Prashanti Thoughts - By a Sai Devotee

December 28, 2008

December 29th, 2008

The crowds are increasing …

You can certainly say Puttaparthi is a place of change. Last night there was an enormous crowd pouring out of the ashram, some new groups have arrived from Rajasthan, Nepal and some place with a blue scarf, but the writing looks very funny, I tried to read it, but was unsuccessful. I spotted Venka, the senior Seva Dal from Brindavan here last night, along with the head of the Sathya Sai Seva Samithi in Andhra Pradesh, also. I have learned a lot from watching these men at work in their service.

For them, a unique service activity is providing the amenity for darshan by devotees. These are men of incredible capacity; there is strength and direction, and the power of love, soft, gentle, yet strong as they deal with crowds seeking the darshan of Sathya Sai. As I say, they have been incredible role models for me, and I am sure they bring a lot of joy and bliss to Swami as they do their seva.

Some people are going home; more and more are arriving in anticipation of the New Year! The darshan hall has been filling up quite early in the afternoons. The Christmas decorations were removed this afternoon, and it took me about five minutes to wake up to that; I was meditating (a little) and when I came back, I stared at the mandir, somewhat nonplussed before I finally became aware that the Christmas decorations were gone. There are still children everywhere in the darshan hall, and I keep reflecting how blessed they are to be called to the presence of the Divine when they are so young.

There was a magnificent bhajan sung during the morning bhajans, I reflected that I had not heard this one before. Then I got to thinking that more and more new bhajans keep coming forth, surely a sign of the Divine Inspiration which gives birth to them.

After darshan this morning, I popped up to say goodbye to the White Lion, Arthur Hillcoat and his wife Poppy, and the Seva Dal bailed me up as I entered the roundhouse, demanding to know where I was going. As I had been to Arthur’s flat a few times, I was a bit taken aback by this, and queried the Seva Dal. Seems a new fellow on the block, and each takes to the task with their skills and dynamism.

It seems there will be a lot of Australians on that flight out of Bangalore tonight.

After taking darshan tonight, I met some friends who took me to one of the Tibetan resturants for dinner, as their friends were going home, so I am replete with tasty (and I mean tasty) tibetan food and ready for the land of nod.

Sai Ram from Prashanti Nilayam, where the crowds are increasing yet again…

December 27th, 2008

Tara Puttaparthi Sathya

I keep on getting this feeling of change, here in Prashanti Nilayam.

Gone are the days of getting up at 5am and taking lines, and waiting to enter the darshan hall. The men’s lines go in at 7AM to a vast, empty darshan hall; some people throw their cushions down and go to breakfast in the Canteen and come back around 8.45; others just take a seat at the front and close their eyes.

Most of the crowd enters the darshan hall after 8am … and take their place. I suppose they feel it is pot-luck whether Swami will come or not. Whatever. The days DO have a much more relaxed start compared to years gone by. The veranda does not fill up in the mornings and students come in the afternoons, along with Hospital staff and University staff.

Swami comes in the mornings anywhere between 8am and 9.30am, if he comes. Whether Swami comes or not is not really a bother to me, for I always start with an inner darshan, and continue (attempt, let us say, truthfully) to keep that going.

I find the behaviour of people in the darshan hall, particularly among residents of Bharath, let us say, odd. They sit together and talk, they stand up and beckon to other companions to come and join them, even during bhajans, they will stand up and madly beckon and wave at others to thread their way down from the back right up to just about the front, all to sit with their companions. One fellow, yesterday, came into the darshan hall, ignored Swami sitting at the front, got up on his knees and spent maybe ten minutes looking over the crowd in the darshan hall for his friend, or friends. I was impressed with that; i.e., I received an impression that he was not really here for Swami, in his own mind. It is, to my reflection, downright silly to maintain attachments to others, right here in the darshan hall, and to not take notice of Swami.

I did also have a reflection about Christmas also, on Christmas morning. Ah, I had come to Christmas, and seen not ONE Television advertisement, not one brochure in the mailbox, not one sign of the commercialisation of Christmas. I had come here and experienced a HOLY Christmas; indeed, this is what the Christmas Seva Dal have stitched on their Seva Dal scarves, Holy Christmas. I rather like that, it really gets back to the reason for the season.

One thought from Swami’s divine discourse on Christmas day keeps coming back to me; purity is Divinity; Divinity is purity. If you have purity, then you will have Divinty, within you, above you, below you, before you, behind you. And Swami told all that, in ENGLISH, he really hammered the point home.

Whereever you have a divine incarnation resident on Earth, there you will always have a crowd; indeed, the Children’s Play yesterday emphasised that will all the children mobbing Jesus and following him all round the darshan hall … and Puttaparthi attracts; for Avatars have one unique property, aakaarshana shakti, that attraction power of the divine, avatars attract crowds. So I have noted the crowds who come to Prashanthi and follow Swami around.

One lady walks up and down the middle of the road, totally oblivious of the traffic which has to wend its way around her. She has this shawl over her head and a few days ago, I realised this was the lady who claimed to be the reincarnation of the Virgin Mary. She would insist on being called “Mother Mary”.(I have known this lady by sight for quite a few years, and before that, she was claiming to be some other bizarre reincarnation). Her body has wasted, she walks around talking to herself, scavenging garlands and running back to her flat. Whatever for, I don’t know, but I reflected yesterday, that divine energy and attraction power attracts many kinds; what they do with their energy and that divine power is up to them.

That’s the difference between this ashram, and thousands upon thousands of others in India; it is entirely up to you what happens in your time here; if you put in spiritual effort, then you get spiritual uplift; if you waste your time, then you go back with only a little more than what you came with.

I was reminded of this the other day when I read, “I have not come for the masses, the ignorant who will make no benefit from Me; I have come for those who will benefit and make use of me and what I offer” (or words to that effect). That reminded me of Swami saying to me years ago, “Use Me!!!”

It is time for morning darshan, so I shall go and leave you with that thought; we must make use of Swami in our lives; not only is he Lord and recipient of our prayers and devotion, but also, He is guru, guardian and guide. In fact, the other morning when I left darshan, the last thing he said to me on the inner level was “Remember, I am your Mother”… and I had this really close vision of Swami’s face, beautiful brown eyes, a soft glance from him, full of love, and motherly care. I was astounded, speechless, and that image remained with me for the rest of the day.

Courtesy: http://saieditor.com