MY TRANSFER AND BABA’S PROTECTION

At the time I was informed that Ajit Singh had been transferred to Palanpur I found that the one who was replacing him was somewhat known to me.

My new boss was to be Shri Virendra Kumar Asthana. I breathed a sigh of peace thinking that it was the end of daily dissensions and mental tension.

While I was pulling on well with my new boss, I heard that I myself was transferred elsewhere, although the order had not been received officially yet. I wanted to stay at Bhagalpur, so I went to Baba to put this request him. Baba said, “No, now you are not needed at Bhagalpur. So you will have to leave there”. I insisted that I might be allowed to stay at Bhagalpur. Baba enquired “Why”? I gave two reasons.

“Firstly”, I said, “I do not want to go further away from You. And secondly my transfer at this juncture would be bad for my career image”. Baba said, “This is not a matter of your choice. You will have to go where I consider proper for you”. Even then I continued to request Baba, and Baba finally assured me that my departure from Bhagalpur would be viewed respectfully by my colleagues. Ultimately this is how it turned out. I received my orders of transfer to Begusarai in June 1954 , the same month that Shri Asthanaji assumed his posting as Ajit Singh’s successor. Begusarai was nearer to Jamalpur than Bhagalpur but because of the necessity of crossing the Ganges and changing trains, it took slightly longer to reach Jamalpur. Even so I was happy that I was nearer Baba. I was given an official farewell with full recognition. Begusarai was also within the jurisdiction of Asthanaji. Thus Baba granted me both my desires and I was overjoyed. I was feeling very happy as I had been granted blessings in accordance with my heart’s desire and the blessing had actualised itself in reality. Why should I then not feel overwhelmed with joy? These happy vibrations created an unprecedented faith in sadhana and increasing devotion to Baba. My faith in Baba became firmer. His liila is wonderful and mysterious. Since June 1954, when I shifted to Begusarai, I used to make it a point to go every month for Baba’s darshan during the holidays. Generally when I reached there, Baba would not take any one else with Him for the evening walks and I therefore had the good fortune to be alone with Him for nearly three hours. Today people crave for such proximity with Baba. Once day during the rainy season when I started from Begusarai, the sky was clear and there was no sign of rain, but by the time I reached Baba’s residence, the sky had become overcast with dark clouds. It was thundering and lightning illuminated the sky again and again. The doors of Baba’s residence were still closed when I arrived and I was standing on the veranda in the expectation of them opening. As yet it has not started raining but looking at the sky, I was already regretting that I had forgotten to bring myumbrella. Meanwhile, the doors opened and I did pranam to Baba, as He emerged from the house with an umbrella. “Shubhamastu” (“be blessed”), Baba said in His usual blessing and then asked, “Have you brought an umbrella? I replied in the negative. Baba said that one umbrella would not be able to protect the both of us. The clouds were dense and it would rain. He then asked me to sit on the veranda to talk. Baba Himself sat on a chair and I sat on a wooden bench lying in front. After a little while Baba said, “Nagina let us go for a walk”. I said, “Baba I have no umbrella and I also have no change of clothes with me. If I get drenched, I will be in trouble as I will be staying overnight with Bindeshwariji and Ieaving in the morning”. Still, despite the rain, Baba again said, “Let us go for a walk”. I followed Baba quietly. Baba walked at the same speed and the same distance as on other days. He also sat for the usual amount of time after the walk at the tiger’s grave. During the walk Baba explained, “The day I do not walk, I don’t take my dinner. Therefore my mother likes me to go for a walk everyday, even if it is stormy or rainy. If I had not come today, I would not have taken my dinner and my mother would have been unhappy at my going to bed without eating. Hence, I have to go for a walk whatever the weather”. As long as I was with Baba, I was absorbed in His enlightening talk. As Baba walked and sat on the grave, the sky turned more and more black. Simultaneously, lightening and thunder were also becoming more frequent. It appeared as if someone was holding the rain and the clouds were bursting with thunder to show their determination to rain. Baba was sitting peacefully on the grave, as if nothing happened while all the time I was apprehensive that if it rained, I should be completely drenched and would be quite unfit to travel with these clothes tomorrow. At about nine, Baba looked at the sky and said, “Nagina, Let us go. Now it may rain any moment”. Thus saying Baba started to walk back home. On the way Baba enquired where I was going to stay. I reminded Him that I was staying with Bindeshwariji. Baba stopped for a moment on the main road in front of His gate and told me. “Double up from here Nagina, and rush, now the rain can no longer be held back”. I ran and reached Bindeshwariji’s hoouse. As I reached the house and came indoors, it started raining heavily. Big drops were falling and I saw from the porch that Baba was holding the umbrella in one hand and holding up His dhoti to the ankles with the other hand while walking in that heavy rain. How kind Baba is. He did not allow even a drop of rain to fall on me and He Himself was walking in the pouring rain with an umbrella in His hand. Now I understood how Baba protects His spiritual sons. He sees the difficulties Himself and protects His devotees. I was fortunate to experience it in my own case. Praise be to Baba and His Greatness! MANAN PRASAD RECEIVES A BOON FROM BABA In the summer of 1954, I had to go to Monghyr on government duty. Monghyr was within my jurisdiction at that time. There I stayed with a colleague of mine, ShriManan Prasad who was also a disciple of Baba. He was somewhat flabby in body and his growth was increasing day by day. Every second or third month he had to buy a new pair of pants as he outgrew the earlier ones. He was quite concerned at this rapid increase in his weight. On the doctor’s advice he was now dieting. I did not know about it earlier. When I stayed with him this was his regime when I dined with him; while I was served with rich food at dinner, he was served only two chapatis and some green vegetables. I enquired about this distinction in the food served to us and he told me his story. While listening to him I realised that although he was fond of good food, he was constrained to take a meagre diet on the advice of the doctor. I enquired whether his desire for tasty and good food had died? He admitted that he was fond of good food, but was helpless, as the doctor had warned him that being overweight would lead to high blood pressure and heart trouble and this fear forced him to accept the diet. I was somewhat pained to listen to him and I enquired as to why he was not requesting Baba to find some cure for this? He enquired whether Baba would be kind enough to do so? I said that if your prayer would be sincere, he certainly would. After that day’s official work we went for Baba’s darshan in the evening. Jamalpur is some eight kilometers from Monghyr. We reached there before Baba started for His house. When Baba came, we saluted Him and accompanied him on His walk. When Baba reached the field and sat down on the grave. I mentioned Mananji’s weight problem and told him the whole story. I told Baba that he was yearning for good food, but had no courage to eat it due to the doctor’s warning and the fear of illness. This was leading to increased weakness, as he was dissatisfied with his diet. Baba laughed heartily at this and said, “I will teach him a yoga posture and he should practice it and eat good food to his heart’s content. Let him drink ghee in pots and he will see that his fat will melt away”. The next day that Mananji learned that asana and started taking natural good food again as before. He stayed for sometime in Monghyr and followed Baba’s advice. Gradually he began to reduce his weight. Thereafter he was transferred and I lost track of him. st On the evening of 31 December 1954 he suddenly arrived at my residence in Begusarai and asked me whether I recognised him. It was really difficult to recognise him by sight, but I recognised his voice. He had become so thin that I did not recognise him. I asked in surprise also how he had become so thin and was his health all right? He said, “Normally my health is O.K. and there is no dearth of physical vitality. But as you requested Baba to reduce my fat, I request you to accompany me and request Him that the reduction should now stop. Now the situation is that my trouser size has to be reduced in size again and again and even after using a belt, my pants do not stay in place. As tomorrow is the first day of the New Year, let us go and have Baba’s darshan and I shall request Him kindly to put a limit to my growing thinness also” Now it was enough these days that I was under punishment and therefore I felt quite sad and did not want to go myself, so I advised him to go along and request Baba himself as per his heart’s desire. Baba Himself was full of kindness and could not see any of his disciples in pain He would certainly grace him with a solution. He accepted my advice and went alone. I met him after quite a long time and found that now he was neither fat nor thin. I am not sure if the asana alone reduced his fat. Certainly it was the miracle of Baba’s Grace along with asanas, that he reduced himself so much and yet retained his physical health and vigour.