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Talk Given by Prof. Anil Kumar

On May 9th, 2011 

 

“Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba’s Mahasamadhi

Events from 24.04.11 to 06.05.11 

 

OM…OM…OM…

 

Sai Ram

 

With Pranams at the Lotus Feet of Bhagavan,

 

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

 

Bhagavan lived for 96 years

Let me tell you at the outset that Bhagavan lived for 96 years, as He promised. People have been asking me: why He left us ten years earlier? Did He not say that He would be here on this earth for 96 years? What happened? This is the question everyone has.

 

My friends, Swami’s word will never be untrue. He will live up to His promise under all circumstances. But we must understand what He really meant. Just calculate as per the regional lunar calendar—the almanac. According to the almanac, there are 27 stars, and hence 27 days per month, not 30 as per the English calendar. A year consists of only 324 days, not 365. Thus He spent 30,834 days or 96 years with us.

 

He said that He would live for 96 years, but He did not say according to what calendar or what system. The great Vedic scholars of this region assembled and discussed at length, and arrived at these figures. This has been telecast all over. People are now convinced that He lived for 96 years as He promised.

 

Bhagavan had decided the spot for the samadhi long ago

Here is the second point. Long back, while moving on the dais (in the front centre part of the veranda), Swami called me and said, “There will be the Samadhi here.” A samadhi or tomb is the place where His body would be laid to rest, after He withdraws from this world.

 

Then I said to Swami, “Why do You speak that way? I am frightened when You say such things!”

 

Baba said, “Why? It’s a must. One day or another, it has to happen.” So He decided the spot for the Samadhi long ago.

 

 

 

Swami has withdrawn from his body as he willed

Not only that, a few years ago in Kodaikanal, Swami was speaking about His lifespan of 96 years. Suddenly He said, “If I want, I can live even beyond 96. If I decide, I can withdraw now. I can leave My body and go.”

 

I said, “Swami, we have all come here for a vacation. All children are with you. This is summer camp, Kodaikanal. Why do you speak like that and frighten everyone? Please Swami, don’t speak like that.”

 

Swami said, “No, no, no! I am telling you that extension and withdrawal are in My hands. I determine when I should withdraw and how long I should continue.”

 

Therefore my friends, be sure that He has withdrawn from His body as He willed.

 

Swami’s only concern was his devotees

Then a question comes to mind: why 28 days in the hospital? Why dialysis and ventilator? Why the liver damage? Why all this?

 

My friends, tell me how many people can withstand all these problems at the age of 85? He was kept on ventilator as his lungs were affected. A pacemaker was fixed due to heart problems. Kidney problem led to dialysis. He suffered from jaundice due to liver problems.  Almost all vital organs suffered heavily. But He continued for 28 days in the hospital! To survive with all this at the age of 85 itself is His Divinity.

 

It is His strong will that made Him continue. We should also understand that all these problems did not creep up suddenly. All parts can’t get damaged all of a sudden. Some doctors suspect that He must have been suffering since long and neglected His health; therefore it came to this situation.

 

Let’s keep that aside because I am not a doctor to speak in those terms; but as a devotee I can say this: He worked till the end. He never cared for His body or health. His only care and concern was the welfare of His devotees. In the process, He fell sick and neglected His health. Perhaps He wanted to withdraw. Probably He thought that His Divine agenda had come to an end, that it was time to leave. He decided when to come, and He decided when to leave. So be sure His advent as well as eclipse were decided by Him.

 

Sathya sai baba - only spiritual MASTER bestowed state honours

It is wonderful and unbelievable that on that day, 27th of April, it was a matter of celebration! Manmohan Singh, Prime Minister of India, and the topmost leader of Congress Party, Madam Sonia Gandhi, Cabinet Ministers like Mrs. Ambika Sony, Governors like Shivaraj Patel and Narasimhan, Chief Ministers like Mr. Kumar Reddy of Andhra Pradesh, Yeddyurappa from the State of Karnataka, all were in attendance on the Samadhi day, when the body was laid to rest.

 

A special military band was called from Mysore. They stood in line and marched forward and placed the tri-coloured flag over the body. Wrapped in the flag, the body was taken to rest on the dais, the Samadhi place, which was decided by Swami long ago.

 

To my knowledge, only the most spiritual guru is given such an honor and no other government would give such respect and reverence to a spiritual guru. Sathya Sai Baba is the only spiritual Master who was given state honours.

 

I am reminded of the demise of top people in this country. I know the state honors accorded to Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, former Prime Ministers of India, when they died. Similar honours were given to Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba.

 

one million people had swami’s last darshan

The dais was beautifully decorated and representatives from different religions flew all the way from everywhere. The Imam of Delhi—the head priest of Islamic faith, the top man from Sikh religion, special Christian and Buddhist priests attended, and all offered prayers, reading out passages from their respected Holy scriptures in honour and adoration of Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba.

 

For two days, His body was kept lying in state so that all could have His last darshan. He left His body on 24th of April at 7:40 AM. The body was brought to this Mandir around 12 o’clock and kept in Sai Kulwant Hall for public darshan at 8.00 PM. His body was kept in a casket for two days, 25th and 26th for all the devotees to have the last darshan.

 

Believe me, my friends, lakhs and lakhs of people lined up in queues, and marched towards the casket in perfect discipline and paid their respects. It is estimated at least 10 lakh (about one million) people must have had His last darshan.

 

How He has endeared Himself to all these people—villagers, farmers, daily casual labor, illiterate, very poor people, middle class people, rich people! How He could draw people of all cross sections, of all positions! They came like a tsunami! Puttaparthi was flooded with people!

 

IT was an outpouring of love and devotion

How about media? Members of regional, state, national, and international media, both press and television, were camped here in Prashanthi Nilayam for 20 days. All channels were waiting for the health bulletin on Bhagavan. The state and district administration evinced keen interest in releasing bulletins regularly because the public was anxious to know.

 

Those days were very tough, yet it was a reality. During the 28 days that Baba was hospitalised, there was no other thought, other than His health. In other words, our spiritual levels have gone up. In the local area, all shops and hotels were closed. All local people, right from the level of watchmen to the wealthiest people, cooked and distributed food freely to lakhs of devotees who came here to pay their last homage to Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba. In some places expensive items like pulav, biriyani, fruits and ice cream were served.  Nobody instructed them to do so. Water packets and bottles were distributed to everybody. Nobody told them to. This was unprecedented. It was an outpouring of love and devotion. Amazing!

 

I should also mention that right from 24th evening 6 o’clock, until His body was laid to rest, on 27th April at 9 AM we had Akhanda bhajans. We had men and women, boys and girls, singing bhajans throughout this period and the atmosphere was full of devotion, floral tributes and decorations. It is befitting because the advent of Avatar is a celebration and Avatar withdrawing from the body is a celebration too.

 

The whole humanity expressed its gratitude to the Avatar. It was a prayerful salutation to our Lord, an expression of respect, a token of love. The Trust held meetings repeatedly to make certain decisions, and also held some press conferences to answer the questions put to them.

 

doubting THE TRUST members is doubting baba’s wisdom

I would like to summarise what I know about the Trust. There have been many apprehensions and lot of vain gossip. Some papers published false allegations, attributing evil motives to Trust members. But as one who is associated with Sathya Sai movement for 40 years, living closely with Swami and the Trust members for the last 22 years, I can certainly give you some factual information about the Trust.

 

The facts: Sri Sathya Sai Central Trust is founded by Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba Himself and no other person. Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba is the founder and President of Sri Sathya Sai Central Trust. The members were nominated by Him. They were not elected. They are not chosen by the public. They were specially picked up by Bhagavan on the basis of their stature in society, their dedicated spirit to His mission and movement, and above all, their trust and devotion. Based on these criteria, Swami Himself selected the members of the Sri Sathya Sai Central Trust. To question that or to doubt them is to doubt the wisdom of Baba, which is a sacrilege.

 

trust members are reputed Personalities and ardent devotees

I will make a mention of a couple of people, if not all. The first and foremost is the Secretary of Sri Sathya Sai Central Trust, Mr. N.C. Chakravarthi. Mr. Chakravarthi hales from the state of Tamil Nadu, and he is a civil servant. He was a highly ranked IAS Officer (Indian Administrative Service), serving as District Collector at Ananthapur. He had 20 years of service remaining when Swami wanted him to resign and come to Prashanthi Nilayam.

 

Can anyone match him in his devotion and sacrifice? None! Believe me or not, he has not come out of the four walls of Prashanthi Nilayam for 30 years. He stays here like a watchdog. He served as the Registrar of Sri Sathya Sai University for 13 long years. Later and to date, he has served as the Secretary of Sri Sathya Sai Central Trust. He is around 75 I think, and both his sons are settled abroad. He has nothing to gain, no need to earn. He doesn’t need anything. He never came for power because he was already a District Collector. He came here full of dedication and devotion. Can we doubt him?

 

The second man is Chief Justice of India, Justice P.N. Bhagwati who is known internationally. He was the Chairman of U.N. Human Rights commission. He has toured widely, is a great writer and is known for his unique judgments. A very popular man in the judicial circles, he is almost 90, and was picked by Baba as a Trust member. Do we doubt him now? What is it that he needs? He wanted an opportunity to serve Him, and therefore accepted Baba’s invitation to join the Trust.

 

Then we have Shri Indulal Shah from Bombay, who is above 90. He is a very popular figure, a disciplined man. With more than five decades of relentless service and dedication, and very high standards of devotion, he developed the Sri Sathya Sai Organisation to its present stature. The whole world respects him for his discipline and vision. What is it that he gets out of this membership? He came here to serve Swami, in response to His invitation to become a member of the Central Trust.

 

Therefore my friends, do not get carried away by anything that is said against the Trust members. They are very genuine, highly respected and reputed, popular figures. They are ardent devotees and hence Swami selected them as members of Sri Sathya Sai Central Trust.

 

For your information, nobody receives cash directly. In Sri Sathya Sai Organisation, nobody is authorised to collect funds. You have to remit into the bank, collect the receipt, and everything is accounted for. All accounts are annually audited and the reports are sent to the central government. They are all responsible people.

 

Therefore, don’t be carried away by whatever is said against the Central Trust members. Don’t doubt them because the Central Trust was constituted at His will, and has been functioning successfully with all its accountability and credibility all these years.

 

truth has no fear

There are several channels covering the daily news. I thought it was time for me to come out and talk to them openly. I spoke to almost all media organisations, explaining the exact position and dispelling their doubts. I encouraged them to put as many questions as they could because truth has no fear. Truth does not entertain any doubts; it calls for frankness, fearlessness, openness.

 

Unsolicited, I did it as an act of service, as a token of love towards Bhagavan. I did it because I felt a call from within: “Come on, get out! Talk to everybody! Declare what you know! Don’t allow this character assassination to go on. Tell the truth to the world, whatever little you know.”

 

So in response to my conscience, I came out and spoke to everybody. I have great satisfaction today of having discharged this little bit of service, of obligation towards the organisation and Swami.

 

celebrations in prashanthi nilayam from 4th to 6th May

Then the administrators planned for meetings on 4th, 5th, and 6th of May. Fourth of May happens to be the 11th day of Samadhi and the 6th is the 13th day of Samadhi. The 6th of May happens also to be Easwaramma day also. So from 4th to 6th May, we had programs at Sai Kulwant Hall.

 

On the 4th, we had a meeting in Sai Kulwant Hall where a few elders shared their experiences with devotees. I was one of them. Besides me, we had Dr. Narendra Reddy, Vice Chairman of International Sathya Sai Organisation from Los Angeles, California USA. We also had another speaker, Sri Srinivansan, All India President Sri Sathya Sai Organisation, and finally, Mr. Sanjay Sahani, Principal of Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning, Brindavan campus, Bangalore.

 

On 5th, the Trust members were talking to heads of different sections working in Prashanthi Nilayam. They were talking to students, consoling them and assuring their continued support to them. On 6th, Easwaramma day, about 20,000 poor people were fed in Sri Sathya Sai Hill View stadium. I understand that 12,000 women and 8,000 men attended that day. Everyone received food and clothes. Policeman helped maintain law and order. Sevadal and students of the university participated in the distribution.

 

Also on the 6th, at 10:30 in morning in South Indian canteen, all the devotees, visitors, and residents of Prashanthi Nilayam, were served lunch. So there was a big celebration in the morning. At 5 o’ clock in the evening, we had a meeting in which Dr. Venkataraman, the former Vice Chancellor of Sri Sathya Sai University, addressed us. Also, Mr. V.S.R. Murthy from Hyderabad spoke in Telugu.

 

And finally, we had a music recital. The vocalists Malladi Brothers sang in praise of Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba. With that, the celebrations concluded.

 

All activities in prashanthi nilayam are proceeding as before

I will add another point: Prashanthi Nilayam today has slowly reconciled with and adjusted to the changed situation. People are attending bhajans as usual, work is going on as usual, and at the end of the bhajans, people line up. After arathi, they pay their respects to the Samadhi and silently return. A Divine chair is kept by the side of the Samadhi (the tomb) for people to have darshan. The spiritual program, Nagasankirtanam, Veda recitation, and bhajans, everything is proceeding as per schedule.

 

The All-India President Srinivasan and a member of the central Trust made it categorically clear that all activities will go on as usual. States will start visiting Prashanthi Nilayam as before. Different devotees from different nations will continue to visit Prashanthi Nilayam as before. Conferences, workshops—provincial, national, and international—will be held as before.

 

We also plan to have an International Orthopedic Conference and an International Workshop for Young Adults. On 17th and 18th May, we will celebrate Buddha Purnima in honour of Lord Buddha. About 800 people are going to attend from Malaysia, Indonesia, Japan, China, and Hong Kong.

 

Divine vibrations of baba are all around

Divine vibrations and the undercurrent of Divinity are present. The smile of Baba is experienced; the physical Presence of Baba is felt by everyone as they go close to the Samadhi. He may not be in front of us in body and flesh, but we see Him there. We find Him answering our prayers. People are getting messages from the Samadhi. Some see Him sitting on the Divine chair, even though He is not here in flesh and blood.

 

My friends, I am more than sure that this place is going to be a Mecca, a Vatican, Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Badari, Kashi, Tirupathi, Mathura, Shirdi, Gurudwara, a synagogue, a mosque, a church. This place will always attract people because the place has been developed by the Avatar Himself during His lifetime.

 

We hear of places that developed subsequent to the Avatar’s withdrawal, but this place has been developed inch-by-inch by Sri Sathya Sai Baba Himself. Every grain of it is His! The university, colleges, schools and hospitals are established—the only centre of support to poor and needy people for education and health care!

 

prashanthi nilayam is a spiritual generator

Therefore, there is no doubt at all that this Prashanthi Nilayam—a pilgrim centre, a centre of service and sadhana, a centre of fellowship of faiths, a centre that directs every spiritual seeker individually—will continue its glory, its splendour, its grandeur and tempo in the coming years because here there are the Divine vibrations of Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba all around.

 

He will be watching. Just as a generator is a source of power, Prashanthi Nilayam is a spiritual generator. Out of this place, spiritual energy is drawn into different channels by different people, whomsoever it might be, from whichever region or country they belong to. Therefore, Prashanthi Nilayam will continue to confer bliss and peace on all devotees forever and ever more.

 

Sai Ram!

 

  OM . . . OM . . .OM

 

Asato Maa Sadgamaya

Tamaso Maa Jyotirgamaya

Mrityormaa Amrithamgamaya

Om Shanti Shanti Shanti  

     Jai Bolo Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Babaji ki Jai!

Jai Bolo Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Babaji ki Jai!

    Jai Bolo Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Babaji ki Jai! 

 

 © Copyright Prof. Anil Kumar Kamaraju - Puttaparthi All rights reserved.

 

 

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