Dr P S V S V Prasada Rao
Prasanthi Nilayam

24 April, 2011. This was the day Swami chose to leave His mortal frame. Most of us wailed over the divine exit. Some of us said, “Oh Swami! We cannot live without you. How could you leave us in lurch and go away?” The others complained, “This is injustice, Swami” and exclaimed, “What are we without your presence?” These reactions are absolutely normal. But the real point is when He was alive, moving amongst all of us as a mentor, friend, father and as a mother, we missed the celestial opportunity that was awarded to all of us. Swami, in many different ways and on many occasions has said that when He was moving about amongst us, divine vibrations emanate from His physical body. He exhorted all of us to absorb those vibrations to bring fulfilment to our lives. The divine comedy is that we were more engrossed in the divine presence, in talking to Him and in His actions. Had we consciously made effort to absorb those vibrations in His presence, our lives would have been made divine – and His mission would have been complete.

Prasanthi Mandir, January 1985. Swami walked out of His room to give Darshan to the thousands of devotees. As a student, I was fortunate to sit on the Mandir verandah. I had a letter in my hands and a prayer in my heart. As Swami came towards us, a sudden fear took over me – I was unable to stretch my hands out to hand the letter to Him. But our compassionate Swami, stretched out His hands and took the letter from me. He passed the bunch of letters he was holding to Sri Khaildas who was escorting Him. He then suddenly turned back and told me, “I will grant interview tomorrow. Call your parents.” How did He know what I was thinking? He hadn’t read my letter yet. Throughout Darshan the thought of the letter and the promised interview occupied my mind. How I missed the divine vibrations.

The same month – a few days later. Swami walked out with a benign smile for Darshan. He had asked me to perform a task, which I had successfully accomplished. I was eager to report it to Swami. As Swami came to me, I knelt down and in my best language reported the task to Him. Swami heard me patiently and said, “Manchidi Bangaru.” I felt exalted, but did I miss something here? Yes I did. I failed to absorb the divine vibrations that were all over me.

Weren’t there many such occasions in our lives? We stand under the early morning Sun and derive great satisfaction from the cool breeze that touches our cheeks. We buy a can of juice and concentrate more on our style of drinking rather than the drink itself. We don’t realize that we have lost 50% of its taste. All of us have had the greatest privilege of having Swami’s Darshan, but surprisingly, we may have failed to receive His divine vibration during such times. Did we miss a great opportunity in life? I still think we have a way out. Despite the absence of Swami’s physical presence, we are comforted by the knowledge that he is ever present in our hearts. It’s not hard to find Him. He is benevolent and is still accessible. We know that He will not ‘leave us in any lurch’. And there is hope – a hope that would still bring fulfillment to our human lives. Let’s turn our focus inwards. Let us read our hearts. Let us introspect. Let us search and we will find a solution. I feel the search is a solution by itself. He is within us.