The Unbelievable Prophecy

In the South Indian State of Andhra Pradesh, there happened the epochal Divine Advent – Sai Pravesh and the result was Prasanthi Pradesh (Prasanthi Nilayam). How, almost seven decades ago, a young Sathya of barely sixteen years granted a fantasy glimpse of the would be Prasanthi Nilayam to one lucky soul. Read on as Sri  Pujari Lakshmaiah from Chennai narrates his maiden encounter with The Lord Walks The Earth. The article dates back to Aug/Sept 1972, Sanathana Sarathi.

Is it true? Can it be true? A boy calling himself Sai Baba! And consoling the dispirited, curing the ill, exorcising ghosts and teaching the old! I heard of this sixteen year old prodigy and entered Puttaparthi, with a woman, mad since two years, and her husband. That was in 1943.

At Bukkapatnam, people laughed at us; they thought all of us were mad to believe in the miraculous powers of that boy. Yet, having come so far, we decided to complete the journey, instead of turning back. We engaged a bullock cart for twelve annas and came to the riverbed. I left them there and moved into the little haggard group of houses, along narrow tracks.

I peeped into a Brahmin house (Karnam Subbamma’s house); the verandah was full of groundnut heaps. Inside I found a charming young boy, with a bright, intelligent face, talking with the labourers. I accosted him and asked, “I heard there is a boy in this village who has become Sai Baba; it seems he cures madness. Which is his house, can you tell me?”

The boy looked at me very lovingly and replied. “Poor fellow! The mad woman you brought with you is giving terrible trouble to her husband in the river! Go and take bath; and bring them also after their bath is over. I shall then show you the boy you are after.” While returning from the river, the woman ran wildly hither and thither and it was a job to bring her to the Brahmin house. Sai Baba (for, it was none other than He) told me, “I’ll call you one by one” and took me in, first. He created Vibhuti and applied it to my forehead. Then, He called in the couple. They had bought some bananas at Bukkapatnam for Sai Baba. He gave the woman to eat one banana out of the number. He also gave them both the materialised Vibhuti.

It was six in the evening, by then. Coming out on the road, the wife told her husband “Well; what about our meal? Get some rice from the shop; and ask for vessels. I shall cook food for us, pretty quick.” The husband was overjoyed; her madness had gone!

But, Baba called us in and we sat with Him for the night meal. Baba mixed all the items served by Subbamma into tolerably big balls, and He gave one for each of us. It was tasty beyond words!

That night, we slept in the verandah of that house. We were disturbed often, by the howling of packs of jackals, and the braying of donkeys. At about three, some woman shrieked, “I am dying”; she was stung by a scorpion! A few minutes later, some one cried, “Kill; Kill “ and many ran in that direction. It was a cobra, this time.

Early morning, we touched Baba’s Feet and stood before Him. “No sleep? Too many snakes in this place. This is a very holy place; but, under a curse! Sai will save it” He said and then added, The Sai Pravesh (Advent) will make it the Prasanthi Pradesh (Region). Upon that hill, I shall have a grand Bhavan. By that time, hundreds, (why hundreds?) thousands, (why thousands?) lakhs, All India will be here; The whole world will come and wait for Sai Darshan. I said, on hearing this, “What? I cannot believe this will happen.” He laughed and said, “You will have to believe it when you will be standing at a great distance, trying to catch a glimpse of Me!”

II Samastha Lokah Sukhino Bhavantu II