Divine Anecdotes - Experiences of Late Shri.Karunyananda - 1

June 20, 2008

The following anecdotes from Swami Karunyananda's experiences with Bhagavan are collected from several interviews between 1994 and 1997.Karunyananda passed away in August 1997, under the auspicious celebrations of Dassara :

In 1959 I came with the Jeevakarunya Sangham [a spiritual organization] to Puttaparthi for Shivaratri celebrations. We had two jeeps, one van, and a car with a driver with us, and a lot of other paraphernalia. We had an office in Chittur also. We first went to our Chittur office and then departed for Puttaparthi to obtain Bhagavan's darshan. Facilities for travel were very unsatisfactory at that time. I traveled by bus. It was too cold to travel by bus. The bus came to Horsey Hills area, beyond Madanapalle, and then went out of order and broke down! It was evening and it was getting very cold. It soon turned into dark night. The women and children were shivering due to the cold. I then thought, "These so called Baba's - why do they put us up to this trouble? Why do they reside in the hills? Why can't they set up residence in a place accessible to common people? How many people are suffering!"

I was thinking this way but did not mention these inner thoughts to anyone.

The bus was repaired and after many trials it started again and reached Mudigubba at 2:00 a.m. I had to stop there until morning, took another old rattling bus to Bukkapatnam, and reached there with great difficulty. At Bukkapatnam I hired a bullock cart and reached Puttaparthi after even more difficulty. Puttaparthi had scarcity of water at that time. I kept my bedding and luggage in the residence of one Sathyamma, bathed somehow, and then went to the Nilayam. Mr. Kasturi then summoned Bhagavan, and Bhagavan sent word for me and I went up to His room. One Veerabhadra Sastry [a scholar] and several other people were present with us. I paid my obeisances to Bhagavan, when He asked me, "What Karunyananda! What is the news? How many cars do you have?"

I wondered why Bhagavan had interest in the number of cars! I bowed to Him and I replied, "Swami, why should you talk about cars now?" Bhagavan insisted, "No, no. How many cars do you have?" Veerabhadra Sastry then asked me, "When Swami asks you, why do you not reply?" I thought there was no escape and replied, "Swami, I have two jeeps, one car, and one van."

Then Bhagavan asked, "When you have four vehicles, why could you not come by one of them? Why come by that bus, and blame later 'All these Babas reside only in the Hills!'?" Then I realized that Bhagavan knew what I had thought miles away as if a telegram had been sent to Him.

Om Sai Ram

http://www.saionline.org/essays/karunyananda.html