The Illegal Interview

Ed Loriot, a founding member of the Manhattan Sai Center in New York, has been with Swami since 1974. He has made over 30 trips to Baba and had His grace interacting with Him on a few occasions.

During the mid to late 1980’s I experienced increasing hunger, loss of weight, gastrointestinal disorders, pounding heartbeat and constantly increasing body heat. I went to the emergency ward at a Veteran’s Administration hospital many times over perhaps five or six years. All the doctors there said nothing was wrong with me.  I went to doctors outside the VA system. Nothing wrong. Finally, a  lady doctor from the VA hospital said, “I think you have hyperthyroidism,” and sent me for a blood test. I returned to work and soon the VA called and told me to go to the VA hospital immediately, where I was admitted, to stay overnight.

A measure of thyroid function should be between 200 and 300. Mine was 966 with a heartbeat rate of 120-160 per minute. The normal heart rate is 60 to 80. I was given massive daily drugs orally, which helped somewhat.

While talking to a doctor I said, “I hope this won’t take long. I have to go to India in three weeks.” The doctor replied, “You can’t go.”  I cried openly and freely. He looked on in amazement and disbelief.

I had taken the doctor’s directive as an authoritative fiat and felt that he could prevent me from going. After getting over this shock, I thought more clearly and realized I could go!  He said that there was some chance I could have a “thyroid storm,” in which case I would need to get to an intensive care unit within half and hour or I would die. I insisted that I must go. He then called perhaps a dozen or more physicians, who all repeated the fact that there was no ICU in India and agreed that I could die.  (This was before Baba’s super speciality hospital.) But I went.

During the course of this medically difficult visit to Sai Baba, a lady from the Manhattan Sai Center invited me to join a bhajan (devotional singing) at the home of an Indian devotee.  I did so, and realized that most of the westerners there were from the same California Sai Baba center.  They all wore scarves with a U.S. flag to identify themselves as a group.

The next morning we lined up for darshan (sight of a holy person). The lady who had invited me to the bhajan rushed over to me, handed me a necklace of red, white, and blue ribbon and said, “We are forming an American group.  If you want to belong, wear this,” and hastily left, since she was on the men’s side. I put it on. During darshan Baba called the California group for an interview. I thought, “I have an American group ‘scarf,’ should I go in?”

“Yes, no, yes, no, yes, no.” The California group was through the gate to Trayee Brindavan (Sai Baba’s residence in Bangalore, India) and the bhajan crowd was disbursing.

“Yes, no, yes, no, yes, no.”

“Yes!”

Leaving the tree darshan area, I slowly walked to the gate.  I was most noticeable as I was wearing an electric blue “pajama” suit. The two guards had turned around and were walking back to the inner Trayee compound. I walked past the gate, turned left and stood at the end of the line of California devotees.  Several members of the group stepped out of line and looked at me, knowing I was not one of them.

Baba came out, motioned to us to come, and stood on the wooden footbridge. He rested His arms on the railing of the bridge with His back to us as we filed past Him. When I was directly opposite Him, He said, “Hurry up, don’t waste time.”

I sat at the back of the interview room prepared to be sent out at any moment.

The Interview

Baba walked slowly along the front row of devotees, stopped in front of an Indian man, and said, “You are bad, so bad!!”  This set the casual and humorous tone of the interview, an aspect of Sai Baba that is especially dear to me.

This interview was in 1990 or 1991.  I am not certain of the sequence of the following incidents, yet each is very clear to me:

Baba likened unifying our thoughts, words, and deeds to three blades of a fan. In a hushed, soft, hypnotic tone, elegantly and subtly motioning to His ears, He said, “Hear no evil, hear only good.”

Pointing to His eyes—“See no evil, see only good.”

To His heart—“Think no evil, think only good.”

Holding His hand up—“Do no evil, do only good.”

A lady gave Baba a large framed picture of Himself. He held the picture, looked at it, gave a deep, slow, sigh, and like a weary teacher, trying for the millionth time to teach students who will not learn, He said slowly, “See the picture as God, not God as the picture.”

Baba did such a perfect imitation of a tired teacher, repeating the same lesson to not so bright students, that I laughed. (I was the only person in the room who laughed.) Baba looked up at me and gave a look of recognition and a faint smile. I was elated.

Later He sat in His chair, on the ladies side, and asked a western lady near Him, “What do you want?”

“Only You, Baba!”

“No, no, something material.  What do you want?”

“Only You, Baba!”

“I know, a cross.”

He waved his hand and held it in front of his stomach. Instantaneously, a small bar of gold appeared, extending from his fingertips. He turned His hand over, and there was a rectangular gold cross. Both the upright and cross piece were covered with precious stones of red, white, and green. Baba gave it to the lady.

He materialized a large gold ring, much like a wedding band but wider and heavier.  After showing us the ring, Baba looked at the “bad” Indian man and said, “Not for you.  Look!  Too big.” He then gave it to a big-boned African American man from the California group.

Later Baba walked to the back of the room, waved His hand and produced a white marble-like lingam [symbol of God]. A heavy-set Indian man was standing at the back. He immediately reminded me of my younger brother. Baba held the lingam between His third finger and thumb, approached the young man, and said, “This is for you because you are so pure.” The resonance of my younger brother increased. I felt at that moment Baba was telling me of the purity of my younger brother.

There were several more miracles, which I don’t recall.

After the interview, I walked back to the tree darshan area and met the woman who invited me to the California bhajan [group]. She began to tell me what happened in the interview. I said, “I know, I was there.” She seemed oblivious to my comment. She told me of the lingam. I repeated, “I know, I was there.” She was instantly jealous, and then seemed to rejoice.

I believe I was allowed in the interview as a reward for risking a thyroid storm.

~Edward Loriot
New York, USA