One early morning, the ‘First call’, which changed my attitude towards life today, came through a Sai messenger, who asked, “Would you like to be part of our service programmes? We plan to organize a free medical camp in the rural areas of Mahboobnagar, your service & cooperation will add value to this trip”. As usual, the mind plays a tricky game! Go for a movie or outing with friends? Or go for service? Fortunately, I was part of the village service programme and the ‘Journey towards Sai’ in my life became rigorous with that moment. These first moments of joy and self-satisfaction swirl within, coaxing me to search for another opportunity to serve as a Sai Youth. Gradually my life started moving from ‘confusion’ to ‘contemplation’. I surrendered myself to ‘Sai Narayana ‘, the one who created this marvel mystery of life and death of man; the one who is indweller of every being in this entire creation; the one who is filled with the nectarine ocean of love and the one who moved with us physically, lovingly shared all the Divine mysteries in short stories and thus made us realise that we are spiritual beings on this human journey; to that Lord, I surrender myself.
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| The majestic Prasanthi Nilayam Campus of Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning |
Yes, my dream to be his property had come true; I took up the role of Sai student. Every student from Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning aims at the realisation of Sat-Chit-Ananda, the true and eternal bliss that any person should aspire for on this Earth. Every time I hear from the faculty of our Institute, that we haven’t come here for a mere degree but for a much higher purpose, it fills my heart with renewed vigour. It might sound quite surprising to the external world, that an educational institution can teach a student much more than academics, but it is proven opposite here. I mean we belong to an institution which teaches us spiritual education as a main component and worldly education as a secondary one. The role of every student is to learn the knowledge imparted by the guru and thus give back to the society what he has learnt, i.e ‘Human Values’ which are missing in today’s society.
God knows when to do what; He is omnipresent, omnipotent and omniscient. It was a time when a series of challenges especially financial were around our family. He decided, ‘One who does hard work with a lot of sincerity, I shall always hold him and give shelter under My roof’. We keep hearing, ‘Paths are many, but destination is One’. Maybe I didn’t understand the meaning of it before, but now I cannot stop writing about it.
Of course, this action also truly belongs to Him. True, every thought, word, deed belongs to Him. We are indebted very much to this very land, Bharat, which is a storehouse of great cultural heritage and inculcates the spirit of service in its children. Childhood days are always memorable in man’s life, so are mine, lucky I was to live in a spiritual environment. Our family stayed in a rented house during my childhood. I was the only child in our house and also the only child who distributed Vibhuti and Prasadam after Bhajan session in our owner’s house. I did not know the value of Vibhuti I was distributing then, which saved my grandmother from the clutches of death. This incident happened before I joined Swami’s College.
Early morning on May 12, 2014, she was paralyzed with a mild stroke in her brain, that moment none of us in the family knew what to do. In my heart, I had a strong conviction, that at this moment only Swami could help her and yes He did. His Vibhuti helped her come out of the severe attack, and today she is hale and hearty. It reminds me that He isn’t just limited to the physical form, He is everywhere, in every being, in every particle. His form has no limits. He created His own form in all of us. As the days passed by, He increased the frequency of coming into our lives, our family, and every moment He showed His omnipotent form. I can wholeheartedly say that He has become an integral part of our family now. My heartfelt gratitude to Him who showed me the direction to walk towards Him. He chose me to be a part of His very loving and hardworking youth team from Hyderabad who often comes to Puttaparthi for Shivaratri and other special service days when necessary.
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| Tata Ramesh expressing his gratitude in Sai Kulwant Hall at Prasanthi Nilayam |
Everyone knew that it was Swami in His omnipresent form who had assured them. Soon, their prayers were answered and a beautiful school came up. Today, this place has become a Jalanidhi (treasure of water) in that arid region. This incident has taught me that in every stage of our life Swami is with us. In every action of ours, He is with us, amongst us, within us. It is we who should understand His Divinity and surrender to Him entirely. He will take care of us. I would like to conclude with a prayer,
‘Most beloved Bhagavan! Can I ever fathom the depth of Your love, I am ignorant. How can I express my gratitude to you Oh Lord? You are the one who responds to devotees in distress and you are the one who saved my grandmother on that fateful day. All I can say is, Thank You.’
- Tata Ramesh
Student (2014-2016), Faculty of Management and Commerce,
Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning,
Prasanthi Nilayam
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