Existence (Asthi) by V. Narayana Rao

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Existence (Asthi)

There is no end to the glory of the Eternal father. It is ever

flowing. Many a holy person will take a dip in the holy waters of grace that

flow from His feet. They are not quite satisfied by the bliss they enjoyed.

They speak of Him and His leelas to others, who are

interested and by telling them to the deserving and devotional persons, they

enjoy a reciprocal happiness. That is why they are all considered by the Lord

as dear and near to Him and are always blessed by Him.

 

The following is one such narration of a bee's enjoyment, who felt

the sweetness of the nectar that flows from the Holy feet of Shri Sai Baba. With due respect to his Holiness and with so

much humbleness to all His devotees, this heart and pen have become bold enough

to submit a few lines of the experiences of this humble being. Thanks to the

management of Sai Samsthan, who provided the best

‘media’ through which we speak of Him together.

 

It was March 1977, when the accounts branches of the entire state

were busy with the completion of the transactions connected with the spending

of the Budget, the poor fellow, hereinafter termed as T was also engaged in

attending to his normal duties in his office.

 

When I was busy in this manner, we had to

celebrate the Ugadi of that year in this busy month.

I was so happy in the morning, but I became so unhappy in the evening when my

wife suddenly developed shivering and high temperature. I suspected it to be an

infection in urine and the next day before consulting any doctor. I gave her

urine for culture test and took her then for treatment, which was later

confirmed by the doctor. The result of the culture test also proved our doubt

to be true and the treatment continued under that Doctor, a qualified M. D,

During the treatment there were no symptoms of reduction of the

disease, but the unrest grew from day to day. The sun was hot. The children

were having examinations and I was busy in office, even on holidays and there

was nobody to attend to this sick lady in the house. The temperature was being

controlled by a particular medicine for some time; but when the power of the

medicine would become less, say for 4 or 5 hours later, she again used to get

high temperature. This continued for 15 or 20 days and I had no time to give a

second thought, since she was under the care of a good doctor. Simply I was

praying to Baba alone to give me relief by giving her normal health and

normalcy in the family affairs.

 

While it was so, one night (it was Wednesday) my wife

woke me up in the night at 3 a.m. or so and

said, " One old man came to me

and gave me some lump

to eat. I do not know

what it was; but I ate it. He said that I will be alright " . I replied to

her, " If it is so, you will be alright " and asked her to sleep. I always had a belief that He alone will

change the position whenever

He feels fit. I had a

confidence that it was He who gave her this lump of medicine to cure her, who

was almost neglected by me.

After five or ten minutes later, she woke me up again with the words: " I have

seen Sai Baba " .

" When and which

Sai? " was

my question, as I have two photos, one of Shirdi and other of Puttaparthi,

one on the side of her head and the other towards her feet, in reply to my question she pointed out to Shirdi Sai. Then what happened was my question. She

said, 'He was grinding some­thing in His masjid

and I stood before Him leaning to the pillar before Him. He addressed me in

Hindi saying, " Aao beli,

daro mat, baitho " .

These words gave me much confidence. I humbly requested Him to

permit me to take curdbath for which He said that

I can take any thing I like " . I told her that she cannot have any doubt

and that she will have anything she wanted as I cannot

stop when permitted by Baba. She slept a while. In fact she was provided with the

dish she required on the next day.

 

She again surprised me by saying after few minutes, " This

time Baba brought new chappals and asked me to wear

them and when I had done so, we both were lifted in the air high from the

earth. He then projected his palm downwards; rays of light spread all over the

ground in which light I saw some children playing. Baba said to me that it was

called 'Bal Vikas' and I can

visit these places when the sun gets cold as it was very hot. " He then

promised her that He will take care of her health and her family affairs and

there would be no worry thereafter. He brought her back to the place where she

was. With this her dream or trancequences ended.

 

Now starts His leela. My wife was running the highest temperature

at that time, when she talked to me all these things and there is every doubt

that delirium might have started, as the other day the Doctor treating her also

expressed her doubt whether it would lead to meningitis. But to clear the doubt

or doubts I had at that moment, she put me a question, " It is Puttaparthi Sai Baba, who started Balavikas

schools for children and why Shirdi Sai is telling that there is Balavikas? When did he start them? " It was really an

intelligent question showing that her brain was working properly. We had not

been to Shirdi till then and in fact I did not read anywhere that Shirdi Sai

started Balavikas schools. I simply interpreted her

saying that it might be Baba once again declaring to me, that He makes no

difference whether He is Shirdi Sai or Puttaparthi

Baba. She was also satisfied then and slept.

 

Next morning as usual I had Thursday pooja and

questioned Baba about the present situation by opening His 'Satcharitra'

as I do usually at the time of doubt or when I require an answer to my problem.

The reply He gave was Dr. Pillai's story, in which

Baba tells Dr. Filial not to request for postponement of Prarabdha

and then assures him of the cure from his guinea worm disease within 10 days.

It assured me that my wife will be alright in 10 days. This was conveyed to my wife and we were

waiting for a change.

We never tried to change the doctor.

 

On the same evening,

one doctor, who is a friend of mine, returned from Iran only on the

last night and came to visit

our house. He being a doctor, rebuked my negligence for having kept a patient for

so many days in the house, not hospitalizing her and he never

took rest, till she was admitted to the Hospital the next day. It was 1st April. Doctors thereafter made a thorough check up and

admitted my wife in the emergency ward, which terrified the lady; but she took courage on hearing

from me, Shri Baba's assurance and took the medicines as directed by the

doctor, They took all the tests that are possible in a

hospital; but they could not diagnose the disease. The medicine given by them was only nominal; but she started improving day by day and on

the third day she showed symptoms of normalcy. She picked up her health and

was discharged on 11th

April. See, it was only 10

days she took to regain her

health as promised by Baba.

It was really a rebirth.

The

doctors, who looked after her told me later

that they could not find any

defect in her, but they suspected that the dosage given by the previous doctors

was less, which could not

improve her health. Anyhow, I felt that the disease was cured on Wednesday night itself by the Divine

treatment of Sai and nothing

was left over to doctors to find out. The question arose what was the

use of our going to the

hospital? I humbly remembered the words of Shri Swamy Ramaadas of Anandashram (Kerala State) " Human effort is necessary to know that human

effort is useless. Then divine will start worming " .

 

In four days after coming back from the hospital, one of my

friends came from his village and after completing his work in the city

suddenly proposed to go to Shirdi, with me. One can imagine my condition. I was

penniless; but he assured me of the expenditure and wanted me to be his guest.

Next, my wife also showed her willingness. My trip to Shirdi was an

unimaginable happiness to my heart and soul. We had a pleasant journey and darshan of the Lord Sai Baba from near,

I dropped off all my anxieties and worries at His feet and made my heart and

mind so empty that I filled it with His grace and prasad. I returned with these

to my wife and children. My wife asked me whether we have seen the things used

by Him. It was surprising to me. She did not tell me in her trance, the stories

about what was worn by Sai Baba and how he was looking like. I told her that

all the things used by Him are preserved in a glass cupboard. She suddenly put

me a question, how His shoes were. With so much curiosity I asked her whether

she saw them, while He was wearing them and how they appeared like. She said,

" Sai wore shoes like those that the Muslim Fakirs wear " and her

description of the shoes was exactly of those, kept in the Samadhi Mandir by the Shirdi Samsthan.

This shattered my last doubts whether Shri Baba

appeared in person before her in her experience and I bowed with reverence at

His holy feet with a humble prayer.

 

In 1978 February my Mrs. could travel to her Ishta

Deva and then she herself saw what was shown to her

in her dream. She recognized the highest place where she was taken as " Bhakta Niwas " top floor,

where we stayed and the " Balavikas " under

the shade of trees by the side of the Bhakta Nivas!

V. Narayana Rao

Hyderabad (A.P.)

(Source Sai Leela August 1980)