From My Diary

The narrative tense of this article has been modified to enable readers to experience the happenings live in the mind’s eye…

It is a beautiful Brindavan morning a few days before Maha Sivarathri, 1979 and Swami has just returned after darshan from the Sai Ram Shed. This morning, quite unlike other days, Swami has asked all students to leave for college a bit early. As I prepare to go with the others, a student who has the privileged ‘staircase duty’ pulls me aside and whispers that I should stay behind for a while instead of going to college right away. After the rest of the students leave for college, Swami comes out of the interview room and beckons me and another student to join a group of devotees chosen for this morning’s interview session. A thrilling surprise! Swami informs me and the other student individually that He would take us to Ooty and Mudumalai forest for Sivarathri. He makes it a point to emphasize we are not to mention this to anyone. I am thrilled and over the next two days have a very difficult time pretending to be normal.

It is 2:30AM the day before Maha Sivarathri when I find myself in the mandir compound waiting in the shadows along with a small group of people. Somehow the students in the hostel have sensed Swami’s impending trip and within an hour nearly half the hostel students are assembled in the mandir portico. Swami comes down around 2:45AM looking fresh and radiant and expresses delight at seeing so many students already awake. I have the privilege to travel in the front seat of Swami’s car and can hardly believe my good fortune at this wonderful opportunity coming my way within the first year of my joining Swami’s college.

As the car pulls out of the Brindavan compound Swami waits in the darkness by the roadside until the second car catches up with us. While waiting Swami asks me “Did the other boys question you about Swamiji taking you for this trip? You should not lie”. At my silence, Swami instructs– “The right answer to give would be ‘I don’t know’ because you never know when Swamiji may change His mind and not take you.”

As the second car catches up with us, our two-car convoy moves very fast through Bangalore and by first light we are well on our way to Mysore. Soon Swami opens a number of snack boxes and assumes the role of Divine Mother feeding Her children. There is a continuous stream of tasty treats which Swami Himself gives each of us. I am in bliss sitting so close and diagonally across from Swami. At one point Swami calls out to me and says “Aye, Bombay – Tippu Sultan tomb dekho” (See this is Tippu Sultan’s tomb). As we reach the edge of Mudumalai forest the morning fog has covered the road and forest. Swami asks the car to be driven slowly in case there are any deer by the roadside. Soon Swami spots some and excitedly asks for the car to stop. It amazes me to see the excitement of the Creator beholding His creation. A short while later Swami asks a student to sing Telugu songs and Swami joins him. Imagine the Lord is singing bhajans and Telugu devotional songs while we listen to Him! He asks me to sing and I croak a Gujarati bhajan forgetting the lines half way and covering up with lines from a wedding song hoping I will not get caught. Swami quips “Manchi tune” at the end of it to make me feel better.

After about six hours on the road we reach ‘Kargudi Rest house’ in the heart of Mudumalai forest which is reserved for Swami’s entourage every year. It is a beautiful bungalow set in the middle of the deep forest. After freshening up we have lunch with Swami and enjoy the jokes and mirth that Swami lavishes on the group. Later, we step out into the bright, crisp, quiet morning and Swami poses for pictures with each of us.

This afternoon after a few hours of rest we go for a mini ‘Safari’ with Swami in a van to spot some wildlife in their natural setting. We spot a herd of wild elephants and the forest ranger briefs us about their curriculum vitae. Somewhere on the road our van gets stuck in the wet mud of the jungle road and we pile out to push the Van out of the pothole. Swami’s beautiful smile through the Van window encourages us, as we huff and puff to set the wheel free. I take an opportunity to peel an orange and offer it to Swami shortly after. Such sweet nothings make me feel special.

Maha Sivarathri dawns and we are all up and ready very early before Swami emerges from His room. We all get to offer padanamaskar on this auspicious morning. This morning too after a sumptuous breakfast we sit around Swami’s Lotus Feet and hear His discourse and jokes while we sit doing Paadaseva (pressing His Feet). The hours fly by. At one point He waves His hand in the air and materializes seven identical silver lockets with Swami’s embossed picture on one side and Aum on the other. He gives one to each of us. Later in the morning He creates a beautiful watch and puts it on the wrist of a devotee who is serving our entourage. Not long after Swami creates a golden cylindrical pendant which He then pulls on both ends to reveal a delicate watch inside. A fortunate devotee is presented this Divine Creation.

After an early afternoon nap we head to the main road where we learn we were going for yet another Safari – this time on elephant back. Our party of twelve is seated on three elephants, four persons per elephant. For almost two hours the three-elephant convoy, with Swami on the lead elephant, roams through the virgin forest. The only sound to be heard is from the elephants’ feet crashing through the bushes cutting a new path as they walk. I cannot help feeling a sense of spiritual high about this entire experience.

Upon reaching the bungalow Swami jokes, “We traveled through the forest for two hours in search of elephants (wildlife) oblivious that we were sitting on one all the time. So also man searches for God outside when He is all the while right there within him."

In the evening Swami gives a beautiful Sivarathri discourse in which He narrates the story of how Siva drank the poison that threatened all creation and how Parvathi (Shakti) lifted and revived Siva from His stupor – thus Shakti is always the base and Siva is the Lingam that sits on that base. He stands up and waves His hand and creates an exquisite silver statue (about 2.5 inches high) denoting Siva with hooded snake over Him resting on a platform. Swami places it on His silver tumbler for all to see. After the discourse and a good dinner we again gather around Swami’s feet. As we sit there doing Paadaseva, Swami seems to be ‘far away’ - His gaze fixed at the ceiling, His hand waving and writing in the air. No one dares to speak and these silent moments pass with our vision filled with Swami’s beautiful face. Swami gives us paadanamaskar and retires for the day.

Early morning we leave for Ooty and Swami gives us a wonderful time amidst the Ooty school children all dressed in orange sweaters. We sit all morning at Swami’s Lotus Feet upstairs. For the journey back, Swami switches the students around between the two cars and the return journey for me was quiet and uneventful. We reach Brindavan late in the evening, feeling ecstatic and deeply moved by the love and grace that Swami has showered upon us.

The author Dr. Mayur Pandya, is currently based in Vancouver, Canada. He is employed as a Knowledge Management Officer for HSBC Software House (IT Division of HSBC Bank Canada).

Dr Mayur joined Swami's college in Brindavan in 1978 where he earned his B.Com. and M.Com. degrees. He went on to earn his Ph.D. from the SSSIHL at Prasanthi Nilayam and taught at the Institute from 1984 to 1990.

He countinues to serve Swami by being actively involved with the Sai Baba Centre of Vancouver, conducting study circles, teaching senior group of SSE students and is also the webmaster for www.vancouversaicentre.org.