Kansai Light July 2008 Issue

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KANSAI LIGHT JULY, 2008. ISSUE

News letter of Sri Sathya Sai Organization Japan

address: I.S.S, 2nd Fl, 1-3, Kumochi 5-Chome, Chuo Ku Kobe

Tel: 078-222-1885, Email: rgcjp

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PLEASE PRINT COPY FOR YOUR EASY REFERENCE

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DAILY GUIDANCE

25. When you plan for things to go your waythen you have invited troops of worryto enter your home.Let your focus be only one...to be at peace always...at every moment... with each one.With worry comes emotionand emotion is the journey of the one that seesbut is determined to be blind.Such a one will make peace as his last resortand to

that one Godand truth appear least worthy.Be peaceful... be soft...be aware that your own follies...your own backward way of thinkinglead you into the pits of worry and depression.Climb out of them and make a resolve,"I will let nothing turn me away from peace.I will accept all as His will...His grace... His plan.I will not resist that I will always be awarethat I am in His hands and I am His."That is peace!- EPISODE 23

ACT XVI - SCENE 1

Rama Raju’s house RAMA RAJU: Seshama Raju, we are indeed very happy that you brought your brother Sathyam to our town.

SESHAMA: It was our pleasure to receive your kind hospitality.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

RAMA RAJU: Places visited by the pious become holy and sacred. In such places, even the grains of sand contemplate on the Divine! ……..Seshama Raju, please accept this token of our affection.

SESHAMA: Oh no! Why all this! Your love and affection alone are more than enough.

RAMA RAJU: It is our tradition to honour our respected guests; please take this…… That one is for Sathyam….. The collar pin will look very beautiful on You. Please accept.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SATHYA: This is made of gold. Gold lies beneath our feet as ore inside the earth. The ore is first taken out, put in fire and then refined. Only then it becomes the precious metal that everyone admires. Just as objects gain beauty with processing, man develops Divinity with culture and refinement.

 

 

 

 

 

 

MAN: How nicely put!

SATHYA: I have no attachment for such things, but since you have given it with love, I am accepting it.

RAMA RAJU: We hope you will come again and give us happiness.

SESHAMA: Most certainly! We can never forget your hospitality. We now take your leave.

ALL: Thank you!

SCENE 2

Seshama Raju’s house

RAMESH: Raju, Raju!

SATHYA: Hello Ramesh, how are you?

RAMESH: I am fine, and how about you, Raju?

SATHYA: I am OK.

MAHESH: We heard that You had returned, and immediately rushed here. Raju, without You, the School seemed lifeless.

RAMESH: Raju, when will You start coming back to School?

SATHYA: I am thinking of coming from tomorrow.

RAMESH: You must come without fail. If You sing the prayer song, it is so nice. Right now, there is no one who can sing like You.

MAHESH: The Telugu Teacher also said the same thing.

RAMESH: The Principal too!

MAHESH: Raju, You must definitely come tomorrow and sing the Prayer.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SATHYA: I’ll certainly come. I like you both, and you two will always be there, wherever I am!

RAMESH: OK Raju, we will now go.

MAHESH: From tomorrow, You must definitely come to School.

SCENE 3

Boys walking near tree

RAMESH: Raju, You are back in School, just like You said. It is wonderful!

MAHESH: The classes are going on fine.

GAFUR KHAN: Raju, I’m happy You are back again.

RAMESH: Raju, this is interesting. What’s this dazzling object?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SATHYA: It is a collar pin.

MAHESH: Is it made of gold?

 

 

 

 

 

 

SATHYA: Yes, it is a gold pin.

GAFUR: Great Raju! Did You buy it?

SATHYA: No. When I went to Hampi, Rama Raju gave it to me as a token of love. He would not listen to My refusal. So, in order not to hurt him, I accepted the pin.

RAMESH: The collar pin looks very nice on You, Raju.

SATHYA: More than the body, the mind ought to be beautiful. More than the dress, behaviour ought to be beautiful. More than ornaments, feelings must be beautiful. Only then would the world be filled with spirituality, and life would become sanctified.

GAFUR: Raju, Your words sound just like the holy Quran!

BOY: Raju, Your words are too big for our small minds!

MAHESH: There goes the bell!

ALL: Come on, let’s go!

BOY: Come, Raju!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Boys run

Collar pin lost.

SCENE 4

Seshama’s house

SESHAMA: I say, what kind of impertinence and arrogance is this?

SATHYA: I am not yours. Illusion has left and My devotees are calling Me. The time has arrived for Me to start the work for which I have come. I will not stay here any longer, not even for one more moment. I am going.

SESHAMA: Sathyam, stop! …. Sathyam, stop!…… Where are You going?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SATHYA: To the inevitable goal!

SESHAMA: What kind of meaningless words are these?

SATHYA: You cannot understand the words of those seeking higher realms. Don’t stop Me. Let Me go My way!

SUSEELA: Sathyam, don’t slight the words of elders. Listen to the words of Your elder brother.

SATHYA: Old, young, rich, poor, male, female – all these are the same to Me! For those who have given up all these, the world is the home!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SESHAMA: Sathyam!…Sathyam,……Sathyam, stop! Are You going to listen to my words or not?

SATHYA: The word “MY” is the form of ego! Ego is an invisible poison whereas the Knowledge of the Atma is ambrosia. It is the stepping stone to the path of Liberation.

SESHAMA: Cut out all this foolish philosophy! Let me see how you will defy this brother of yours and go!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SATHYA: Give up this effort to stop Me. No power can stop Me. Move out of the way!

 

 

 

 

 

 

SESHAMA: Sathyam, our parents have entrusted You and the responsibility of bringing You up to me. I have to discharge that responsibility. Listen to me. Stay at home till they come. Don’t go anywhere.

SATHYA: No!

SESHAMA: If You refuse, do you know I will use force to drag You inside?

SATHYA: Stop! Do you know who I am?

SESHAMA: You may believe Yourself to be anything, but to me, You are my brother Sathyam.

SATHYA: You are referring to mere worldly relationship, but for Me, there are now no bonds or attachments.

Sathya walks away

SCENE 5

Sathya on rock

Sings Manasa Bhajare

People come

Aarathi

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ANJANEYULU: I am not wise enough to speak to You, but let me anyway mention some thoughts that come to my mind. Don’t go against Your brother’s words. By all means, perform Bhajans here and give Darshan to devotees here, but don’t stay away from home.

LADY: Your elder brother is like Your father. He should not feel pain. So, please go back home.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SATHYA: To one who is liberated from all bondage, everything is the same. The work for which I have come, is just beginning. None must try to stop Me. It is impossible for anyone to do so!

- END OF EPISODE 23 -

 

Speaks on Ethical conduct (part-3)

 

 

 

 

 

*Dear readers please proceed for better understanding after you read part-1,part-2 this post shall be in parts *Sairam .

 

Baba than talked about giving food ..

 

Baba said Nana there are 3 types of feeding .

1. Feeding in the Mass2. Feeding regularly3. Feeding occasionallyYou should feed in mass i.e. in thousands only when you are wealthy and have good intentions. While doing so one should not discriminate on caste, good or bad all they come are worthy. For doing this one should not borrow and get in debt! Hence feeding in the name of God like this also falls in this category.Read More.....

 

Sairam

Baba Guide us all

At the Feet of my Sathguru Sai

Manisha

 

~Shirdi Sai Baba Blog ~

http://sathgurushir disaibaba. blogspot. com/

http://shirdisaibab akripa.blogspot. com/

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The Story of Krishna (continued) PROF G,V

Krishna Outwits Kamsa’s Demons

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Baby Krishna

Loving Sai Ram and greetings from Prashanti Nilayam. As I told you last time, Kamsa, scared to death that the eighth-born of Devaki was still alive, began to try every possible means to kill all new born babies in his kingdom, using the help of demons. One of these agents was a female named Putana, and seeking young babies to kill, she wandered into Gokulam.

There, her attention was attracted by the sight of a steady stream of people, particularly women, going in and coming out of Nanda's house. Investigating the matter, she discovered that it was all due to the presence of a most charming baby in that house. Promptly Putana assumed the form of a beautiful young lady (she had the power to assume any form she desired), entered Nanda's house and requested Yasoda to give her baby Krishna so that she may fondle the child. Yasoda gladly agreed to do this and having some work to attend to, disappeared inside feeling that the baby was safe with the visitor.

What Putana had planned was to feed Krishna; not with milk but a deadly poison; but Krishna quietly sucked away the poison and Putana's life as well. When Putana fell dead she reverted to her natural grotesque form. Shortly after this, Yasoda returned and swooned to see the carcass of a huge demoness and her baby playing nonchalantly by its side. The entire village was mystified by the event, and especially the death of the demoness but none could associate Krishna with her destruction. When Yasoda regained her consciousness, she rushed to the altar to offer her grateful thanks to Narayana for saving her child.

Putana's death was a setback for Kamsa, but he was not ready to give up. A steady procession of demons were despatched to Gokulam as executioners, but as it happened, it was they who got executed. In every case, Krishna managed things so adroitly that the villagers, Yasoda in particular, were led to believe that it was an unseen Divine Hand that was protecting the baby!

Back in Mathura , Vasudeva, who knew the secret about the two boys growing up in Gokulam, constantly thought of them. Anxious that all religious rites meant for protecting children must be gone through in their case also, he summoned his family priest Garga and asked him to drop in at Nanda's house as if casually and perform all due ceremonies. Garga called on Nanda as instructed, whereupon Nanda requested the priest to formally name the two boys. This Garga readily did, naming the son of Rohini as Balarama and that of Yasoda as Krishna . He, then, said to Nanda: "In an earlier birth, this Krishna of yours was born as a son to your relative Vasudeva (in his earlier birth too). For that reason, your son will also be known as Vaasudeva, but right now I would advise you to keep quiet about this other name, lest Kamsa gets funny ideas!"

The Boyhood Pranks of Lord Krishna

If the baby marvels of Krishna were a source of wonder, His childhood Leelas became a source of delight to many and a "headache" to some. Stealing butter from the houses of the various Gopis or cowherd girls, of course in the company of other boys, became a daily ritual and there was no end to the complaints that Yasoda constantly received. (Fresh butter is known as Navaneetam; hence amongst His friends, Krishna was also known as Navaneeta Krishna.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Krishna reveals to Yashoda the entire Universe in His Mouth

One day, when all the children were playing in the courtyard, Balarama ran excitedly to Yasoda and said, "Auntie, Krishna is eating mud by the handful". Perplexed, annoyed and worried, Yasoda rushed to Krishna , and asked Him whether He was eating mud as was being alleged. Krishna , His eyes wide and innocent, shook His head as if to deny. Not believing Him, Yasoda ordered Krishna to open His mouth so that she could check. Obediently Krishna opened His mouth and what did Yasoda see in it? The entire Universe, including herself and her darling Krishna ! Totally dazed, she muttered to herself: "Is this real or is it all a part of the Maya (illusion) of the Lord?"

Incidentally, I might mention that speaking at Prasanthi Nilayam a couple of days before the Birthday in 1994, Mr. P. V. Narasimha Rao, the then Prime Minister of India, described the remarkable changes in the village of Puttaparthi by quoting those very words of Yasoda!

To get back to the story, the vision that Yasoda saw passed, and soon she was back to her role as a happy but tormented mother, while Krishna reverted to being the naughty but adorable son.

On another occasion, Krishna was particularly "difficult" and Yasoda became thoroughly exasperated. Wanting to keep Him under check, she tied a rope around His waist and anchored it to a heavy stone mortar. Feeling secure, Yasoda then went about her work. In the beginning, Krishna passed time watching the birds and the monkeys in the courtyard but getting bored, He began to crawl on all fours, dragging effortlessly behind Him the huge mortar intended by Yasoda to be an anchor. In the courtyard there were two tall trees growing close to each other.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Krishna releases the deites trapped in the trees

Krishna went right between them but the mortar got stuck. When Krishna pulled forward, the trees snapped and fell to the ground. Instantly, they both were transformed into two beings. Falling at Krishna 's feet they said: "O Lord, we are the sons of Kubera, the deity of wealth. We became trees on account of a curse, but by Your Grace, we have received redemption." So saying, they vanished. It all happened on account of the rope tied around His waist (of course, He had willed it be that way) and for this reason Krishna is sometimes referred to as Damodara.

Krishna Moves to Beautiful Brindavan

The inhabitants of Gokulam became concerned that mishaps to Krishna were occurring in a never-ending sequence. True, by God's Grace, no evil had befallen the young one but maybe there was something evil about the very place. Why not therefore move over to some other spot, like the beautiful Brindavan, nestling under the Govardhan Hill (Govardhanagiri) and close to the River Yamuna? And thus it was that Krishna and His Gopala (cowherd) friends soon found themselves frolicking in Brindavan and its neighbourhood.

By now, Krishna was a bit older and He used to join the other boys of the village in taking the cows out everyday for grazing. Kamsa, disturbed as ever that his mortal enemy was still out there somewhere, continued to send his agents on the prowl. One such demon by name Vatsa, disguised himself as a calf and mixed with the bunch of cows and calves taken out by the cowherd boys, waiting for an opportunity to attack Krishna.

But Krishna easily saw through the disguise and made short work of the demon. Another demon by name, Baka, met the same fate, and after Baka, came Agha, the brother of Putana and Baka. Agha assumed the form of a mountainous python and lay in wait for Krishna with his enormous mouth wide open. The Gopalas straying into the neighbourhood mistook the wide-open mouth to be a cavern and entered it in order to explore. The cows and the calves followed the boys but Krishna stayed outside, quietly watching the proceedings. Just as the python was about to close his mouth, Krishna too entered and allowed Himself to be trapped along with the others. When the jaw snapped shut, Krishna began to grow bigger and bigger. Agha tried his best to spit out Krishna but Krishna stayed put till the demon choked to death.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Krishna faces and defeats the awesome maw of the python demon, Agha

Most of the boys were about five years old (which was also roughly Krishna 's age at that time) when this incident took place. Young they might have been but amazed they certainly were by the constant display by Krishna of His extraordinary powers. However, through His shroud of Yogamaya (illusion), Krishna soon made them forget these remarkable incidents, after which Krishna was just like one them!

Brahma Tests Krishna

Meanwhile, Brahma, the Creator, was watching all these events from heaven. He did not know who Krishna really was, and decided to test the limit of Krishna ’s powers. Brahma then came down from heaven while Krishna was dozing under a tree, collected the boys, the cows and the calves and hid them in a cavern. When Krishna woke up, He found that He was all alone. Exercising His Yogic vision, He immediately understood Brahma's game, and smiling to Himself He decided to teach Brahma a lesson.

Accordingly, with a mere wave of His hand, He created an exact replica of all the missing boys, cows and calves; and with this duplicate party, He returned in the evening to the village. On reaching the village, the party dispersed as usual, the boys and the animals going to their respective homes. The villagers did not realise that the boys and animals were duplicates, but they did notice that they felt an unusual love towards them - not surprising, since these boys and animals were nothing but a direct projection of Krishna Himself! As a part of His Divine Leela (sport), the One had become many.

For almost a year, this replica of cows, calves and boys went accompanying Balarama and Krishna everyday to the grazing grounds, returning at sundown; no one suspected that anything was amiss. Meanwhile, Brahma watching from above became puzzled. He had carefully hidden the boys and the animals but here was Krishna taking them out everyday. How could that be? Suddenly it dawned on him that it was Krishna who had duplicated Himself into various forms, and that He was none other than the Supreme Cosmic Reality, now masquerading as a cowherd boy.

Ashamed and repentant, Brahma prostrated before Krishna and begged for forgiveness. The boys and animals originally concealed were duly set free, upon which Krishna made His projections disappear. As he withdrew, Brahma said to himself: "How lucky are these Gopalas to have the Lord constantly in their midst, to move with Him on equal terms, to play with Him, eat with Him and share various experiences with Him! But little do they know who their companion really is." The Lord continues to play the same trick for how easily do we forget who Swami really is!

Dancing on Serpent Kaliya’s Head

Once while grazing the animals, some of the boys felt thirsty and went to a nearby lake to quench their thirst; Krishna did not go with them. Unfortunately, the waters of the lake were poisoned by a huge and deadly snake named Kaliya that lived in it. Therefore, the moment the boys drank the water, they fell dead. After a while, Krishna , finding that the boys who had gone for a drink had not returned, went in search of them along with His other companions and soon came across a pile of corpses by the lakeside. Instantly He knew what had happened and He angrily entered the lake.

The moment He did so, Kaliya attacked Him fiercely and seeing this, Krishna's surviving companions raised a mighty hue and cry. Their wail was so loud that it could be heard in the village, and the people there rushed to the lakeside. And the sight that greeted them was shocking beyond words, for there was their darling Krishna being overwhelmed by the deadly snake Kaliya.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dancing over the hood of the snake, Kaliya, Krishna overwhelms and subdues him

It was of course a part of the drama, and Krishna merely wanted to give the impression that the snake was getting the better of Him. After appearing to struggle for a while, Krishna suddenly turned the tables and soon He was dancing over the spread hood of the subdued snake. (Swami has explained the symbolic meaning - the five-hooded snake represents the five senses. When the senses have no control, the effect is poisonous but when they surrender to the Lord, they become subdued.)

The Darling of the Gopis

Right from the moment of His birth, Krishna was a darling to the Gopis of the village, first as a charming baby and later as a naughty prankster who often stole butter. Much has been written about Krishna 's relationship with the Gopis, a good bit of it with a romantic slant (sometimes, sensuously overdone). Such literature might tend to give the impression that Krishna was something of a playboy. Nothing could be farther from the truth, and Swami has severely condemned all such erroneous portrayals.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As He points out, two things go against this romantic image; firstly, Krishna was barely about five or six years old then and it is therefore patently absurd to attribute romantic motives to His relationships with the Gopis. Secondly, and this is an even more important consideration, Krishna was the Lord descended on earth, and surely one would not expect the Master of the senses to go gallivanting around or acting like a Casanova! Would He, the Ultimate Guru who had come to teach the Gita, set such an example? Obvious though these points are, strangely they have not found expression prior to Swami's comments.

Curing Spiritual Blindness

Another time, once again while out grazing the cows, the boys felt hungry and on the advice of Krishna approached a group of Brahmins for food. The Brahmins who were in the midst of an important ritual would not brook the interference and chased the boys away. Hungry and angry, they returned to Krishna for a new solution to their problem. Krishna smiled and said, "Go again to the Ashram of the Brahmins, but this time you ask the wives of those performing the Yajnas (Yajna-patnis) for food". And when the Gopalas went to the women and asked them for food in Krishna 's name, what a difference it was! Instantly the Yajna-patnis collected all the special food made for the sacrificial offering and rushed to where Krishna was.

These women were not versed in the Vedas nor in the performance of Vedic rituals, but their hearts were full of love for Krishna . They knew who He was, and seeing Him they shed tears of joy - and Krishna obliged them with a glorious Darshan. Later, when the Brahmins heard about the Divine Darshan that their wives had received but which they missed, they repented their folly. The story has a moral which is that love for the Lord is more important than mere scholarship or adherence to rituals; the latter could, as it did in this case, lead to spiritual "blindness".

Teaching Indra a Lesson

Once, when He was about seven years old, Krishna saw everyone in Brindavan preparing for a big Yajna. Curious, He asked Nanda what the excitement was all about. Nanda replied that the village was getting ready to perform a Yajna to propitiate Indra, the King of the angels. Sounding innocent, Krishna asked, "Father, is it not true that the Kingship of the Heaven comes to one who himself performs a hundred sacrifices? So isn't there someone who confers this Kingship?"

When Nanda replied in the affirmative, Krishna then asked, "In that case Father, why don't we worship that Ultimate God, rather than a mere underling of His?" Deeply alarmed, Nanda said, "Sshhh Krishna, don't say such things loud! If Indra hears, then we would all be in trouble." But Krishna would not be quietened so easily, and He continued to insist that the Supreme One alone should be worshipped.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Only the Supreme One should be worshipped

Indra, who did not know who Krishna really was, (a faux pas committed earlier by Brahma), mistook Him for a spoilt brat, and decided to teach the villagers a fitting lesson for not training their children to respect the King of the Heaven. Summoning Varuna (the god of the waters), Indra ordered him to cause a deluge, and duly the rains came with unprecedented fury. Everyone was petrified, and Nanda reproached Krishna for having aroused the wrath of the gods.

Krishna merely smiled as if to say "Why fear when I am here!" and casually lifting the Govardhan Hill, as if it were a mere pebble, held it aloft over the drenched village as a gigantic umbrella. Thwarted in his designs, Indra realised that Krishna was no mere brat, but the Cosmic One in human form; deeply repentant, he fell at Krishna 's Feet seeking pardon.

Kamsa’s End Approaches

The time for Kamsa's extermination was fast approaching, and as if to set the wheels in motion, Sage Narada informed Kamsa that Devaki's eighth son was actually growing up in Brindavan in the house of Nanda and explained how the transfer of Krishna was stage-managed. Given this firm tip, Kamsa initiated fresh steps to trap Krishna ; this time, no effort would be spared but first, Krishna would have to be lured to Mathura . For this purpose, Kamsa organised a grand festival and sent his lieutenant Akrura to specially invite Nanda and his family.

As Akrura's chariot bearing Krishna and the others was about to leave Brindavan for Mathura , the Gopis who had gathered there realised that Krishna would not return and this was a stunning blow. They cried, wept, pleaded and used every trick known to detain Him, but the artful dodger made a neat getaway as there was a job waiting - Kamsa had to be killed, and his parents (Vasudeva and Devaki) had to be freed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

At eight years old, Krishna defeats the mad elephant, Kuvalayapida

As Krishna and Balarama arrived at the special stadium created for staging the sporting events, it was already packed to capacity. Just then, Kamsa arrived and took his seat amidst loud cheering by his henchmen. On a signal from him, the evil plan to do away with Krishna was set in motion. A mad elephant named Kuvalayapida was let loose upon Krishna , but the eight-year old made short work of it, stunning the entire gathering.

A rather bad start for Kamsa who, becoming furious, tried even more wicked methods of extermination; however, every one of them failed. Having slowly worked Kamsa up to the height of fury, Krishna finally tackled him direct and killed him.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kamsa's every attempt to destroy Krishna fails - Krishna's does not

With Kamsa removed, the reign of terror that prevailed in Mathura was over. While the public rejoiced and danced in the streets, Krishna and Balarama rushed to release Vasudeva and Devaki from captivity; and at long last, the tormented parents were reunited with their Divine offspring. Although at birth Krishna had revealed His Divinity to Vasudeva and Devaki, He now made sure that they both came under the spell of His Maya so that they could enjoy Him as their son! Thus it was that Vasudeva, worrying about Krishna 's education, entered Him and Balarama into the Gurukula of Sage Sandipani, where the brothers excelled as model students.

The Lord Meets His ‘Family’

Completing the charade of receiving education, Krishna returned to His parents in Mathura where at long last He learnt all about His relatives. He discovered that His father had a sister named Kunti who had three sons named Yudhishtra, Bhima and Arjuna. Later, I shall give more details about Kunti and her sons, for that is important to our narrative.

To get on with my story, a chance for Krishna to meet Kunti soon arose on account of a total solar eclipse. On such occasions, the pious always gathered at a holy spot and took a cleansing bath on conclusion of the event. Krishna and Balarama went with their parents to a place called Samantapanchaka, close to Kurukshetra, later to become famous. Gathered at the holy spot were men and women, sages and kings, the rich and the poor, and the old and the young. Nanda and Yasoda were there too, and there was an emotional reunion between Krishna and His foster parents.

Meanwhile, Kunti spotted Vasudeva and bitterly complained to her brother for having ignored her so long whereupon Vasudava had to narrate the sad story of how most of his time was spent in prison. The sages who had come there were overjoyed about Krishna 's presence. They rushed to fall at His Lotus Feet, but with a mischievous wink He held them in check. Instead, like an ordinary boy, He prostrated before them and sought their blessings, much to the embarrassment of the holy ones.

Spotting the sages, Vasudeva approached and asked them about the best path to follow in order to achieve purification. With deep feeling, the sages said: "The constant and incessant worship of Narayana is the path to follow. Not only is it the best, but it is also the easiest." A delighted Vasudeva turned to Krishna and said, "Heard that? What a wonderful advice! You too must remember to follow that". Wearing a supremely obedient look, Krishna replied, "Yes, of course father, I shall always remember that constant worship of Narayana is the only path."

That’s all for now, meanwhile, please rejoice that we are so fortunate to have that very same Krishna amidst us right now. All of us must use every means we can command to make the best use of this incomparable opportunity not only to elevate ourselves spiritually, but also to experience true bliss by being one with the Lord in body mind and soul. Jai Sai Ram.

(To be Continued...)

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Message from Bhagavan to Students...

 

See also: Prema Dhara

MESSAGE I am not the body - a mass of flesh, bones and blood I am not the mind - a bundle of wasteful desires manifest and unmanifest I am not the felling of infatuation that obstructs my way to liberation; I Am That Eternal Paramatman, who is aware of the power that I AM

Students!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

with sailove

 

 

Accept My Blessings. Received your letters full of fragrant flowers of information and prayerful salutation. They have caused this nice letter to be sent to you. This letter is giving joy to Sai and bringing Sai to you.

The need of the hour is not to picture life as a garden of happiness and romantic love, but to hold it out as a battle (field) meant to be lived as an ideal of heroism and courage. In the present circumstances, a play of words would be of no use at all. By obtaining mere degrees, we can neither make your motherland glow with glory nor can you blossom for yourselves. Seeking Truth, you should transform yourselves into great devotees, lovers of God and be ready for any supreme sacrifice including laying down life itself. Bidding good-bye to all selfishness and self-interest, making Divine love as the bow and Wisdom as arrow, be heroic students placing your faith in transcendental truth and God.

You should know that you are born to achieve great and stupendous tasks in life. You are the children of God, heroes in action, great soldiers in the age of Kali, full of compassion and Divine Love resolved to make Divinity resound with success in the world.

This is not the time to rest and sleep. The future image of a glorious new Bharath depends on you. The mother is awaiting your arrival on the scene. If the morality of Bharath is destroyed, the world will sink into utter ruin. If the spirituality of Bharath suffers any setback, it will be for the destruction of the world. The unity and the integrity of the nation would suffer a setback. The morality of Bharath is its sweet experience of Divine Love. The Love for God should saturate and flow as the very life-blood. Hearts should fill and overflow with waves of idealism. Don't become slaves of external life and education and destroy the small saplings of spirituality in your heart. Light the lamps of Truth and dispel all weakness in your heart. You are messengers of God and not servants of the Lord of Death. Establish the Kingdom of devotion. Earn

the love of God. Develop spiritual knowledge along with worldly education. Love based on gunas suffers modification. make that transcendental love as your goal in life.

Don't become slaves of low desires and feelings. make spirituality as your dwelling place. Every object in creation is transient. It is only the Bliss of Atma which is inexhaustible. Strive to attain it. Only through Love of God can you attain such bliss and develop it into full fruition. The inner significance of Krishna Tulaa Bhara is to show that all the wealth of the world with all its gold and diamonds cannot match God. It is only Divine Love which is equal to Him. Foster such devotion in your hearts. Most of you have not understood the principles that Swami embodies, nor can you comprehend. Understand Sai's Love. You cannot trace any selfishness in any corner of Sai. Whatever He does, is for your sake. There is nothing in the world which Sai needs.

Camphor is white as also the celestial cow, Stars are white and also the wings of swan, And so is the sweet smile of Beautiful Sai, Sweeter than sweet juice of sugarcane Or even the wine is the Love of Sai.

The Love of Sai is more soothing and comforting than the sight of a beautiful flower or the sweet smile of an innocent child.

Sai's word can confer all joy, happiness and prosperity of the world Sai's look can shower the delight of the rain of the paarijatha flower Sai's hand can confer the comfort of a loving mother's hand. This alone is for your joy and welfare - the conferrer of Love.

I expect from you only one thing i.e., you should transform yourselves into ideal children full of bliss, the very embodiments of Atma, proving all this to the world by your behavior and conduct in life. That alone is True Education. All other types of education are only its limbs and parts.

What happiness did the Demon Somakasura enjoy, stealing the sacred scriptures and abusing Hari? What did ten-headed (Ravana) carry with him, seeking the wife of another person? By how much did Duryodhana gain by even denying an inch of space (to Pandavas)? Could Kamsa, who vengefully and watchfully killed the innocent children, save himself (from death)? Even today that would be the fate of people, who are opposed to Dharma.

What more can I convey to you? Recognizing this truth carefully behave yourselves on proper path and conduct.

Thus, Sai, the Resident of your heart.

Prema Dhara-------

 

 

CHAPTER 2 - TRENDS IN SOCIETY(Continued from the previous issue)

Anil Kumar (AK): Swami! When we say, 'men and women are equal', why then do we find differences and discrimination between the two sexes?

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bhagavan: Physically, men and women are different. But spiritually, i.e., from the atmic point of view, both are equal. In fact, God is the only male while all others are females. The deham, body, is also called puram, dwelling place. It is the principle of atma that works from top to bottom. You know, colleges for women celebrate anniversary functions during which they present cultural items like a play. Here, girls play all the different roles like those of a soldier, a minister, a king, and so on.

Similarly, all but God are women in this world. A similar thing happened in the life of Mira, the great devotee of Lord Krishna. She was stopped at the main entrance of a Krishna temple at Brindavan, and was told that women were not permitted to enter a temple of God . Then Mira replied, "Oh! Is that so! Where are men here? I find only women. God is the only male person. "

However, from the worldly point of view, for the division of work, men and women are different from each other. Everything and everyone is Divine. Even though it is your own body, you don't put slippers or footwear on the head or hands. Functionally, all the parts of the body are different from each other, though they may belong to the same person. So also physically and functionally, men and women are separate entities, though spiritually they are one and the same.

AK: Swami! We hear many funny statements in present day society. People speak about the Women's Liberation Movement. Some say that women have not been given their due place since times immemorial. They complain that there has always been discrimination on grounds of gender, and women have never been given a fair deal. Women now fight for equal rights with men. We pray to you to describe to us the role of women in our society?

Bhagavan: This is not true, spiritually speaking. There is a physical difference, but Atma or the spirit is one. However, each one has to discharge the duties expected of him or her. In a social order, man and woman are like the two hands, the two eyes, and the two feet. One is the positive, while the other is the negative for the current to flow and operate.

 

 

 

 

 

Mr. Sushil Patel

 

Lord Siva is called ardhanaris'vara, androgynous God (half of His body being that of a woman) to explain this unity. Man and woman are like matter and energy. A woman is described as adis'akti, paras'akti Supreme Power, Infinite Power.

You also notice in the history of Bharat ( India ) the place given to women. Many of them are known today for their sacrifice, wisdom, devotion, and many of them could give better and sane advice to their husbands. Characters like Savitri, Mandodari, Sita, Anasuya, Tara, Damayanti, Madalasa, and Draupadi are very well known.

Draupadi served her five husbands most faithfully, never said 'no' to whatever work was assigned to her, and led a life of contentment. When there was a debate between Adi Sankara and Mandanamisra, it was the wife of Mandanamisra, Ubhaya Bharati, who played the role of a judge and pronounced Adi Sankara winner at the end.

In ancient times, Gargi and Maitreyi were known for their outstanding scholarship and spiritual excellence. In recent times, have you not heard of the role played by the mother of Emperor Sivaji and of Gandhi, the Father of the Nation, in moulding their character and personality? They learnt lessons of life in the lap of their mothers! It was due to the love and inspiration of Kausalya and Sita towards their respective sons, Lord Rama and the twins Lava and Kusa, that the latter could earn undying reputation and stand till today as ideals to the entire world.

In our daily prayers we say matr devo bhava, ‘Mother is God’. Don't you see the names of women come first and those of men next, in compounds like SitaRama, GauriSankar, LakshmiNarayanaand and so on? In the past, there never was an instance of women being humiliated, neglected or treated with disrespect. Don't you hear words like 'motherland', 'mother tongue' that speak highly of women?

The Bhagavad Gita refers to seven types of power enjoyed by women as a matter of right. She has quite a few titles that underscore her contribution to the family and her special role. A housewife is called illalu, the one who takes care of the house or illu. She is described as sahadharma carini, the one who guides her husband along the path of Dharma or righteousness. She is praised as grhalaksmi, the very embodiment of the wealth, peace and prosperity of the family. She is called ardhangi, representing a half of man, the better half.

Woman stands for patience, sacrifice, forbearance, respect, humility and obedience, the qualities, which are usually missing among men. A woman is prepared to die for her child or husband. She slogs and struggles for the progress and the well being of the family. She is the backbone of the country. She is the light and the delight of the family.

AK: Swami! A change is very much needed in every field of our activity. Almost all walks of public life are nowadays polluted, disgusting and disappointing. How is change to be brought about?

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bhagavan: Truly speaking, villagers who are unlettered, innocent and rustic are living in greater peace and cooperation, in more intimate relationships, and mutual love than the so called urban, sophisticated, educated, and seemingly cultured people. The latter are full of ego and jealousy.

To bring about a change, they need to work for it. They must put in enough sincere effort to overcome qualities like egoism, pride, jealousy, and hatred. Butter is, no doubt, very soft; but in order to make ghee out of it, you must heat it. Similarly, for any change, you have to work for it.

You should, first of all, listen to all good things from good people. This listening, s'ravana is the first step. It is not enough if you simply listen. You should remember, recall, recollect, and recapitulate the good things you have listened to. This is called manana. The third thing is to practice what you have listened and learnt. This is called nidhidhyasa. Take a small example. First, your food must be cooked in the kitchen. Then it has to be brought and kept on the dining table and served.

It is then that you eat it. Further, the food that you eat must be digested, assimilated, and the nourishment supplied to different parts of your body. Is it not so? Similarly, s'rvana, listening is like cooking; manana, remembering is the same as food kept on the table; whereas nidhidhyasa, practicing what is heard is like eating and digesting.

AK: Swami! We are always in a hurry. We have to rush to so many places to catch up and to keep pace with time and work. In this type of fast life, is it possible to be spiritual? Can we hurry here in the spiritual field too?

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bhagavan: Today, many of the diseases are due to the three factors very common among you: hurry, worry, and curry. Haste makes waste, waste makes worry. So, don't be in a hurry. Patience is very important and essential. In my previous body as Shirdi, I laid emphasis on sraddha and saburi, sincerity and patience.

It is very common to find people running to catch a train or a bus to go to office, and so on. You wait for any length of time standing in long queues in front of cinema theatres. But here, you begin to look at your wrist watches wondering why Swami has not yet come out for darshan! So, you must be patient enough to enjoy real bliss. For anything to happen, there is a proper time, preordained, predetermined, and designed by God. You know Arjuna had to wait till his 74th year in order to listen to the Bhagavad Gita, the Song Celestial, from Krishna, although both of them were moving together for years very intimately. Similarly, you too should wait.

You should not feel, "What is this! Why is Swami not talking to me?" At the right time, I will do the appropriate thing for you. See, how a fruit falls down on the ground soon after it is ripe detaching itself from the tree! You will have to wait till the time is ripe for you. You can't and shouldn't be in a hurry in the spiritual field.

AK: Swami! The growing trend today is to earn more and more money. Ego and pride are growing beyond control. Would you kindly give us the solution for this trend?

Bhagavan: The earth revolves round the sun. So also, man today is revolving round money. In fact, money provides only comfort and conveniences. There are many things that money cannot do.

With money you can have delicious food in a five star hotel - but how about your appetite? You can buy a beautiful bed - but can you buy sleep? You can have the latest, costliest medicines - but can you with your money extend the life of a dying man?

You think money makes many things, but it is not so; it leads you on to vices. People have two important resources: 'Head' and 'Heart'. Head carries with it responsibility. It has all the knowledge of pravrtti, the external world, but heart stands for nivrtti, right internal awakening. Values like sacrifice, truth, charity, love, compassion, come out of the heart. All that you find outside is only 'art', but 'heart' is inside. Don't be carried away by the outer 'art'.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The breeze you get from a number of electric fans is nothing compared to natural breeze. Tank water, river water, and lake water can never equal rain water. God is infinite. Where does man stand in front of Him? Why are you egoistic and proud? What for? Mountains may be of high altitude. But, water from the mountain top flows only downward. Similarly, you may be a great scholar or occupy a good position. If you are proud and egoistic, your fall is near. Light travels upward. So also, the fire of knowledge takes you to the heights. In fact, modern man is much worse than cats and dogs. When they are sick they do not eat anything, they fast or starve. However, man is for a feast even in times of sickness. He never 'fasts'; He only likes 'feasts'. Therefore he falls sick frequently.

The cycle of creation goes by the three attributes or Gunas: tamas, inertia, rajas, passion, and sattva, piety represented by the triune, Brahma, Creator; Vishnu, Sustainer; and Siva, Annihilator. Among the eighty-four lakhs of species, the human being is very special. He is blessed by God, his Creator, with mind and intellect. But man has become so egoistic and proud that he even doubts, questions, and denies God, his Creator. This is the significance of the episode of Mohini Bhasmasura in our epics.

There was one demon king by name Bhasmasura. He did penance and pleased Lord Siva. He prayed to Siva to grant him a boon that would give him the power to turn anybody into ashes the moment he lays his hands on his head. Siva granted the boon. Thus, intoxicated with this new found power, Bhasmasura began laying his hand indiscriminately on the heads of all those persons he found near him. Naturally, according to the boon he got from God, they died and were burnt to ashes.

He became so horrible, and highly egoistic that he decided to place his hand even on the head of Siva, the very giver of the boon. Then Lord Vishnu took the form of a beautiful dancer Mohini, and started dancing in front of Bhasmasura who, excited by her enchanting beauty, also started dancing along with her. In the course of gestures and postures, Mohini suddenly put Her hand on Her head and Bhasmasura did the same thing. The moment he placed his hand on his head, he died. So, by denying God, man is ruining himself.

Modern man is like Bhasmasura. He harms the person who helps him. Whatever is said, thought, and done by him is full of selfishness. He has lost the value of fundamental discrimination, which is applicable to all and beneficial to everyone. He lacks divine qualities like truth, peace and love. This is the flaw. He lacks divine qualities and possesses demonic qualities like jealousy, pride, and hatred. He ‘kills’ knowledge; he has to 'skill' his knowledge to maintain balance.

This is the reason for all his troubles. He removes the letter 'S' that stands for 'Sai' from the word 'skill' and loses balance. Ego, avarice, jealousy, and such bad qualities are due to our ahara, vihara, and samparka: food, company, and interaction. When you control and discipline yourself, you will find the solution.

AK: Swami! In an organisation where we have to interact with people, most often we come across people criticizing and blaming each other. This is very frustrating, and divides people into groups. Sincere persons become frustrated because of uncharitable criticism. It looks like character assassination and mud slinging. How are we to take this evil prevalent everywhere?

Bhagavan: It is a sin to criticize others. It is a sign of weakness and inferiority complex. You shouldn't criticize or hate anyone. In fact, no one has any authority to criticize others. To tackle this, first of all, one should put a question to oneself: "Who is being criticized?" Then, you don't feel upset any longer. Why? If the criticism applies to your body, you don't need to feel bad because the body is temporary and ephemeral. You should be indifferent to your own body, which lands you in many difficulties and problems.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The other man is doing service to you by criticizing your body. You should be thankful to him for doing so on your behalf. Is it then, the spirit or atma that is criticized? This is not possible because the same soul or atma is present in the critic also. Atma is Self, the same in all. Then, who is the critic and who is criticized? It all amounts to the criticism of one's own self. Ego and jealousy are the root causes that provoke a person to criticize others.

You have put another question. You want to know how you should react to criticism against you. A small example: Suppose you receive a registered letter. If you don't want to accept it, you can refuse to take delivery. The registered letter will then go back to the sender. Will it not? Similarly, criticism against you is a registered letter.

Don't acknowledge and receive it. Refuse it, so that the same registered letter of criticism will go back to the sender, the critic himself. If anyone speaks loudly and belligerently against you in public, it is all lost in the air or in your vicinity. If anybody accuses you secretly, it goes to the accuser himself.

What I feel is that one has to be judged by one's merits and not by one's faults. I ask you repeatedly to seek out your own faults and others' merits. If you enquire deeply, you will notice that personal criticism is nothing but the ‘reflection of the inner being’. You spot the bad in the outside world, because of the bad in you. There is nothing that you can find outside yourself. Duryodhana was asked to go in search of a good man. He returned saying that he had found none.

If you want to know any good person existing in this world, it is yourself only. Dharmaja was asked to go round and bring a bad person. He returned saying that there was none who was bad other than himself. This is the difference in the attitude of two persons with different views of life. As is your vision, so appears the creation. As is the colour of the glasses you wear, so is the colour of the world you see. If you are aware of this truth, you will never criticize anybody.

Sarva jiva namaskarah kes'avam prati gacchati, ‘whomsoever you respect and revere, it amounts to reverence unto God’. Since God is in everyone, if you respect anyone, it means, you respect God. Similarly, sarva jiva tiraskarah kes'avam prati gacchati, ‘whomsoever you hate, it amounts to hatred of the Divine Himself’. If you deeply look into the eyes of the man standing in front of you, you see your own reflection. Therefore, he is not a separate person but your own reflection.

There is only one without the second, i.e., God who is present in all. When you point out your forefinger at the mistakes of another man, three fingers of yours are turned towards you, reminding you of your own mistakes. If you understand this, you won't criticize anybody or blame anybody. God gives and forgives. I often tell you, past is past and it is beyond recovery. Hence, be careful hereafter.

 

(To be continued...)

– Heart2Heart Team

 

---------------------

 

SathySai Lingodbhava - Mystery Of The Shiva Lingam

 

 

 

Posted on May 28, 2008 by sathyasaibaba

 

 

Sathya Sai Lingodbhava - Mystery Of The Shiva LingamHistorical Background Of Lingodbhava by Professor N. Kasturi:

 

“Until 1956, the Shivaratri all-night vigil and Bhajan could be held in the Prayer Hall itself. Sai Baba sat on the silver chair placed on over a tiger skin on a low platform. When the slower hand of the clock hovered near eight, the Linga or Lingas indicated the desire to emerge and Baba showed signs of physical struggle to smoothen their way out. Year after year, 1 have stood on His left, holding silver jug of water. Seshagiri Rao stood on the right with a silver plate to receive the Linga as it fell out. At predetermined moments, proceeding through the gullet, the Linga presented itself for public view and personal use. One year eleven Lingas emerged in a row, one behind the other. Another year, there were nine. He has given Me one of the nine. It is worshipped with Mantras prescribed in the scriptures. The Linga miracle does happen annually on every Shivaratri day wherever Baba happens to be.” (Prof Kasturi, SS, 3/99,

p.81)

Sathya Sai Baba: Meaning Of The Lingam (Lingham - Lingum):

 

“Just as OM is the ’sound symbol’ of God, the Linga is ‘form symbol’ or visible symbol of God - the most meaningful, the simplest and the least endowed with appendages of attributes. The Linga means, that in which this Jagat (world of change) attains Laya or mergence or dissolution (Leeyate). All forms merge in the Formless at last. Shiva is the Principle of Destruction of all names and forms, of all entities and individuals. So, the Linga is the simplest sign of emergence and mergence.” (Sai Baba, SS, 3/99, last cover page)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next &gt

 

 

 

 

 

NEAR AND DEAR FOREVER

By Mrs. Dipali Arun

 

 

 

 

An alumna of the Anantapur campus of the Sri Sathya Sai University from 1982-1987, Dipali Arun graduated with a degree in B. A (Political Science). She hails from a family that has looked up to Swami as an Avatar since 1950's. She got married right after completion of her Bachelors Degree, and in 1991 she moved to Ottawa, Canada. She is actively involved in the activities of the Sai Centre there, currently serving as the President of the Sri Sathya Sai Baba Center of Ottawa-Carleton in Canada.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mrs. Dipali Arun with Prof. N. Kasturi, 1970

 

 

It was on January 19, 1970, that I first put my little feet on the holy sands of Prashanti Nilayam in Puttaparthi, India. This is where the abode of my Mother Sai is located. My parents and I had traveled from Shillong (northeast India) by car and were on our way to Bangalore where my grandparents lived.

 

My maternal grandparents were Swami’s devotees from a long time, but it was my father’s father that had recently come into the Sai fold. My grandfather had requested my father to visit Puttaparthi on the way. My mother had told herself that until her husband took her to Bhagavan, she would not have His Darshan. That dream was to be fulfilled soon.

 

I do not remember much of that wonderful morning, in 1970, when I was only four and half years old, but it is clear in my memory due to my parents’ constant recollection. Early next morning, my mother was packing and father was loading the car. Sai Geeta, Swami’s pet elephant, was tied to one of the trees near the Mandir and I was running around her in total fascination as she frolicked on the fine sands.

 

It was at that time Kasturi uncle (Mr. N. Kasturi) came running to my parents and requested us to go to the verandah of the old Mandir as Swami had asked for us. My father was surprised at this, but left the packing and we ran to the verandah. On the advice on Kasturi uncle, my father quickly ran outside the Nilayam and brought a slate and chalk. My parents and I sat patiently waiting for the Call.

 

Coming Near to the Lord

 

Soon enough, Swami ushered us into the interview room along with a few Italian devotees. As we settled down, He caught my father off guard when He asked him to stand up and translate. Swami spoke in Kannada, my mother tongue, while my father translated it into English for the rest of the group to understand. Swami spoke about many things of a spiritual nature. But the key point He made and wanted us all to understand was: Swami’s Grace is always there. It is for us to open our hearts to Him so that He can reside there. If we keep our pot facing upwards we can collect His Grace, but if it is left overturned, how can we expect the pot to get full? He also mentioned that ‘near is not important, dear is more important’.

 

It was at this point that my father understood why he had been asked to translate even if Swami did know to speak in English. We had come a long way to Puttaparthi from the North-eastern part of India. Swami stresses that it is not important to be close to Him physically, but to love Him and follow His teachings and hence be close to Him by keeping Him in our heart. Even if we are thousands of miles away from Puttaparthi, we constantly feel the presence of Swami. After some time Swami took us to the inner room. We were with Swami for about an hour. He graciously went into depths of many subjects with my parents, answering all their questions and giving spiritual solace to their souls.

 

In the meanwhile I must have been exhausted and so, fell asleep. When I woke up, Swami made me sit beside Him on the chair , put His Hands around me and holding my hand made me write many times on the slate. Speaking in Kannada to my parents, Swami said, “How many people get this opportunity? She is a fish that is caught in the hook. She has no escape.”

 

He then materialized a locket with the face of Shirdi Baba on one side with the inscription: “You look to me, I look to you”, and on the other side, it had the face of Swami in Abhaya Hasta (blessing) pose with the words “Why fear when I am here”. Today, as I recollect what my parents have told me, I wish I had been older to have remembered this precious moment.

 

I learned three important lessons from that memorable day: “Have faith in Him”, “Be free from fear, anxiety and agitation” and “Surrender to God; His Grace can save you, His Wisdom can enlighten you and His Power can overcome all obstacles”. Faith and surrender are the manifestations of devotion.

 

I have been associated with the Sai Organization since my childhood. I regularly attended Bal Vikas and took an active part in the center’s Narayan Seva. The best part of helping out in the kitchen was the special bowl of kheer (sweet rice pudding) that would always be saved for me by one of the aunties or uncles working in the kitchen as they knew it was my favorite. Many years went by and in the course of time, we moved to Bangalore. I had just completed my grade 10 and was awaiting my results to apply to Pre-University (grade 11 and 12 as it is known in North America ).

 

Chosen to be His Student

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One morning, I woke up and questioned my father as to where Anantapur was. He was surprised and wondered where I came across that place. I mentioned that I had a dream in which Swami had asked me to come to Anantapur. That was the first time I came to know that He had a college just for women.

 

I knew then and there that it was the place for me. Next day, my maternal grandmother, father and I packed up and left to Puttaparthi to see how I could get admission into Anantapur. We had only planned to be away for a few days, but eventually we stayed for more than a week. I had a letter for Swami, but I was not allowed to sit in the front because I was young and in a salwar kameez.

 

I was quite disappointed. So one morning, I borrowed my grandmother’s sari and blouse and using a great number of safety pins, was able to hold up the sari in place. My excitement knew no bounds when the sevadal (volunteers) allowed me to sit in the very first row. And I was elated when Swami came and took my letter. I knew my Divine Mother would take care of me and was also confident about going to Anantapur soon.

 

During my stay in Puttaparthi, I was able to meet our Principal and Warden and I picked up the application forms for admission. I was also introduced to a family friend whose daughter was studying in Anantapur at that time. Little did I know that she would be my mentor for the next few years during my stay in Anantapur.

 

After returning to Bangalore , I decided to apply to all three programs (Science, Arts and Commerce). It did not matter to me what I studied as long as I was in Swami’s college. I waited anxiously every day to hear some good news. It seemed like eternity. By now, my mother was a bit restless, in case I did not make it because it was too late to apply in Bangalore. Finally, one morning there was exciting news; a postcard had arrived from the college. I had made it into the Arts program but had not received hostel placement. This did not seem to deter any of us as we came with the car loaded with all my personal items, clothes and bedding. If Swami has called me here He will take care of the details.

 

Soon I had the interview with the Principal Hemalata Madam, Warden Jayamma Madam and Pushpa Madam. I was told to wait till the end of the day to know if I could have a hostel seat. We went out into the college lounge and were deciding what we should do for the rest of the day, when I was called again inside the principal’s room. I was asked if I could handle the rigors and the discipline of the hostel life. My joy knew no bounds. I never questioned whether I could endure hostel life; all that mattered was to be in Swami’s college and close to Him.

 

"See my girls, how they float on wheels" - Baba

 

During my stay at Anantapur, every year I participated in the annual sports day. Swami would come and watch us compete in various races. He would give out the shields to the teams that had won in various team sports we had like basketball, volleyball, badminton and other games. One such sports day, I had participated in the sack race, and to my happiness, I came first. The first and second place winners were allowed to stand on the podium to receive Swami’s blessings.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In sack race 1st place finish...

 

 

 

 

Blessed by her heart's Number One

 

By my fourth year at Anantapur, a couple of us wanted to try something different for our daily sports activity. We bought roller skates and would skate around the corridors of the college after hours. It was a lot of fun! One day, as we were skating around the corridors, we had this grand idea of presenting a musical program in front of Swami, incorporating our newly acquired skill. The thought made us very excited and we presented our idea to our sports teacher. She wanted further information regarding the proposed program before she could present it to the principal.

 

We gathered more girls who were also interested in learning how to skate. The ten of us planned the music and the steps to go with it. When we were ready, we had the sports teacher and the principal see our skate program. We were elated when we received approval. We girls spent a lot of time practicing together. Finally, the big day arrived when Swami visited our campus. That special day was January 18, 1986. It was our annual sports day at Anantapur.

 

Special arrangements had been made in the library for this program. We performed before the Almighty Lord. We were excited beyond words to get this very special opportunity to perform for Him. The proximity with the Lord was thrilling. At the end of the short dance on skates He came amongst us and appeared to be amazed at our dexterity, and He kept mentioning to all around Him "See my girls, how they float on wheels". His innocence and astonishment were obvious and contagious. I was overwhelmed with joy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Skating in library in the Divine Presence

 

 

 

 

Swami wants to know more about their performance

 

So far that was the happiest day of my life! Just when I thought that was the ultimate experience of our life, Swami confirmed that He would like us to perform the same program during our annual sports day festivities at the Hill View Stadium at Puttaparthi the coming year. I am sure you can imagine our happiness. We were busy wiping the tears of joy as fast as possible so as to not cloud our vision to behold the Lord. We did not want this moment to end.

 

Finally, He posed for pictures and blessed us all. Each of us took our time to take padanamaskaram. We did not want to get up after placing our head on His Lotus Feet. They were as soft as rose petals. It felt as though nothing else in the world seemed important anymore. Before we realized, our special day with Swami had ended and our thoughts started racing in preparation and anticipation of the sports day to come.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sports Day, 1987 in the Vidyagiri Stadium

 

 

Soon we were preoccupied with exams and the college closed for the summer holidays. Back to Anantapur the following school year, we were busy with practice and deciding the costumes. Everything had to be perfect in order to be a worthy offering, befitting our Mother Sai.

 

The day finally came on January 11, 1987 when we were able to perform our program. We had a march by the girls and we skated on the basketball court in the Hill View Stadium. By Swami's Grace and Blessings all went very well and He kept talking about our achievement to the boys. He boasted like a proud mother, how His girls were able to skate and were so graceful.

 

This, of course, I heard later from my cousin who was also a student and was around Swami at that time. This was my last year in Swami's college. He made it so memorable!

 

Unforgettable Anantapur Memories

 

I never realized how the five years had gone by. Every festival or holiday would be spent at Puttaparthi. In fact, my parents had to come to Puttaparthi to see me at those times. During my stay there, many would ask how tough the hostel life was. What can I say, everyone has different experiences. As for me, my years there have taught me to adjust with different kinds of people, and brought me closer to My Swami. The numerous trips to Puttaparthi made my relationship with God, My Divine Mother even stronger.

 

Every day, every moment of my stay in Anantapur had been memorable. The late nights I spent studying for exams with my classmates, the bus trips to Puttaparthi, the midnight snacks and even the evening snack time sitting in the hostel corridors shooing away the bold black crows are days I will never forget. In fact, we lost our snacks to the crows many times as they would literally chase us till we gave it up. Unbelievable! They even stole hair oil bottles from my hostel room window. Amazing!

 

Furthermore, memories of sleeping in the dormitory at Puttaparthi and waking up in the wee hours of the morning for ice-cold water baths to beat the rush in the morning are still so fresh in my mind. The midnight baths were only to make sure I was among the first few when we form the lineup in the morning and that would give me the chance to sit in the first couple of rows at darshan time. No day was ordinary; each was attached to special memories.

 

‘He is My Friend and Guide’

 

It was during my final year of studies that I was engaged to be married. As every Anantapur girl’s dream, I too was praying to Swami that He should bless me with a husband who believed in Him. During our interview with Swami (to the graduating students), He said that as women we had various duties to perform. We should be a good daughter, a good daughter-in-law, a good wife and a good mother. Only then is Swami happy with us.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Final year interview in the Bhajan Hall

 

We have to remember and practice all that we have learnt over the years at Anantapur. Before I left Puttaparthi, I offered Swami my wedding card. Even without looking inside, He spoke to me in Hindi saying, “The boy is from Delhi; he is a good boy”. Well, at that time my husband was working in Delhi and hence that was a way of Swami telling me that He knew everything. He knew I would not get married without His approval.

 

On my husband’s first visit to Puttaparthi, Swami created vibhuti and gave it to both him and my father. I was happy as Swami had given His Blessings. I will not say that my life has been a bed of roses after that, but my gratitude to Swami and of course to my husband who has never questioned my faith or belief, and has made it possible for me to pass on my love and faith in Swami to my children.

 

Swami has been and will ever be my life force. In various ways, He shows me He is with me all the time. He has protected me and my family many times and I wonder how I would ever survive without Him and His Love. As He told me: “Why Fear When I Am Here, You Look To Me I Look To You”, He has never left my side.

 

In early 1989, I had just returned to Delhi with my three month old daughter. I was sitting on the scooter behind my husband with my daughter on my lap. We were on our way to Ram Manohar Lohia Hopsital. All of a sudden as we were getting onto the ramp I was thrown off the scooter, and all I can remember was screaming “Sai Ram” and holding tightly to my baby. I was totally shaken with the fall and for having fallen on her. I slowly stood up and checked on my daughter. It was amazing that there was not a single scratch on any of us! By Swami’s grace we were able to drive home safely. He holds out His Hand in protection and gives us the courage to face life.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A few years later we moved to Ottawa , Canada. My daughter was in third grade and I wanted her to learn Indian classical vocal music. I was relatively new in Ottawa and did not know too many people. Someone had given me a name of a music teacher. My husband, my daughter and I went to meet the teacher.

 

Just as we walked into the house, who did I see? A beautiful picture of Swami in abhayahasta (blessing posture) was right in front of the door. This was definitely not a coincidence! This is how Swami shows us everyday how He is a part of our lives no matter where we live. He is my Divine Mother and I am His daughter. He knows my inner most thoughts.

 

What I am today is because of Him. He has been taking care of me ever since I can remember. He has held my hand when I was going astray and brought me back to the right path. He is my friend and guide. So many years later and being so many miles away from the physical presence of the avatar, it is hard to pinpoint any one instance or another illustrating His Omnipresence or His Love.

 

My very existence and who I am is because of Him. Every day in some way or the other He shows me He is with me and taking care of me and my family. These signs come in the form of what I see, hear or read. As Swami told my parents, His Love and Grace are always there, but it is up to us to collect it. Have we kept our vessel (our heart and mind) facing up and open to collect His Grace?

 

Becoming His Instrument

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As Jesus said, “To whom much is given, much shall be expected of him”. My Divine Mother has been giving me more than I ever asked for. He has said, “Once His student, always His student”. He is always testing me, checking to see to see if I will rise to His expectations. He pushes me to strive for the best. My biggest test came last year when I was nominated to be the President of the Ottawa Sai Center.

 

I was taken aback and thought I did not have the expertise or confidence to carry out this task. But this is not what He expects from His students. He expects us to be prepared for any situation and rise to the occasion. Hence I began my new role as the President praying to the Almighty to always be His instrument and carry out His task. I pray to Him to mold me and make me His instrument so that I may fulfill His Mission with all love, humility and confidence.

 

It is not waiting for the big events to happen in my life that I need to know He is there. It is in all the little things that happen every day that He shows His presence and His infinite Love. He sends messages in very simple ways. If you are not in tune with Him you could easily miss it out. All we have to do is to tune to His frequency and we can see Him, hear Him and experience His Grace and Bliss. I love you Swami, thank you for everything.

 

 

 

The Future is in His Hands

There are 12 boys in this divine home. “What are your future plans for these boys? How long would you support them?” I asked Susant. “We generally think of supporting them up to X or XII grade. Then we will give them vocational training, and set them up in a job. But if we find anyone really worthy of pursuing a higher course, and Swami enables us to support him, we will gladly do so”.

“Aren’t you thinking of expanding this little place, and giving them more space to grow up?”

“Of course we would very much like to. This place does not belong to us. A benevolent Sai brother has allowed us to use this house of his rent-free, until we build our own campus. We need at least 5/6 acres of land to build our own house to serve around 25 children. All this would cost us 40 to 50 lakhs. But all in its good time. When Swami wills it, He would help us expand.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Excited at the excursion - On a visit to a zoo...

 

 

 

 

A glimpse of the animal park

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Being led by an enthusiastic well-wisher

 

 

 

 

Inside the park - lost in an animal spectacle

Silently listening with us to this beautiful story of love and service, was Dr. Mohapatra, a self made artist and sculptor, a senior Reader in Commerce at Ravenshaw College , a deemed University in Cuttack . He immediately offered to come to the ashram at regular intervals to teach the boys art and artistic values, and help them in some handicraft projects. We were very glad. Bhagavan’s Hands were visible.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The All India President congratulates, inspires and shares much love

 

 

 

 

Mr. V. Srinivasan appreciates the contribution of the dedicated couple who provided space for the project

They felt the unseen Presence of the Lord even more when, all of a sudden, the All India President of Sri Sathya Sai Seva Organisations, Mr. V Srinivasan, paid a visit to this Sai home of service on January 18 this year (2008). It was a memorable day for Sai Anandam. The distinguished instrument of the Lord spent about 45 minutes with the inmates, and even delivered a short address to the inmates and the people gathered there. Before he left, He generously contributed to their resource-pool and also distributed T-shirts to the boys.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The All India President seeing the Sai Anandam brochure

 

 

 

 

Heartily appluading the service being rendered by Mr. Lala Sushant and other Sai Alumni

Hand in Hand with Love and Service

“You said you have a paid employee at the ashram. What does he do, and how much do you pay him?” I asked Lala Susant. “Is he single or married?”

“He is married, with a daughter who is six years old, and we cannot pay him more than Rs. 2,000 a month. He looks after the boys, stays with them the whole day, eats with them, and returns at night. Sometimes his wife also comes to help with the boys.”

“But this is very meagre. How does he manage with such a small amount?”

“We know this, but he insists on coming. Both of them say, ‘You give us less than what we need. But we get great satisfaction in working for God’s children’.”

I met the young man. Dukhishyam has done his XII grade, gave up his earlier job in an iron and steel company to join Sai Anandam. A tall youth, with a well defined face, always eager to learn how to be more useful in moulding the boys into useful citizens. This is the only way he could serve Swami, and hopefully get closer to Him, he says. I met three other local young men who help with the boys in various ways. One of them is doing a Bachelors in Computer Applications, who teaches them bhajans and mathematics. Kalindi is a graduate, associated with the Home from the beginning.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Sai children with the State President of Sri Sathya Sai Seva Organisation, Orissa

 

 

 

 

The 'white brigade' with their dearest friends, guardians, supporters and care-takers, majority being Sai Alumni

He is paid Rs.1,500 per month, stays most of the time in the ashram, and does any odd jobs. He is happy to be associated with this home of love and service. He says he has improved spiritually to a great extent after joining the ashram. Rakesh is doing his graduation, and pursues videography as a profession, but spends all his spare time with the boys, teaching, and looking after them. A happy and carefree young man, he is grateful to Swami for his association with the Sai students, which saved him from the usual evil ways of the modern youth.

It is a great love story, I thought.

Sai - The Eternal Inspirer

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

They are now reaching out to their dreams...with Sai in their hearts, nothing seems impossible

Mr. Vivekananda Sahoo, an alumnus of Sri Sathya Sai University, who too visited this nest of love, reflecting later on this ennobling experience, said, “These children, like tender saplings, need a protective fence. What they need, more than food, clothing and shelter (though they need these too, desperately) is to feel wanted. It is their label ‘outcast’ that imposes upon them the most agonizing frame of mind.

Denied of love by the world around, these saplings perish. A few who live through all harsh reality, bearing the deep scars which are the gift of their cruel home, are often deemed misfits in society. Who is to be blamed: The tender saplings or the merciless world around them? Are we a part of this cruel world or can we make a difference for these less fortunate blossoms?

“On a cold winter night, it seems, a man saw a child shivering on the road. She was hungry and her clothes were in tatters. The man was very angry with God for letting this happen to an innocent child; why isn't He doing anything about it? That night He came in his dream and quietly said, ‘I certainly did something for it. I made you!’

“The Sai Avatar has taken three vows:

1) To foster all mankind and ensure for all of them lives full of Ananda (bliss).

2) To lead all who stray away from the straight path, again into goodness and save them.

3) To remove the sufferings of the poor and grant them what they lack.

“Eighty years and more, and He has never sat down and slackened His Work to fulfill these three vows. The more I look and read these promises, the more it dawns upon my heart the purpose of our lives and the reason why Sai Anandam was born. We are the miracles of Life here to make a difference in the world! That is our Mission! To make His life our message, the above vows are ours too. And as I left the compound of Sai Anandam, I knew He was smiling at us. His children were emulating Him and walking in His footsteps. The Journey had begun and this is far more wonderful than the reaching of the destination.”

As I pondered over what I saw and experienced, and the reflections of another inspired Sai student, I realized why the world doesn’t end with a bang, though it is said to have started with one. It is because such love stories, amazingly designed and developed by the Divine, never end. The good and kind Lord lives in His devotees, who live for Him.

 

 

-- SWAMI'S YUGER MANDIR

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

FROM PUTTAPARTHI...SWAMI GAVE LIFE TO THE DEAD !!! -------------------

Mr. Narasimha Murthy, the warden of the hostel then and narrated this in the Divine Presence of Baba on 1-11- 2004. (Photo attached)

 

 

 

It was the month of Oct. '85, early in the morning, one of the PhD Scholars who was a chronic asthma patient was unable to breathe. We rushed him to the Puttaparthi General Hospital. The boy's name was Narayan Sharma & was from Bombay.

By the time we took him to the hospital, the body had become cold and blue. There was a lady doctor who attended on him. There was no pulse, no breath. Dr. Chari, the Medical Superintendent of the hospital rushed from his home. He also checked him up and informed all of us present there, 'He is no more. The boy is dead.'

It was Dr. Chari who walked to the Mandir and submitted to Swami the whole episode. Swami said, "Nothing will happen to him. He is fine!!!" Swami then materialized Vibhuti and gave it to Dr. Chari and said, "Apply it on his chest and put hot-water bags on his back." Dr. Chari returned and the Vibhuti and hot water bags were applied.

Yet, we were in a state of fix & did not know what to do as there was no pulse, no breathing still. The body was still cold and blue. For all practical purposes, he was dead. The doctors then told me, 'Mr. Narasimha Murthy, now it is your turn to go and report to Swami.'

It was 6.30 in the morning & I walked up to the Mandir to report to Swami. Swami said, "Nothing has happened to him." In fact, He gave me a thermos flask filled with hot coffee and said, "Go and give it to him!!!"

When I reached the hospital, the lady doctor looked at me with the flask and asked, 'For whom is this coffee?' I could barely say anything. I just very reluctantly showed the patient. Her face became completely expressionless & her looks said, "Mr. Warden, have you lost your brain?"

The body of Narayana Sharma was covered with a white sheet. Only his toes were seen. And then suddenly, we saw movements! His toes were moving! The boy could not open his eyes, but the toes were moving. Slowly, the breathing was coming back. And then, the Doctor whispered these words into his ears, "See boy, Swami has sent coffee for you. Please take it!!!"

One spoon of coffee was fed into his mouth and he took it in! Then, slowly spoon by spoon coffee was being fed into his mouth. The pulse was returning. Just then Swami arrived!!!

Hearing Swami's voice, the boy slowly tried to open his eyes. Swami came near the boy and said, "What boy! Everybody said you are dead. Still you are alive!" Then Swami asked all the three doctors present there, Dr. Chari and two lady doctors, "Was he dead?"

All of them said, "Yes, Swami. He was dead." Then He asked one of the lady doctors, "How do you say that he was dead?"

"Swami, according to us, there was no pulse, no breathing, no heartbeat; the body was cold and blue. Going by medical science, that is death."

"Then how did he come back?" He asked.

"Swami, you are God. You can do anything." The lady doctor replied.

Swami then looked at me and said, "Go and tell others outside what has happened here." Swami confirmed that He had brought back the boy to life!

And then Swami materialized a kind of brownish chocolate and gave it to the boy. The boy immediately put it into his mouth. After returning to the Mandir, Swami materialized three bottles of tablets and sent them to the hospital with detailed instructions as to how these tablets are to be administered!!!

The boy was soon in the hostel busy with his research and completed his PhD! TRUST HIM!!! AS IS YOUR FAITH, SO IS THE EXPERIENCE…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Thu, 1 May 2008 02:30:29 +0530

 

 

 

"Sai Spiritual Showers Team" <noreply

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A few days remained for the Navaratri festival to begin at Prasanthi Nilayam. I was at Madras, having no hopes of witnessing the grand celebrations at Parthi.

One night Bhagawan appeared in my dream. The next night too He appeared in my dream and repeated His order, "Leave for Parthi immediately." I dreamt that I pleaded with Him, "Oh Baba! How to come to You when I am caught in the coils of never ending troubles." Bhagawan replied, "Nonsense! Come immediately." I was worried how I could leave for Parthi when my mother and sister were critically ill, and I not much better than they. The day passed while I was in a dilemma.

On the third night again my Lord appeared in my dream but not as Sai Baba, but as Sai Shiva, for He looked at poor me with angry eyes and lashed and thrashed me verbally for not obeying His divine command, and once again He summoned me to Parthi, without regard to my tearful pleadings.

I woke up in the morning dazed. I was unable to make up my mind. But the thought of Bhagawan again coming in my dream made me tremble. I dared not keep my head on the pillow, fearing I would fall asleep and He might again appear in my dream and give me another sound verbal thrashing. Somehow I decided to leave for Parthi that very night.

That day Madras seemed to have incurred the wrath of Indra for it rained incessantly. With the help of our sympathetic neighbour, my ailing mother, sister and myself boarded the night bus for Anantapur. We were to reach Anantapur at dawn. We spent the night miserably but waiting for the glorious day to dawn. As the bus sped by, tearing through the dark night I pined to see the golden rays of the sun. My childish emotions overpowered me, for I accused the sun of being lazy and a late riser. It was not too long when my angry accusation turned into prayers too. I prayed to the sun to rise fast at least for my sake. But the sun took his own sweet time, and the day dawned.

The bus was nearing Anantapur when it came to a halt with a sudden jolt. There was a bridge which it had to cross. It was heavily flooded. All around was a scene of destruction. The bus took an hour to cross the flooded bridge, with great difficulty. After we had crossed the bridge, to our great delight we found a bus going to Puttaparthi trying to cross the bridge. Our bus conductor advised us three to quickly get down and board the bus leaving for Parthi, without our going to the Anantapur bus stand. We hurriedly brought our luggage down and boarded the Puttaparthi bus. The latter's conductor was very hostile. He rudely said, "There is no place, so get off the bus." When I tried to request him, he took our luggage and threw it out of the bus, and forced us to get down. To our great dismay we found that the Anantapur bus was nowhere in sight and the deserted look all around made me shiver in fright. To my great surprise, as soon as we

got down from the bus bound for Parthi, the bus could not move as its engine refused to start. Half of its chassis was in the water and half on dry land. It could neither proceed forward nor go back. It refused to move an inch.

My mother and sister seated themselves on the luggage and were on the verge of collapse. I stood beside the raging river and viewed the angry waters, while mother sat lost in prayer or despair, I do not know. Broken logs of timber rolled and came dashing against the bridge. The corpse of a goat was caught in the swift current of the swirling waters. The dark sky above seemed to be determined on a downpour to drench us, The grim situation cast a gloomy spell on me. I cursed myself for being responsible for the watery grave I had chosen, as I felt our end not far.

Something said within me that the Lord is my host and why should I give myself away to despair and frustration. No sooner had this thought occurred in my mind than I felt the pressure of a hand on my back. I whirled round and saw, "a white long robed yogi with a white beard and matted hair" smiling at me. He had a tender voice and spoke softly. His eyes twinkled and his face shone with splendour. I stood bewitched while he spoke, "Son! You seem to be troubled. Tell me, it may be that I could help you." Hearing him speak such kind words, I was very much delighted. I told him of the soup that we were in. He gave me a reassuring smile and said, "Is that all! O. K. How many persons are you?" I replied, "There are three of us." Then I saw him dig his hand into the side pocket of his robe and take out three pink tickets. The smiling yogi said, "I don't need them, you can take them." Now with tickets in our hands we boarded the bus that still

stood there. As I was boarding the bus, I again felt a pat on my back. I looked behind and saw. It was the smiling yogi. He then uttered these mysterious words, "You go to Puttaparthi and `I' shall meet you there." And he hurriedly walked away.

We climbed the bus. The bus conductor gave us a threatening look before he could speak out a word, I showed him the tickets that the yogi gave me, The conductor was shocked and he questioned me, "From where did you get them." I told him about the yogi. He got down from the bus to look for the yogi. The yogi could be found nowhere. He seemed to have melted into the thin air of the deserted region. The conductor climbed into the bus. He looked shaken. He timidly got three seats vacated and offered them to us. As soon as we took our seats, the engine that had refused to start for two hours miraculously started all of a sudden, and the bus moved towards its destination.

The happy passengers shouted with joy and the air was rent with shouts of JAI SAI RAM!

 

 

 

 

At the time of Buddha’s departure from the physical body, there was a small coin with him, which he had carefully kept in tiny knots of his cloth. Kings and emperors built magnificent monasteries for the Bikshus (Buddhists Monks). This did not delight him much. One day, an old beggar woman came to him and gave this coin with all her heart saying that it was all that she could give. He accepted the coin with both hands, treasured it for the feeling with which it was given. It is not how much you give that matters. Pomp and show stains all charity. Charity given with love and humility makes is precious.

NEVER AWAY FROM THE AVATAR’S EYES

 

By Ms. Uma Ramakrishnan

 

 

 

An alumna of the Anantapur Campus of the Sri Sathya Sai University, Mrs. Uma Ramakrishnan completed her Bachelors in Science (Honours) in 1995 after which she went on to complete her Masters degree. After her marriage, she moved to the USA in 1999. Currently, she is pursuing her second Master's degree, while she raises a young family. Uma is an active member and a SSE teacher at the Thousand Oaks Sai Center, California.

In 1991, exactly a year before I joined Anantapur, my family came to know about the Avatar’s presence on earth. When the time is right, nothing can stop one from knowing the truth. Such is the Divine Will. In our case it happened through a lot of personal struggles which have not only drawn us closer to Him, but also strengthened our faith. I was diagnosed with glaucoma, a condition of abnormally high pressure inside both the eyes when I was barely fifteen years old.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is the setting in which Ms. Uma saw Swami blessing many devotees, in her dream

 

The doctors who confirmed this diagnosis could hardly believe that with such high intraocular pressure, I had not only escaped from blindness but was still asymptomatic. Since I had to undergo several evaluations and procedures as a result of this condition, I was unable to attend regular school.

I was appearing for my 12th standard higher secondary examinations and all hopes of completing high school with flying colors were shattered to the ground because of my health. My surgery was completed and the recovery was uneventful. But what followed, the surgery turned out to be a life altering experience.

On the morning of 22nd November 1991, I had this strange, yet wonderful dream. In that dream I saw a man in an orange robe with a big mop of black hair, walking among gathered men and women, who were seated in rows. This man walked up to me and commanded me to take ashes from a burning sacrificial fire near-by and gestured me to apply it onto His forehead.

I was confused and unsure if the order was meant for me, as I was seeing Him for the first time. I also wondered if He even knew me! But then, He repeated his order again and this time, I knew it was meant for me. I slowly got up, picking up the burning ash, I tried to apply it on to His forehead as instructed. But He stopped me midway and took my hand in His and applied the ashes onto both my eyes.

I woke up with a jolt. Even in a state of half asleep, I was somehow conscious that this was no ordinary dream. I eagerly shared with my mother all that had occurred. The two of us were racking our brains to comprehend the purpose of this strange dream. Who was this man in an orange dress, what were those men and women doing and given my eye condition, why did He apply the ash on me? Was this some sort of miraculous cure or was it all a simple heart’s desire to be normal again? We wondered!

Divinity Revealed

Swami, out of His Compassion and Love, did not make us wait too long. The same night there was a news segment on the regional TV about the inauguration of a hospital in some remote place. It did not catch my attention at first. And then suddenly as I was watching, I could not believe what I saw on that television monitor. I saw the same person in orange robe with the big mop of hair! Breathless and shocked, I called out to my mother. Sensing the urgency in my voice she came running into the room. “Do you see the same thing that I see?” was all that I managed to ask my mother. At that moment we both realized, that the dream was no ordinary one. It was a calling from the divine.

 

 

 

 

 

 

When Swami calls some one to Him, He arranges for the journey as well. It was like flood gates giving way. How I cherish the thoughts of those days of discovery? The fascination never ceased. Everyday we would hear through someone about Swami’s leelas. We talked about Him for 24 hours, non-stop! I thank all the good souls who shared their experiences with us and strengthened our faith. Subsequently, we learnt about the local Sai centers, or samithis, as they are called in India.

Since we were musically trained we were naturally drawn to singing bhajans. We joined a samithi near our home in Chennai. During Shankranthi of 1992, we had the first darshan of our beloved Swami. The journey from the “man in an orange robe” to “beloved Swami” was incredible, to say the least. And somehow, from there I found myself catapulted into the Divine embrace. It was His will.

It was about three months since I had joined Anantapur. All the girls along with our teachers were asked to come to Puttaparthi for Gurupoornima celebrations. We were blessed with an opportunity to serve in the new Indian canteen. We rolled chapattis, made laddoos and cut vegetables amidst bhajan singing, to feed the masses that were anticipated to come from every part of the globe.

During that time, I met an old teacher of mine from my home-town of Chennai. We exchanged pleasantries and chit-chatted for a while and as she was taking leave of me she asked me how my father was doing now? “Very well,” I said after which she left. It was a busy day and it was not until that night that this simple question put forth by my teacher started to bother me. I had not been receiving mail or phone calls from home regularly. I hoped that things were fine at home and thought that my parents might have been busy.

In a couple of days, I went back to the routine at Anantapur and the mid semester exams were to begin in a couple of weeks. So, I put off worrying about my parents and focused on my exams instead. During the course of our exams, one day I was called to the warden’s room to meet a visitor. This came as a big surprise for me as I was not expecting anyone. My mother had called a week ago and she had not mentioned anything about coming to Anantapur. Expecting to see my parents, I rushed down to meet them.

Anguish Over Father’s Health

At the front porch of the hostel, a family friend was waiting instead. She told me that my dad was not well and that the warden has given me permission to go home with her. Through out the trip back home my guardian would not divulge anything. Finally, unable to contain myself I asked how grave the situation was and if my father was alive. Relieved to hear that he was alive and afraid to learn more, I kept silent throughout the journey.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Hospital where Ms. Uma Ramakrishnan's father recovered from his ordeal

I reached the hospital in a rather disturbed state of mind. The constant beep of the monitors, the bedpan and the other paraphernalia made me realize how gravely ill my father was. I saw my father at the far end of the room. Even as I approached him I sensed that some thing was not right.

He lay still in his bed. His face looked distorted and his arm and legs looked stiff. My mind went blank. I did not know what to do or say. I just stood there and cried silently. My mother at his side looked unusually quiet and peaceful under the circumstances.

I had a lot of unanswered questions. I asked my mother to fill me in on what had happened in my absence. It turned out that about a week ago when she was completing the Sathyanarayana puja at home, she heard a loud crash in the kitchen. When my father failed to respond to her call, she got up from the puja and rushed out to see my father having seizures.

His arms and legs were fluttering and his face was looked strange. Hearing my mother’s cry, a neighbor rushed to help transport my father to a near by hospital. CT scan revealed cerebral hemorrhage with about 95 % cerebral clots. My father had suffered from a paralytic stroke. He had lost speech, vision and the left side of the body was completely paralyzed. My father was shifted to the ICU and was given 24 hrs to live.

My mother was in a state of shock and total disbelief. What would she do if father leaves us? Who will take care of us, the children’s studies, and their marriage? With these thoughts tormenting her, she could not even cry she said. It was late into the night when she was allowed to visit my father in the ICU, while my relatives waited outside. Mother picked a corner and sat leaning against the wall drained of all her energy. All she could remember were just these two words: Sai Ram. She started chanting mentally the name of Swami and was crying for His help. He was her sole refuge. She had no one to turn to. She was praying to Him to give her the strength to accept what ever destiny had in store for the family. Unknowingly, she fell asleep.

SaiCare – Supreme Care

All of sudden, she felt a jolt and woke up. But what she saw there startled her even more. She could see a slender hand adorned by an orange cuff gliding along my father’s frail body. Physical fatigue and an overwhelming feeling caught up with her and before she even knew she fell asleep again failing to understand fully what she had witnessed.

In the morning, my mother woke up to the sounds of the beeping monitors. She did not know when she had slept. She had spent the whole night leaning against the wall. She went to check on my father and stood by his bed watching in silence. The maid who swept and cleaned the ICU floors was still asleep. She was the only other person who was allowed to stay in the ICU the previous night.

The maid woke up in a short while. She sat there on the floor and as she was tying her open hair into a knot, she spoke to my mom. She told her about a visitor who came to see my father the previous night. The way he was dressed was rather odd, she said. He sat on the stool next to my father’s bed and sat there gently stroking his paralyzed arm and leg and was also carrying a conversation with him in a subdued voice. The maid further stated that she asked this stranger, assuming that he might be a family member, if my mother needed to be woken up.

 

 

 

 

 

 

He turned and looked at my mother who was asleep, leaning against the wall. He told the maid not to wake up my mother as she looked very tired. He also told her that he will take leave of my father in a short while and asked her to inform my mother about his visit when she woke up in the morning. Then he left in a short while, she said, finishing her story.

As you can imagine my mother could not believe what she was hearing. The thoughts of the previous night came flooding back. All that my mother could remember was the orange cuff adorned slender hand. Immediately, my mother drowned the maid in a deluge of questions “What was he like, what did he wear when did he come?”

The maid became a little irritated. She walked past my father’s bed to the night stand. Picking up a photograph from the night stand she showed my mom and said in tone laced with exasperation and finality, “this is the man that came last night.” It was a picture of Swami that most of us would have seen around the ashram at Puttaparthi. It is a picture of Swami lovingly and tenderly stroking a calf.

Is it not wonderful how Swami takes care of each and everyone of us and tends to us the same way as He tends the innocent calf? Swami’s influence in my life has been significant ever since He took me under His wing. He has nurtured me with love and great care.

My father survived that fateful yet memorable night with Swami as his Sarathi or charioteer. Following rehabilitation my father resumed and continued to go to work for five years and got his two daughters married. It has been sixteen years since that wonderful revival and because of Swami’s Boundless Grace alone, my father till date continues to enjoy a good life amidst his children and grand children.

SOS – Sai Our Saviour

There are million different ways how Swami calls His devotees to Himself. He painstakingly handcrafts these ‘calling cards’ for each individual. They remind us about the Unlimited Love that He has for each and every one of us. The greatest gift that these calling cards bring is our knowing the Avatar in this life-time.

He waits patiently for us to finish off with our preoccupations. He fulfils our material mundane needs so that one day we will ask Him for the things that He has come down to bestow upon us. I am learning slowly but surely, not to fight His Will. Everything that we are blessed with in this sojourn on earth is for our own good and for our growth. However great or small a work might be, it’s His work that I am always doing, and not mine. These experiences dictate my current attitude towards the challenges of the world. Why fear when my Lord is here? I never was, never am and will never be away from the Avatar’s eyes.

In conclusion, a small poem from Prof. N. Kasturi’s “Loving God” conveys it all.

 

 

 

 

 

He answers every anguish call,

The S.O.S from ship wreaked voyagers,

Whatever the hour, however faint the cry.

Sai need not travel far. He is ever at your door,

By your side, behind, before!

Doubt; He answers. Lock; He enters.

Decry; He smiles. Deny; He stays.

He knows all we have been and are

And what we yet shall be.

 

 

 

Dear Reader, did this article inspire you in any way? Would you like to share you feelings with us? Please write to us at h2h mentioning your name and country. Thank you for your time.

 

THE CAB RIDE

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Twenty years ago, I drove a cab for a living. It was a cowboy's life, a life for someone who wanted no boss.

 

 

 

 

 

 

What I did not realize was that it was also a ministry. Because I drove the night shift, my cab became a moving confessional. Passengers climbed in, sat behind me in total anonymity, and told me about their lives.

I encountered people whose lives amazed me, ennobled me, made me laugh and weep. But none touched me more than a woman I picked up late one August night.

I was responding to a call from a small brick fourplex in a quiet part of town. I assumed I was being sent to pick up some people who had been partying, or someone who had just had a fight with a lover, or a worker heading to an early shift at some factory for the industrial part of town. When I arrived at 2:30 a.m., the building was dark except for a single light in a ground floor window.

Under such circumstances, many drivers just honk once or twice, wait a minute, then drive away. But I had seen too many impoverished people who depended on taxis as their only means of transportation. Unless a situation smelled of danger, I always went to the door.

This passenger might be someone who needs my assistance, I reasoned to myself. So I walked to the door and knocked. "Just a minute," answered a frail, elderly voice. I could hear something being dragged across the floor. After a long pause, the door opened. A small woman in her 80s stood before me. She was wearing a print dress and a pillbox hat with a veil pinned on it, like somebody out of a 1940s movie. By her side was a small nylon suitcase.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The apartment looked as if no one had lived in it for years. All the furniture was covered with sheets. There were no clocks on the walls, no knickknacks or utensils on the counters. In the corner was a cardboard box filled with photos and glassware.

"Would you carry my bag out to the car?" she said. I took the suitcase to the cab, then returned to assist the woman. She took my arm, and we walked slowly toward the curb.

She kept thanking me for my kindness. "It's nothing," I told her. "I just try to treat my passengers the way I would want my mother treated.Oh, you're such a good boy," she said.

When we got in the cab, she gave me an address, then asked, "Can you drive through downtown?It's not the shortest way," I answered quickly. "Oh, I don't mind," she said. "I'm in no hurry. I'm on my way to a hospice." I looked in the rearview mirror. Her eyes were glistening. "I don't have any family left," she continued. "The doctor says I don't have very long."

 

 

 

 

 

 

I quietly reached over and shut off the meter. "What route would you like me to take?" I asked.

For the next two hours, we drove through the city. She showed me the building where she had once worked as an elevator operator. We drove through the neighborhood where she and her husband had lived when they were newlyweds. She had me pull up in front of a furniture warehouse that had once been a ballroom where she had gone dancing as a girl.

Sometimes she'd ask me to slow in front of a particular building or corner and would sit staring into the darkness, saying nothing. As the first hint of sun was creasing the horizon, she suddenly said, "I'm tired. Let's go now."

We drove in silence to the address she had given me. It was a low building, like a small convalescent home, with a driveway that passed under a portico. Two orderlies came out to the cab as soon as we pulled up. They were solicitous and intent, watching her every move. They must have been expecting her.

I opened the trunk and took the small suitcase to the door. The woman was already seated in a wheelchair.

"How much do I owe you?" she asked, reaching into her purse. "Nothing," I said.

 

 

 

 

 

 

"You have to make a living," she answered. "There are other passengers," I responded.

Almost without thinking, I bent and gave her a hug. She held onto me tightly. "You gave an old woman a little moment of joy," she said. "Thank you."

I squeezed her hand, then walked into the dim morning light. Behind me, a door shut. It was the sound of the closing of a life.

I didn't pick up any more passengers that shift. I drove aimlessly, lost in thought. For the rest of that day, I could hardly talk. What if that woman had gotten an angry driver, or one who was impatient to end his shift? What if I had refused to take the run, or had honked once, then driven away? On a quick review, I don't think that I have done anything more important in my life.

We're conditioned to think that our lives revolve around great moments. But great moments often catch us unaware; beautifully wrapped in what others may consider a small one.

~Written By Kent Nerburn

Illustrations: Ms. Vidya, Kuwait

 

 

FROM PUTTAPARTHI...THE KANYAKUMARI MIRACLE !!!

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Mr. Chidambaram Krishnan, a long-time devotee of Bhagavan Baba,narrates the following incident when he went to Trivandrum along with Swami.( Dec. '58)

 

 

 

Swami had asked me to go home, pack my bags, and join Him in His tour to Trivandrum and stay with Him for a few days. (3 snaps attached)

We reached there around 3 P.M. and were received by Dr. B. Ramakrishna Rao, who was the Governor of Kerala State then. Swami was given a grand reception, and stayed with the Governor. We also stayed in the Governor's mansion.

Next morning, we went to Kanyakumari, the southernmost point in the Indian peninsula. Because the Governor was travelling with Swami, the road was cleared of all traffic and our party simply sped along. In Kanyakumari, we were accommodated in the Kerala Government Guest House.

In the evening, Swami said, "Let's go to the beach." In Kanyakumari, there is a bathing ghat where it is safe to enter the water. Swami did not go there but instead headed for a rocky spot some distance away. The sea slopes very rapidly there and is very deep. Huge waves often form there, and visitors therefore avoid that area; but that exactly is where Swami went!!!

Many have drowned there and so there was some concern in our party about Swami going there. Kasturi and a few others pleaded with Swami not to go there, but He brushed everyone aside and went straight for those rocks. I too tried to stop Swami saying, "Swami, not there please." But He pushed me aside.

Soon after I had taken a picture, a huge wave came rushing towards Swami. I tell you, this wave was real huge! And it engulfed almost half of Swami!! We were all mighty scared, and feared that the wave would carry Swami away.

The wave withdrew and we then went near Swami. He smiled and said, "Looks like all of you valued your lives so much that you abandoned Swami and took to your heels!" I said, "Swami, that wave was really a monster; it was so big!"

Swami then gently lifted his robe about an inch and said, "Look below!" And what we saw there around His Feet was a necklace with huge Pearls, 108 of them as we found later.

Swami said, "The Lord of the Sea had come to pay homage to Me and make this offering to Me. How could I ignore Him and walk away from the shore? You thought instead that you would be swallowed and ran away!!!"

We then begged for forgiveness. Swami gave that necklace to the Governor.

http://media.radiosai.org/Journals/Vol_04/01APR06/recollections-chidam.htm

Pleasing the entire world without pleasing God is of no use. Even if the whole world is opposed to you, so long as God is with you, you need not fear. When God is with you, the whole world will follow you. When God is pleased with you, the whole world will be pleased with you. Therefore, let all your efforts be towards pleasing God. - BABA

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Called Back to Life

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All over the world miracles are happening as sure signs of God’s Grace. Most of the time we do not get to hear of them. Many times the recipients themselves are not even aware of how God has saved them from serious injury, turned them away from muggers, gained them meaningful employment or planted that brilliant life-enhancing idea in their mind!

 

 

 

 

 

 

But sometimes one cannot avoid the obvious - that a miraculous change for the better has indeed been the result of divine intervention. Such is the case with the true story of US Army Major David Shublak.

Married for only six weeks to his wife Linda, they were a very happy couple and he had a successful army career ahead of him. Being a regular jogger he tended to go out every morning for exercise. But this hobby nearly lead him to lose his life in a tragic accident.

Linda adored their new life together and one day as her husband was out exercising, she suddenly heard the wailing sound of sirens and realized that someone had been hurt. Being a devout Christian, she instantly prayed to the Lord for the unfortunate person – little knowing that the victim was her own husband!

A fast moving car had hit David and propelled him 65 feet away from the impact! He had landed on his head on the concrete. It was a gruesome sight. The paramedics rushed to the scene and took him to hospital.

At the hospital, David underwent immediate treatment for severely broken legs and a broken arm. He had facial and skull fractures. Twenty minutes into the surgery, his brain started to swell five times its normal size. At that point the chief neurosurgeon told Linda that David was not expected to live.

 

 

 

 

 

 

It all seemed a hopeless situation, which only spiraled downwards when even worse news came from the doctors: David’s brain was not functioning at all.

“It was heart-wrenching the night we were officially told David was clinically brain-dead," says Linda. From then onwards, David’s friends and military officers started to plan for his funeral at Arlington National Cemetery. Some suggested Linda should donate several of David's organs. Even the Shublaks' pastor had prepared for the worst, after seeing the readings from David's brain pressure monitor, which showed no brain function compatible to human existence.

However, Linda had not given up. She could not believe that her husband’s life could be taken away from her so savagely. She began to pray to the Lord – not for strength to bear it all - but for her husband. The amazing faith that Linda possesses prompted her to ask the Lord for guidance as to how she could help David.

"There was so much pressure," says Linda, "and so much doubt and unbelief in other people that I said, 'Lord, give me some assurance of what I am to do.'"

 

 

 

 

 

 

Amazingly, John 11:25 was highlighted in Linda's Bible. "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me, even though he die, yet shall he live."

"And that was God telling me that even though they were saying David was brain-dead, he was going to live," says Linda, believing in God more than medical science.

Linda continued to read the Bible and pray unceasingly. She spent untold hours by her husband’s bedside. There she played Christian music, placed the Bible on David's chest, and pinned Scriptures all over the hospital room. But while her faith grew in anticipation of a miracle, others around her were worried she had lost touch with reality. "It disturbed a lot of people," she says. She was living in another world from those around her: a world of absolute trust in God and His healing power.

Linda ignored the opinions of those who had given up hope and kept praying for David, even though he was still on life support. She did not listen when people tried to offer her condolences at his ‘death’; or when they suggested she take rest at home.

And in God’s own time, against all the accepted odds, by the sixth day, David began responding to visual light! When Linda, whispering in his ear, encouraged him to show the doctors there was even more life in him, he started moving his legs, astounding everyone.

"It was like an awesome reverence that came over the whole room," says Linda, "Just a glimpse of glory."

David’s recovery continued to astonish people in the weeks to come. Slowly, David's memory returned. After two months of intensive rehabilitation, he was able to return home. The neurosurgeons agreed David's recovery qualified as a miracle.

David’s willpower seems to match his wife’s faith, as he says: "I feel absolutely great," says David. "My goal is to do a marathon." Recently, David returned to active military service.

Illustrations: S B Sai Krishna, SSSU

 

 

 

(Sharing with Sai Love)

Ram.Chugani

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

===================================================================

KOBE CENTERS PROGRAMS

 

 

 

 

 

Kobe Center

 

Place : l.S.S. 2nd Fl. 1-3, Kumochi 5-chome, Chuo-ku, Kobe (Tel: 078-222-1885) Home Page MAP

 

 

Bhajans

 

Bhajan Practice

 

Study Circle

 

 

every Sun 4:00-5:00pmevery Thur 7:30-830pm

 

1st,5th Sun 2:00-3:40pm 2nd Sun 2:00-3:20pm3rd,4th Sun 2:30-3:40pm every Thur 7:00-7:20pm

 

2nd Sun 5:30-6:30pm (English)4th Sun 5:30-6:30 (Japanese) 2nd Sun 3:40-3:55 (Gayatri Chanting)

 

 

Ladies Programme

 

3rd,5th Sun 5:30-6:30pm

 

 

Youth Programme

 

3rd Sun 0:30-2:20pm 2nd Sun in odd months 5:30-6:15pm(Study Circle)1st Sun in even months 0:30-1:50

 

 

Seva

 

Aisei-en (Orphanage home): 3rd Sun 9:30-11:30amNarayana Seva: 2nd,4th Sun 10:00-11:30am, 1st, 3rd Thur 9:00-10:00pm

 

 

Veda Club

 

Veda clup is held on every 4th Sunday after Bhajans.

 

Study Circle in (Japanese) is held on every 2nd Sunday on 1st fl.

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----------------------- SAI CENTERS: KOBE, YOKOHAMA, OSAKA, SAPPORE,HAMAMATSU

OKINAWA, CHIBA, NAGOYA, TOKYO & KYOTO.'

 

SAI BHAJAN GROUPS.: OBIHIRO, SAITAMA, SHIZUOKA, KITAKYUSHU, MORIOKA

TAMA, NARA, FUKUOKA, TOHOKU, NAGANO, IWAKUNI,

HIROSHIMA, KAGOSHIMA, GUNMA, KANAZAWA, KAGAWA.

 

Note: Sometimes schedules is subject to change.

Please contact respective centers and groups for information.

.....................................................................................................

In side This issue...

 

 

1.SWAMI'S QUOTATION . 2. Baba's story. 3.Shirdi Baba

4. Prof G.V krishna's story. 5. Prof Anil Kumar "Trend in society.

6. Mystery of Shiv Lingam. 7. Mrs Dipali "Near and dear"

8. The future plan in His hands. 9. From my diary students.

10. Mr Narasimha Murthy. 11. Mystery of missing yogi.

11. Never far away from Avatar's eye. 13. The Cab Ride.

14. Trip tp Kanya Kumari. 15. Called back to life.

16. centers programs.

==================================================

GLOBAL KANSAI LIGHT READERS CORNER.

iN THIS ISSUE WE SHARE WITH YOU EMAILS RECEIVED FROM ALL OVER

IN APPRECIATION OF THE "KANSAI LIGHT" ISSUES RECEIVED BY THEM.

DUE TO SPACE LIMITATION WE ARE REPRODUCING A FEW THESE

MAILS.

OM SAI RAM

 

KANSAI LIGHT...

SAI RAM

Your articles are all wonderful, short , sweet ,pictorial please

keep it up.

Seema

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KANSAI LIGHT

SAI RAM

Very interesting and motivating on your service thank you

serve all love all.

Sarvani praveena

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KANSAI LIGHT

I have been enjoying your mails.

Than you again

with love Regards

Manohar chatlani

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KANSAI LIGHT

SAI Ram,

Thank upi for your kansai mail. We love to read it

Sai Ram,

Naido

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KANSAI LIGHT

SAI RAM

It has been inspiring reading your mail.

Very interesting.

Amritab

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KANSAI LIGHT

Respected Sir'

I am thankful to you for your mail.

Sunder Rajan

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KANSAI LIGHT

Thank you so much sir, these convesations and messages are

so very helpful and filled with precious informations where can

i get .

Thank you Sir,

maria

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KANSAI LIGHT

Om Sai Ram,

Dear Bro Ramchanji

Loving Sai Ram from Rashmi Kamdar from Nairobi Kenya.

Thanks for sending this wonderful news letter as well as other

interesting and enlightening articles from time to time. You are

doing great seva by sending these invaluable articles to us as well as to all

other Sai Brothers and Sisters.

Loving Sai Ram

Rashmi Kamdar

Certified Public Accountant(K)

Nairobi

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