This is a message which Swami firmly imprinted on my mind through a precious experience. It made me acutely aware of how delusive the mind is and how it will cunningly utilize the entire repertoire of deception at its disposal to divert a Truth seeker’s attention from the Divine presence, which always pervades every aspect of our lives.
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| Sri Sathya Sai in the Prasanthi Nilayam Interview Room |
Around 1990, during my holidays (I was studying in Europe at that time); I came to Prasanthi Nilayam and was blessed with an interview. I should mention here that in the time leading up to that visit, I had come to Prasanthi Nilayam several times in an interval of six months, following Swami’s advice. Somewhat bewildered at finding her son embarking in such expensive journeys so frequently, my mother dropped the humorous remark that Baba might be thinking that I live in Anantapur and that I should not ask Him when to visit Him next. Nevertheless, in the above mentioned interview Swami told me to come again within the next six months. Divided between the joy about the Lord’s invitation on the one side and the slight distress of my mother on the other, I was struck by a sudden wave of audacity and placed the following request at Bhagavan’s feet, “But then You have to give me the money, Swami.” Swami replied, “Yes, yes” and took no further notice of the matter.
On arriving in Germany, I immediately booked a ticket for my next trip to Swami. The payment had to be made at the latest, a few weeks before departure. I prayed to Swami and said, “If I can get the required amount (without running to my parents for it) by the stipulated time, it will be a miracle, Your gift to me, however much it may look like a coincidence.” A few weeks after my return to Germany, I was notified by my principal that, on account of my grades, I was among the students who might be eligible for a student grant. And wonder of wonders, I ended up as being the only student who actually received a grant, due to certain seemingly “accidental” circumstances in our family. The grant came in the form of a one-time payment in cash and it exactly covered the fare of the plane ticket I had already bought.
I expressed my thanks to Swami, but after having received the money I somehow failed to maintain the acute awareness that everything is dependent on Bhagavan’s grace. I am sure all of us have experienced similar situations at the time of examinations. Especially, when we feel that we have not got a firm understanding of a certain topic, we arduously pray to God and acknowledge that without Him we cannot achieve anything. Yet, once the exams are over and especially when we have fared well, we suddenly seem to need God less urgently and are less concerned with getting His guidance and blessings.
Anyhow, I traveled to India and in the interview room in Prasanthi Nilayam, Swami suddenly turned to me and asked, “Who paid for your journey; your mother, your father?” I was totally bewildered. Why was Swami asking such a trivial and mundane question, I asked myself (I had made a whole list of ‘spiritual questions’ and was totally focused on a more ‘elevated’ conversation). Suddenly, the reason as to why Swami was asking this question dawned on me. He was referring to the promise He had made to me six months earlier, namely, that He would give me the money to come to Prasanthi Nilayam. Swami wanted to make sure that I would not brush off this wonderful repose of His as a kind of coincidence. So I smiled at Swami and said with confidence and with deep gratitude, “You gave me the money, Swami”. Swami also smiled and seemed very pleased. Obviously, I had given Him the correct answer.
Since then, this incident has often served me as a reminder - a reminder of the truth that God responds to our prayers. This experience also taught me that I may fully and even blindly rely on Bhagavan’s grace to do any task. If we are sensitive and receptive to His grace we can discover how He is always ready to bestow blessings in the fullest measure.
- Prem Majumdar
Alumnus, Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning
Prasanthi Nilayam
Sai Ram,
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