This saying is one hundred percent true in our case. It was in March 1998 that we had the first
darshan of Guruji. That very day, He took us in His
sharan (protection). Since that day, our life has changed beyond recognition. It was certainly the luckiest and most golden day of our life.
I had gone to Guruji when my life, or rather the whole family, was completely shattered. My eldest son, Sumeet was diagnosed with a type of cancer for which medical science has no cure. A colleague of my wife-both doctors by profession-told us about Guruji. We went to Him because there was no other hope or alternative for us. But, once in His
sharan, He took such care of every facet of our life that we never looked back or ever thought of going anywhere else.
I must confess that I did not realise it at that time. But now, when I look back at the countless blessings that we have received and the miracles we have witnessed, I have no doubt in my mind that He is the incarnation of Lord Shiva, who took human form only to bless His devotees. Sumeet's cancer proved a blessing in disguise for the family as it led us to Guruji.
Sumeet has described his
satsang in detail separately. Every single member of our family has been blessed so much that it is impossible to even recount all instances, not to talk of thanking Guruji for the same.
He gave me a new lease of life
I had planned to go on the Kailash-Mansarovar Yatra sponsored by the Government of India. When I sought Guruji's permission, He wanted to know why I wanted to go on this Yatra, when Lord Shiva was Himself present before me, here itself. Naturally, I did not go ahead with the Yatra.
That year, there were severe landslides on the Yatra route and two batches (of about 20 pilgrims each) perished. There were hardly any survivors. Obviously, Guruji foresaw what was to happen on my Yatra and saved my life by not allowing me to go on the Yatra. It was later that He told me: "See, I have saved your life."
He saved me once again
I was having severe heart problems and was advised to undergo angiography. This was done at AIIMS, as desired by Guruji. After the angiography, I was taken straight to the ICCU, as I had earlier had a silent heart attack. Two of my arteries were blocked almost completely and the third around 90 per cent.
That afternoon, I had a massive heart attack. My heart stopped beating and the pulse was absent. In other words, I was clinically dead. It was only with Guruji's grace that the doctors could revive me by inserting a balloon in the aorta, giving me a heart massage, and taking other steps. At about 10 pm, we were informed that an immediate bypass surgery was a must, but it was very risky in my case, because of the extent of blockages, damage to my heart and my having continued to take blood-thinning medicines, which are normally stopped a week before such an operation. My family members sought Guruji's blessings, who reassured them with the words: "Let the doctors do what they please; inside, whatever is to be done, I will do."
And that is precisely what He did. An emergency operation was performed that very night. There was considerable internal haemorrhage and other complications but with Guruji's blessings, everything turned out okay. It is all behind me now and I am again back to normal. There is no doubt that I have got a new lease of life. I certainly owe my being alive today to Guruji.
Another lease of life
The third instance of His giving me a new life was on 31st December, 2006. As usual, there were celebrations at the Bade Mandir. As the
sangat started taking leave of Guruji in the early hours of the morning, He allowed my family to go, but asked me to stay back. My younger son, Hitesh, left with other members of the family in the car which I was to drive and left his car for me. After about an hour, He told me that He had given me a new life and now I was safe and could go home. At that moment, I could not understand the significance of His words. When I reached home, I came to know that due to the thick fog, my family had met with an accident on the way back home-precisely when Guruji had told me that He had given me a new life. At a speed breaker, the car in front had braked suddenly and in spite of his best efforts, Hitesh's car had dashed against it. The bumper and the grill were badly damaged and my wife's head hit the windscreen, which also got damaged. But there was no injury to any passenger. On our next visit, Guruji told us that He had given a new life to the entire family. We certainly owe our being alive today to Guruji.
Guruji knows our past, present and future and does whatever is necessary to safeguard our interests without our asking Him. In fact, most of the time, we don't even come to know or realise what He is doing for us. My immune system used to be very weak. I would frequently suffer from a sore throat, cough, cold, fever as well as an upset stomach. Even the strongest antibiotics would not be of much help and I used to suffer for long periods. I now realise that all this is a thing of past. Evidently, it is Guruji's invisible hand that is responsible for this.
Younger son and I get jobs
Hitesh is an engineer, who was engaged in the stock market. One day, Guruji enquired of his profession and asked him to close down his business and look for a job. He kept looking for a suitable job for the next few months, but to no avail. One day, Guruji again inquired about his job and also told him that he will get a job in fifteen days. A few days later, he got an interview call from a good firm, one to which he had not even applied, and on the thirteenth day he got a job. About a year later, the stock market crashed so badly that had he been in that business at that time, he would have been financially ruined. Clearly, Guruji had once more saved His devotee even before a problem could rear its head.
I had retired from the Planning Commission in December 2001. I wanted to work after that, but somehow could not land a good enough job. Guruji did mention a couple of times that I should work as an advisor in a good firm. So, I kept looking for a good job. Suddenly, I met a few old friends of mine who promptly offered me a job of my choice. Incidentally, this happened a few months after Guruji attained
mahasamadhi, which only goes to show that Guruji continues to be with us and is taking perfect care of us.
A house constructed without adequate means
While in government service, I was staying in government accommodation in Chanakyapuri. I had planned to shift to a small flat in Dwarka after my retirement. But Guruji asked me to purchase a 500-square-yard plot in Gurgaon and construct a house. Buying it and constructing a bungalow was way beyond my capabilities; I had neither the financial nor the physical strength to do so. Upon my pleading with Him, Guruji allowed me to purchase a smaller plot of 360 square yards. But, when the construction started, I realized I had committed a blunder by going in for a smaller plot. For, it was not I, but Guruji's blessings that were entirely responsible for the construction. Somehow, the money required was always available as and when needed.
Two instances will suffice to illustrate the working of His grace. Banks are reluctant to give loans to retired people, but in my case, the bank manager himself offered me a home loan and it was sanctioned without any hassles. Second, though we had ancestral property, there were serious differences among the siblings. There was no hope of selling this property. One day when I was in Bade Mandir, my sister informed me over the phone that all differences had been resolved, a buyer had been located and that I would get the first installment of the payment, the next day. Thus, whenever money was required, it would somehow become available-thanks to Guruji's blessings.
At one stage, I had paid an advance to a party from whom I was to purchase a plot. When I told Guruji about it, He asked me to cancel the deal as the party was a fraud. Soon it was confirmed that it was indeed so, but with Guruji's grace, I could get back the advance in full.
Sweet cure for diabetes
My mother was in her late seventies. She suffered from diabetes, for which she used to get an insulin injection every day. She also had heart and liver problems, arthritis and poor digestion. As a matter of fact, she was hesitant to come to Guruji, since the arthritis hindered her from sitting on the floor. On the family's persuasion, she mustered courage and started coming to Guruji.
On the very first day, Guruji gave her a handful of
burfi (an Indian sweet) as
prasad. With the fact that she had diabetes in the back of her mind, she ate a small piece and kept the rest aside for giving to her children. There was such a big gathering that Guruji possibly couldn't have seen this. But the omniscient
Satguru can see and hear everything, everywhere. He called her again and gave her more
burfi prasad than earlier and told her to eat it at the
sangat itself.
She did so and soon enough, there was a remarkable improvement in her diabetes. The doctor treating her stopped the insulin injections-something that is not possible in the world of medicine. But, as Guruji's devotees say, Guruji begins where science ends. Her arthritis too showed improvement and she could bend and cross her legs easily and sit on the ground for hours together. And, of course, her heart also started behaving better and the dosage of medicines decreased considerably.
It is pertinent to mention that all this happened without our ever telling Guruji about her problems and seeking His help. There is no doubt that Guruji knows everything without our telling Him and can do anything. He takes absolute care of all His followers and their problems and does whatever is in their best interest.
Saving His disciple from retirement worries
I was due to retire as Advisor, Planning Commission, in December 2001. A few months before that, one of my subordinates made a complaint to my superiors, making all sorts of allegations of corruption, nepotism, favouritism, misuse of official position against me. My main worry was that irrespective of the merits, such cases normally drag on for years and I would have been denied all my retirement benefits, until I was cleared of all charges. I did not even mention this to Guruji, but with the blessings of the omniscient Guru, the government fully accepted my very first reply and the matter was closed.
Rain on devotee's prayer
A major function was to be held in Bade Mandir shortly. A devotee, Mr. Dubey and myself were trying to wash the
Shivling on top of the Mandir. But, the water pressure was low with the result that the water would hardly reach one-third of the height of the Shivling. With no other alternative, we silently prayed to Guruji for help. In a few minutes, there was a heavy shower and the Shivling started gleaming.
Blessings before meeting Guruji
There have been numerous instances where we have received Guruji's blessings even before we came to Him. My younger son was trying for admission to an engineering college in Mumbai. He was told that his rank was rather low and there was no hope for him. One fine day, there were frantic phone calls from the principal of the college to me: It was the last day of admissions in Mumbai University and there was one seat available. My son could gain entrance provided the fees be deposited in the college by 5 pm. It was already 1 pm and we were in Delhi. Nevertheless, we were able to give the fees, and he got the admission in the branch of his choice.
Again, I had a close shave with death four times and each time, I was miraculously saved at the last moment, when I was literally inches from death. While it is difficult to conclusively prove (to those who want such proofs) that these were Guruji's blessings, these can't be treated as mere coincidences. As Guruji says: "Nothing is by chance. Everything is by my choice."
Blessings continue after His Mahasamadhi
Guruji continues to make His presence felt through His
darshans (sightings), His typical rose-like fragrance and most important, His continuing to shower blessings on His devotees and taking care of all their worries and problems even after attaining Mahasamadhi. In December 2008, I had been to Mumbai, where an old friend of mine was terribly worried, as his son had undergone a kidney transplant about six months back. The doctors had told him that the first year was critical. More worryingly, till then his son's body was rejecting the transplanted kidney.
I gave my friend a photograph of Guruji and advised him to leave the problem in Guruji's very safe hands. Soon enough, things took a turn for better. Today, his son's body has accepted the transplanted kidney, the critical one-year period is over and he is in excellent condition. And he has not even visited Bade Mandir so far. Just a photograph of Guruji has been enough.
Fulfills all your desires
Guruji is omniscient and knows what is in your mind anytime. He fulfills all your desires without your even asking, provided, of course, they are good for you. My grand-daughter was in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, in September, 2007, when her cousins' first birthday was to be celebrated in Delhi. She expressed a desire to her mother on the previous evening that she very much wanted to attend their birthday function. The mother explained to her that it was not physically possible. And lo, as is His wont, Guruji went to my grand-daughter in her dream and took her to attend the birthday function along with Him in His car!
The above are only a few of the illustrative examples of the blessings that Guruji continually showers on all His devotees. It is just not possible for me to detail all the blessings that my family and I have received from Him. He blesses everybody who comes to Him, irrespective of his caste, colour, creed, gender, religion or background-just as the sun shines upon everybody without any distinction. Often enough, we do not even realise what He is giving or has given us. By far the most remarkable is a drastic change in one's very outlook towards life. After countless such incidences of His grace, one inherently starts believing that no matter what happens, Guruji will take care of the problem, and one can rest assured-just as a small child feels very safe in the hands of his parents.
Jis ke sir upar tu swami, so dukh kaisa pawe? (How can one who is under your protective umbrella, ever suffer?) In fact, even when something goes wrong, one gets the feeling that perhaps a major problem has been turned into a minor one.
Guruji Maharaj, the Almighty
Guruji is most unlike any other Guru or spiritual leader. He does not ask us to perform any rituals, worship or undertake fasts, etc. He does not ask us to shun materialism. He gives us everything: life, health, wealth, happiness and fulfillment of beneficial desires without our asking for it. He does not ask for or expect anything in return, except surrender, faith and devotion. I am aware of countless instances where He has blessed couples with children, when it was medically impossible for them to have children; where He has given a new lease of life or even raised people from the dead; and, of course, taken care of every aspect between life and death. The number of His devotees runs into millions and I do not know of a single devotee who has returned empty-handed from His durbar. His two most common expressions are: "
Kalyan kita" (I have blessed you) when you go to Him and "
Jaa, Aish kar" (Go and enjoy) when you take leave of Him. What more can one ask for?
For Him, space, time and the laws of nature do not mean anything. He is above or beyond everything. When He walks, His lotus feet do not touch the ground. On numerous occasions, He has been present with His sangat in New Delhi as well as at Punjab, the US, Canada, UK, Ireland at the same time. His body is full of
Amrit, exudes fragrance and He can produce divine prasad or Amrit at any time, any where. Even the
jooties (Guruji's
charan paduka) which He gave me as a blessing more than ten years ago exude His fragrance. What to talk of small mortals like me, even Goddess Saraswati cannot describe the qualities of Guruji. All I would say is that He is omnipresent, omniscient and omnipotent.
I have no doubt in my mind that He is the ultimate God, or
Parameshwar, an incarnation of Lord Shiva. Once you are under His sharan, you don't need to worship or please any other god just as you need not water any other part of the tree if you have watered its roots. I humbly pray to Guruji that He may continue to guide the entire sangat along the right path and keep on showering His blessings on all of us as He has been doing so far. Jai Guruji!
B. D. Jethra, Former Advisor, Planning Commission
April 2008