When the Doorbell Rang
Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba entered our lives in the strangest way. Ever since His grace flowed for the first time in 1966, the bond of love has maintained its pace all these 19 years and is growing strong. This article provides a glance into the first vision and its permanence not only in memory but also in its impact.
Between 1963 and 1967, our family, consisting of my wife and myself, my father and my mother, and my grandmother and an uncle, lived in Jamshedpur, Bihar State, India. The life in the family was that of a typical Indian extended family with one main earner and three generations living together, sharing the love, worship, joy, and sorrow. In late 1965, it was known that the fourth generation was about to be launched. My wife was pregnant and the lady doctor taking care of her informed us that the expected delivery date would be around the 20th of July, 1966.
In early 1966, my father, who was 61 and had retired from regular service, took up a part-time job. In July, his employer requested him to go on an official trip to Durgapur. My father liked to go on the trip except that he was quite keen and firm about being present at the time of my wife’s delivery. When he found out he would travel by car from Jamshedpur to Durgapur, a distance of some 300 miles, and that he could leave on the 10th of July and return in a few days, he was quite sure that he would be back in time for the arrival of his grandchild.
Father left on the 10th of July for Durgapur. He specially took my wife’s permission to go and assured her that he would return to Jamshedpur by the 15th, well before the expected delivery date of July 20. On the 14th, we were blessed with a daughter. The arrival surprised the hospital staff who did not expect the delivery almost a week earlier. In any case, all concerned were relieved and happy that the delivery was easy, and the baby and mother were healthy. We were all eager to share with my father the news of the baby’s arrival. He was expected on the 15th.
My father did not return to Jamshedpur on the 15th. Starting that day there were unusual rains in the whole of Bihar State. Railway, telegraph, and telephone lines were all disrupted. Road bridges were either damaged or not visible in the floodwaters in many places. The situation was very bad by the 16th. We were getting worried about father’s safety. Our concern was that he might attempt to come by car and meet with an accident or other mishap. By the evening of July 17th, there was no news about father and there was no sign of his possible return to Jamshedpur. My mother and grandmother especially were getting very worried about father’s safety. All of us could not really enjoy the presence of a darling three days’ old baby since on top of the joy was the anxiety about father.
“Sathyam, Shivam, Sundaram“
On the 18th of July (1966), I went to the office with a heavy and melancholic heart. A pious person by name Gopalam visited me in the office that afternoon. Gopalam and his family were greatly devoted to Sri Sathya Sai Baba. He brought for me a copy of “Sathyam, Shivam, Sundaram” in Telugu and advised me to read it so as to understand the life of Baba. I was not really in the mood for it but received the book and kept it in my briefcase. In the evening when I returned home from the office, my first question to mother was whether there was any news from father. Her response was the same. The atmosphere at home was depressing and my mind was going in all directions: what could have happened to father? Could it be that the car was involved in some accident? What about his life and safety? I did not express my deepest fears to mother, nor did she say anything to me. Grandmother was also getting agitated about her son. My wife, while taking care of the baby, was also concerned.
That evening, after a shower and snack, I started to read “Sathyam, Shivam, Sundaram” just to pass time and know a little bit about the Bhagavan. The first couple of chapters in the book were interesting. I probably did not think much of the early leelas [Divine play] of Baba. I read about a quarter of the book by dinner time and then continued after dinner.
By about 10 p.m., when I had completed a little over half of the book, I was truly amazed at the miracles performed casually by Baba. As I continued to read, tears were rolling down my cheeks. Baba once rescued an elderly gentleman from a deep ground well; He saved someone about to commit suicide; He cured some incurable diseases; and so on. The important thing to note is, He had saved the devotees by His presence at far off places while physically being present at Prasanthi Nilayam, the abode of peace and the residential township of Baba. As I continued reading, it soon became a routine of tears, wiping, reading, and tears. There were far too many miracles page after page to free myself from the force of devotion instantly formed toward a Baba whom I had not met before.
An appeal and a challenge
“You did countless miracles. You saved so many people from misery and difficulty. Is it all true? Are you really divine? Are you God? Baba! If you are divine, please bring my father. Can you materialize him for me?” Such were the thoughts crossing my mind every other second. After a while I resolved as follows: “Baba! The book is what is pressuring me to believe you. Here is my resolve and challenge: before I complete the book, bring my father. If you do, I will be devoted to you from now on and will bring a picture of yours into my prayer room. In case you cannot bring father, I will throw the book down the balcony, pay the appropriate amount to the lender of the book, forget about all I have read, and will never have anything more to do with you!”
After throwing the challenge at him, I continued to read the book, was a bit nervous about the consequences of my resolve and still shedding tears as I read. By about 12 midnight, when I came to the penultimate page, I prayed to him with all my heart. The doorbell rang. I asked my mother to wake up and open the door and assured her that father had come. Indeed, he was there! He gave his story: he had to use various modes of transport, travel for a long duration and somehow managed to return safely. He was very sad for not being present at the time my daughter was born.
Slowly and calmly, I told everybody how Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba came into our lives that very minute and how he brought father to us at that moment. I quickly went into my room and with all my heart, shed tears of devotion, the translucent pearls that Divinity accepts when the devotee offers them. “Bhagavan, you decided to be my own God,” so I thought and completed the last page of the book.
~V.V. Bhanoji Rao, World Bank, Washington DC
Source: Sanathana Sarathi, August 1985
