visiting Skandasramam

[Guest guest]

Day by Day with Bhagavan________27-9-45Bhagavan suddenly seems to have felt like visitingSkandasramam, where for about a week now repairs are beingdone; and so without notice to anybody, after the midday meal,Bhagavan, on his usual after-lunch stroll, wended his way towardsSkandasramam, followed by attendant Rangaswami. Few knewof this till about 3-30 p.m. But after 3-30 the news graduallyspread and almost all the devotees went up to Skandasramamand found Bhagavan seated on the terraced platform in front,which overlooks the temple and town. We found Bhagavan invery good spirits and relating various events and incidents thathappened during his stay there previous to his coming toRamanasramam. Bhagavan had a mind even to continue stoppingthere and to spend the night there. But all the devotees hadthronged there and none looked likely to move till Bhagavanmoved. So at about 5-30 p.m. Bhagavan started, looked at thevarious parts of the Asramam, telling us where he used to sleep,where he used to sit, and where mother sat, where they cooked,where the old tap was, and so on, and then got down by the steps.On the way he visited Virupakshi Cave and explained about hislife there also. Here he pointed out the (non-english script) the niche, which is now a small window on the wall facingeast in the verandah in front of the cave. (n-e script)(i.e., Ganesa in the niche) is an expression occurring in twostanzas, one composed by Iswara Swami and another composedby Bhagavan in praise of a Ganesa image placed in that niche atthe time Bhagavan was staying in Virupakshi Cave. Somesannyasi who seems to have been living in that cave for somedays now brought water from the well nearby and Bhagavandrank it with pleasure. Then Bhagavan left the cave forRamanasramam, slowly wending his way down the steps. At thefoot we all sat with him under a pipal tree around which there isa platform, close to Guha Namasivaya's Cave. Satakopa Naiduof Bangalore brought some (n-e script) (puffed rice) and groundnuts.All the crowd sat there with Bhagavan and enjoyed this picnic.By this time it was getting dark, and we all started along the hilltrack leading to the town through Guha Namasivaya's Cave andalong the main road, and reached the Asramam about 8-30 p.m.It was a marvel that Bhagavan did this trip all on foot inthis way, the more so because his left big toe had becomeeither dislocated or badly sprained on 26-8-45, and as a resultthereof is still having some pain there.Since Bhagavan left Skandasramam, he had gone theretwo or three times within about a year or two after his settlingdown here. But after that, i.e., for nearly twenty-two yearsnow, he has never gone there till today. Bhagavan was in greatspirits and all the way down from Skandasramam toRamanasramam he stopped once every few yards and relatedvarious incidents and made remarks about some trees havingdisappeared in the interval and about some cracks in theVirupakshi Cave, about the place where Jadaswami rolledstones down on Bhagavan (though Bhagavan would have it,it was all only in fun), and about the heavy rain and storm thatcame on one night and displaced huge boulders and created aspring for the convenience of Bhagavan and his followers.---------I am going into hospital for a few days and will post again on my return.Grant