Prashanthi Bulletin December 25th, 2005

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Source: radiosai.org

Prashanthi Bulletin December 25th, 2005 It has been a long time since we

have brought you an update from Parthi. Since Birthday, Swami has been spending

most of His Mandir Time inside the interview room. Every evening, He is out for

Darshan by 3.15 p.m. and goes straight inside the interview room calling a few

lucky devotees into the room. However, the students eagerly await the clock to

strike 4.00 when they rush into the Bhajan Hall, each one trying to reach first

and capture a vantage point near the throne, where Swami sits for the Bhajans.

Very often, Swami comes into the Bhajan Hall a few minutes or sometimes even

half an hour before the Bhajans commence at 5.00 p.m. This time slot is

exclusively for the students and it has been a source of great joy and thrill

for everybody inside the Bhajan Hall. Swami speaks to the boys seated in the

front, at times calls for some students or staff members and speaks to them. Of

late, He has been enquiring a lot about the Sports Meet activities that have

already begun with full force. Incidentally, this Annual Sports and Cultural

Meet in Jan 2006 will be the first major event marking the 25th Year - the

Silver Jubilee Year - of the Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning (1981

to 2006). A number of events are being planned out by all the three campuses of

the Institute to celebrate this Meet. However, adhering to explicit command from

Bhagawan, this time, no adventurous items like motor bike stunts or aero sports

are being presented for the Sports Meet. Most of the events are display of

physical prowess and cultural items. Some interesting events occurred in the

last few days. We bring you a brief on these. One evening, very soon after the

Birthday celebrations, Swami called all the students and staff inside the

Poornachandra Auditorium, in the evening after Bhajans. There was a video

presentation of the series made by Smt. Anjali Devi, a famous actress of the

yester years and a devotee - well known for her TV series "Shirdi Sai Parthi

Sai Divya Katha". This time she has produced a film on the Chinna Kathas -

short stories written by Bhagawan. Three three episodes were shown, projected

on a large screen in the presence of Swami. It was well appreciated by all.

Incidentally, all the scenes have been shot in the premises of the Chaitanya

Jyoti Museum and other spots in and around Parthi. Again, on December 15th, a

similar thing happens. Out of the blue, one evening all students and staff are

called inside the Poornachandra Hall. This time, they all watch a very poignant

movie along with Swami. This is a recent Hindi movie titled ‘"Iqbal"’ and is

about a deaf and dumb young man who is a great cricket fan. His cherished

desire is to join the Indian cricket team. The movie beautifully tracks his

relentless pursuit in achieving his goal. Swami sits for half the movie and

then retires. The others continue to see the rest of it. And then just three

days back, Swami distributed T-shirts to all the students and staff of the

School and Institute. The young school children are given different coloured

T-shirts while the Institute students get pink coloured half sleeve T-shirts.

This has become the standard uniform now for all the Sports event practice

sessions. Another event was the visit of the devotees from the Srikakulam

district of Andhra Pradesh. On December 5th, the last day of ther stay,

Bhagawan called all of them into the Poornachandra Auditorium. There, He

witnessed a short cultural programme by them, heard their bhajans and also

spoke to them. Well, let us now come to the present. We wish all of you a very

happy and holy Christmas. However, the weather in Parthi, in no way indicates

the oncoming of Christmas. Surprisingly, the chilly winter seems to be past now

and even the nights are quite warm. Many Christmas trees decorate the shops and

hotels on the streets. Bhagawan always keeps us on our toes and we never know

when He would take us by surprise. Bhagawan comes out this morning by seven

o'clock! The Sai Kulwant Hall is decorated beautifully with stars hanging all

around. Silver stars, bells and other decorative items make the hall look

majestic. Two Christmas trees adorn the stage on either side of Ganesha. They

are sparkling with cottony snow, colourful boxes of gifts and stars. The

pillars on the dais and in the front half of the Kulwant Hall are wrapped with

shining gold covering. In front of the dais, across the railings, on one side,

are figures of Joseph and Mother Mary at the Manger, watching with awe their

Child and our Saviour! At the other end are statues of the three wise men

following the holy star. The Portico in the first floor of the Mandir is

decorated with white cloud shaped sets giving a feel of snow all over. On the

balcony behind the three domes are two angels blessing all seated below. After

His Darshan round, Swami comes out of His car and cuts the cake kept next to

the interview room. A number of overseas devotees are standing all around,

watching the Lord Blessing their offering. Soon, all the students rush in and

take their places. The devotees are also seated, waiting eagerly to catch a

glimpse of their Lord. Swami comes out onto the dais and sits in the centre.

There is loud applause from all as this has become a very rare sight these

days. When He comes out, everybody tries to grab a glimpse for we never know

when we would get it again. It is 7.15 a.m. and Swami stops the Vedam chanting.

The young primary school boys march in with their violins for making a

presentation. The next five minutes is their offering of sweet music to the

Lord. After this, the Institute Brass Band takes over. The band leader comes

forward with a colourful card holding a huge Christmas Candle. Swami keenly

watches the card and asks him something. The band leader takes Namaskar and

Swami Blesses him. The band commences its presentation, filling the Hall with

scintillating beats and notes. They play for around 20 minutes, carrying the

audience along with lovely Carol music. It is 7.45 a.m. and time for the

students to sing Carols which they have been rehearsing for the past one week.

The drums and keyboards are all in place. The commentary begins. Two students,

one a very young boy from the School and another from the College, compere the

show taking us 2000 years back to the times of Jesus, His Birth and His sacred

life. Moving down memory lane, we come to the recent times and herald the

advent of the Holy Father - our beloved Bhagawan. A number of popular carols

keep all clapping and swaying to the beat. "All night long I shall burn my

Christmas candle...", "Rudolf the red nosed reindeer..." and so on.…… 8.20 a.m.

and the music programme comes to a close. Bhagawan watches all the

instrumentalists sitting down and after a while asks for the Vedam to begin

again. Meanwhile Prasadam distribution starts. Dairy milk chocolates for all

students and sugar candies for all devotees. As the distribution is in

progress, Swami decides to go inside. The chair is turned and moved towards the

interview room, but to our delight, He speaks to somebody over there and returns

to the dais and continues sitting. A few more minutes pass by and then suddenly

there is loud applause. We see Swami standing up from His chair, holding the

railings. We are filled with joy and thrill to see His full Form after so many

days! Even as our hearts are full of joy, they burst open further as we see

Bhagawan walking towards the staff block away from the interview room. The two

students hold Him on either side and Swami walks quite swiftly taking a turn to

go inside the Portico. He climbs up the slope and enters the Portico and walks

right into the interview room. The Hall is full of claps and the heart is full

of joy. The Vedam team joins in the celebration by chanting Mantra Pushpam at a

very high pitch. As Swami emerges on the interview room side, the Primary School

children also join the Vedam chanting. Bhagawan enters the interview room. After

a while He comes out of the room, walking again. He moves forward so that all of

us can have His Darshan! Then He sits down on the chair. It is 8.50 a.m. The car

moves into position to receive the chair. Aarti is offered and Swami retires for

the morning. An announcement is made that in the evening at 4.00 p.m. there

would be a programme by the overseas devotees entitled "Spirit of Christmas".

In the evening, at 3.40 p.m., the car arrives near the PC entrance. The front

part of the Hall opposite to the dais is filled with all overseas devotees

ready to make their presentation. The Hall is packed to its brim. Swami takes a

full round and then reaches the interview room. There, He alights from the car

and then asks to be assisted to stand up. The moment Swami stands up, there is

loud applause in the Hall. To add to our delight, He starts walking slowly

towards the centre of the dais. He stands over there holding the railings for

some time, before He sits down on the chair. At 3.55 p.m., He Blesses the Vedam

group to conclude the chanting. Two young children offer the programme card to

Swami. This is followed by Carol singing by the young children from overseas.

The conductor comes forward and seeks Bhagawan's Blessings. They start with a

Ganesha song and then a Telugu song succeeded by other carols. This goes on

till 4.30 p.m. Then comes the much awaited Carol singing by the adults from

overseas. The conductor for this choir also seeks Bhagawan's Blessings. Swami

speaks to her for a while. For the next half an hour, the Hall is filled with

soothing music and singing, carrying us away to a world of peace and happiness.

The melodious Carols, the beautiful form of Bhagawan seated in front of our eyes

with a lovely smile on His face, transports us into a totally different

dimension! After a few songs, the conductor prays to Swami asking whether they

should continue or not. Each time, Swami smiles and gives His consent to

continue. Finally at 5.05 p.m. Bhagawan asks them to sing Bhajans. As the

Bhajans are going on, Swami asks the students to distribute Prasadam to all the

overseas devotees. They are showered with a number of chocolates and wafers. The

little children start munching away to glory! As all this goes on, Swami calls

one of the adults, a young man, and speaks to him for quite some time. After a

very lively conversation between them, Swami materializes a pendant for him.

The man is overjoyed! Bhajans go on. Again after a while, Swami calls another

gentleman, speaks to him for a while. The man is ecstatic! He too gets a chain

at the end of the dialogue. Swami calls him inside the railings, next to His

chair and ties the chain around his neck. The Hall is filled with applause. A

few more Bhajans by the overseas adults and then once again a third gentleman

is summoned. All clap and start singing loudly. This devotee too gets immense

Blessings and a ring to top it all. When God gives, He gives in bountiful

measure! Finally it is 5.45 p.m. when Swami again stands amidst loud clapping.

He starts walking towards the portico on the side opposite to the interview

room. Taking few steps at a time, He converses with a number of devotees

adjacent to Him. Meanwhile, Aarti is offered by the Pujari and a number of

overseas coordinators. Bhagawan sits down on the chair and receives the full

Aarti. Subsequently, He moves once again onto the dais and towards the

interview room. On the other side, He stops near a devotee and speaks to him

for a long time. The conversation concludes with the creation of a ring for

him! As He moves across the dais, He looks at the overseas devotees assembled

in front of Him and says, "I am Happy". He says this twice. Then Swami asks

them, "Are you happy?" Some of them who are able to hear say, "Yes!" Swami

again asks,– "Are you all happy?" By then everybody understands what Swami is

asking and there is a loud roar - "Yes Swami!!" All of them start clapping and

the drummer starts playing the drums to indicate their joy and thrill! It is

twilight. The chandeliers shine brightly in the Hall reflecting their light in

the stars and the other decorations all around. All hearts are full and the

Porte car glides along the path to the Lord's abode. Christmas 2005 draws the

curtain down on yet another unforgettable celebration! November 25th, 2005 Even

after the completion of the Birthday there were still so many countries that had

cultural programmes prepared that Swami on November 25th permitted two

programmes to be held in Sai Kulwant Hall - a Russian Language Choir and a

Balvikas drama by children from Singapore. About 280 devotees (out of a total

group strength of 1300) from the Russian speaking countries of Azerbaijan,

Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia,

Tadzhikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Ukraine gave a concert in the

Russian language entitled "Sathya Sai Baba, Our Hearts are singing for you."

The group of men and women, who were all dressed alike for their opportunity of

a lifetime to sing in His Divine presence, sang the following songs in Russian:

"Glory to God", "Our souls are full of luminous light", "God is your best

friend, God is love", "There is nothing better than Swami coming to us", "Our

dearest Sai", "In the luminous light", "Sounds of flute", "Evening Bells",

"Sathya Sai Baba, our hearts are singing for you" and finally "Kalinka". Their

palpable devotion and singing from the heart had everybody clapping their hands

and keeping tune. Though the songs were in an unknown tongue, still it found

resonance with everyone through the language of the heart. Swami was happy with

their performance and also acceded to their prayer for a group photograph with

Him. Following the Russian language choir, the Bal Vikas students from

Singapore presented an offering to Bhagavan entitled "Atma Nivedanam" based on

the story of Bhaktha Pothana, a great poet and devotee of Lord Rama whose life

is exemplary of total surrender to God. The programme began with a musical

performance known as Dikir Barat, a time-honoured Malay art form in which a

group of performers sit and sing with synchronized body and hand movements. The

play itself was performed in many parts. The first scene highlights Pothana's

attitude of selfless love and service when he gives his own food away to a

hungry man. In the next scene Lord Rama entrusts Pothana with the sacred task

of composing the Bhagavatham in Telugu. This scene also shows the Gajendra

moksham episode. The third scene shows the stark contrast between the divine

Pothana and his worldly brother-in-law Srinatha. It also depicts Prahlada's

great devotion and surrender to the Lord. In the next scene, Mother Sita

showers grace on Pothana and Srinatha's pride is humbled. After this scene,

Arati was offered and thus officially the Birthday celebration had come to an

end Group resource <<Sainews HOME

Source: radiosai.org

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