Advice i Discarded
The following article is a report by Indra Devi, an ardent devotee of Bhagavan Baba, on the happenings during a Sai Baba seminar she held at her center in Mexico City.
“Go slowly on Sai Baba because people here are very Catholic,” i was advised, upon arriving after an absence of eight years at Mexico City where i had to conduct a Sai Baba seminar. i didn’t follow this advice, however, and luckily so. For, the two public lectures i gave on Bhagavan were received with unexpected enthusiasm by the audience that over‑filled the hall.
Before showing the film, i introduced Kamala Devi whose husband is with the Indian Embassy. A devotee of Bhagavan, she was the only person who could testify to the truth of what i was saying. Her story, which i translated into Spanish, greatly moved the audience.
When Bhagavan gave her the interview, He told her not to worry about her son, something she was doing then. “I just saved his life,” He added. Not quite aware of what He meant, she returned to Delhi to learn that her son was almost killed by a shot‑put, when he was standing on the sports field; the metal ball was about to strike his head. At that very moment, some one pulled him away; the ball landed on his foot; the injury was not serious though he was hospitalized.
According to the witnesses, the boy was standing all by himself; there was no one around him. He did not step aside by himself for he had no knowledge that the ball was coming in his direction. Suddenly, someone forcibly pulled him away.
They heard from Kamala about her interview, and what Baba had told her about saving his life and how the boy’s heart was filled with gratitude and devotion. His faith was further strengthened after he saw a paralyzed boy cured by Bhagavan during His visit to Jaipur.
Since most of my students (nearly 300 of them) had seen the film, and heard from us a great deal about Bhagavan, most of them wanted to touch the japmala [prayer beads] He had given me and/or get a mantra. We had set up an improvised altar in the corner, near the platform, with candles, agarbatti [incense], and flowers surrounding Bhagavan’s picture. i placed at His feet the pearl japamala that He had given me for healing the sick so that people could touch it one by one. Kneeling down they reverently kissed it; a few crossed themselves at the end of their prayers to “Mataji’s God.”
Belief in Baba swept the entire seminar when several students reported in the class later about the miraculous healings by the touch of the mala and the Vibhuti [sacred ash], one from a chronic headache, another from an excruciating back‑pain, a third from a nervous tick and eye trouble, and so on.
Every one became eager to hear more and more about Bhagavan, for which I didn’t need much encouragement. Thus, they learnt not only of the miracles of the japmala, ring, and Vibhuti‑filled kamandalu [container] that never becomes empty (as Baba assured me when He was placing it in my hands), but, also about many other miraculous happenings at our yoga center in Tecate, starting from the flood inside the house and ending with the fire inside it, both of which were stopped by Bhagavan.
On the last day of our October seminar, a miracle took place. A young man dropped in at the time minute during the goodbyes, photographs, autographing the books etc. Seeing that we were all busy, he walked into `Baba’s room,’ and sat down to meditate in front of Bhagavan’s photo on which Vibhuti was manifesting for more than three years.
After a while, some one came in silently from behind him, put both his hands upon his head, and left through the door on the side, permitting the meditator to see the stranger clearly in the candlelight, A few minutes later, a group of students from the seminar walked in and switched on the electricity.
“Does he stay here?” asked the young man, pointing at Bhagavan’s pictures hanging on all the walls. Learning that Sai Baba is in India, and had never been here, at least in His physical form, the youth could not believe his ears. “But, He was here only a few minutes ago; He put his hands on my head, which made me feel so very good, and then He went out through the door on my right, passing so close to me that I could see His handsome features, dark skin, the crown of black hair, and a long orange gown. Is there some one here who resembles Him?” “No. There is no one like Him here,” they answered in utter bewilderment.
Then, they told him who Sai Baba was. Quite shaken by the experience, the young man asked me for a mantra; he was still unable to explain all that had happened.
“Why didn’t Baba come to me?” enviously asked some of the student devotees. “I would give anything to see Him that way,” “Wait a little longer, for your turn,” an old‑timer assured, “and, your wish may be fulfilled. Many have seen Him here, in this room. His presence is often acutely felt during meditation.”
Hearing this story, my Mexican class was glad to learn that one doesn’t necessarily have to be a `long‑time devotee’ in order to obtain Bhagavan’s grace.
I also told them about how we were once driving from Anantapur to Prasanthi Nilayam. Bhagavan had gone ahead of us, a few minutes earlier. We were rolling on a long lonely road far away from any village; our taxi stopped suddenly; the fan‑belt got torn to shreds, and we could not continue the journey, “Bhagavan! We are in trouble,” i informed Him; it was a `long‑distance call [telepathically]’. No sooner had i spoken those words, then a car appeared; it was coming toward us. It stopped to inquire what the trouble was.
When our driver explained the situation, the man suddenly pulled out a brand new fan‑belt and gave it to him; we were speechless. “Do people here always travel with a spare fan‑belt?” asked a surprised American woman. “Did you ever carry one? Or heard of any one who did it?” was my reply to such a question.
When we finally arrived at the Nilayam, the bhajans were already well on the way, and we sat down outside the temple. As soon as Bhagavan came out, He walked straight to me and asked what the delay was about. “We had car trouble,” i answered. “Yes… Yes. I know… the fan belt.”
The last day of the seminar, the leave takings, in the beautiful capital of Mexico is hard to describe—kisses, flowers, tears, requests for a soon return. Everything was mixed in one emotionally high `good‑bye scene’ such that i was almost choked by the japamala that was being pulled from my neck from behind by people who wanted to touch it or press it against their lips while i was sitting on the floor and autographing books.
“Didn’t you tell me, i should go slowly on Sai Baba?” i asked the couple who had made this suggestion upon my arrival. They only shook their heads, witnessing all that was going on.
“You won, Mataji, they said….” “Not me, Baba did,” was all i could say.
Jai Bhagavan! [Glory to God]
~Indra Devi, Tecate, Mexico
Source: Sanathana Sarathi, March 1974
