Features | Experience of the Divinity of Bhagavan by Devotees | Group V | Mr. D. Jaya Kumar

Mr. D. Jaya Kumar,
D.T.P. Operator & Printer,
D.No. 4/99, Opposite to SSSIHMS,
Prasanthigram, Puttaparthi - 515134.

E-mail: sairamcom108@yahoo.com

Mr. D. Jaya Kumar (28), DTP operator and printer, relates a few of his experiences of the Divinity of Bhagavan in his own words.

'I have been hearing about Bhagavan since my childhood as my parents happen to be His devotees. I had an attack of malaria in August 1994, before I was to start for Prasanthi Nilayam for seva. I came here with fever. I was given light duty at the University gate, as the fever increased owing to the strain of the long journey by train. After service there for a week, the fever disappeared completely. So I was posted at the Chitravathi water tank where I had to be on duty for 16 hours a day during the second week of my seva. I used to go for darshan daily. It so happened that I got padanamaskar on all the seven days of the second week, owing to the grace of Swami.

One day I got the 4th line. Swami stopped near me, and was talking to an overseas devotee. I wrote a letter to Bhagavan and brought it with me. Swami bent forward and took the letter from me. I noticed that He did not take letters from any other person around me. Later, all the problems I listed in my letter began getting solved one by one.

In November 1995, I came for seva. That was Bhagavan's 70th Birthday time. I was posted on canteen duty. I was then a young boy and had not even attained majority. I was also a lean kid. I used to be on duty from 3 a.m. to 11 p.m. It was surprising to onlookers how we were lifting up huge vessels full of curd rice or fried-rice. Only it was the will of Bhagavan that gave us the needed strength and energy. Though I was doing seva there, I could not leave work and go far darshan of Bhagavan. One day there was commotion outside. 'What's the matter?' I asked one of my colleagues who was running to the door.

'Swami is coming' he told me. 'I do not believe. Why does Swami come now?' I asked. At that time we were outside the canteen handling some vessels. Swami was really coming. I waited with bated breath. The car passed by me and I had an excellent darshan from close quarters. 'Swami! How compassionate you are!' I thought gratefully, 'as I could not come for Your darshan, You Yourself came to me!'

In 2002, about 20 young men of Delhi resolved to go to Prasanthi Nilayam. I was one of them. 'We should get an interview with Swami' we decided 'by doing some thing to please Him'. Finally we struck upon the idea of going up to Dharmavaram by train and do padayatra from there to Prasanthi Nilayam. It so happened that finally only ten were ready to come to Prasanthi Nilayam. One of the ten, Mr. Gourav Mallik had a dream in which Swami told him 'well, nine highly spirited youth are going from here to Parthi'. 'No Swami' Mallik replied in the dream, 'we are ten.' The dream ended.

On August 23, only nine of us left Delhi, as Mallik had to stay on hearing about serious illness of his uncle, reaching Dharmavaram in the early hours on the 25th. After breakfast, we began our trek around 11 a.m. or so. After walking for about 20 km, we felt very tired. Meanwhile, five of us went a little ahead while four others fell behind. At about 4 p.m., there was mild drizzle which was very refreshing. We were amazed how it drizzled when there was no cloud. Suddenly, there was the Divine form of Durga with eight hands, in the sky. She was riding on a lion. I saw Her form clearly.

'Do you see anything?' I asked one of those in my group. 'I see in the sky Ashtabhuja Durga on a lion!' he told me. Others concurred. Then we all felt energized. The feeling of tiredness left us. We had decided a few minutes earlier to halt somewhere. Now we decided to continue our trek. Meanwhile, the other four joined us. They, too, had a vision exactly at 4 p.m. and also felt energized like us. But instead of Durga, they saw Aum in Devanagari script on the cloud. Then we decided to continue our trek and reached Prasanthi Nilayam by around 1 a.m. We did not go to bed. Instead, we took our bath and sat in darshan lines. We were feeling that we had done a feat by coming on foot to Prasanthi Nilayam and were sure that Swami would certainly call us for interview.

What we did not realize is that Swami would not like even a trace of ego in devotees. That morning when we sat on one side, Swami went on the other side. He did not even look at us. In the evening, we sat again for darshan on the side where Swami went in the morning. Swami came and went to the other side we were sitting in the morning. He did not even look at us. Then we began to introspect. What mistake did we commit?

Next morning, we did 108 pradakshinas to Vinayaka and broke coconuts. Then we went and sat in the darshan line confident of being called for interview. But Swami did not come to our side and did not even look at us. 'What has gone wrong again?' we could not surmise. Someone said that if we prayed to Iswaramma, she would tell Swami and get the interview. So we went to the Samadhi mandir to pray. There was a sadhu there. 'Why not you youngsters help me clean the mandir?' he asked us. We readily agreed. We cleaned the mandir to his satisfaction.

That day, my mother went and sat for lunch in the canteen. The seat on her side was vacant. Usually, plates before empty seats are not served rice there, but the plate there was served fully. No one came. Just then, an aged lady came to my mother. 'You have come from Delhi' she told my mother, 'the boys from Delhi are exerting a lot to get an interview. Tell them that Swami wants to give them more; interview is a small matter'. She had a big bottu on her forehead, and carried an old fashioned cloth bag. When we heard of this matter, we assumed that she was none other than Iswaramma. Otherwise, how could she know that my mother came from Delhi and that we were exerting in several ways to get an interview with Swami? We realised that she had responded to our prayers as well as seva in the Samadhi mandir bringing us a message from Bhagavan. I wrote a letter about my marriage and was keeping it with me from the first day of arrival, to give to Swami. But I could not give it as Swami was not coming our side at all. 'If Swami does not take this letter, I will tear it off' I resolved, 'and return to Delhi'.

That morning I sat praying to Swami in darshan line. I closed my eyes in prayer when darshan began. When I opened my eyes, Swami was in front of me. One devotee was sitting by my side. Swami was not looking at me. 'Where did you come from?' He asked that devotee. 'From Delhi, Swami' I replied. The person by my side did not reply. 'How many?' Swami asked. 'Nine, Swami' I replied. Again, the person next to me was silent. I forgot about my letter and suddenly remembered it. I took it out. Swami took it. I mentioned to Bhagavan about my marriage proposal of which I had mentioned in the letter. 'Chaala santhosham (very happy)' Swami said, and moved. After evening darshan, some one came to us. 'All nine sit here' he said, 'you have work'. Then along with the sevadal, we were also asked to do decoration of the mandir. 'Earlier batch took nearly four to five hours to do decoration' some one told us, 'you have completed in just two hours' 'Swami's grace' we replied.

After Swami blessed my marriage proposal, I gave my consent for my marriage. Till then, I had been turning down all proposals saying 'I will not marry till swami gives clearance'. My engagement was fixed on September 1, 2002 and the marriage was held on September 9 owing to His grace successfully.

In the same year, I came to Chennai to attend the marriage of a relative. I had fever as Chennai climate did not suit me. I took medicines, but the fever continued. On our return journey, my mother and I got only RAC tickets. I was worried about travelling long distance with fever without berth, and prayed to Bhagavan to take care of us. A ticket examiner came and asked my mother to occupy a berth on the side of the one on which we were sitting. So I got the side berth on which I was already sitting. I leaved a sigh and thanked Swami. There was a Tamilian family on the coupe opposite me. I could not get sleep for a long-time and gradually dozed off. Then I had a dream. I was in the same compartment in my dream on the same side berth. But the Tamilian family was not there. In the coupe was a Military man. He took out a medicine vial and a syringe and was taking the medicine from the vial into the syringe. I was wondering why he was doing so, and who he was? Then he signalled to me to come to him. I went to him when he gave the injection to me and said, 'go to sleep now'. The dream was over. I woke up in the morning and looked for the military man. He was not there. The Tamilian couple were sleeping quietly as I had seen before dozing off. I felt pain in my upper arm. I touched the spot where the military man had given me the injection in the dream. There was pain as if I had taken the injection. My fever was gone. I felt quite normal without even the post-fever weakness.

In 2002, I came for seva. We were all taken for an interview with higher functionaries in the Organization before we were allotted duties. Before going to the interview, one sevadal brought some vibhuti packet, opened it and asked us to put vibhuti on our foreheads and then attend the interview. As I was feeling nervous about facing the higher ups in the interview, I took a pinch, put it on my forehead and then put a little in my mouth. It tasted differently. 'May I have this packet?' I asked him. 'By all means', he said and gave the packet to me. The interview was a walkover, thanks to the grace of Bhagavan who blessed me through vibhuti. While I was on duty, my partner in seva complained of severe toothache. What to do in the dead of night? I gave him a little vibhuti praying to Swami for him. As soon as he applied it on his teeth, the toothache disappeared miraculously in a few seconds, and he could do service normally.

About the time of my marriage in September 2002, my mother had severe chest pain. I put in her mouth a little of vibhuti from that packet I had received before the interview for seva. She was relieved of the pain in a few seconds miraculously.

While we were all busy with my wedding, one of my cousins met with an accident while going on a scooter in Chennai, and sustained brain injury. He was unconscious, hospitalized and operated upon. 'We cannot say anything now' doctors told us, 'unless he regains consciousness'. I quietly put a little vibhuti from that very packet into a small quantity of water, and poured into his mouth without the doctor or nurse noticing it. By Swami's grace, he swallowed it. I kept a photograph of Swami under his pillow. Within 10 minutes, he regained his consciousness. His recovery was so fast that doctors were amazed. He, who was given only 10% chance of survival, is now quite all right by Bhagavan's grace.'

-- Mr. D. Jaya Kumar

(As narrated to Mr. B. Parvatala Rao at Prasanthi Nilayam on 17.11.2005.)