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| Radha Narayan Rao with Sri Sathya Sai |
In the year 1991, on September 15, a baby lay helpless in hospital. It was the day he had come into this world, but alas, it could also be they day he would depart. His spinal cord had not formed completely, and the doctors declared that if he had to survive, an operation had to be conducted within twenty four hours, or else, his chances were bleak. Further, even if the operation was performed, the procedure could not guarantee that he would be a normal child and there was a possibility that his limbs could fail to function in due course.
All that the parents could do was to pray to the Lord for their baby and that’s just what they did, fervently. By His grace, the operation went ahead and was successfully completed. The baby survived, and grew up to be a healthy child. However, the episode did not end there as God interfered into the child’s fate and saved him.
Some years later, the parents asked the boy if he wanted to join Baba’s School to which he readily agreed! Thereafter they applied for the first standard in the Sri Sathya Sai Primary School. However, a few days later due to some reason they had to shift house and relocated to another part of the town. One day after all the things had been shifted, the boy, his mother and sister were standing in front of the old house to ensure that everything had been shifted when suddenly one of them saw an envelope. They opened it to see that it was the call letter for the little boy’s admission test and there was hardly any time left for the entrance exam. So the whole family immediately hurried to the station and got into a train running southward and after a lot of hurdles reached Puttaparthi.
The boy wrote his exams and his father took him to Brindavan for Darshan of Bhagavan. After coming back to Puttaparthi, his parents took him to the “Kalpavriksha” tree. The boy went inside the small room in which Swami used to meditate as a boy and after some time the boy came out exclaiming “I have got a seat, I have got a seat”! The parents did not pay any heed because the boy was only a small child. They returned to their home town and life continued as usual. A few days later a letter arrived from the Sri Sathya Sai Primary School saying that the boy had been selected and he was to report for a medical checkup.
They came to Puttaparthi but after the medical checkup, he was declared unfit for joining because of his back problem. They were at their wits end as to what to do. They consulted the warden of the school, who advised them to get a clearance certificate from the Manipal Hospital in Bangalore. After much trouble, they got a clearance certificate from the hospital. This they submitted to the medical staff at Puttaparthi who then certified him fit to join the school. The family’s joy knew no bounds!
Moving ahead a few more years, when the boy was in his fourth standard he sat for birthday blessings in the verandah in front of the interview room. The heavenly gates of the interview room opened to soul stirring music and the Lord of Lords came gliding into the Mandir. He came patted a boy here, took a letter there and so on. Then He saw this boy sitting there with two other students on the verandah but went inside the interview room. He came out and called for His car. Seeing this, the boy felt very sad. He thought that Swami was not going to bless him on his birthday. Seeing the sad faces of the boys, Swami came to them and made a deep statement. He said, “What more do you want? I am all yours! Smile! Smile! Smile!” He then patted each of the boys on the cheek and went out of the Mandir.
Today, it is only because of Bhagavan’s compassion that I have survived to write this article. That is why life without Bhagavan is a hopeless end, but life with Him is a saga of endless hope. If we are all the zeroes, then He is the One whose presence alone adds value to all our lives.
Being His students we enjoy many facilities. In fact, He showers His choicest love on us. One day, Swami called my brother, took his letter, smiled at him and went away. I then called my parents and told them the good news. But what they told me stupefied me. They asked me very anxiously at what time it was and then told me this incident. That very day, they were coming back from a village after doing service and Bhajans. They had to travel on a very muddy road that obviously was a one way road. They were moving slowly in their car when they saw a speeding truck coming from the opposite direction. Not knowing what to do at that moment, they shouted out in unison, “Sai Ram” and lo! At that very moment, inexplicably they had crossed that vehicle and were safe behind it!
Many are the instances that we know of Swami’s Divinity, but many more are the instances that we do not know of! Swami often calls us His property. We must not only feel proud of it but we must also live up to it.
Bhagavan is our guru, guide and guardian and the above incidents stand testimony to it, even though He requires none. In fact even if we take the whole sky as the parchment, the water of all the oceans as the ink, the trees as the quill, and Mother Saraswati as the author it wouldn’t be enough to describe His nectarine Love. In fact we His students are the most privileged to call him “Ours”. Bhagavan is our guru, guide and guardian and the above mentioned incidents bear testimony to these words.
For a single Divine Darshan, sages do penance on one leg, one toe and what not for just one glimpse of the Lord; and we fortunate ones have his Divine Darshan, Sparshan and Sambhashan every day. Imagine what good fortune we are privileged to have. He is like an engine for the car, for without the engine the car has no value. He is like the ink in the pen ,as the pen is of no use if it does not have the ink. He is like a film roll in a camera as the camera has no value without the film roll. Similarly our life also has no value without Him. He is the very soul and substance of our life. Without Him we are nothing.
All that the parents could do was to pray to the Lord for their baby and that’s just what they did, fervently. By His grace, the operation went ahead and was successfully completed. The baby survived, and grew up to be a healthy child. However, the episode did not end there as God interfered into the child’s fate and saved him.
Some years later, the parents asked the boy if he wanted to join Baba’s School to which he readily agreed! Thereafter they applied for the first standard in the Sri Sathya Sai Primary School. However, a few days later due to some reason they had to shift house and relocated to another part of the town. One day after all the things had been shifted, the boy, his mother and sister were standing in front of the old house to ensure that everything had been shifted when suddenly one of them saw an envelope. They opened it to see that it was the call letter for the little boy’s admission test and there was hardly any time left for the entrance exam. So the whole family immediately hurried to the station and got into a train running southward and after a lot of hurdles reached Puttaparthi.
The boy wrote his exams and his father took him to Brindavan for Darshan of Bhagavan. After coming back to Puttaparthi, his parents took him to the “Kalpavriksha” tree. The boy went inside the small room in which Swami used to meditate as a boy and after some time the boy came out exclaiming “I have got a seat, I have got a seat”! The parents did not pay any heed because the boy was only a small child. They returned to their home town and life continued as usual. A few days later a letter arrived from the Sri Sathya Sai Primary School saying that the boy had been selected and he was to report for a medical checkup.
They came to Puttaparthi but after the medical checkup, he was declared unfit for joining because of his back problem. They were at their wits end as to what to do. They consulted the warden of the school, who advised them to get a clearance certificate from the Manipal Hospital in Bangalore. After much trouble, they got a clearance certificate from the hospital. This they submitted to the medical staff at Puttaparthi who then certified him fit to join the school. The family’s joy knew no bounds!
Moving ahead a few more years, when the boy was in his fourth standard he sat for birthday blessings in the verandah in front of the interview room. The heavenly gates of the interview room opened to soul stirring music and the Lord of Lords came gliding into the Mandir. He came patted a boy here, took a letter there and so on. Then He saw this boy sitting there with two other students on the verandah but went inside the interview room. He came out and called for His car. Seeing this, the boy felt very sad. He thought that Swami was not going to bless him on his birthday. Seeing the sad faces of the boys, Swami came to them and made a deep statement. He said, “What more do you want? I am all yours! Smile! Smile! Smile!” He then patted each of the boys on the cheek and went out of the Mandir.
Today, it is only because of Bhagavan’s compassion that I have survived to write this article. That is why life without Bhagavan is a hopeless end, but life with Him is a saga of endless hope. If we are all the zeroes, then He is the One whose presence alone adds value to all our lives.
Being His students we enjoy many facilities. In fact, He showers His choicest love on us. One day, Swami called my brother, took his letter, smiled at him and went away. I then called my parents and told them the good news. But what they told me stupefied me. They asked me very anxiously at what time it was and then told me this incident. That very day, they were coming back from a village after doing service and Bhajans. They had to travel on a very muddy road that obviously was a one way road. They were moving slowly in their car when they saw a speeding truck coming from the opposite direction. Not knowing what to do at that moment, they shouted out in unison, “Sai Ram” and lo! At that very moment, inexplicably they had crossed that vehicle and were safe behind it!
Many are the instances that we know of Swami’s Divinity, but many more are the instances that we do not know of! Swami often calls us His property. We must not only feel proud of it but we must also live up to it.
Bhagavan is our guru, guide and guardian and the above incidents stand testimony to it, even though He requires none. In fact even if we take the whole sky as the parchment, the water of all the oceans as the ink, the trees as the quill, and Mother Saraswati as the author it wouldn’t be enough to describe His nectarine Love. In fact we His students are the most privileged to call him “Ours”. Bhagavan is our guru, guide and guardian and the above mentioned incidents bear testimony to these words.
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| Sri Sathya Sai blesses Radha Narayan |
K. Radha Narayan Rao
Student (2012-2014), Department of Management Studies
Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning
Currently, ARM University Program Operations Assistant, Bangalore
Student (2012-2014), Department of Management Studies
Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning
Currently, ARM University Program Operations Assistant, Bangalore
Blessed is He who lives in the close proximity to the LORD to receive the GRACE
ReplyDeletelike the SUN RAYS ...................
Very nice to read. Had an opportunity to meet Radha Narayan when he interviewed for a position at my work place. My boss was so impressed and charmed by Radha Narayan's demeanor, calmness and intense confidence in Bhagavan's decisions pertaining to his life. My boss also made a comment that 'there was something special about students from this university whom he interviewed....'! [he had interviewed two students in a row from SSSIHL]. Just wanted to narrate this to show that Swami's influence on his students (!) is felt in the outside world too now.
ReplyDeleteSairam,
LRao
blessed soul
ReplyDelete