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Touching thousands of hearts in
thousand different ways - Part IV
Part 3
…..One
day, even the Super Speciality Hospital was covered. One may
wonder why. After all, the people in the Hospital residential area
are not poor. The reason is simple. The Hospital came within in
the zone of a particular village in that area, and Swami's
instructions were: "Distribute Prasadam to one and all, making no
distinction between the haves and the have-nots." Swami also drew
special attention to outlying houses, some of which were quite
some distance away from the main road. Thus, when Mr.Chiranjeevi
Rao came on his monitoring circuit, he asked the boys serving in
that area, "Did you go to a house that is one kilometre away and
standing all by itself?" The boys replied, "Yes sir, we did."
Later, passing by the Sri Sathya Sai Airport, Mr. Rao spotted a
group of people repairing the road in preparation for the
Seventy-fifth Birthday. He stopped the car to check whether they
too had received Swami's Prasadam.
The distribution of
clothes to the destitute was handled somewhat differently. On
account of various operational
problems, this was invariably done at a central place in the
village; if a school was available, then it was in the school
compound. The eligible persons were brought together with the help
of village elders and village officials [where available]. Before
the distribution commenced, there would be a few Bhajans and/or a
prayer. After this, the senior devotees in Swami's distribution
party would be invited to give away the clothes and the food.
Considering the prevailing levels of poverty, distribution of
clothes was no easy task. However, by Baba's Grace, everything
always went off smoothly.
The
village visits highlighted many important facts. First of course
was the extent and the depth of the poverty. It was heart-rending
to see old and infirm people being even carried so that they might
receive Swami's Prasadam. Those who had no human help, literally
dragged themselves. For most persons associated with the service
project, all this came as an eye-opener. It was difficult to
believe that there were such places, barely a few kilometres away
from Puttaparthi. Backward though the villages were, they were
relatively clean. Another saving grace was that there was no
cinema, which mercifully kept out the garish cinema-posters that
disfigure walls in the towns. Also, no TV! This was a real boon
one might say! No wonder the villages still retained their
old-world character that Swami always speaks so highly about. The
schools, where they existed, were neatly maintained though
obviously lacking in facilities. In every place, as per Swami's
instructions, food and laddus were distributed also to the school
children. It was heart-warming to see Swami's sayings and
teachings prominently displayed in many schools.
Midway through the
service, the girl students of the Institute and other lady
devotees made a prayer to Baba: "Swami, what about us? Why can't
we also go to the villages and serve instead of just packing the
food here?" Swami immediately granted them their wish and asked
them to do service the following day in Bukkapatnam the
neighbouring town, to which, as young Sathya, He had to walk
everyday in order to attend school. On the appointed day, all the
senior women in the Ashram and all the teachers and students of
the Anantapur campus climbed into the trucks for a change. The
road followed was round the Bukkapatnam tank, covering a distance
about twenty kilometres. The short-cut across the fields that
young Sathya used to take is about four or five kilometres. That
path does not appear to be used any longer, there being other
roads.
In Bukkapatnam,
there was a huge turnout, with people there still feeling a
special relationship to Swami. The
main distribution centre was the town High School, and most of the
girls and senior ladies headed for that spot. The local women had
organised a Bhajan session, and a
small altar had been improvised under the flag-staff of the school.
Bukkapatnam turned out to be the biggest distribution assignment
faced up to that time but the ladies were more than equal to the
task. They not only handled the entire operation with great
efficiency and ease but also distributed food to over a thousand
teachers and staff of the school. Meanwhile, the recipients of
Baba's largesse were so moved that many of them bowed and offered
their salutations to Bhagavan's photo before leaving. While all
this was going on, Swami sprang a surprise by sending several
crates of chilled softdrinks! So, when it was lunchtime, not only
did the volunteers have a nice campus with shaded trees all round
to sit, relax and eat but also softdrinks to go with the lunch! A
real picnic atmosphere prevailed, naturally. Thereafter, everyday
Swami would send fruits (apples, bananas, oranges, or whatever) to
go along with the lunch.
One of the unseen
results of the Service Project was the extra-ordinary sense of
unity and co-operation that it produced amongst the participants.
There was an invisible web of unity, Divine Unity, clearly
generated and sustained by Swami. There were innumerable
opportunities for tempers to flare up, but most remarkably, such a
thing never happened even once during the entire duration
of the service activity. At four O'clock in the evening when most
people were physically worn out, students and staff were ready to
press on and do more service if required. Swami says that where
enthusiasm, determination to accomplish, intellect, energy,
courage and bravery exist, there may be seen the Divine Effulgence.
This radiance was patently evident among the participants of the
service project, both in young and old and in men as well as women.
It was there on all days, from morning to evening. In fact, as the
trucks and the tractors rolled in one by one into the Ashram
compound in the evening, the boys would roar like a thousand lions:
Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba ki Jai! [Victory and Glory to
Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba!].
Part 5
Source:
Radio Sai E-Magazine,
December 1, 2003
http://media.radiosai.org/Journals/Vol_01/07Dec01/11_WINDOW_TO_SAI_SEVA/sai_seva.htm
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