DEVOTEES' EXPERIENCES OF SRI SAI BABA BY H.H. NARASIMHA SWAMIJI - PART II

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Sairam,

 

Devotees Experiences – SANTARAM BALWANT NACHNE DAHANUKAR,

 

In 1919, I had a son born to me; and this was the first son born

after Baba gave my wife the coconut, with blessings from this mouth

and with tears in his eyes. We named him Kaluram. To explain Baba's

tears a few facts about Kaluram's short life of eight years may be

mentioned. He was born under the constellation; Moola. When the

boy was only three years old he was always repeating the mantra 'Ram

Hari Ram. It was in 1921, i,e. when he was entering on his third

year, the effect of Moola was seen. His mother i.e. my first wife,

died. No doubt the deeply sympathetic heart of Baba saw her coming

end when he gave her the "blessing" (?) for a child to be born under

Moola. Anyhow, one might suppose that there was the mitigation of

the sorrow in having brought a saintly infant prodigy into

existence. But see what followed even in that matter. The boy was

stunning the imagination of all that became acquainted with him. A

pious and learned neighbour, named Hegde, watched him and declared

that he was an incarnation of that playmate of Sri Krishna on whose

back the latter got up to invade curd-pots. The boy himself stated

occasionally "Krishna used to tease me. I caught hold of Hari's leg

and pinched them. I looked up. Hari (who was standing above me)

upset the curd-pot over my face. Then the lady of the house turned

up, etc." The boy sometimes anticipated Hegde's daily study

of "Hari Vijaya" and declared what stories or incidents formed the

subject matter of the portion to be read on the particular day by

Hegde. I saw him one day seated in a corner, with his head covered

by a cloth. He was motionless and steady like one immersed in Yoga.

His eyeballs were upturned, but the cloth over his head that was worn

like a cowl hid the eyes from my view. I lifted the cloth and asked

him why he was covering his head. He said he was always doing so.

Asked why he went on with his course of Sadhana, he laughed. His

precocity surprised me greatly. Once he asked me to get for him the

latest special issue of a journal (Sandesh). When that was brought,

the first picture on it was Sri Krishna's encircled by the

Pranava "Aum". Kalu cut out that picture and stuck it on the wall.

Then there was the advertisement of "His Master's Voice" records with

the picture of the dog before the gramophone. Kalu's interrogation

thereon was typical of him.

Kalu: What is this ?

I: It is the advertisement of a photograph.

He: It is a special message of Krishna.

I: What is the special message ?

He: What is the dog hearing ?

I: The music played by the plate.

He: The dog hears his master's voice.

See the dog - so steady from head to tail, intently listening.

We must be equally firm and steady.

See how I sit. You also should sit like that and listen, and then you

will hear Baba's voice.

I : How do you know Baba's yoice ?

He : I know. I will not tell you. Experience it yourself.

 

In addition to his oral Japa of "Ram Hari Ram," Kalu-ram was going on

writing that mantra in chits and a quantity of them were with us.

When Upasani Baba came to Andheri, he said he wanted such chits and

they were handed over to him. In 1924 Gadgi Baba came over to my

house to see this boy. In 1926, Kalu had dropsy and low fever. We

gave him only Baba's Udhi. The disease continued for a while. On

Kartik Sudha Ekadasi (so piously celebrated by thousands of pilgrims

at Pandharpur and other Vishnu Sthalas), Kaluram approached his end.

He called me to his bedside and asked for Jnaneswari. It was at once

produced. He himself opened it and picked up the XIII Chapter. At

that time I was feeling heavily the sadness of the approaching end,

the bitterness that we had to part with such a son. But Kalu cheered

me up and said, "What is there to cry for? Read this (Ch. XIII). Read

it aloud for me. I am going to-day." My heart was sinking under a

load of grief and I could not read it. Then he kept the book in front

of him and breathed his last. A fitting termination, this departure

on Kartik Ekadasi, was for such a life. But yet how sad was such an

early death ? No wonder that Baba wept in 1918 when he gave the

coconut and clearly perceived that such an early death was to crown

such a life.

 

-- to be contd

 

 

Devotees can read this book from the Book Section of

www.Saileelas.org/books/exppart2.htm