Being in the Presence of Sai
Rajdeep Singh is a student (1989-1992) from Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning. He was formerly with The Indian Navy and is currently a Pilot with Indigo Airlines.
Was it a pleasant coincidence, a miracle, or a fruit of my past karmas [actions] or was it just His infinite grace? It is all beyond my comprehension, but whatever it was, my gratitude toward that unknown phenomenon would remain perpetual. My beloved Lord Sai took me under His protective umbrella to make a man out of me, a man who will be worthy of His Name. Before the memorable event, when He took me in His Institute, I was just a lump of clay, of no use to anyone. He came and made a lamp out of me, filled me with the oil of bhakti [devotion] and the wick of self-sacrifice. He lighted the fire of service to the wick, so that it may burn and burn to give light around by serving others.
It is my prayer from the core of my heart to Bhagavan that the oil and wick of this lamp remain for ever and ever and the fire of service continue for all time to come. Earlier I was in darkness, but now by His Divine love and grace I am coming out of it slowly, but steadily. And it gives me great joy that being in the presence of our Sai Mother, a change for the better is coming with the passing of each day.
Bhagavan came into my parents’ life way back in 1976, and since then His infinite grace has been flowing ceaselessly to our family. It all started in June 1975. My father, who is in the Army, was then posted in North-Eastern Area. He developed pain and swelling on his left hip/thigh. The army doctors diagnosed it as a recurrence of old athletic injuries and treated him, but without any relief. There was no relief even though he had been treated at the best Army hospitals. Homeopathy treatment also was of no avail. During childhood, my father was religious and used to say his prayers regularly. But as he grew, he had stopped prayers altogether.
Bhagavan’s Will was unknowingly and silently at work; seeing no relief from his ailment, my father turned to God and began reading selected Sikh prayers, and it became a daily routine to do so. His faith in God began. Due to his illness and a lot of hospitalization, his promotion though overdue could not be given. And it is now that Bhagavan’s Will began working. A Colonel’s wife, who had not met my parents but had only heard of father’s illness, came to see him. She talked at length about Bhagavan and His miracles of healing, but these had had no effect on father. The lady offered to my father the book—Sathyam Sivam Sundaram (Part 3). He reluctantly took the book with no intention to read it, but in his curiosity he turned to some pages and began to read it. He felt in tune with the life and teachings of Jesus Christ and Guru Nanak. The more he read, the intensity of having Lord’s Darshan was increasing. And my mother, too, began reading the God’s given gift in the shape of Sathyam Sivam Sundaram.
A few days later, father noticed fragrance coming from the book—Sathyam Sivam Sundaram. On a Sunday, when the Colonel and his wife visited father, he narrated the incident of fragrance. They, too, smelled the book and were overjoyed. It was the fragrance of Vibhuti [sacred ash], and actually it was the omnipresence of Bhagavan to make the ailing person feel that everything will be all right soon. And the first miracle was that since the day father started reading this book, his health started improving. He could now sit for longer periods of time and had less difficulty in walking and standing. His faith in Bhagavan’s Infinite Love and Grace deepened.
In the latter half of July 1976, by His Will, my parents and two elder sisters came to Puttaparthi. As I was young then, they left me with my grandparents at home. On arrival at Prasanthi Nilayam, my father had expected that Bhagavan would call them soon for interview. It was, however, several days later that the interview was granted by Bhagavan.
During the interview, Bhagavan materialized Vibhuti and gave it to mother. He then jokingly reminded her of her cribs against Him. Touching father’s left hip, He said, “How is your leg and back?” This surprised father, for, although most people knew about the leg, he had not mentioned the accompanying pain in the back to anyone, not even to mother. Continuing, Bhagavan said, “Don’t worry, it will be okay by October.” Bhagavan directed that the Vibhuti should be taken for three days, and it would be all right. Three days of Vibhuti healed a two-year-old illness. Father stopped all medicines and was healed as assured, and he was promoted also.
Since that day, the left leg, which had always been weak, has never had any problems, not even minor ones. It is as though an unseen protective sheath has been guarding it. Soon father began to realize that Bhagavan was not just a saint. For had not Bhagavan been answering whenever he prayed to God in the Sikh traditions? Slowly but surely, he became a devotee of Bhagavan and has come to realize that Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba is none other than Waheguru, one of the names frequently used by the Sikhs for the one and the only God, the Lord of the entire Cosmos.
What we have to realize is that the illness was a boon in disguise. Without it father would have remained immersed in his little world and missed the joy of spiritual life and faith in God. Bhagavan, who is the Principal Director in the drama of life, knows when and what to do. When my father’s faith in the world and also its doctors had begun to crumble, He grabbed the opportunity to show father the Light and the Way.
Initially it was turning to the Holy Scriptures, which in turn led to faith in God. From faith and prayer came grace in the Divine revelation and intervention by our Bhagavan. Father was able to realize that Bhagavan is the Waheguru who has come to this world in the form of Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba to lead us out of the darkness. It is not that Bhagavan needs devotees of fame. It is we human beings who need Him. Without Him, what is there in this world?
Guru Nanak has beautifully said, “If I please Him, it is pilgrimage enough; if not, nothing—no rite or toil—avaiIs.” So, it was by His grace that He gave us a place in His shadow and a mind that recognizes Him as “Waheguru.”
Source: Sai Vandana 1990 (65th Birthday Offering)
