MY FIRST ENCOUNTER WITH MY SAI KRISHNA

MY FIRST ENCOUNTER WITH MY SAI KRISHNA

It was July 1974. I was studying in SPCE Bhavan’s campus Andheri, Mumbai in my 2^nd year of civil engineering. I was staying in my hostel room no 116 all alone. I used to visit my parents at Ulhasnagar every weekend.

It was during one of such fun-making visits that I happened to go to house of my friend Dr Deepak Advani to fix programme for night show movie at our family theatre Sapna Talkies adjacent to our bunglow Thakur Nivas.

It so happened that my friend Deepak was taking bath and his father Mr. Gope Advani engaged me in talk purely for time pass. At that time I did not know that this ‘time pass’ will ultimately lead me to the ‘Master of Time’.

 Mr. Advani was a  good old friend of my father and by nature he was a very entertaining &  knowledgable personality. We used to call him ‘AIR– uncle’ i.e. All India Radio, uncle .

I do not know how & why he suddenly thought of telling me something which was totally out of context of my liking & temperament.

 He said “Harish have you heard of Sathya Sai Baba? They say there is vibhuti manifesting out of HIS photograph in the house of one Mr. Sirumal Anandani just across the road. Can you believe it?”

 I said sorry uncle and I do not even want to discuss anything about any Baba at all. I am a science student and I know nothing can be created nothing can be destroyed. That’s it.

I thought my refusal will stop this gentleman to continue on this subject anymore. I did not know that my repudiation will provoke him so much as to literally challenge me and my claim of being a science student.

He said if you profess to be a student of science you must not have any inhibition abuot “witnessing” something which you have not yet heard of before. Of course, you have the all the freedom to make an   independent   assessment & analyze the facts objectively and scientifically and then decide to believe it or not.

 They say, “Seeing is believing” ,  but you are refusing to even ‘see’   &  you  ‘disbelieve’ something that I myself have seen.

When I tell you that I have seen vibhuti appearing  from inside the frame of the photograph of Sathya Sai Baba in the house of a person who is respected & revered by the society as one of the noblest persons, you have audacity to declare that all this is false  without verifying the facts. And, you claim yourself to be a science student !

“As such Deepak is going to take at least 10 – 15 minutes to shave & bathe & Mr. Anandani’s house is just opposite to our house across the road and he is a close friend of your father.

 In fact I want you to help me to assess the situation scientifically & objectively, because I have not seen Sai Baba & at the same time I cannot doubt bona fides of Mr. Anandani.

 Even my mind fails to believe that such miracles could happen all over the world in this age of modern science. So let us first go & see & observe everything &  then discuss the issue with an open mind.”

Now all this was too heavy  for my young & arrogant mind to assimilate. But it was equally impossible for me to refuse the incitement in form of a challeng  to my so called scientific mind with totally un-scientific attitude !!

So we went to the house of  Mr. Anandini to witness the unbelievable & the most incredible !

It was around 6.30pm & Mr. Anandini was sitting in his outside living room. As soon as Mr Advani introduced me as the son of Mann Thakur of Sapna Talkies, he jumped from his seat with joy & welcomed me with paternal affection.

 Mr. Advani as expected, forgot the purpose of his visit & started his famous ‘AIR’ session but I promptly intervened & said uncle we have just come to witness the miracle of vibhuti in your house & then we need to go back for some urgent work.

He said, All right! I will just  wash my hands & take you to my adjacent pooja room.

But I had no patience to wait even for a moment; so I straight away went to the adjacent Pooja room but as soon as I entered the room Mr Anandini came rushing towards us shouting, “who entered my puja room?”

 I said sorry uncle I just entered it because I wanted to go back soon.

He just smiled and said never mind but let me tell you swamy has already accepted you as his own & He Himself has guided you to come here because there was a sign of bell ringing which I could hear when you entered the pooja room. Come,  now I will show you the vibhuti ‘miracle’ !

     For all the care I take

I lose sight of my True – Being – sat – chit – ananda,

I try to avoid the presence of this little ‘ego’

but I escape him not,

He is my little ‘self’, my Lord,

he knows no shame,

but I am ashamed to come to Thy door in his company.