

anything. They informed Me “Swami! The Doctors came here and examined her. They

confirmed that there was no life in her.” Since they were Brahmins, they did not

allow anybody to come near Subbamma’s dead body. Subbamma’s mother and sisters

wept loudly, the moment they saw Me. They

started showering ironical praise on Me saying “Baba! Subbamma had great hopes

till her last moment that you will come and pour a few drops of water in her

mouth. She anxiously waited for your darshan. Finally, she breathed her last,

greatly disappointed. Having served you for so long, could you not have

fulfilled her last desire atleast? Is this the reward for her loyal service?” I

told them tersely, “She did not die. You keep quiet.” They could not believe My

words. They queried “How do you presume that she did not die? The ants are

crawling all over her body. There is no life in her body. Is it not true?” But,

I silenced them saying, “I gave a word to her that I would pour a few drops of

water in her mouth at the time of her leaving the body. I will never go back on

My word.” Subbamma’s mother was a centenarian. I told her to bring some water

dipping a few leaves of Tulasi (basil plant) in it. I went near the body of

Subbamma and removed

the cloth covering the body. I called her “Subbamma! Subbamma!” She opened her

eyes slowly and held My hands tightly. She shed tears of joy and gratitude.

Everyone witnessing that scene was wonder-struck. They shouted in one voice

“Subbamma came back to life!” That was in fact, not true. What had actually

happened was Subbamma came back to life only for My sake, since I gave a word

to her and that had to be fulfilled. That is why she came back to life,

momentarily. She enquired “Swami! when did you come?” I replied “Subbamma! I

came just now”. Thus, when she opened her eyes and started talking to Swami,

all her relatives hurriedly went inside the house to make arrangements for

Swami’s stay and lunch. But, I told them firmly “You need not make any

preparations for My food. I have come to see Subbamma. I saw her. Now, I will

go straight to Puttaparthi.” I held the hand of Subbamma and enquired her “What

are you thinking about?” she replied “I am chanting Sairam! Sairam! Sairam!

Swami”. She shed tears of joy. I wiped her tears with My handkerchief. Holding

My hand with great joy she expressed her feelings thus: “Swami! How nice of you

to have come all the way to fulfil your promise made to me long ago! Do you

still remember that promise, Swami! How compassionate you are!” Sathya Sai is

not the type of person who goes back on his word. His very name is Sathyam.

What he speaks and acts upon is also Sathyam (Truth). In the meanwhile,

Subbamma’s mother, younger brothers, sisters and the Doctors – all people came

in. They thought “How is it that Subbamma is talking all the while? How is it

possible? There is no breathing in her body since last night! What a wonder!

May be, this is Sai Baba’s miracle!” Subbamma held My hand and put it on her

forehead.

Then, I created some vibhuti and applied it on her forehead. I told her,

“Subbamma! whatever worry you had till now is removed. Is it not? you were

worried that Swami was not by your side in your last moments. Now you have seen

Swami and heard his words. You have also held his hand. I am now going to

Puttaparthi. You close your eyes peacefully.” She said “Thank you, Swami! Thank

you! You go to Puttaparthi after sending me to my final abode.” I told her “Now

you close your eyes peacefully.” I then poured a few drops of Tulasi water in

her mouth. Thus, I kept up My promise. She put her both hands on My feet. I

bade goodbye to her saying “Subbamma! I fulfilled My promise made to you. Now

you can go happily.” Subbamma then left her mortal coil saying “What more do I

require Swami! I am leaving the body happily. Sairam! Sairam!” All the while,

she was shedding tears of joy, holding My hands. Thus, she attained salvation.

Once I give a word to someone, I will never forget. I will always

abide by My word. Several people cannot believe this Truth. They think “Ah!

Swami is saying something just casually,” My word will never go waste. Whatever

I say, I will act accordingly. This is the Truth. The dead body of Subbamma

was taken to the burial ground. It was placed on the funeral pyre and her

younger brother lit the pyre. Strangely, her face remained serene till her

entire body was consigned to the flames. That created a sensation in the

village and became the talk of the village. I started on My return journey from

Bukkapatnam to Puttaparthi, for which a bullock cart was kept ready. The brother

of Griham Ammayi (Easwaramma), Chandramouli was with Me in the bullock cart. We

saw smoke emanating from the cremation

ground, where Subbamma’s mortal remains were being consigned to flames.

Chandramouli then asked Me “Swami! you were by the side of Subbamma’s dead body

till now. Why did you not wait till the cremation was over?” I told him

“Chandramouli! I am not a person who goes back on his word. I gave a word to

Subbamma that I would be present by her side during her last moments and pour

water into her mouth. That I fulfilled. I blessed her to depart from this world

peacefully. I kept My promise and came out.” Chandramouli felt very happy and

commented “Swami! How compassionate you are towards the devotees! In fact,

words fail to describe your compassion.” True! Words fail to describe Swami’s

love and compassion towards Subbamma! Similarly, the devotion and surrender of

Subbamam towards Swami are indescribable. Her devotion surpassed even that of

Prahlada. People had by now come to know about the news that Swami had

fulfilled the promise given by Him to Subbamma and brought her back to life and

poured water in her mouth during her last moments. The very next day, people

came in large numbers in cars, one after the other. They started talking among

themselves “It seems Subbamma was brought back to life by Swami. It seems Sai

Baba poured water into her mouth during her last moments.” The entire house of

Subbamma was filled with these people. Everyone present there praised the good

fortune of Subbamma. There was only one word on the lips of everybody “Sai Baba

fulfilled His promise. Subbamma’s life has become sanctified.” From that day

onwards, several elderly people started visiting Me with a request “Swami!

Please give a word to us also. You must pour sanctified water into our mouths

at the time of our departure from this world.” However, I used to tell

them “My dear ones! All people cannot get this great boon. If you are destined

to get it, you will certainly get it. I will come at the appropriate moment and

pour sanctified water into your mouth”. --- From the book “His Story: As told

by Himself” (A Compilation from the divine discourses of Bhagawan Sri Sathya

Sai Baba)

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