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Radio Sai Global Harmony
Crossing a New Milestone
By G VENKATRAMAN
SWAMI SAYS THAT EVENTS always happen
according to Samayam and Sandarbham, that is,
according to the time and the circumstances, including in the life
of an Avatar. In the case of our Beloved Bhagavan Baba, He waited
for fourteen years after incarnation to announce to the world as
to who exactly He was. Eighteen more years had to pass before He
granted permission to start a monthly magazine to carry His
Message, a periodical now familiar to the devotees all over the
globe as "Sanathana Sarathi".
All that Happens is Divinely
Ordained
Years rolled by and the world was
swept by the communication revolution, thanks to the explosive
growth of satellite technology, telecom technology and computers.
Devotees, especially from overseas, repeatedly prayed to Swami to
permit them to launch radio links, internet links and what not, so
that His Golden Voice and Message could be flashed across the
globe instantly. As if He was putting into practice His own maxim,
Baba invariably smiled when such requests were made but otherwise
remained non-committal. And then, when no one was in the least
expecting it, Radio Sai Global Harmony burst on the scene with
stunning rapidity. It all started rather casually - or so it
seemed. But the speed with which events moved subsequently clearly
indicates that the outcome was Divinely ordained.
Sometime in September 2001, two
distinguished visitors came to Sri Sathya Sai Super Speciality
Hospital in Bangalore. They were Dr. Noah Samara, CEO, WorldSpace
Corporation, and Dr. Michael Nobel, Chairman, Nobel Family
Society, and a Member of the Board of Directors of WorldSpace. Dr.
Nobel is the great grand nephew of Dr. Alfred Nobel, the founder
of Nobel Prize. These two gentlemen were in Bangalore on official
work connected with WorldSpace, and having heard about a "dream
hospital" they decided that they must see it before leaving
Bangalore. When they saw the hospital, they both were stunned - no
surprise in that. Immediately, they were seized with the
irresistible urge to have Swami's Darshan, and that is how they
both found themselves in Puttaparthi; such a trip was not at all
in their schedule but nevertheless it happened. Who can deny the
play of the "hidden hand"? Dr. Samara and Dr. Nobel were duly
blessed with a Divine Interview, in the course of which Dr. Samara
offered at the Lotus Feet an entire digital radio channel for
broadcasting Swami's Message of Love and Compassion to the entire
world.
Satellite Digital Radio
Broadcasting
Here it is necessary to say a few
words about WorldSpace and its efforts to promote digital radio
broadcasting. Dr. Samara hails from Africa but was educated in the
West. He noticed that one of the crucial imbalances between the
developed and the under-developed countries lay in the ease of
access to information. He then reasoned that use of satellites in
conjunction with digital radio broadcasting was the answer to the
question of providing the common man with the latest news. The use
of satellites avoids the huge expenditure associated with setting
up massive radio transmitters, and the use of digital broadcasting
ensures highest quality, not at all possible with conventionaf
broadcasting - no hiss, no radio noise, no interference from other
stations, no fading due to weather conditions, etc. And modern
technology has made it possible to have a compact receiver with an
antenna of the size of one's palm, to directly receive the
broadcast signal from the satellite. With such a receiver, one can
tune in with great ease even inside a jungle and yet get crystal
clear reception.
Dr. Samara quickly followed up on
his idea by first setting up the WorldSpace Corporation in
America. He then had a satellite launched and positioned over
Africa; this satellite called Afristar covers not only the whole
of Africa but a sizeable part of Europe as well. After this came
the Asiastar which took care of the Asian continent. In fact, Dr.
Samara's visit to Bangalore was in connection with promoting
WorldSpace operations in India. In 2002, WorldSpace expects to
launch its third satellite, the Ameristar, extending coverage to
the American continent (Figure in the beginning of the article
shows the WorldSpace Coverage Area).
For a couple of weeks after Dr.
Samara's trip to Puttaparthi, nothing happened but shortly
thereafter a WorldSpace team showed up in Prasanthi Nilayam for
follow-up discussions. It was at that stage that I got into the
picture. I sat through the first round of talks unable to believe
that we would soon be involved in satellite digital broadcasting.
Frankly, I had never heard of this technology earlier, much less
seen a digital radio. But when the Lord pulls the strings, the
puppets have no problem, not too much that is! What happened
thereafter is largely a blur for those of us who were involved
with this. On the morning of 23rd November, 2001, amidst Bhagavan's
76th Birthday Celebrations, when Bhagavan pressed the button and
put Radio Sai on the air, I just could not believe my ears. It
took a while for me to realise that the sound heard on the public
address system in Sai Kulwant Hall was actually coming from a
digital radio specially placed inside the Mandir and tuned to the
Asiastar satellite hovering some 23,000 miles above the earth!
Radio Sai Global Harmony
Below Swami pressing the button to
launch Sai GLobal Harmony channel
 Radio
Sai Global Harmony is operated by Sri Sathya Sai Books and
Publications Trust, Prasanthi Nilayam as a part of its mandate to
spread Swami's Message. The broadcast programme is prepared in
Prasanthi Nilayam, written onto computer CDs, and then sent to
Melbourne in Australia where the satellite uplink station is
located. From there, the signals are sent to Asiastar which then
re-radiates back to earth. Thus, the programme heard on 23rd
morning actually originated in Australia. The moment Swami pressed
the button in Prasanthi Nilayam, a signal was flashed to Melbourne
and hey presto, Radio Sai was on the air!
Currently, the programming
schedule is as follows: During week days, that is Monday to Friday,
there is a four-hour package that is looped and repeated six times
during a 24-hour period, from 6.30 a.m. one day to 6.30 a.m. on
the next. In the four-hour package, the listener can hear two
Divine Discourses and some music consisting of vocal Bhajans,
instrumental Bhajans, and excerpts from concerts rendered in the
Divine Presence. The looping is done for the convenience of
people living in different time zones. On weekends, there is a
consolidated programme that covers all the programmes of the
preceding week or ten days. This way the listeners, who missed
some segments earlier in the week, can catch them again in leisure.
Efforts are in progress to diversify the programme content with
talks, interviews, special programmes, and the like. Mean?while,
many technical innovations have also been made. Within less than a
month, we are now able to control the programme content in the
Melbourne computer directly from Prasanthi Nilayam. In my opinion,
this is quite a feat, made possible by the admirable dedication of
two of our former students assigned to this work. As one connected
with Swami's Institute, I am so happy and proud that all our
former students, whether they are in the Hospital, or in the
College, or in the Book Trust, or in the Central Trust or in the
Planetarium, work so hard just to please Swami.
At present, Radio Sai covers only
West Asia. What next? It is said that the appetite grows by what
it feeds on. So, having tasted what is now being offered, there is
a clamour for immediate extension of Radio Sai service to South
Asia and East Asia. After that would have to come the extension of
service to Africa and Europe, followed by service to the American
continent. We must also find ways of reaching out to countries not
covered by the satellites of WorldSpace; we can't leave out the
devotees in these countries, can we? Many also want live broadcast
- that means when Swami is giving a Discourse, the whole world
would hear at that very same instant! All these extensions are
technically possible but require much work, technical,
administrative and legal. But when Swami wills, who can stop these
things from happening?
Some time ago, Swami said during
a Discourse that when we sing Bhajans, the subtle sound vibrations
thus generated spread throughout the world and indeed the universe;
not only that, they get absorbed and become latent in all material
objects present in the universe. Bhagavan added that if we sing
Bhajans with true love for God, these subtle vibrations can in
fact cleanse the world and promote peace as well as harmony. If
our voices could do that, how much more can the Divine Voice do,
especially when it is physically pervading the whole world via
radio waves! Just imagine, this very moment, Swami's voice can be
heard in every strife-torn part of Asia! Soon it will do so
throughout the world. Can there then be any doubt that Peace WILL
prevail?
Source: Sanathana Sarathi, January
2002 |
