As I sit alone in a rather pensive mood, attempting a mental resume
of my student life at His Lotus Feet, the thought overawes me that, in
fact, seven precious summers have passed since I entered the portals
of this paradise. It is unbelievable… for was it not only yesterday
that I joined Bhagawan’s college? Verily one forgets to keep track
of time when one is living with Eternity Itself.

The thought gives me joy with a tinge of sorrow, for when I try to
peep into the inner recesses of my heart to find the glow of His Love,
I at once discover that He has been unfailing in His bountiful love
for me. Inspite of knowing that He is the way and the goal for all of
us without Whom our lives would not bear any meaning or taste, we fail
to understand His Love.

On a number of occasions, He has reminded us to realise the DIVINITY
in Him and not to be deluded by external appearances. Through parables
and examples, jokes and stories He has been constantly trying to drive
home that TRUTH in all of us.

One such golden moment came in my life on a bright morning. The Day
was the 7th of November 1984. All of us were eagerly awaiting
Swami’s Darshan. As He came out, He picked up four boys and I was
one of the fortunate four. Swami directed us to go to the anteroom in
the Mandir apparently to clean and tidy up the room.

As I sit alone in a rather pensive mood, attempting a mental resume
of my student life at His Lotus Feet, the thought overawes me that, in
fact, seven precious summers have passed since I entered the portals
of this paradise. It is unbelievable… for was it not only yesterday
that I joined Bhagawan’s college? Verily one forgets to keep track
of time when one is living with Eternity Itself.

The thought gives me joy with a tinge of sorrow, for when I try to
peep into the inner recesses of my heart to find the glow of His Love,
I at once discover that He has been unfailing in His bountiful love
for me. Inspite of knowing that He is the way and the goal for all of
us without Whom our lives would not bear any meaning or taste, we fail
to understand His Love.

On a number of occasions, He has reminded us to realise the DIVINITY
in Him and not to be deluded by external appearances. Through parables
and examples, jokes and stories He has been constantly trying to drive
home that TRUTH in all of us.

One such golden moment came in my life on a bright morning. The Day
was the 7th of November 1984. All of us were eagerly awaiting
Swami’s Darshan. As He came out, He picked up four boys and I was
one of the fortunate four. Swami directed us to go to the anteroom in
the Mandir apparently to clean and tidy up the room.

After going round the devotees and granting them the much-coveted
darshan, Swami came straight into the room, where we were engaged in
cleaning the place. We all stood in front of Him with folded hands.
Swami in His characteristic and Divine way proceeded to grant us one
of the rarest moments of our lives.

Swami pointed to a deerskin which was rolled and kept on a rack, and
addressed one of the boys, “Take this deer skin to the Himalayas and
do Tapasya there?†For a moment the boy was nonplussed. “Did He
really mean it? Is Swami telling seriously or is it meant to be a
pleasant joke?†There was silence for a few seconds, while Swami
waited for an answer from us. Swami looked at me and asked, “Is it
good to do Tapasya in the Himalayas?†I promptly said, “Yes
Swami.†But this answer did not satisfy Him. He Himself said, “Do
you not realise that the RESULT of all Tapasya is Here?†and pointed
at Himself.

He thus gave us a glimpse of His Divinity and showed that there is no
need to do Tapasya in the Himalayas when the object of all such
endeavours was right in front of us in flesh and blood. He continued,
“Whenever I give darshan to those who are engaged in penance in the
Himalayas, even for a few seconds, they feel extremely blissful for
having attained that Vision Of God. And they regard it as a great
experience. But you all are having My darshan every morning and
evening, yet, you never realise the value of it.

He gave further a beautiful illustration. “Whenever people desire
to see an elephant they go to the forest. And by chance, if they see
even the tail of an elephant whose body might have been hidden among
the bushes and shrubs, they feel immense joy at having seen an
elephant. In your case, there is an elephant (Sai Geeta) in front of
your hostel. But you do not pine to see her, because she is a familiar
sight.â€

We must realise the value of His Divine Darshan from these examples.
Since we are blessed with the opportunity to be near Him, we should
make the best use of each and every moment of our life here.
Sometimes, we may be confused by delusion and despair. In those weak
moments, we must pray to Swami for His benign grace so that we may
always feel His Presence within us.

Source……..Sai Spiritual Showers….www.sssbpt.org

Natarajan