The Story of Philip Mathew Prasad

[Guest guest]

Mr Philip Mathew Prasad was born in a highly religious family in

Kerala. He was brought up in an atmosphere of communal harmony and

understanding of spiritual and moral values. At the age of fifteen

when he went to Trivandrum to do his higher studies, there was a

change in his outlook. Marxian thoughts swept him and turned him

into a fanatical atheist. At seventeen he was already a leader in

the Marxist movement. He then quit studies and became the founder of

the first All India Committee of Naxalites. He was involved in many

conflicts with the police and looting of landlords. Soon he found

himself in prison.

 

In 1973, in the District Jail his inner being was in turmoil. He

contemplated on the fundamental problems of his life and a deep

spiritual hunger haunted him day and night. He became disillusioned

with the path he had taken. The local Sathya Sai Organisation

conducted bhajans outside his cell. Since he had a negative attitude

towards anything spiritual he was furious with the bhajan group.

Once the bhajans ended, a volunteer walked up to him to give him a

prasadam through the jail bars. Philip took the orange and threw it

back to the giver. The orange hit the backside of the head of the

volunteer who then turned back and looked at Philip. There wasn't a

trace of any anger in his eyes as he walked away. Philip thought

back on what had happened and caused a moral dilemma in his heart.

 

That night he cried uncontrollably unable to bear the agony. Finally

there was an urge to pray from within. What he prayed was

the `Lord's Prayer' taught by Jesus to his disciples. His mother had

taught him that during his childhood. He only asked for one boon and

that was to sleep. Within seconds he was in a sweet dreamless state

of sleep with his bed sheet wet with his tears of repentance.

 

>From that night on his life has changed completely. Each of his days

in jail was spent in namasmarana. He studied many scriptures deeply,

including Hindu, Christian, Muslim and Buddhist. His search soon led

him to the teachings of Shridi Sai Baba.

 

When Philip was out of prison he became a lawyer by profession and

dedicated himself to the uplift of the downtrodden. He met Swami

Ananda Teertha who told him about Sathya Sai Baba. His respectful

words about Sai Baba made a profound impact on him. Also the

book, `Sai Baba, the Man of Miracles' by Howard Murphet prepared him

for the divine call.

 

Once when Philip opened his lawyer's suitcase he heard a metallic

sound and discovered a ring with the face of Shirdi Sai Baba. It

fitted in his finger perfectly! He was delighted but his doubting

mind came into play and thought the ring must have been kept in the

suit case by some eager devotee to spread the message of Baba.

Philip went around the shops in Trivandrum to see if he could fine

any similar looking ring. He failed, but happily.

 

Very soon he was in Prasanthi Nilayam and had the darshan of his

master. He had a huge guilt being carried in his heart and the way

others looked at him also made him lose his happiness and peace.

Ultimately during the Onam celebration in 1985 he was salvaged from

the vortex of his guilt by the Lord.

 

Philip was full of joy when Swami accepted him as who he was, lock,

stock and barrel. The unconditional acceptance filled him with

bliss. During the interview Swami told him seventeen times `Don't

taint your conscience with guilt'. He became proud and self-

confident in the way Swami treated him, as if he was His only friend

in the whole universe. No one had accepted him before, not even his

own mother. Tears flowed and drenched his dress as well as Swami's

robe. Swami wiped his tears with His handkerchief and materialised

vibhuti and poured it in his mouth.

Baba then materialised a ring and told him with a twinkle in the

eyes, "Is this ring available in the shops?" Philip understood Baba

was teasing him of his doubting nature.

 

Philip became an effective messenger of the Sai Avatar in Kerala. He

went for many public speaking. During this time he learned that his

real turning point was not the first interview with his master, but

his throwing the orange at a humble servant of his master!

During one of the public talks he spoke about the orange throwing

incident to a packed audience and how he had his first bhajan as an

unwilling captive in prison. After the speech an old man invited him

to his house. His name was Sri Shankar Iyer and was a wholesale

flower merchant who became a devotee of Baba many decades earlier.

Philip was offered a cup of coffee at his residence. When he

finished drinking, the old man broke down and told him that he was

the volunteer who was hit by Philip's orange–missile in the prison.

When the orange hit him, he was moved to mercy towards the angry

young man, Philip himself. He prayed to Bhagawan to `shower mercy on

this boy and transform him so that he will be happy and hopefully

someday with Your Grace I can offer a cup of coffee to him in my

house'.

 

Swami indeed answered Shankara Iyer's prayers and came to Philip's

rescue.

 

 

JAI SAI RAM

 

 

 

Reference:

B. N. Narasimha Murthy, Sathyam Sivam Sundaram, Volume 5, page 175-

180.