Sri Narasimha Swamiji Part2

Courtesy:Sri.Ramachandran Venkatraman

On the right track to the Guru – Khedgaon 

In the beginning of 1933, Narasimha Swamiji reached Khedgaon, which is close to Ahmednagar on the National Highway connecting Pune and Ahmednagar. At Khedgaon, Sadguru Bet Narayana Maharaj was living in an ashram. Narayana Maharaj was reputed to have been favoured with the grace of Lord Dattatreya in his infancy as evidenced by the miracles he had performed even as a boy. Narasimha Swamiji hoped to get guidance from Bet Narayana Maharaj. Narasimha Swamiji saw a number of sparrows chirping and flying about in the temple hall. He said to himself that if Lord Dattatreya and his upasaka were really possessed of superhuman spiritual powers attributed to them, one of the sparrows should sit on his head. With this thought he closed his eyes and sat in meditation. Within few minutes, Narasimha Swamiji felt something strike his head. When he opened his eyes, he saw a sparrow flying away from him, after touching his head with its wing. No sparrow had touched Narasimha Swamiji before this. This compliance with his request for proof filled Narasimha Swamiji with the conviction that Lord Dattatreya installed in the shrine and Sadguru Bet Narayana Maharaj were really possessed of superhuman spiritual powers. As the only thing Narasimha Swamiji wanted was a divine personality, a perfect saint, whom he could contact and who could create circumstances favouring perfect surrender, Swamiji approached Sadguru bet Narayana Maharaj and asked him for this favour. Since he had to make his request in the presence of many people, Narasimha Swamiji clothed his request in symbolic and figurative speech. Narasimha Swamiji said: "I am a merchant dealing in gems, but I am a very unfortunate dealer. I have come across many gems, but none of them has satisfied me so far. Each gem, I get is very tiny and has dots, cracks or other flaws. Will you please bless me so that I may get one pure, big, flawless gem?" Sadguru Bet Narayana Maharaj, after a moment's thought, replied, "Yes, you will have your desire fulfilled". This was in the beginning of 1933. It however, took sometime for Narasimha Swamiji to get the promised invaluable gem. Narasimha Swamiji stayed in the quiet serene atmosphere of the Datta shrine in Khedgaon for some time and left for Meherbad. 

Continuing on the right track to the Guru – 

Meherbad Narasimha Swamiji learnt about Avatar Meher Baba, a Parsi saint who was living in Meherbad, 5 km north of Ahmednagar. Meher Baba was much talked of as a perfect master who had toured round the world. Meher Baba was born in Pune in 1894 and was initiated into the spiritual path by Hazrat Baba Jan. He spread the message of universal love. After taking leave from Sadguru Bet Narayana Maharaj, Narasimha Swamiji reached Meherbad by the end of 1933. Just twenty days prior to Narasimha Swamiji reaching Meherbad, Avatar Meher Baba had taken a vow of life long silence. He communicated with devotees through the help of a slate. When Narasimha Swamiji sought spiritual guidance, Avatar Meher Baba wrote in Devanagari script on the slate – "I am not your Guru. Your Guru is waiting for you in the North."

 Nearing destination of the Guru –

 Sakori Narasimha Swamiji's meeting Upasani Maharaj and his life at the Sakori Ashram formed an important landmark in his spiritual pursuit. Sakori is a small village, close to Chithali on the Ahmednagar-Kopergaon railway line, 80 km away from Ahmednagar. Narasimha Swamiji reached Upasani Maharaj's ashram which was adjacent to a burial ground on a fine evening in March 1934. Upasani Maharaj had a clairvoyant vision and the moment Narasimha Swamiji arrived, he welcomed him saying;- "At last you have come. I have been waiting for you for quite sometime." "Glorious Grihastas" # 9 Page 28 Sri Narasimha Swamiji #2 Sri Ramachandran Venkataraman In the days of yore, women had equal rights for chanting the Vedas and performing Yagnas. Men were eligible to chant vedas after upanayanam (sacred thread ceremony) and perform yagnas after vivaham (marriage) and women eligible to do chanting of vedas and perform yagnas after marriage. Upanayanam and vivaham were performed when the boy/ girl were 7 or 9 years old to make them eligible to chant vedas and perform yagnas. In order to restore these rights to women, Upasani Maharaj undertook a revolutionary step. In order to permit women vedic chanting and perform Yagnas, he married 65 virgin girls by holding an idol of Lord Krishna. While Upasani Maharaj was past sixty years of age, all the girls were under twenty-five years of age. It was indeed a rare and an extraordinary event. Even though it was well intentioned, a good majority of the devotees of Upasani Maharaj considered it as a heinous crime and filed a public interest litigation in the courts of Nagpur and Mumbai. The courts also had taken the subject seriously and had issued summons to Upasani Maharaj to appear before the court. It was feared that any moment Upasani Maharaj could be arrested on charges of practicing polygamy. Upasani Maharaj was searching for a suitable advocate to plead on his behalf in the court of law. Not a single advocate in Maharashtra was prepared to take up his case, as no one endorsed Upasani Baba's action. There was a public outcry against Upasani Maharaj. Upasani Baba's ashram, which used to attract thousands of devotees, had become virtually empty. Upasini Baba's welcome word to Narasimha Swamiji 'I am waiting for you' meant that Narasimha Swamiji who had given up his legal profession should again wear the lawyer's robes and plead for him at Nagpur and Mumbai courts of Law. Narasimha Swamiji, who had given up his legal practice in 1925 to become a mendicant, was at first reluctant to again become an advocate. Ultimately he agreed to Upasani Maharaj's request and prepared himself for a prolonged legal battle. This litigation went on for thirty months. He had to travel to Mumbai, Nagpur, Ajmer and other places to examine witnesses. There were 265 witnesses. Ultimately, both at Nagpur and Mumbai, the courts dismissed the petitions after acquitting Upasani Maharaj as 'not guilty'. 

Face to face with the Sadguru - 

It was 29th August 1936, Sravan Poornima day - the holy Upakarma day. Narasimha Swamiji got up at 4 a.m. and was in a pensive mood. He contemplated his good old days with his family members at Salem. In these eleven years of itinerant life, he could neither get a Guru to guide him nor his confused mind became still. He was disappointed and dejected in life. He made up his mind to leave Upasini Baba's ashram once and for all and get back to Madras to spend the rest of his life with his eldest son Venkataraman and his family. He was firmly convinced that he is not destined to get peace of mind in this birth. Narasimha Swamiji was afraid that Upasini might influence him to reverse the decision if he conveyed his intention to get back to Madras. So from a distance he bowed down to Upasini Maharaj and mentally sought his permission to leave. Narasimha Swamiji came out of the ashram and as he was crossing the cremation ground, a six-foot tall, well-built man of Pathan origin accosted him and questioned him:- "Oh Madrasi Sadhu! Where are you going?" Swamiji answered him:-"I had an itinerant life for a few years in spiritual pursuit. Now I am going back to my native place". 

The Pathan pleaded:- "Anyway you are going back. Before you leave, have 'darshan' of Sai Baba's 'samadhi' at Shirdi. May be, you could be benefited spiritually". Swamiji was getting bored with this conversation and hence curtly replied- "Sai Baba has attained 'Mahasamadhi' eighteen years ago in 1918. A darshan of his Samadhi will not benefit me in any manner. I have already visited 'dargas' of Hazrat Babajan, Tajuddin Baba, and Kwaja Moinuddin Chisty Sheriff. None of them has made any impact on me'. The Pathan was not prepared to accept defeat so easily. He virtually pleaded:- "Go over to Shirdi once. Sai Baba is ever living and active. He will certainly help you in your spiritual upliftment'. 

 Narasimha Swamiji was looking forward to escape from this adamant Pathan. He simply said 'yes' and left the place. Narasimha Swamiji's earlier plan was to walk up to Chitali Railway Station and from there to catch a train to get back to Madras. But the persistent request of the Pathan made him change his route and unknowingly his feet led him to Shirdi seven kilometers away from Sakori. When Narasimha Swamiji reached Shirdi, it was already 11 a.m. in the forenoon. Abdulla Baba was fanning Sai Baba's Samadhi with peacock feathers. He stood silently watching the Samadhi. It was the happiest moment in his life. Sai Baba like a magnificent wave of fire engulfed each and every one of the millions of cells in Narasimha Swamiji's body and in lieu thereof granted him a new life. The old body of Narasimha Swamiji was no more and it became Sai Swaroopi Narasimha Swamiji. Everything was in a flash of a split second. Narasimha Swamiji became a realized soul then and there and within no time had become a part and parcel of Sai Baba. Narasimha Swamiji's mind, which was in utter confusion, became totally still. His mind was clear as the blue sky. He became the receptacle of Sai's total bounty. Sai Baba kindled the light of enlightenment in Swamiji. Narasimha Swamiji did not want to leave Shirdi after he gained SelfRealization. He simply stated: "At last I have come to my Gurudeva. I obtained my Sadguru. Words fail me to describe his greatness and the abundant spiritual power he possesses. He has given me unbounded confidence and has made me perfect in everything. He is Love incarnate. He fulfills all my desires". 

Blessings from the Guru – 

Post realisation Narasimha Swamiji attained Self-Realization on 29th August, 1936, and in right earnest set out to distribute the benefits of Sai-Treasure that he obtained from Sai Baba by propagating about Shirdi Sai Baba and his teachings. Post realisation, Narasimha Swamiji had a thrilling experience at Sakori. One day, in the month of November or December 1936, Upasini Maharaj held an open feast. There were many invitees including Swami Ram Baba who lived in the company of Sai Baba for a long time. As the feast was about to end, an old man suffering from leprosy came along. The leper had a frightening appearance. He had only one eye; blood and pus were oozing from his disfigured lips, nose and eyes; he had open ulcers all over his body. As if this were not enough, an awful stench also emanated from his body. Everyone was aghast at his sight. Imagine Swami Ram Baba's bewilderment when Upasini Baba told him: "Feed the old man with your own hands. He is not able to eat by himself." Swami Ram Baba pulled himself together as best as he could and started feeding the repulsive leper. He however took great care to see that his hand did not touch the bleeding lips of the leper. As a result, some of the food kept dropping down. After the leper had eaten and walked away, Upasini Maharaj said to Swami Ram Baba: "Pick up the food from the plate and eat it". To eat the food that had been contaminated by the bleeding lips of the leper seemed impossible to Swami Ram Baba. Despite a desperate effort, he could eat only one morsel. At this, Upasini Maharaj looked at Narasimha Swamiji. Without any hesitation, Narasimha Swamiji took the plate from Swami Ram Baba and ate up all the remnants without the least hesitation. As everybody looked on in amazement, Upasini told the assembled devotees: "Did you see how swiftly the old man walked away? Is it possible for one so terribly afflicted by open sores and leprosy to walk like that? Do you know who came here in the garb of a repulsive leper? It was none other than Shirdi Sai Baba himself. Only Narasimha Swamiji who sees Sai Baba in everybody could identify him"

The importance of eating left over food ("ucchista" in Sanskrit) cannot be over emphasised. Sage Narada in Bhagavatha Purana explains how he obtained great spiritual power by eating the left-over food of great seers. Generally, the left-over food of the person superior to oneself in spiritual merit is considered virtuous. The discipline who eats the left-over food of the guru is blessed with the saintly attributes of the guru. The wife will gain all the purusharthas that the husband earns through sadhana, from eating his left-over food. Eating what is left-over after feeding guests and members of the household is often considered as a great virtue of a householder. Narasimha Swamiji realized with great joy that Lord Sainath himself had come to instruct him not to attach importance to the external superficialities of existence but to realize that Lord Sainath and Lord Sainath alone pervades everything and every being. This incident played a very significant part in shaping Narasimha swamiji's outlook and approach to life, placing him on a firm spiritual foundation. The invisible hand of Lord Sainath was guiding him every moment of his life and Narasimha Swamiji's surrender to Sai Baba was total. After this incident, Narasimha Swamiji appears to have acquired all the powers that Shirdi Sai Baba possessed. After this incident, all those who accosted him for relief from distress and disease; all those who sought from him happiness and unalloyed bliss; all those who pleaded with him for help and assistance – got exactly what they wanted. Such were the powers of the unassuming Narasimha Swamiji.

 Sri Narasimha Swamiji - The Great Apostle of Sri Sai Baba of Shirdi

 A short figure, covered in a long shirt, and a single dhoti, broad forehead, fronting a head almost bald, carrying a shoulder cloth bag and walking briskly along; the bag holds small packets of "udhi" from Shirdi, copies of pocket size "Ashtotharam" on Sai Baba compiled by him and pictures of Sai Baba in card size; these are his gifts to the sick and needy that accost him for relief and the gifts work wonders. As he passes on the udhi he mutters - "Sai Baba Paripoorna Siddhirasthu". If today in India there is hardly a town or city where Sri Shirdi Sai Baba is not known, it is entirely due to the remarkable zeal and selfless service of Narasimha Swamiji in propagating Sai by publishing books compiled or written by him, which served as the starting point for the uninitiated in understanding the greatness of Baba. As a tribute to this yeomen service, His Holiness Sri Narasimha Swamiji's portrait was unveiled in the Samadhi Mandir in Shirdi on 26th January, 1966 by Justice M. B. Rege, an ardent devotee of Baba. On that occasion, Narasimha Swamiji was acclaimed as the Great Apostle of Sai. Yes, this wonder worker who was appropriately acclaimed as the Great Apostle of Sri Sai Baba of Shirdi discovered Sri Sai Baba and presented him to the world at large through his masterpiece 'Life of Sai Baba' in four volumes with copyrights NOT RESERVED.