Fwd: Greatness of Kanchi Mahaswami - 12.

[Guest guest]

, " Dr.B.G.Y Sastry "

<drbgysastry

wrote:

 

12-The 54 Lives Saved by Annai!

(Mahima of Sringeri Sri SaradambaL)

 

This happened several years ago. We decided on a yAtra (pilgrimage) to the

kshetras (holy

places) in Karnataka, more than fifty devotees of us teaming up for the tour. We

started

our journey in a large tourist bus. It was our custom to first go to Kanchi,

have darshan of

PeriyavaaL and then continue our journey.

 

Around 4 o' clock in the afternoon of that day we stood up after prostrating to

Maha

SwamigaL in SriMaTham. Giving us his blessings, laughing and raising both his

hands

SwamigaL asked, " You people have come as a large ghoSTi.... well, what's the

matter? "

Forthwith I elaborated on the details of our Karnataka Yatra to SwamigaL.

 

Feeling happy he asked, raising his eyebrows, " What is the uddesha (motive)

about the

first place to go? " I said, " It is our uddesha, Periyavaa, that on reaching

Mangalore, we

would first go to Talakkaveri, do our saMkalpa snAnam (bath and prayer) there

and then

go to Sringeri. After that we have decided to have darshan at SubrahmaNya,

Dharmasthala,

Udipi, Kollur Mukambika, Kateel Durga Parameswari... in this order. "

 

Before I could finish SwamigaL interrupted me. " Wait, wait... In the list you

have

mentioned, you have missed an important place... " Looking at us who were all

standing

with a question mark on our faces, and smiling, Periyavaa advised us, " What, you

don't

understand? I shall tell you... Horanadu kshetra! Mother is staying there as

Annapurani,

giving her anugraham. A very special place. Must have darshan! "

 

He continued: " You people do as I tell you now. First go to Sringeri kshetram

from

Mangalore. There, do your snAnam in Tunga, first have Guru Darshan, get prasAdam

from

them, then have darshan of SaaradambaL and start from there (to other places).

After this,

you may go to the places in your order of preference. Let one thing be kept in

mind

though. Anyday you go to Sringeri, as far as possible, reach the place before

sAyarakSai

(evening). "

 

All of us nodded our heads in affirmation, prostrated and got up. That Walking

God

ordered distribution of anugraha prasAdam to us all. The driver and conductor of

the bus

were called and the prasAdam given to them too. We started thereafter.

 

On the next morning, our journey from Bangalore to Mangalore. We stayed in a

Kalyana

Mandapam in Mangalore at night. On the morning the next day we got ready to move

after

taking bath. A man named Ramanathan who accompanied us came to me and said

persuading, " We shall first go to Talakkaveri from here. After doing our

saMkalpa snAnam

there, why not go to Sringeri later? "

 

I did not agree to that. " Whatever uttaravu (direction) Kanchi Periyavaa has

given, we

should only follow that! " I said. It was not acceptable to them. " First we

should go to

Talakkaveri only! " they compelled me, as if having discussed it already among

them.

However much I pleaded with them, nobody was prepared to lend me ears.

 

The bus travelled towards Talakkaveri. Staying there for a day and after

finishing our

saMkalpa snAnam, we started our journey towards Sringeri. It was 8:00 o' clock

in the

night. Both the front tyres of the bus that was going on the mountain road to

Sringeri got

punctured and the bus stopped. It was pitch dark outside. In the light from a

torch light,

Driver and Conductor started working on removing the wheels with the punctured

tyres

and fixing the Stepney wheels in their place. Hunger pinched our stomach; our

last meal

was at noon in Bagamandala. Somehow the bus started moving at 10 o' clock.

Suddenly it

started drizzling. It was 11 o' clock and yet there was no sight of Sringeri.

Only then we

had the doubt whether we were going on the right road! As God-given, we sighted

a man

coming in the distance. We stopped the bus near him and inquired. He patted on

his head

and said, " This road leads to another place. 15 km before you should have turned

on the

road that branched to the right. " It gave us a shock!

 

So the bus needed to be turned towards the direction we came. Driver got down

and had a

look. A narrow road, with valleys on both sides. Climbing onto his seat, Driver

said with a

falsely assured courage, " You people don't worry. I shall back up little by

little with sharp

turns on the steering wheel and somehow move the bus to an about turn! " and got

on the

task. Sitting with fear, we started chanting Rama Namam. Somehow having managed

to

turn the bus ninety degrees, Driver said in a loud voice, suddenly worried,

" Sir, sir...

However much I step on the brake, the bus starts slipping behind! Raise an even

louder

ghoSaNam (proclamation) in the name of God... Only He should save us all now! "

His words

had the effect of dissolving tamarind inside our belly. We too felt the bus

slipping behind.

All of us with tears welling up in our eyes started wailing, " Sringeri

Sharadambaa, save us

Ma! Sringeri Maha Sannidhaname, save us! Kanchi PeriyavaaLe, Ramachandra

Murtiye, save us, save us...! "

 

Suddenly Driver said, " Sir, I have now taken my leg from the brake! The vehicle

is not

slipping behind! As if a hundred people are supporting it from behind, the

vehicle stands

intact! Now no worry at all. Shall turn the bus in a few moments " and started on

his

efforts. We did not stop the nAma ghoSaNam.

 

appAda! (At last) the driver managed to turn the bus. All of us breathed a sigh

of peace! It

was exactly 12:00 hours midnight. Exactly at one-thirty we reached the entrance

to

Sringeri Samasthanam. A GanapadigaL who was standing at the entrance to receive

us (it is

my recollection that it was Nageswara GanapadigaL!) said with a laugh, " Vaango,

vaango!

You are all coming from Madras, right? First wash your hand and feet and come

have some

food. You would be hungry. Rice Uppuma and Bringal Gotsu are ready! "

 

" How do you know, ShastrigaaL that we are coming? We did not even write to you? "

I asked

him. He said laughing, " It is vAstavam (true) that your coming will not be known

to people

who are like us. Maha Sannidhanam, dIrgha darshigaL (with foresight) will be

knowing

everything, you see? It was only Maha Sannidhanam who called me around eleven o'

clock

and gave orders, 'To have darshan of Sarada, 54 Bhaktas from Madras are coming

in a

bus. They all come with great hunger! So ask our people to prepare Rice Uppuma

and

Gotsu and keep the food ready. In addition, for them to stay, arrange a large

hall.' After

arranging all that I have come to stand here and receive you all! " He sunk us in

surprise.

 

Seeing the dIrgha dharsanam and karuNa (compassion) of Sri Sri Sri Abhinava

Vidyatheertha SwamigaL, Adiyen (I) wondered. Tears rushed to my eyes. Seeing

that

SastrigaL said, " You are amazed at this thing... I am going to tell you another

thing in the

morning; you would then be really stunned! " and led us on. Hot Uppuma and Gotsu

were

served ready in 54 nuni (top) banana leaves. We ate the food filling up our

stomach.

 

The next morning. Finishing our snAnam in the Tunga river, we started to have

darshan of

Maha Sannidhanam Sri Sri Sri Abhinava Vidyatheertha SwamigaL. The SastrigaL we

met last

night was seen by us.

 

To him I asked joining my palms, " You said you would tell us some vishayam

(news) in the

morning. I pray that you please tell it now. "

 

SastrigaL started talking: " Would have been around 12 o' clock last night.

Sitting in his

ekAnta (private) room, Maha Sannidhanam was examining some Sastra books. I was

sitting

in the outer hall. Suddenly coming out, Maha Sannidhanam kept both his hand

pressed

hard to the wall and started murmuring some mantra. I too got up. From the

posture of

Maha Sannidhanam it seemed as if he was supporting the wall from falling. I did

not

understand anything.. Five minutes later, taking his hands off the wall, Maha

Sannidhanam

came to me and said, 'You witnessed and wondered why I kept my hands against the

wall

in that pose and did some Japam. It is nothing else. The bus wherein came those

people

from Madras to have darshan of SaradambaL missed its way. Later when they

realized the

mistake and turned the bus, the brakes did not apply... bus started moving

behind on its

own. The Bhaktas in them wailed, 'save us, save us!' calling aloud the name of

Amma

Sarada. So I

supported the bus from slipping behind by resting my hands on the walls. Now

everything is alright, and the bus is coming towards Sringeri! You go and make

the

arrangements as I told you', and went inside his room. I stood stunned! "

Listening to this,

all of us wept. We started to have darshan of that Walking SaradambaL.

 

Looking at this Adiyen who prostrated and got up, Sri Sri Sri Maha Sannidhanam

said

laughingly, " Should always listen to what the Mahaans say. And follow it. If you

make a

change in it everything that happens would be changed too. What, you

understand? " With

these words he did anugraha of prasAdam. This Adiyen then realized that Maha

Sannidhanam only informed in sUcaka (by indicating) to the fact of our not

following what

Sri Kanchi Periyavaa ordered for us!

Author: Sri Ramani Anna (in Tamil)

Source: Sakthi Vikatan issue dated Oct 10, 2007

 

Glossary:

 

sUcaka - indicating, betraying, informer, sign, omen

ghoSTi - group, gathering

 

 

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