Features | Experience of the Divinity of Bhagavan by Devotees | Group III | Mr. G. Sanjiva Rao

Mr. G. Sanjiva Rao
Goonabhadra - 532 455
Kotturu Mandal, Srikakulam District.
Tel: 08946-258316

Mr. G. Sanjiva Rao (49), an agriculturist, relates a few of his experiences of the Divinity of Bhagavan in his own words.

‘I have three sons, Bhaskara Rao, Damodar Rao and Bala Krishna. I was keen on educating them well. One Mr. S. Srinivasa Rao of our village went to Puttaparthi and returned. He started doing bhajan in his house. My sons used to attend it daily. But I was worried that they were losing their precious study time. I chided them and asked them sternly not to go for bhajan leaving studies.

After a few days, I was doing work in my field when I felt very weak, and collapsed. I was carried home. They suspected that a snake had bitten me. Doctors came and gave some injections, but were not much hopeful. My wife went into the poojaroom. My sons put two photographs there. One is that of Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai and the other is of His lotus feet. My wife put her mangalasutra on the feet of Bhagavan in the photograph and prayed, ‘Swami! Pray grant protection to my mangalasutra’.

At that time, Mr. Srinivasa Rao came and put a pinch of vibhuti in my mouth. It was vibhuti he had brought from Puttaparthi. As soon as the vibhuti was put, there was a marked improvement in my condition. This happened on Sri Krishnashtamai Day in 1995. In a few days I became normal. I told my sons, ‘you can go and attend bhajan’. Owing to the grace of Swami, the eldest and the second son passed B.Sc., B.Ed. The second is now doing M.Sc., while the third is in the final year B.Sc. I began participating in Sathya Sai seva activities actively.

As convener of our bhajanmandali, I used to tour surrounding villages. Once, in November 2001, akhanda-bhajan was to be organized in Ganasari-B village in Bhamini mandal. I had to go there on cycle at 2 a.m. in the night so that I would be there on time for Aumkar. It is not safe to travel in our area in the night, as our areas are disturbed areas. I was going chanting Sai Ram.

Then a person in white clothes was seen riding a Hero Honda and coming behind me. He was coming keeping pace with me. He made no attempt to overtake me. If I slowed, he was slowing down. If I speeded up, he, too, was speeding up. He came like that with me till I reached Ganasari-B village. I turned into the village and looked back, he was not there. He simply disappeared. I am sure that Swami escorted me that night.

In 2002, I was sowing paddy seed. I usually mix the seed with Swami’s vibhuti and sow it chanting Sai Gayathri. That year also I did the same. It sprouted well and started growing well. That year, paddy shoots in others’ fields did not grow well. They were fed to cattle. Only my field was green with thick, paddy shoots (sprouts used to transplant). That year rains failed. Some one gave me Varuna Gayathri. I have a small sivalinga in my house. I did abhishekam to it praying to Swami and did Varuna Gayathri from dawn to dusk. Then there was good rain. All tanks in our village were full. Peculiar thing is that it rained only in our village. One could see the effects of drought just across the border of our village while it was all green on our side. I did like that twice that year and it rained twice. I do this usually in times of drought, and Bhagavan responds immediately with good rain.

In 2003, it was harvest season. I drew an electric wire to the thrashing floor of our field and put a bulb there. In the night, I switched on the light. I also hung a small photograph of Bhagavan under the bulb. When it was time for me to go to my house for dinner, I prayed to Swami, ‘I am going home. You have to protect my field’. That night there was short circuit and the wire caught fire. The pole to which the bulb and Baba’s photograph were hung was burnt, but it burnt only up to the point where I hung the photograph. The photograph was not affected. Similarly the paddy heap or the stacks of straw did not catch fire even though sparks fell all around. Thus Swami saved my harvest from being gutted.

Jyothi of Swami was brought and kept in a chariot to be taken in a procession. I was the sevadal in-charge of the procession. This was on October 9, 2004. I conducted pooja to the chariot and was doing chanting of 108 names of Bhagavan. As I came to the 27th name, my hands, which were holding flowers for doing pooja, were full of vibhuti. It was emanating further. Some people came, and took a little to put in their mouths. Immediately, further emanation ceased.

In 1996, I planned a visit to Prasanthi Nilayam. I went to the railway station to book tickets. As I was taking tickets, some persons came and wanted me to take two tickets for them also. The clerk took their money, too, but gave my two tickets to me. When asked for their tickets, he said, ‘these they are’. So I lost to him Rs. 300 and had to pay again that amount to get tickets for them. ‘Swami! I lost money for no fault of mine’, I prayed to Baba, ‘please ensure that I can return to my house and still have a balance of Rs. 10 with me’.

We went to Prasanthi Nilayam and stayed for three days. I bought books worth Rs. 200 in Swami’s Books Trust outlet. During the return journey, I went to Kurnool by bus and took another bus to Vijayawada. When our bus came to Dornala, a well-built six-footer in white dress came and sat by my side. When we got down at Vijayawada, he asked, ‘where are you going?’ I replied. Then he took us to a lorry office even without our requesting him. ‘Take these persons in the lorry’, he told the lorry people. ‘Don’t charge more than Rs. 50 each’, he told them. He went a few paces. When I looked for him, he was not there. We were brought safely to Srikakulam and from there by bus to my place. When I arrived at my house, I had Rs. 10 in my pocket’. In fact, we had no money with us to come by bus or other conveyance from Vijayawada. Had the six-footer not intervened on our behalf, we would have had a hopeless plight. Swami responded to my prayer and brought us home safely – with Rs. 10 still left with me – exactly as per my prayer. Another notable fact is that the lorry in which we travelled had a photograph of Bhagavan hung in the driver’s cabin!

Rat menace is common in villages in the fields. It is so in our village, too. Rats cut off paddy, which affects the yield. Other farmers were using poisonous chemicals to get rid of rats. ‘Bhagavan! You are there in every thing. How I can put poison to rats knowing that they are also aspects of You?’ I prayed in 2001 and put a little vibhuti near rat holes in my fields reciting Sai Gayathri. Believe it or not, there was no rat menace as far as my fields were concerned. Till now, I have had no rat problem while all others suffer a hell with them.

In 1996, I had diarrhea at Prasanthi Nilayam. I did not take any medicine. I used only Baba’s vibhuti. I was healed completely. Since then, I have stopped taking any medicine, and take vibhuti only. I have no health problem till now.

We used to raise orchards. But the plants were not coming up well. I took the plants, put vibhuti on them and also in the pits. Chanting Swami’s name, I put the plants in the pits and filled them up. That year, not even one plant died, or was lost otherwise. The whole orchard grew well. Everyone was surprised, ‘how this orchard has grown so well?’

In 2003 the 78th Birthday celebrations of Bhagavan were held. On November 22, 2003, we arranged akhanda-bhajan at Battili. After nagarsankeerthan, we started bhajan. We placed a chair for Swami. At about 6 a.m. or so, Bhagavan was seen on the chair sitting on His silver throne in an aura in the shape of a crescent. Everyone present could see the vision clearly. Two or three thousand people that attended the bhajan witnessed it. The vision lasted with varying degrees of clarity till 7 p.m. in the evening. Several people who got the news by telephone rushed there and witnessed it. A couple of people called Prasanthi Nilayam on telephone from there and enquired whether Bhagavan was at Prasanthi Nilayam that day. They were informed that Bhagavan was very much at Prasanthi Nilayam on that day.

Next day, the Birthday of Bhagavan, I was making a speech on declaration of Avatar by Bhagavan when vibhuti emanated from a photograph of Bhagavan.’

-- Mr. G. Sanjiva Rao.

(As narrated to Mr. B. Parvatala Rao at Prasanthi Nilayam on 24.04.2005)