Padmamma Comes to Kotagiri
April 26, 1999
Kotagiri
Dear Parents.
My good friend Padmamma (daughter of N. Kasturi) from Prasanthi Nilayam came on the 16th and will leave on the 29th. I’ve been busy with her, running around! You know how I don’t like seeing the sights, but to show her, I had to travel.
First, we went on an “excursion” with school children (the 9th graders) seeing the highest point in South India and ‘Fun City’, an amusement park (only a slow Ferris wheel and a few slow and small mini-train type rides). The kids were frightened to ride on these boring rides!! I remembered the fun roller coasters in USA – thanks for taking me there as a kid!
Then one day both of us went on the bus to Ooty – we saw a botanical garden (mostly a green-grass park, only with benches and a few flowers every few hundred feet) and a lake (there she treated me to an ice-cream, Kit-Kat and car video-games).
The weather has stayed steady at 70, going to 66 at night and 74 hot part of the day. But for three days there was a cyclone with cold winds and rains. On that day, inside temp dropped to a freezing 60! Padmamma jokes that the thermometer is a ‘sthithi prajna’ (equal minded in all situations, as described in the Bhagavad Gita), as it seems to always remain steady at 20 degrees Celsius, day and night!
It seems the Hyderabad billionaires are coming in a group of 11 members (family) on 5th May, and 9 of them will stay one month! I can foresee that Jnaneswari will be busy with them day and night. Never mind, the cave is there for me. Now that Susheela has given up the Mouna Swami, she is not meditating so much, and doesn’t go to the cave for meditation at all.
I learned Swami’s news from Padmamma: it seems that He went to Puttaparthi on 5th April for three hours only, to do groundbreaking ceremony for railroad in Parthi. Then He went to Kodai Kanal on 22nd May.
No computer here. Someone gave a donation for the school here to buy a typewriter. What a waste of money! It is two tons heavy, big as an elephant, and needs an Olympic weight lifter to punch the keys – all for a whopping Rs 12,000 (about $300)! Probably enough for a word processor & printer!
Loka Samastha Sukhino Bhavantu.
Love,
Divya
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Jokingly Unimportant
May 5, 1999
Kotagiri
Dear Parents,
Padmamma left on the 29th – again I journeyed out to Ooty with her to put her safely on the Bangalore bus (9 hours away). Karma of being on the move lately!
When Padmamma was here we went to church on Sunday. It was nice, with combo of a nice-sounding preacher (beautiful voice) talking a few sentences, then music & song with a beat, where all joined. Sounded like they had either a Casio or an electric drum set! Cinema-like beat, with songs praising Jesus & Mary in their mother tongue, Tamil.
Did I tell you that even doing all Swami Omkar’s work, I feel it is all jokingly unimportant. Thinking of the vastness of all the planets in the universe, all works of ages past – what has survived - all I'm doing seems only a lame excuse to pass the time. Important is to only recognize that all are parts of God, no one separate from His Shakti. So, better not to hurt anyone and give what little joy we can, to anyone who comes to us.
Here all is busy and noisy indeed, with all the people. The guests are in the two bedrooms, only I'm in the middle! Everyone else were all sent to another private room in another building. As soon as the Hyderabad people came, all the children came & immediately plopped & sat on my bed, to watch me write this! (One girl 2nd grade, the other girl & two boys high school). I kept calm & accepting, inwardly planning to spend more time in the cave!
Today it also rained. Now it is 9:30 PM (everyone else is having dinner in the dining hall – but I only take water after my lunch at 2:30 PM). The temperature is a freezing 64 degrees! Now into my cozy friendly sleeping bag!
Love,
Divya
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Struck Down with Fever
May 14, 1999
Kotagiri
Dear Anand,
Divya conveys her namaskars. Thanks for sending the photos & videos! We are sharing in your joy of the spiritually inspiring trip! Although most saints try and try again to emphasize that true sadhana and spiritual progress consists in surrendering to His will and seeing all as Him, it is strange indeed that most devotees get entangled in rituals and develop non-tolerance instead! We cannot do anything about it, as it is all in HIS hands!
Here I am fine but as soon as I mailed a letter to both of you a few days ago, I was struck down with fever. The bug is going around here and many devotees are catching it. For three days I was bedridden with 101.4. Then another three days with great weakness. Just today I got up & was sunning on the bench outside when the postman gave me your parcel. That got me recovered & energetic fast!
Here it is freezing & cloudy & rainy, though the thermometer hardly budges away from 70.
Here the Hyderabad kids are causing great noise from 6 AM till 11 PM. Jnaneswari can only say, “You have to adjust!” Yes, surrender to God! Even with fever & jarred nerves!
All for now! OM! OM! OM!
Love,
Divya
YOU ARE READING
Letters from Shanti Ashram, India
SpiritualI lived in India from 1984-2005, and wrote to my parents regularly about my adventures in Indian ashrams. From 1984-1993 and again 2001-2005, I was living in Puttaparthi, Andhra Pradesh, and I am adding all of those my "Letters from India" book, whi...
