Prashanthi Bulletin - July 11th, 2005

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<<The previous issue of Prashanthi Bulletin Prashanthi Bulletin July 11th,

2005 This morning was an unforgettable one for all students and staff of the

Institute. The Foyer prayer session had just begun and the Management students

were getting prepared for their Workshop. Vedam was being taught in the Foyer

as part of the Prayer session, when there was some commotion on the road

outside. Some of us who were outside the Foyer realized that it was Swami's car

making its way forward. We thought that Bhagawan must be going out for a visit

to the Hospital or just for a round as He does sometimes, Blessing people on

the way! Least did we know what surprise was in store for us! As Bhagawan's car

came close to the Institute entrance gate, we found devotees rushing forward. To

our greatest surprise, the car turned inside the College Campus. We were

stunned. What were we to do? Immediately, the Principal Prof. U.S. Rao was

intimated about Swami's arrival and he came running all the way. By then,

Swami's car had already proceeded half way to the Auditorium side entrance.

Prof. Rao ran to the car and there was some interaction with Bhagawan.

Meanwhile, some students ran to the Auditorium and opened the doors. The

Workshop was to be held in the Audio Visual Room of the College and hence the

Auditorium was not in use this morning. The car slowly moved forward and was

finally parked near the Auditorium side entrance, from where Bhagawan used to

enter the Auditorium in earlier days. By now, Prof. A. Sudhir Bhaskar and some

others had reached the spot and were interacting with Swami. The news reached

the Vice Chancellor who rushed from his office to the College. Swami then asked

for Sri S.V. Giri our former Vice-Chancellor. He too drove down in a few

minutes. All along, Bhagawan was silently sitting in the car, Blissful as ever!

We were standing over there in awe and wonder at the immense patience of our

Lord! By now the students had moved into the Auditorium and Bhajans were going

on in full swing. Inside the Auditorium there was pandemonium. There were one

set of students arranging Swami's Chair, another set arranging the Public

Address System and some more were busy in miscellaneous tasks. Welcoming

Bhagawan is not a simple task. We need to be perfect in welcoming the Lord who

is the embodiment of perfection! A short while later, the guest speakers for

the Management Workshop also arrived and took there seats. It was 9.00 a.m. Our

Lord had sat in the car waiting for the preparations to be made for a full 40

minutes. Incidentally, today happens to be a Monday and Rahu Kalam just ended

at 9.00 a.m. (Divine Will !). The Vice Chancellor offered a rose to Bhagawan

and the chair manoeuvered itself outside the car. Swami entered the Auditorium

and sat down in the centre, in front of the stage, facing the first row of

chairs. There was a podium arranged next to Swami's Chair. Bhagawan looked at

everybody seated in the Hall and then signaled for the Vedam chanting. A large

group of students came in from the side door and chanted Vedam. Swami then

asked the Vice Chancellor to speak. The Vice Chancellor gave a very brief talk

for around 5 minutes, summing up the various initiatives taken in the Institute

since June 2005 in the areas of various academic programmes, Human Values

integration, etc. After his talk, the mike was arranged for Swami and the

Management Professors prayed to Swami to Bless the Workshop with His Message.

However, Swami was looking for something else. After a few minutes Bhagawan

indicated for His regular chair in which He normally used to sit when He came

for viewing programmes to the Institute. The sofa was brought immediately. Then

Bhagawan was assisted in shifting from the Porte Chair to the red coloured sofa.

The sofa was placed facing the stage in the middle of the Hall in line with the

first row of chairs. Once He was in this position, He asked for the programme

to begin! What a crisis! No one was clear which programme was to begin. The

talks of the Management Executives were arranged in the Audio Visual Room. Was

that to be held here or was it something else? Very soon, it became clear that

Swami was looking for the Music boys. Well, so that's it. It was going to be a

continuation of yesterday's Music Programme. Within minutes, the Music Group

was ready on the stage. Mikes were arranged and the songs began. After a few

glitches with the mikes and speakers, in due course, things went on fine.

Tyagaraja Keertanas, "Piba Re Rama Rasam" and other classical songs were

rendered. It was around 9.30 a.m. and Swami asked them to sing the "Rama Katha"

song. Once again, boys ran helter and skelter to get the appropriate

instruments. Within minutes, the Rama Katha began. It was a soul stirring

experience! Swami was very involved in the music. He kept talking to Sri S.V.

Giri and Sri Gokak every few minutes and was also giving instructions to the

singers on the stage. We were very surprised to hear Bhagawan talking so loudly

that His voice could be heard by the singers on the stage. He is all mystery and

inscrutable! At 10.00 a.m. the Rama Katha came to a close. Swami was very happy

with the performance. The two lead singers Sri Omprasad (I M.Sc. Phy) and

S.V.B.S. Sai Krishna (II MBA) came running down for His Blessings. There was a

long feedback session and Swami gave them a number of tips regarding singing.

In the course of His interaction, suddenly, He waved His right Hand and created

a gold ring for Brother Sai Krishna. There was loud applause and all students

raised their heads to see the ring and the lucky recipient and above all the

Creator! By 10.05 a.m. Swami signaled for His chair. Once again, He shifted to

the Toyota Porte chair and as He went past the aisle to the exit door, the

Management Workshop Guest speakers standing along the path were Blessed.

Prasadam had been arranged (very thoughtful of somebody) and was Blessed and

distributed to all. Swami took Aarti and moved to the car. The car made its way

outside the College Campus. What a most fortunate and lucky day it is for the

Institute and all of us. A most unexpected visit and most cherishable moments

in the Lord's Presence!! The entire Campus was Blessed by His sacred and Divine

Presence. In the evening, Bhagawan came out at around 3.00 p.m., took a full

round of the Darshan Hall and stopped near the interview room door. He waited

until all the students came for Darshan and moved over to the centre of the

dais. Vedam chanting went on in full swing. At 4.10 p.m. Swami called the Vedam

Teachers forward. Brother Sudhindran, Dr. Anil Kumar and Sri Vedanarayana went

towards Swami. Bhagawan spoke to them for some time and then with a wave of His

Hand, He materialized a beautiful gold chain for Sri Vedanarayana. Bhagawan

spent a long time in untangling the chain and all the while Sri Vedanarayana

spoke to Swami. One could see the Bliss on both the faces! Finally Swami

Blessed him and put the chain around his neck. There was loud applause in the

Kulwant Hall. After this Vedam chanting stopped for some time. Prasadam

distribution began and at 4.20 p.m., Rudram chanting commenced once again. At

4.25 p.m. Swami went inside the Bhajan Hall and there He had a wonderful

informal session with the Bhajan Boys. He asked them to sing some songs like

"Challa Gaalilo", "Madhura Mohana" and "Kondalalo..." - suggesting changes,

telling them the correct way to sing, and so on. After the interaction Bhagawan

retired at 5.15 p.m. Bhajans went on till 5.30 p.m. concluding with Aarti. July

10th, 2005 This evening, Swami was out very early - before 3.00 p.m.! He waited

near the interview room door, talking to the Vice Chancellor. Then, He left the

Hall for a ride through the campus. At 3.40 p.m. He reentered the Kulwant Hall.

The car moved towards the portico and came onto the stage. This evening, the

Music Group boys of the Institute had planned for a Music Programme. They were

all set, waiting for Swami's arrival. The Vice Chancellor went forward and told

Swami that the boys were ready with the programme. The sofa moved out of the car

and Swami sat in His regular position the centre of the dais close to the Brass

railings. He immediately stopped the Vedam chanting and asked the boys to begin

their presentation. What followed was something worth witnessing! The Lord has

some surprises for us everyday. We thought it would be a regular Music

Programme with classical and some light devotional songs. The first song was

"Deva Namo Deva..." - a Telugu composition. After one verse, Swami asked them

to stop and begin another song. They sang the most popular "Madhura Mohana

Ghana Shyama Sundara Sai...." This too went on for some time and then Swami

intervened. He called the lead singers front and gave them some instructions.

They went back. A few minutes elapsed possibly they were trying to work out how

best to meet the unexpected demand from the Lord! Crisis Management in action!

"Kondala Nelakonda Koneti Rayuduvadu..." began and half way through, they

switched over to "Sai Charanam Baba Charanam Sharanam...." Even this was not

completed. Swami had some more instructions for them. Next came "Murahara Nee

Charanamu Veedaga...." It looked like some selections were going on. Sample

testing as they call it! "Krishna Krupa Sagaram", "Appa Rama Shakti Ento Goppa

Ra", "Ranga Baro Panduranga Baro", "Rama Nannu Brovaraa" - all these followed

in short bursts. By 4.15, the 'music programme' came to an abrupt end. We were

left wondering, whereas Swami was giving them some clear cut instructions. Who

can ever understand His mysterious ways? He called the lead singers again and

spoke to them for quite some time. Subsequently, He went into the interview

room. All students rushed into the Bhajan Hall, as they do whenever Swami goes

inside for Bhajans. Once Swami goes inside for Bhajans, it is a real feast. He

stays inside the Bhajan Hall throughout the Bhajans and even for the complete

Aarti. Only after the Lokaa Samasta Sukhino Bhaavantu and 3 times Shanti, the

sofa is wheeled out towards the car. Therefore, students literally wait to rush

into the Bhajan Hall and book a place for themselves! This evening, Bhajans

began at 4.30 p.m. itself. A few minutes later Swami went back to the

Poornachandra Auditorium. Bhajans went on till 5.00 p.m. and then Aarti brought

the day to a close. On quite a few occasions Swami leaves the Mandir during the

Bhajans. At such times, the Bhajans go on for exactly half an hour and then

Aarti is given. Thus each day is full of new patterns. The Lord is truly an

enigma wrapped in mystery! Who can ever comprehend His Ways! Let us just sit

back and enjoy and experience His very Presence! July 5th to 9th, 2005 On 5th ,

in the morning, Swami went in His car on a round outside the Ashram. He went up

to the Music College in Vidyagiri, and after a few minutes, returned to the

Ashram. In the evening, Darshan was at 3.30 p.m. Swami sat outside all the

while and we had continuous Vedam Chanting. It was great to see Bhagawan

chanting with the students from time to time, and He was all the while

encouraging them to chant with vigour by often nodding His head in sync with

the intonations of the chants. The same pattern continued on the following

days. Swami spent long hours sitting outside in full view of the devotees

giving all of us a golden opportunity to feast on His Divine Form. He would sit

all the while, absolutely still, looking into the emptiness and this gave us a

feel of what Divinity is all about. He is the unchanging eternal Witness and

that is the feeling one gets these days when Bhagawan sits outside during

Darshan. But now and then, He suddenly asks for letters and then it is great to

see one student after the other, going forward and giving their letters to

Swami. Bhagawan spends quite some time with each boy talking to him, asking him

some questions and giving him some answers. It's a great sight to watch the

Divine interaction. The best part is when Swami calls the Birthday boys. They

move forward like a train with a number of compartments. Each one makes the

best of the opportunity, giving letters, getting Blessings, praying for

solutions to their problems - a total package! Very patiently, Swami caters to

the needs of each one and the whole episode goes on for quite some time, to the

delight of one and all. One evening, Swami went inside the Bhajan Hall, which He

does occasionally. Inside the Bhajan Hall, He spent some time talking to the

Bhajan singers and others seated in front. He spoke to them about the life of

Paanchaali (Draupadi) and Savitri. In the course of His conversation, He

materialized a huge locket (round disc) having a colour portrait of Lord Rama

profile view in the typical posture of holding the bow and arrow. The other

side was shining with gold. Bhagawan gave the sacred locket to a senior faculty

member. On 9th July, the Dean of the School of Business Management, Prof. U.S.

Rao sat in front in the Darshan lines, to pray to Bhagawan for Blessing the

Management Workshop that commences in the Institute on the 11th and goes till

the 13th . The theme is: "Service Sector in India - Building World Class

Organizations". As the car went gliding by the stage, Swami called him and

spoke to him for a while and gave His Blessings for the Workshop. A group of

Sai Students (Alumni of the Institute) had come to Parthi to have Bhagawan's

Darshan and seek an audience with the Vice Chancellor and identify

opportunities for the Alumni of the Institute to offer their service as part of

the 80th year celebrations of the Avatar. The Vice Chancellor spent quite some

time talking to them and giving them guidance and advice regarding their role

in the oncoming celebrations of Bhagawan's 80th Birthday. July 4th, 2005 This

evening, Swami came out for Darshan at 3.50 p.m. A group of devotees from USA

were seated in front, ready to put up a programme in the Divine Presence. A

huge backdrop draped with a dark blue screen was erected at the rear end of the

Kulwant Hall. On it was the following text: THE ONLY ELEMENT SSE Children Region

X USA The dais too was very well decorated with flowers. The pillars on either

side of the stage and even the brass railings bordering the stage were decked

with bright orange colour flowers. At 4.00 p.m. two young boys dressed as Vedic

Pundits went forward to Swami. They had a yellow Angavastram (upper garment)

draped around their pant and shirts making them look like Pundits. They offered

a bouquet to Swami who received with them with Love and Blessed the two lads. At

4.15 p.m. Vedam chanting stopped on Swami's command. Two young girls now went

forward to offer their Pranaams with flower bouquets. Another two went forward

with a programme card and three more with a tray of fruits, chocolates etc, for

Blessings. Swami spent a long time reading the contents of the Programme Card

and Blessed all the children talking to them and enquiring about their details.

The play was a 50 minute presentation on the importance of the five elements in

life which have been bestowed as a free gift for humanity by God. Earth, Water,

Fire, Air and Ether. It depicted through the lives of two gentlemen, Shawn and

Sid, a number of instances where the two experience the joy of selfless service

to the needy. Thanksgiving Day celebration forms the backdrop for the play. A

brief description of the play: Shawn joins Sid's family as they go out to serve

food to the homeless at the shelter in downtown. It was wonderful to share the

gift of food that Mother Earth has bestowed upon us in abundance. He realizes

the significance of the element Earth. Shawn goes on to serve a thirsty person

with Water, a person shivering in the cold with a warm blanket (Fire); a person

wilting under the oppressive heat with a fan (Air). When he experiences in

return, the helping hand of the very people he was serving, he is thrilled to

experience the joy and brotherhood among men! All of this takes place in space

(Ether) created by God. Finally, the play concludes by revealing to Shawn and

Sid, the One Final Element that transcends all these. That is the Element of

Love - Selfless Love! All Seva depicted in the play were based on real life

events. At 5.05 p.m. all the participants joined together in a closing song.

The play was followed by a series of light devotional songs in English and

Hindi sung by elderly devotees from USA. At 5.30 p.m., Swami signaled for the

next group. Yet another team of singers came forward and sang a number of

Bhajans and devotional songs. Prasadam was distributed to all. Swami was

totally involved in the songs and kept beat with His right Hand all the while.

At 5.45 p.m. Aarti was offered and Swami retired for the day. <<The

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