Features | Experience of the Divinity of Bhagavan by Devotees | Group VII | Dr. Ms. Leelavathi

Dr. Ms. Leelavathi,
Gynaecologist,
Sri Sathya Sai General Hospital,
Prasanthi Nilayam - 515134.

Mobile: 9440-417464

      Dr. Ms. Leelavathi (51), Gynaecologist, Sri Sathya Sai General Hospital, Prasanthi Nilayam, relates a few of her experiences of the Divinity of Bhagavan in her own words.

'I belong to the third generation of devotees in my family. My parents and grandparents were devotees of Shirdi Sai in the beginning but became attached to Bhagavan later. My grandfather, Mr. Krishna Rao, was a noted freedom fighter who had sacrificed all his property for the national struggle. In 1960, he was granted interviews daily for three days by Bhagavan. My grandfather used to say 'Swami told me many things. He warned me not to tell those things to any one - not even to the members of my family.'

In 1968, my father, Mr. Ramesh Koppikar was given interview. He was given interview once again later.

'I kept one seat in the Medical College in Hubli for your daughter' Bhagavan told my father in the interview, 'she will come to Me for service.' My father who was a Post Master was wondering how he would be able to put me in Medical College. At that time, I had not passed even my Matriculation.

After I passed Intermediate, I applied for a seat in the Medical College, Hubli. I did not hope to get a seat. Nor did I hope that I would be able to pursue the expensive medical education. I got a seat and our relatives in Hubli offered hospitality to me during my study period. I could stay with them, eat there and study. In a few months, I got National Merit scholarship owing to His grace. I did my MBBS as well as my post-graduation without any difficulty. When Swami said that He had kept a seat for me in Medicine, it meant that He had taken care of everything about my studies.

Before I got a seat in MBBS at Hubli, Swami had appeared in my dream and blessed me. It gave me confidence that Swami had told my father seriously about my medical education long back. Owing to His grace I got distinction in MBBS (8th rank in the State).

After doing my Post-graduation, I had been to the UK for a brief period. When I returned to India, I went to Prasanthi Nilayam and gave a letter to Swami to permit me to do service in His hospital. Swami took the letter and told Mr. Kutumba Rao 'she is very young and unmarried. It is difficult for her to stay here. Let her go to her native place and practise there.'

Accordingly, I went back to my native place Karwar. Each time I had to attend to a delivery or caesarean, I used to pray 'Swami! You have to do this. I am only your instrument.' During my six years practice there, not a single case failed; none of my patients died. I was quite successful. How could it be otherwise when Swami was the physician and surgeon there?

After that I went to Oman in 1993 to serve as a gynaecologist in Masirah near Muscat, the capital of Oman. Once during Ramzan, I was returning from the house of a friend of mine who invited me for If-tar dinner. When I was walking back to my house, I saw some camels on the way. One of them rose and walked to me expecting some fodder to be offered by me. I was afraid that it might bite me because we used to get many cases of camel bites in our hospital there. In a few cases, the camel ripped open the skull cap even. So I did not know how to escape. I began to run. It, too, started running behind me. I was frightened. I thought of 'Allah' or 'Inshan Allah' (God willing) always. Then a thought flashed in my mind owing to Bhagavan's grace. I threw my handkerchief away. It thought I had offered it something to eat and stopped near the handkerchief trying to examine it. That gave me a chance to run back to where I had started. I could return to my house later safely with the help of locals.

In 1997-98, I was driving to my workplace, Bu Ali from Muscat. I was on a high speed track with vehicles moving in my front and back in speed. Then I saw in the windscreen a pick-up truck trying to overtake my car. Trying to give it space to proceed I had to move aside. There was hardly any place. I thought the pickup truck was going to hit my car, and I applied breaks. Then my car took a U turn. By God's grace, no car hit mine though many vehicles were speeding behind mine on the same track. My car went out of control, skidded into the emergency margin and fell topsy-turvy. I could see the accident coming on me and was thinking of 'Allah'. 'This is my end' I thought, 'do you want me to die like this, oh God.' The car stopped.

I was pulled out of my car by local Oman people who gathered round to help. My legs were shaking. I did not know what happened to me. I was in a shock, in fact. My car was completely smashed. It was a new car. Then those who pulled me out were exclaiming 'Allah's grace! She has not even a scratch!' I could then feel relieved and tried to be on my feet. It is a miracle how I escaped without a scratch from such a ghastly accident! Afterwards, the insurance people came to me. 'Your car is damaged beyond repair' they said, 'we give you a new car.' The Lord gave me a new life! After all what is great about getting a new car?

I was getting about a lakh of Rupees a month as salary there. But, somehow, I felt a void. It was inexplicable. Once I came to Prasanthi Nilayam and tried to get a chance to serve in the hospital.

'These people with well paid jobs abroad come' some one was remarking, 'they don't stay but get back in a huff!' Well! It was a reasonable doubt. So I resigned my job and gave a letter with my bio-data to the hospital people. I was then taken as a gynaecologist. I joined the service of Swami on July 13, 1993. Swami foretold my father this long, long ago. It happened.

Whenever I treat a patient, do a delivery or perform surgery, I invariably pray to Swami 'Swami! This is Your case. You have to do it. I am only an instrument in Your hand.' Everything will take place in an excellent manner. I put vibhuti on the patient; even sprinkle or rub some on the affected part. No other doctor elsewhere dares to do that for fear of infection. But nothing untoward has happened by such application in Swami's hospital so far.

Once, a pregnant lady came for delivery. She had hypertension (high BP). Suddenly her BP fell and her pulse rate increased. She was sinking. This was during labour pains. 'Swami' I prayed in my mind, 'You have to save her. We have done what we could.' By morning, miraculously the pulse rate came down and BP improved. Breathlessness also ceased. So, I conducted the delivery. But after delivery, bleeding was noticed. The child might have swallowed some 'meconium' and had DIC (Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation). We did our best to stop bleeding, but in vain. I put vibhuti on the patient and the new born, and prayed to Swami. In fact, medically the chances of survival of both were very marginal. By morning, bleeding stopped, and her condition became stable. Later, both recovered and were discharged in due course in good health.

In another case, the pregnant lady had labour pains. I expected her to have normal delivery. Till evening, the pains continued but she did not deliver. By that time, I was very tired. I told the sisters to keep a watch on the patient and call me in emergency. I went home and sat praying to Bhagavan 'Swami! She had suffered for long with pains' I prayed, 'and to resort to surgery now, I have no energy left in me to do it. You have to deliver her normally, and save me as well as the mother and the child.' I sat praying intensely. Within 15 minutes the phone rang. 'Doctor' the sister told me, 'she delivered normally. Both mother and child are ok. You need not come now. Take rest.'

There are many such instances when Swami's hand was seen effectively performing things. Once when I was doing practice in my native place Karwar, the bin used to sterilise things was giving eerie sounds. I wanted to switch it off, but was afraid of power leakage. So I took a stick and switched it off using the stick. As I moved near the switch, there was a loud explosion when I cried 'Sai Ram' in panic. The bin burst exposing me to the jets of steam, and sprinkling its hot contents all over. I was not hurt at all. Though so much steam and hot things had flown around, I did not feel any heat at all, owing to His grace. I escaped miraculously from what would have been a ghastly accident.'

-- Dr. Ms. Leelavathi

        (As narrated to Mr. B. Parvatala Rao at Brindavan on 02.06.2006)