Features | Experience of the Divinity of Bhagavan by Devotees | Group IV | Mrs. G. Janaki

Mrs. G.Janaki,
S1, Select House,
10-3-2, Entrenchment Road,
East Maredpalli, Secunderabad - 500 026

Tel: 040-27733800

Mrs. G. Janaki (60), a housewife, relates a few of her experiences of the Divinity of Bhagavan in her own words.

'I went to Prasanthi Nilayam in 1967 for the first time. Swami called us for an interview and explained about Ramayana with special reference to the characters of Rama, Sita, Lakshmana, etc. In the evening, He gave a Divine Discourse. In it, He repeated all that He had told us during the interview. He performed aksharabhyasam to our son Anand and blessed him.

Bhagavan told us that we would beget a daughter, Jnana-putrika. Accordingly we were blessed with a daughter whom we named Sridevi. She became a student of Anantapur campus college of Bhagavan. She used to write letters describing whatever happened there in detail. Owing to Swami's blessings, she is now a teacher, dispensing wisdom - a Jana-putrika indeed.

In 1991, I had a dream in which Bhagavan appeared in the lawns of a spacious bungalow. That day I had promised sevadal people at Jemshedpur that I would go to Prasanthi Nilayam for seva along with them. Swami, who appeared in my dream, asked me not to go. 'You are not well. You can't do service', He told me. Just then a four- year-old boy came from somewhere and went to Swami.

'Not my child, Swami!' I told Bhagavan.

'I know' He replied.

A surprising thing was that Swami was wearing a red robe and not an ochre robe as usual.

When I told our sevadal people that I dropped the idea of going to Prasanthi Nilayam for seva, they were disappointed. After they left, I had an attack of severe back-pain which I had to suffer for a few days. Had I gone to Prasanthi Nilayam, someone would have had to do my seva instead of my doing any seva there. The pain subsided after taking medicines.

In August 1991, we went to Prasanthi Nilayam. We were told that Bhagavan was giving robes to girls from the Anantapur campus. I prayed to Bhagavan, 'give a red robe to my daughter so that I feel convinced that what I saw in the dream is true'.

Swami gave a yellow robe to my daughter. He went a few paces forward and returned. He took back the yellow robe and gave it to another girl. There was only one red robe in the middle of robes carried by a madam walking along with Swami. Swami pulled it out when the rest had fallen down. He gave the red robe my daughter. When she saw it, she was reminded of my dream in which Swami had appeared in a red robe.

'Take padanamaskar', Swami told my daughter.

She did so as tears rolled down her cheeks.

Among the official quarters of the Tata Steel was a bungalow with a spacious lawn. It was called Sai Nilayam.

I used to think whimsically 'how beautiful it would be if we get that bungalow?' But my husband was not eligible to that. There was already a senior official in it, who was quite young and not likely to retire and vacate it. Suddenly, that official was transferred to Bangalore. Many seniors were trying for allotment of that bungalow. All of a sudden it was allotted to us unexpectedly owing to Swami's grace. We were told that they decided to give points and allotted it to the one who secured maximum points among Sai devotees who applied for allotment. My husband secured the maximum points. It was Bhagavan's 67th Birthday year and my husband secured 67 points and got the allotment. We came to Prasanthi Nilayam in1995 after that. We waited daily with a tray filled with Swami's photographs and chocolates. We wanted to get them blessed by Bhagavan. For five days, He did not bless. On the sixth day, He blessed it. On that day the date was 8. Our new bungalow number was 8. Did Swami delay blessing the photographs deliberately so that the date coincided with the door number of Sai Nilayam?

Another notable point is that the lawn in Sai Nilayam was the same on which Bhagavan had appeared to me in the dream. When we occupied the new quarters, a child of four years was seen on the premises. He was the same boy whom I had seen in the dream.

'Who is that boy?' I asked.

'My son', the watchman replied.

That boy used to come to me often. I used to teach him slokas and bhajans. He could sing a bhajan song well at that age, after a few weeks of training, to the amazement of the participants in the bhajan held at our house.

We were considering a match for our daughter. The bridegroom was from a family known to us. It appeared a good alliance from every angle. So we came to a consensus to inform the groom's party the next morning and get the date for engagement fixed. That night Swami came into my dream.

'Don't proceed with this alliance', He told me, 'I will find her an alliance myself'.

Next morning I told my husband about my dream.

'How can we go back at this stage?' my husband was visibly upset, 'what is the way out? Can we tell them that Swami objected in a dream? Who will believe? What will they think of us?'

My daughter is a devotee of Swami. She overheard all this.

'Tell them I didn't agree', she told us, 'I don't accept when Swami says 'no' - even if it is in a dream. I don't mind taking the blame, if any, for this volte-face'.

Our withdrawal created a lot of unpleasantness, but we stuck to our guns, relying on Bhagavan. Later, my daughter went to Prasanthi Nilayam to attend Balvikas rally in 2001. When she returned to Hyderabad, an alliance was waiting for her as if sent by Bhagavan. Owing to Swami's grace, the marriage was settled and consummated in October 2001. They are happy, and are blessed with a daughter. We came here to celebrate her birthday in the divine presence of Swami.

My husband wanted to take Early Separation of Service (voluntary retirement). He drew lots before Swami's photograph two or three times earlier but could not secure Swami's assent. After a few years, the Company announced ESS again. One night, he drew lots, and told me that Bhagavan agreed for his ESS.

'How can you take lots like that?' I told him, 'it should be done with sanctity after morning pooja. If Swami consented really last night, He will agree now also'.

So we took lots after pooja. Bhagavan gave green signal to ESS through lots. This was on the last day of the deadline prescribed for opting for ESS. On that day, my husband submitted his application for ESS. Though the management was reluctant to allow him to retire and lose his services, he finally could prevail upon them and get orders issued with the grace of Bhagavan.

My son Mr Anand was studying in Swami's Brindavan campus. Swami proposed to perform upanayanams at Prasanthi Nilayam and called my son also. Earlier, my husband and I discussed about his upanayanam. We had a son first who passed away when he was six months old. Next, Anand was born.

'Had he lived, we would have performed upanayanams of both sons at one time'. I told my husband whimsically.

At the time of upanayanams, Bhagavan personally distributed yajnopaveetams. He gave two to Anand. After a while, Swami told Anand, 'you got two' and took one back. When we learnt it, I felt that Swami had given two yajnopavitams, one for my first born and the second for Anand, and took one back as it was not needed any longer.'

-- Mrs. G. Janaki

(As narrated to Mr. B. Parvatala Rao at Prasanthi Nilayam on 19.06.2005)