Mr. Mohan Bhim Rao Kulkarni,
278, II H Cross,
III Stage, III Block,
Basaveswaranagar,
Bangalore - 560 079
Mobile: 98802-91775
Mr. M.B.Kulkarni (47) hails from a family of Sai devotees. He opted for voluntary
retirement in Kirloskar Company and has taken to wholesale marketing of ready-to-eat
food products. He relates a few of his experiences in his own words.
'My sister who resides with her husband at Dharwar introduced my parents to Sri
Sathya Sai Bhajans and seva. My Mother was a patient of a nerve trouble affecting
the eye (Tragima Neurogia) since 1970. In 1974 she was operated at Hyderabad without
any success.
I went to Puttaparthi first time in 1976. Swami called me for an interview. I told
about my Mother's problem. Bhagavan said that it was due to her karmic debt, which
she had to suffer. He repeatedly advised me, 'don't get her operated'.
He then asked me to undress. I removed my trousers and then my underwear also. Swami
materialized some oil on His hands and smeared it on my stomach. Then I dressed
up again. I did not know why he did so. He did not tell me anything except, 'study
well you will come up'. He materialized vibhuti and gave it for my Mother.
Though Swami specifically asked me not to go in for any operation in my Mother's
case, I had to get her operated twice subsequently for various reasons against my
will. Both failed though no less a famous surgeon than Dr. A.S.Hegde (now serving
in Swami's Hospital at Whitefields) performed them.
After I retired from Kirloskar Company, I have taken up wholesale marketing of food
products. By Swami's grace, I have been honoured with supply to Swami's stores at
Brindavan as well as Puttaparthi for the past 3 years.
In the month of October 2003, I went to Puttaparthi to deliver an order. The stores
people showed me two cartons, which were damaged and asked me to take them back.
I began carrying them to the Bus-stand assuming that I could carry them myself.
But as I went a few yards, the burden was telling upon me. I could not carry them
any further. Many persons were around, but no one came forward to help me. I was
thinking in my mind, 'Swami! You tell always 'Help Ever, Hurt Never' and so many
things. But here is none to follow your words'. No sooner did I begin thinking on
these lines, than a young person who, later, introduced himself as a Malayali, came
to me and said, 'why not allow me to help you?' So saying he took both the cartons,
came with me to the Bus-stand, put them both in the Bus and wished me bye. Even
before I could thank him, he left.
At 8 p.m. on May 24, 2004, I was taking several cartons of food products from Sai
Marketing (name of the firm) near Kumara Park in Bangalore to my residence, which
is 8 km away. I sat in the driving seat of my kinetic safari (a small motor bike)
placing two cartons of tomato sauce on either side of the handle. Each carton has
12 bottles of sauce of 1kg each. On the pillion was a boy, Mr. Shankar, carrying
precariously 5 cases of milk-food, on the top of which was a case of cans of jam.
We started well but before we could go for half-an-hour, rain started unexpectedly.
All the cases of food products we were taking were packed in cardboard cartons,
which would not withstand soaking in rain.
We tried to take shelter under a tree but it was not of much use. So I decided to
drive straight to my house leaving everything to Swami. The rain grew very heavy.
For a pretty length of the distance, that is, nearly, for 5 km, we had to go through
lanes and by lanes. We could see water flowing over them. There were several ditches
on the lanes owing to roads being in bad repair. It was not possible to see where
those ditches were as the entire passage was filled with flowing water.
The vehicle was giving jerks, and was bouncing hopelessly as we got into ditch after
ditch and bumped against their edges. Like that we travelled all through in that
heavy rain over the uneven road full of flowing water. Finally, we reached our house.
When we got down, we found that all cardboard cartons were completely soaked in
the rain. We were anyway drenched fully. The cartons also gave way on their sides.
It was amazing how the food products remained in the cartons without falling out
on the way when the vehicle was bouncing due to the ditches.
How could the soaked and torn cartons hold such heavy weight? Amazing, indeed! When
we removed the bottles and products one by one, the cartons just collapsed and were
seen like pulp. Though we travelled for 8 km in heavy rain, and 5 km of it in lanes
with ditches filled with water not knowing where the road was even and where the
ditch was, not even a single piece of the load we carried was damaged due to Swami's
grace. I could deliver the very same stock - packed in fresh cartons, of course,
at the stores in the Brindavan Ashram today.'
-- Mr. Mohan B.Kulkarni
(As narrated to Mr. B.Parvatala Rao at Sai Gokulam, Brindavan, Bangalore on 26.05.2004.)