Features | Experience of the Divinity of Bhagavan by Devotees | Group III | Mr. U. Tulasiram

Mr. U. Tulasiram
D. No. 1064, Sriharikota - 524 124
Nellore District
Tel: 08623-245746

Mr. U. Tulasiram (61), a retired official of the SHAR, relates a few of his experiences of the Divinity of Bhagavan in his own words.

'In 1980, my friend Mr. Subbarama Rao and I planned a visit to Prasanthi Nilayam. After discussing at length we deferred it. He went to his house while I returned to mine. That night I had a dream. One person tapped me on my buttocks as I was sleeping in the dream. I did not wake up being sleepy. Then he tapped again. I woke up. Though I did not see Swami earlier, I realised that it was Swami only. He held His hand in abhayamudra and then waved to me signalling to come to Him. This was at 4:30 a.m. Immediately I got up, took bath, got ready, rushed and caught 5 a.m. bus to Puttaparthi. I had no time to tell my friend. That was my first visit to Prasanthi Nilayam.

Mr. Subbarama Rao who had earlier planned to go to Prasanthi Nilayam was very much disappointed that he could not come to Prasanthi Nilayam with me.

I had Darshan of Bhagavan and returned. Later, I came to Prasanthi Nilayam several times. Once Swami gave me vibhuti in Darshan line, which He materialised for me. I had padanamaskar also. I used to have a desire that Swami should call me by name and give me an opportunity to wash His lotus feet. Both these were fulfilled in my dream owing to Swami's grace.

In 2003, I had a dream. I came to Prasanthi Nilayam in the dream. By the time I reached mandir, Swami came out for Darshan and the gate was closed. I was outside the compound wall. Swami came to the centre and called, 'Tulasiram'. I thought that Swami was calling some person who was my namesake. So I did not take it seriously. Then Swami called my full name 'Urumindi Tulaseram'. I was overwhelmed with emotion, jumped over the parapet wall and fell on Swami's feet. Swami lifted me up and held me in His arms.

'Swami! You have given me everything', I prayed, 'let me go when the going is good.' Swami caressed me by passing His hand over my head and said something. Before I could listen to what He said, I awoke.

In 2004, I had another dream. I came to Prasanthi Nilayam in that dream. Bhajan was over. Swami rose and was going into a big hall. No sevadal was there with Him. He was alone. Immediately I ran to Him. He went to the other corner of that hall and lay down on a cot by folding His legs. I went nearer. 'Swami! I had a desire to do padaseva to you', I prayed in my mind. Instead of praying for padabhishekam (washing the feet of Swami) I prayed for padaseva (to massage His feet) - I don't know why I did so. Immediately Swami placed His feet down stretching His legs fully. I sat down by the side of the cot and began to press His feet gently. The dream ended.

After a few years, Mr. Subbarama Rao lost his wife. One day he came to me in a melancholy mood.

'Why is Baba doing like this?' he began, 'why is He putting me to difficulties? Why this punishment to me?' I too felt sorry. That night I had a dream. Swami appeared. 'When I give you some good things, you are happy and say 'Swami's grace'. When I give you problems, why don't you think that, too, is due to Swami's grace?'

Next morning, I went to my friend and told him about my dream. From then onwards, he came out of his melancholy mood and became normal.

It was on May 6, 1991 that all our family members were having dinner at our house in Sriharikota. We were engaged in conversation having a hearty laugh. While all of us left the dining table to wash our hands, my second daughter Gita sat there itself.

'Why don't you get up and wash your hands?' I asked her.

'I am unable to get up, daddy!' she replied, 'my leg is very painful'.

'What is the matter?' I asked.

She began to cry in pain. We thought she was feeling numbness because of her sitting without movement for considerable time. So we tried to make her stand and jerk off her leg.

'I am not able to stand erect. It is so painful', she replied crying.

We were all taken aback that the girl who was merry a few minutes before was reduced to this state without any obvious reason.

Immediately I took her to our departmental hospital. The doctor examined my daughter and carefully recorded symptoms in the case sheet.

'We will send her day after tomorrow (Monday) morning in the ambulance to the Super Specialties Hospital in Chennai', the doctor said. She gave no treatment. So we returned home.

'Let her keep on moving the leg now and then in the night', the doctor advised. We tried to follow her advice. My daughter could not move the leg at all due to excruciating pain.

After reaching home, we recovered a little from the shock and began to pray to Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba. We applied vibhuti on the affected portion of the leg and gave a pinch for her to swallow. We began to pack for Chennai journey. Meanwhile my daughter seemed to have gone to sleep and we, too, went to bed. This was on the night of Saturday.

Next morning, I got ready to go to nagarsankeerthan, which we all do there every Sunday morning.

I tried to wake her up to go to mandir.

'Let us go and pray to Swami at the mandir before we leave for Chennai', I told my daughter.

'I simply can't', my daughter replied, 'I had not even a wink of sleep the whole night. I only pretended sleep lest you should all lose yours on my account. Pray excuse me.'

'You must make it to mandir', I insisted, 'it is very important that you pray to Swami before we leave'.

She was adamant - due to the incessant pain.

'Suffer like this', I shouted at her, slapping her in disgust, 'who can help such fellows!'

I went then to join nagarsankeerthan.

As our nagarsankeerthan team was reaching the mandir at the end of the detour in the colony, I saw my wife and my second daughter Gita walking towards the mandir.

'Was she coming only because of my pressure?' I wondered. But there was no limping of her leg. She was walking normally.

We all reached the mandir and gave harati. Then my daughter Gita got up and said, 'uncles! Please wait! I want to say a few words'.

We all sat again wondering what she was going to say.

First she explained her sudden ailment of her leg and how painful it was to move it even slightly.

'My father was insistent that I should come to the mandir today', she continued, 'he left me in disgust. I was on my bed suffering with pain. My mom switched off the light in my room and went into the garden to pluck flowers for pooja. Then suddenly the light was on. My mother saw that light, and thought that I was trying to go to bathroom. So she rushed back to help me. When she came into my room, I was getting ready to go to the mandir. My mother thought that I was trying to go to the mandir in spite of pain only to satisfy my father who left the house in a huff. Therefore, she did not ask me anything and followed me.

Now, I tell you something, which no one knows, except me. When my mother went into the garden, the light was on and there was sound near the pooja room as if some one opened its door. I turned my head and looked to see who it was that opened the door of the pooja room. There stood Bhagavan. I was not asleep. I was not dreaming. He was present in flesh and blood. He walked towards my bed and said, 'child! Your father asked you to go to the mandir. You have not gone?'

'How can I go, Swami?' I replied, 'when I am down with pain?'

'Is it so?' Swami said, 'I will hold you and help you get up. Try to walk with Me'.

'Baba held me with His Divine hands', my daughter continued as we all were listening with rapt attention, 'and made me walk in the room from one end to the other thrice. 'How do you feel now?' He asked. 'Fine', I replied jumping all over the place. 'Don't say this to your mom'; Swami whispered to me, 'tell all at the mandir only'.

Then He went back to the door of the pooja room, went in and closed it before He disappeared. All this happened in the short span of time taken by my mother to pick five flowers in the garden! Sai Ram!'

When my daughter concluded, the hall was enveloped by stunned silence and wonder. Then suddenly everyone began to talk simultaneously praising the leelas of Bhagavan.

Next day, we went to the doctor who could not believe that it was the same girl that had come to her a day before.

'I was apprehensive that you might suffer a stroke of paralysis though I did not tell you', the doctor told Gita, 'anyway you are back to normalcy in a miraculous way that is beyond medical science. I am happy'.

Gita has had no problem ever since. She is married and blessed with two children.

On April 21, 2002, Sri Rama Navami was celebrated in Sriharikota on a grand scale. I was the convenor and, in that capacity, was an eyewitness to Sai miracle that occurred on that occasion. The wedding of Sita and Rama was performed in the morning and a community lunch was arranged in the afternoon. In the evening the new couple, Sita and Rama were to be taken out in a procession along the streets of the township. The local contractor came forward to bear all expenses. He arranged a generator to follow the procession illuminating the chariot of the gods.

Before the procession began, he went round offering harati to various deities in the local temple complex. There is a small mandir of Sri Sathya Sai Baba among the temples where a photograph of Bhagavan is kept and daily pooja and naivedyam are being offered along with other deities in the complex. The contractor offered harati to all deities, but did not care to pause before Sri Sathya Sai mandir neglecting to give due regard to Baba, thinking that Baba is a normal human being only.

When the procession was about to start, the generator failed. There was no illumination. All efforts to repair it failed. They tried to get a replacement but in vain. Then the contractor went to the temple of Kamakshi and prayed: 'Why this fate? Mother! I hoped to celebrate the festival in a grand manner and arranged the procession to crown it all. What sin have I committed to deserve this?'

Then he had a feeling that the Goddess showed him with her finger to go straight. He went like that and reached Durga temple, which is facing the temple of Kamakshi.

There he prayed again. There also he got the same signal. When he turned back, he saw Sri Sathya Sai mandir in the middle. Suddenly he remembered how he skipped it while giving harati and showed gross negligence to Baba. He went to the mandir of Baba, got special pooja performed and gave harati, praying, 'pardon me, Bhagavan. I was ignorant of your Divinity. Bless the procession with success'.

No sooner he gave harati to Bhagavan in the mandir, lights came on as the generator started functioning miraculously without any effort on the part of the mechanic.

We came to Puttaparthi on December 24, 1992 and witnessed the Christmas celebrations. At the time of our departure from Sriharikota, our third daughter, Nagarani had fever. On the 25th, she was attending programmes with fever. By the midnight of the 26th, she had high fever. Her eyes and face were swollen horribly. A lady doctor who was passing that way saw her and advised immediate hospitalisation. Added to all this, we could not secure accommodation and had to rest under the stairs. I took her with some difficulty to a homoeopath residing inside the Ashram. He said that her condition was very serious and advised immediate hospitalisation.

'We can say anything, only if this night passes', he remarked. He gave no medicine. I went to the rickshaw pullers. They said they would not be allowed into the mandir after 9 p.m. I could not carry her and she was not in a position to walk. My situation was totally helpless. As I came from the gate to the south block, I turned towards the mandir. Swami was then residing on the first floor of the mandir. I turned towards the windows on the first floor with tears rolling down my face and prayed, 'we have come here for you. If you put us to tests like this what can we do? I am totally helpless. If you want keep the girl with me, save her. Or, if you want to take her into you, take her'.

I came to the place where I asked my wife and children to wait for me as I went out to bring a rickshaw. Till then we covered the girl with all the blankets we brought, exposing all of us to cold in those winter days.

When I was nearing them, my daughter saw me from a distance and removed all those blankets and said to me, 'dad! I am completely ok now. No fever!' Not only her fever had gone but her face returned to normalcy - no swelling. I was pleasantly stunned by the love and compassion shown by Bhagavan to us, and wondered how miraculously she was cured of her serious ailment without any medicine within that short time after I had prayed to Bhagavan. Nagarani had no problem after that. She was married later. Bhagavan blessed her wedding card also. She is now blessed with two children.

One day in 1993, my son Srihari Ram was watching some boys playing cricket in the school. There was no ball. A large-sized pebble was used as a ball. As one fellow struck that stone with a wooden piece substituted for a bat, the stone flew and hit my son just between his eyes on the upper most part of the nasal-bone. There was no bleeding. But he had excruciating pain.

His friends took him to a doctor in SHAR hospital. They did not inform us. However, we also rushed there on getting information. Five x-rays were taken of his nose from different angles in the hospital. The ENT specialist examined the boy and the x-rays and told me, 'his nose was smashed into pulp; nasal bone reduced to pieces. An operation has to be conducted. But be mentally prepared that his nose will not be the same again as it is now. A twist in the upper portion of the nose is unavoidable even after surgery. We will send him tomorrow in the early hours in ambulance to the Super Specialties Hospital in Chennai. Be ready'.

We returned home and began packing. We prayed to Bhagavan, and put vibhuti on the nose. He complained for some time of pain. The doctor did not give us any medicine - not even a painkiller. After sometime he dozed off and slept. In the early hours I had to wake him up for going to Chennai. He woke up and touched his nose.

'No pain, dad!' he cried out of joy, 'I am completely cured. I will go to school'.

As I went out, I ran into the ENT specialist as we all were residing in the same colony.

'You had not turned up', he remarked in a tone of complaint, 'why are you neglecting it like that?

'He is completely ok', I replied. Later, I took my son to him. He examined the boy and said, 'I have not seen anything like this happen in my service. How did the smashed bone set itself right over night? It is incredible'.

I told him, 'it is owing to the grace of Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba who has been protecting us always. Nothing is impossible to Bhagavan'.

My first daughter Lalita passed Diploma in Engineering. When I tried in our SHAR organisation for employment for her, they said, 'there is ban on recruitment. Besides there is no vacancy',

We were praying to Bhagavan. One day one Executive Engineer resigned unexpectedly and left. A person below his rank would normally be appointed to it. But the Department felt that a Junior Engineer would be enough for the post. My daughter could not be recruited as Executive Engineer or even as Deputy Executive Engineer. But she could apply to a Junior Engineer's post. She applied and was selected as the first in the panel. But posting could not be issued without clearance of antecedents by police. So her case was referred to the CBI, Delhi. The report should come before the expiry of one year. If not, the selection would be cancelled and fresh recruitment would be ordered. In that case, the vacancy would go to SC / ST candidate, and my daughter would stand no chance. A period of eleven months 20 days lapsed after my daughter was recruited, but no report was received from the police. I used to go to the mandir daily, do pradakshinas and pray to Bhagavan, 'Swami! You have brought the vacancy from EE's level to JE's level, and got my daughter selected as No.1 in the panel. It is like bringing food up to the mouth. Now if the police report were not received, she would lose her chance. Would you throw away the food you offered to my daughter?'

On the last day, as I was entering office, one of my colleagues in the establishment accosted me in the verandah, 'oh! Tulasiram! Congrats! Your daughter is being given posting today; the police report has just been received today'.

I thanked Swami for His grace.

My daughter received promotion in due course, and is now an Executive Engineer. She was married to a resident of Sriharikota only. My son did his M. Tech (Engineering) and is an employee of SHAR.

I have three daughters and a son. I always thought that I should get a single invitation card printed for the marriages of my first and second daughters. Accordingly we selected two bridegrooms for both our daughters from our relatives. A date was fixed for engagement. A few days before the date of engagement, we had a rude shock when we came to know that the bridegroom selected for our eldest daughter married some other girl without the knowledge of his parents. So we sent word to the would-be in-laws of the second daughter to postpone the engagement. But they did not agree. As they were insistent, we had to go with the engagement formality though none of us in the family was in a mood for it. However, we bargained with them to give us time of three months to perform the marriage of my second daughter with a hope to find some good alliance for the eldest also. They agreed.

But even after a lapse of two months and twenty days, no alliance came for my eldest daughter, Lalita. She began to do parayana of Sai Sacchatitra from the date on which the bad news came, and completed reading it with dedication for 108 times.

As there was no scope to perform both the marriages about the same time, we were in a fix about what to do. We all sat and discussed the matter up to late in the night one day, and decided unanimously that we should all commit mass suicide the next day after praying to Bhagavan, as it appeared to be the only honourable way to save the prestige of the family. Next morning somebody knocked at our door around 8 a.m. When I opened the door, there was a young man.

'I came to know that there is a girl of marriageable age in your house', the young man told me without any preliminaries, 'I will marry her if you all agree'.

I invited him into my house and told him frankly how the alliance selected earlier for her ended.

'I know about it all', he said, 'I have no objection to marry her in spite of all that'.

We made enquiries about his family, education, and other details and felt satisfied with the alliance. The engagement was also held. We performed the marriage of Lalita on July 1, 1992 and the marriage of my second daughter Gita on July 10, 1992 issuing only one invitation card for both, as I originally desired. Swami thus averted mass suicide in my family, and blessed us all with the best of cheer.

-- Mr. U. Tulasiram.

(As narrated to Mr. B. Parvatala Rao at Prasanthi Nilayam on 19.03.2005.)