A Supreme Court Justice Journeys To The Supreme
It is difficult to express Sai Baba’s omniscience and omnipotence in words since it is well beyond anyone’s comprehension. Swami’s miracles abound around the world.
Swami’s Vibhuti Cures Cancer
His devotees have been witnessing Vibhuti falling from His pictures in various places, Kumkum manifesting on the left side, and Vibhuti on the right side of Swami’s pictures, corresponding to the Shakti and Shiva aspects of the Avatar. While living in Delhi, I came to know of such a place – 101 Sunder Nagar, Delhi, where Vibhuti was manifesting, and I went with my family to visit this home in Delhi. Bhajans were going on, and we also joined in and enjoyed them. People collected the Vibhuti that appeared, before returning home. We stayed back to meet the lady of the house and expressed our desire to see the manifestations of Vibhuti. She took us to their puja room where we saw a large amount of Vibhuti on Swami’s photo, some of which had fallen to the bottom. I was amazed, yet a bit skeptical, and I asked her about how she came to believe in Swami. Then she told me the story which I share below.
She said that she was suffering from cancer and was almost in the last stages. Then someone advised her to take Swami’s Vibhuti to cure her cancer. Considering that she did not have many choices left, she decided to follow this advice, took the Vibhuti, and was completely cured. I found this story hard to believe. Furthermore, she also identified the doctor who attended her during her treatment for cancer – who was Dr. C. L. Sahani, a well-known physician. We left her home with Vibhuti.
The following Sunday, we went to Dr. Sahani’s house and his wife received us cordially as the doctor was at the clinic. Mrs. Sahani inquired about our visit, and we asked her how they started believing in Swami. Then she started narrating the story of the same cancer patient, whom we met earlier at Sunder Nagar, Delhi. She said that by the time this patient came for consultancy, her cancer was in an advanced stage. Doctor Sahani performed a biopsy and informed her that there was only a bleak chance for recovery. The lady responded, “I want to take Vibhuti, Swami will save me.” Seeing not many options, Dr. Sahani said, “Go ahead, nothing wrong with that.” Thus, she started taking Vibhuti. After about two to three months, she reported feeling very well, almost normal. Dr. Sahani did a biopsy and found no signs of cancer! The doctor had a second biopsy performed after 2-3 days, which reconfirmed that her cancer was gone! The first thing that came to my rational mind after hearing this story was that it is not humanly possible! However, Swami says, “Do not believe blindly. You must see and then believe. Believing blindly sometimes leads you down the wrong path.” I was always skeptical, but after hearing this unbelievable incident first-hand, I started to develop faith.
My First Darshan of Swami in 1970
I heard that Swami was visiting Delhi. I was then working in Patna and I took a flight to Delhi with my family to have Swami’s darshan. During the flight, accompanied by my wife, I thought that I have heard many stories about Swami, but will I be able to see Him from close range? I also thought, ‘Is it possible to touch His feet? I know that He creates Vibhuti, but will I be blessed to receive it?’ While all these thoughts were going through my mind, the flight landed in Delhi. The next day, arriving at the venue, I saw big shamianas (canopies) at the Golf Links, Delhi in order to accommodate the large gathering expected for Swami’s darshan. The hall was almost full when we reached, and we ended up near the last row. When Swami came out, we had only a brief glimpse of Him from far away. I also remember seeing a lady seated with her child on her lap, from some distance. The child started crying and she tried to cover the child’s mouth. As soon as Swami came near her, He just waved His hand and a banana appeared. He gave it to the crying child and told the mother, “She’s hungry, give her this.”
Soon after, the crowd dispersed. Upon learning that Swami was staying at a home next door, we went to the house where Swami was staying for darshan. As we were standing at the house gate, the gatekeeper kindly asked, “Do you want to come in?”, and opened the gate. My heart was beating fast with anticipation and excitement. We took courage and went inside, although I was concerned that the owner of the house may turn us out as we were strangers. From the veranda, I could see that a door was partly open, and Swami was moving inside with 8 to 10 people around Him. I was in a dilemma. I thought, ‘I am uninvited; I did not know anyone in the house; should I enter or not?’ Finally, we gathered courage and went inside. Nobody paid attention to us, as they were all engaged in conversations with Swami. I thought how fortunate I am to see Swami at such close range!
I wondered if it was possible to get His padanamaskar (blessings from touching the feet). Incredibly, just then, Swami came to my wife and me – and gave us padanamaskar! I was stunned and in bliss, not able to comprehend what transpired. Then I thought, ‘Swami, if you have granted us this boon, can you also bless us by creating Vibhuti? Not for me, but at least for my wife and my little daughter. I will be happy even if you do not give it to me.’ Unbelievably, once again, Swami came toward us, created Vibhuti, and gave it to my wife and my daughter, but not to me, and went away! I was in complete ecstasy! After this experience, how is it possible not to believe that He is God?
My First Visit to Puttaparthi
Now I want to share the story of our first visit to Puttaparthi in 1971. Slowly my faith grew with my experiences of Swami. I first visited Puttaparthi with my wife, my three to four-year-daughter, friends, and family members from Allahabad. One of them had polio and the other had physical challenges. We reached Puttaparthi with the ladies in our group, and found there was no accommodation, no electricity, and no water. We all sat at the gate on the sands in front of Swami’s house. On the way from Bangalore to Puttaparthi, we experienced a heavy downpour of rain which stopped only a few kilometers from Puttaparthi, but heavy clouds still remained. Hence, I wondered why everybody was sleeping under trees, in case there was a sudden and heavy deluge.
We arrived on 22nd November 1971, the day before Swami’s Birthday on 23rd November. When I reached Puttaparthi, I could not even find a place to spread our bed. There were seven people in our group, and I was not sure where we could sleep at night as we reached late in the evening. Someone said, “Sometimes Swami passes by the verandah on the first floor of His residence. Enjoy His darshan.” We stayed near the gate and Swami came and blessed everyone with His darshan and left.
As I was wondering about our accommodations for the night, I smelled the fragrance of incense which is believed to indicate Swami’s presence. Rays of hope lit up my mind upon smelling the fragrance. Within a minute or two, a young boy came and asked me, “Are you from the family of K. L. Misra?” That was my father’s name, and we hailed from Allahabad which was far away. I do not know how he knew my father’s name in that remote village in South India. The boy came straight to us in that large crowd and asked me, “Are you searching for a place to stay?” We said, “Yes, yes, can we get a place?” He said, “Follow me.” We followed him as he led us to a place just behind the present Ashram, where there were tall, fully grown eucalyptus trees. Below one tree, there was enough room for seven or more persons to sleep. He said, “This is your place to stay for tonight.” I wondered how this spot was still available despite the entire area being packed with visitors. But we encountered yet another problem. There were ladies in our group, and there were no restrooms for them to answer nature’s call, and no electricity or water.
As I was wondering what to do, I remembered that a lady from Allahabad had informed me earlier that she lived in Puttaparthi. I thought maybe she still lived here and I asked the boy if he knew that lady. The boy said simply, “Follow me.” I was surprised at his reply but followed him. The boy took me straight to the lady I wanted to meet. Upon seeing me, she immediately said, “Oh Misraji, when did you come?” I was much relieved to see her, and she made all other arrangements for our stay for the next day. Then, I looked around for the boy to thank him, but he was nowhere to be found! I searched everywhere and also asked the lady from Allahabad about this boy. She replied, “Don’t worry. This is Swami’s grace.
You can see it everywhere. Since you were very uncomfortable, Swami made all the arrangements for you to have a comfortable stay.” At that time, I was relatively a new devotee of Swami and did not know much about His miracles. Later, I saw for the first time how a polio patient was cured by Swami. The person who went limping to Him, carried by others, actually walked back home on his own!
My First Interview with Swami
Let me relate the experience of my first interview with Swami. Although I never asked for anything from Swami yet I had a desire in the back of my mind. Since He was Shiva–Shakti Avatar, I thought it would be an exalted blessing to receive a Shiva Lingam from Swami, who was Shiva Himself. I would relish such a blessed gift throughout my life. When I went into the interview room, He was talking with everyone present. During my very first interview, He created a Shiva Lingam and gave it to me! He asked me to worship it every day and do Abhishekam (ceremonial sacred bathing) by pouring water on the Shiva Lingam and drink the consecrated water. This incident happened in 1990, and even today, I enjoy worshipping the Shiva Lingam, a precious blessing from Swami. I never asked Swami for this, although I had inner cravings. How can one doubt His Omniscience?
The Omnipresent Swami
In Puttaparthi, once we met a couple from Canada in the Ashram. My daughter earlier saw the couple being called by Swami for an interview and wanted me to ask them about the interview. I told my daughter never to ask anyone about what Swami told them because it was their personal matter. But on my daughter’s persistence, I relented and requested the couple if they would be kind enough to share their experiences with Swami, without specifically asking about the interview. The lady agreed to do so and shared the following experience.
As we well know, Swami never asked anyone to change their religion or their chosen form of God. This couple were followers of Christianity and came to see Swami during the Christmas celebration. Swami called them for an interview and said, “This is your God’s Day. Ask me for anything, and I will give it to you.” They replied, “Swami, you have given us everything. We don’t want anything more.” Swami insisted that they ask for a boon since they were with Him on their God’s Day. Finally, the lady said, “Swami, we have only one son and he lives in Canada. Please bless him.” That was the only thing she asked for and the matter ended there. It was a simple request.
When they returned to Canada, their son came to receive them at the airport, visibly excited. He said, “You know, Swami came and blessed me here!” The couple said, “You must be dreaming. How is it possible?” The son responded, “No, no, I was on duty at my station in the Canadian Air Force. I was not dreaming.” Then the couple asked their son on which day this happened. The son responded that it was on Christmas day. The couple said, “No, no, on that day Swami was in Puttaparthi.” But the son was quite adamant that Swami had indeed visited him and blessed him. When the couple enquired about the time of Swami’s visit, they realized that it matched exactly with the time when the wife had requested Swami to bless their son in Canada!
Hence, Swami was physically present both in Puttaparthi and in Canada at the same time. This is a true account of a devotee and not a dream. Such is the Omnipresence of Lord Sai!