Letters from Sri Ramanasramam 26

[Guest guest]

20th January, 1946

 

MEDICATION WITHOUT TREATMENT

 

When the personal attendants of Bhagavan were

 

advised by doctors to give him food containing vitamins to

 

relieve the pain in the legs they began doing so and were

 

also massaging his legs with some special ointment. They

 

were thus serving him to the best of their ability. Bhagavan

 

used to say humorously, " A guest comes to your house. If

 

you are indifferent towards him he will go away early, but if

 

you show great respect towards him, and are very attentive

 

he will never go. So is disease. If you attend to the disease in

 

the manner you are doing now, why should it go? If you

 

take no notice of it, it will disappear of its own accord. "

 

Sometime ago, a young man set up an establishment

 

about a mile from the Ashram, on the road round the hill,

 

saying he would cure diseases by giving vibhuti. People get

 

mad over such things, don't they? People who were diseased,

 

possessed and the like started going in crowds to see that

 

Vibhuti Swami, and on their way, they used to come to our

 

Ashram also. What is there at this Ashram? No vibhuti! No

 

magic lockets! They used to have darshan and then go away.

 

On such occasions, if any attendants happened to be

 

massaging his legs with medicated oil, Bhagavan used to say

 

in a lighter vein, " Excellent, this is also good in a way. When

 

these people see me thus, they would say, `this Swami himself

 

is suffering from pains in the legs and is getting massaged

 

by others. What can he do for us?' and go away without

 

coming anywhere near me. So far so good. "

 

Four days back, Bhagavan called all the doctors and

 

showed them a news item which he read in the newspapers

 

about a person who was reported to have died as a result of

 

too much of vitamin food and vitamin injections. Next day

 

the news appeared in another newspaper. Showing it again,

 

he began saying, like a child, " For the last two years, a lot

 

of vitamins are being given to me, saying that it is all good

 

for my body. Not satisfied with it, they tried to give injections

 

also. See what has happened to this person reported in the

 

newspapers! " It is said that a great yogi enjoys bliss as if he

 

were a little boy or an insane person. He knows everything

 

but conducts himself as if he knows nothing. If he so desires,

 

cannot Bhagavan cure all diseases? Can he not cure himself?

 

He leaves it to others; that is because he never looks upon

 

the body as his own.

 

Two or three years back when Bhagavan had jaundice,

 

he could not relish his food and felt a great dislike for food.

 

For about a week or ten days he ate only popcorns and the

 

like. As Echamma and Mudaliar Patti have a vow that they

 

will not eat until Bhagavan takes at least a morsel of food

 

cooked by them he used to take a few grains from the rice

 

brought by these ladies and mixing them with popcorn,

 

used somehow swallow that food so that their vratam or

 

deeksha might remain unimpaired. There is no limit to his

 

benevolence and consideration for the feelings of his

 

devotees, whatever the occasion might be. He does not allow

 

others to feel hurt or aggrieved in any manner.

 

A number of doctors were giving him medicines to cure

 

the jaundice. For their satisfaction, Bhagavan used to take

 

the medicines and for the satisfaction of these ladies he used

 

to eat their food. The good effects of the former and the bad

 

effects of the latter neutralised themselves. Months passed

 

by; the jaundice persisted. A reputed doctor from Madras

 

was called. The result was the same. After all had come and

 

gone, and after all medicines had been tried without success,

 

he cured himself of jaundice in no time with sonti (dry ginger),

 

pippalu (ipecac) and other Ayurvedic herbal medicines. Let

 

any one venture to ask him how the disease was cured!